Blackberry phones are everywhere, and yet getting email to them is not as simple as one thinks. There are 5 primary ways of doing so, which we'll outline here, and a total of 6 ways.
First question is does the user's organization use a Microsoft Exchange server?
1. If so, then they may have a Blackberry Enterprise Server already. If not, and want to utilize this method, approximately $4500 of server hardware, software and configuration are needed. More details about this later, as most people don't bite at this option. An alternative for some organizations is utilizing a Hosted Exchange solution, as indicated in option 4 below.
2. The most common option is the Blackberry Internet Service (BIS). This method allows the phone to get mail from a POP server. Pros: simple. Cons: Not a true sync - mail will go to both phone and the user's inbox. Also, if Outlook is used, then items like Contacts, Calendar, and tasks are synced manually using a cable. Please note, there are 2 implementation methods for BIS. The default is a "pull" method and the other is a "push" method which we find works much better.
3. BES without Exchange Server - the pc is left on, Outlook is up, and the Blackberry Desktop Redirector is used to forward mail back and forth. Pros: Inbox and Sent are synced between the phone and Outlook client. Pros: relatively simple. Cons: attachments in email are not viewable.
4. Hosted Exchange and BES - many third party firms offer monthly access to a BES server for approximately $12-$30 per month, overcoming the high initial costs of the first method listed. A proper BES server like this will perfectly sync all Outlook elements; however you have to transition to hosted Exchange (putting all your data up on a site) and living within the size constraints (often a max of 2 gigs of Outlook storage there).
5. Other Application: like Versamail of old, there are separate apps which you can setup to read mail into. Usually this is a pull method to pull mail from a POP server.
Overall, some consultation is recommended to discuss the details of what the user has and which of the above methods might work best.
Allen can be reached at 949-294-9544
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