Best Buy Mobile let me know about a new service they are launching on October 12th called mIQ. This service allows you to access, share and manage mobile data through a secure and personal Web portal, all done over the air!

Key Features

• Data backup & management: Upgrading to a new phone used to be a hassle. With mIQ, all content that lives on the mobile device — contacts, text messages, calendar events, calls, photos, videos, and voicemail messages — is automatically uploaded and safely backed-up on a personal Web-based mIQ account making it easy to sync, search, interact with, share it or transfer it from one phone to another. Since the mobile phone is constantly connected to the Web, mIQ automatically syncs any changes from the Web to the mobile device and vice-versa, instantly.
• Contacts: mIQ helps users easily manage and track the communication with all their contacts. Contacts from Gmail, Yahoo, Outlook, and other sources can be imported into the mIQ account and synchronized with the mobile phone. Users can then add, edit, or delete contacts from the personal mIQ account – the changes will be instantly pushed to the mobile phone and backed up on the web. Additionally, mIQ enables users to easily view text messages and calls associated with each contact.
• Enhanced text messaging: The mIQ Web platform provides an instant message-like experience by organizing SMS text messages into a conversational format. mIQ automatically uploads text messages to an inbox in the personal mIQ account where they can be read, forwarded, or responded to from any computer. Unlike other Web messaging solutions that deliver texts from random phone numbers, mIQ sends the text messages through the user’s mobile phone, ensuring that the recipient will always know who the message is from.
• Calendar: Instant access to appointments and events is important whether sitting in front of a computer or on the go. mIQ automatically uploads appointments and events from the phone calendar to the Web. Users can then add, edit, or delete calendar entries from either the mobile phone or the mIQ account and changes are automatically synched between the two platforms.
• Photos and videos: mIQ enables users to do more with the memories captured with their smartphones. mIQ automatically uploads photos and videos from the mobile phone to the personal mIQ account – as soon as they are taken – making it easy to organize them by adding titles and descriptions, share them through email and text messages and post them to social networking sites.
• Social media connectivity: Social networking on mobile devices has taken connectivity to a whole new level. Updating friends on the latest happenings no longer requires a trip to the computer. mIQ features instant connectivity to popular social sites like Facebook, Flickr, FriendFeed and Twitter, helping users share their mobile experiences – status, photos and videos – directly from their smartphone, wherever they may be.

Pretty awesome and best of all…it’s FREE!

Right now you can sign up for an invite and take a tour of this service at miqlive.com. For more info check out the press release after the jump. Once the service launches don’t forget to leave your thoughts in the comments!

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Earlier this morning RIM rolled out BlackBerry Internet Service (BIS) version 2.8 to all North American carriers. This update includes some features and enhancements that many of us have been waiting for:

• Two-way wireless synchronization [every four hours] with Google Mail Contacts and the Address Book on the BlackBerry smart phone:
  • Synchronize Google Mail contacts quickly and easily to the BlackBerry smart phone
  • Add or edit Contacts and the Contacts are automatically updated, whether they are updated on the computer or BlackBerry smart phone
  • Note: Two-way wireless Contact synchronization with Google Mail Contacts requires BlackBerry® Device Software 5.0 and configuration through email settings on the BlackBerry smart phone.  Additional requirements and constraints may be found within the BlackBerry Internet Service 2.8 Documentation Kit. This feature is not supported on BlackBerry smart phones with BlackBerry® Connect™ software.
• Enhancements to email setup and settings:
  • Automatic Login now supports most billing identifiers, which allows new subscribers with wireless service providers that use PIN, IMEI, or ESN as a billing identifier to create BlackBerry Internet Service accounts from the BlackBerry smart phone, without having to create a login user name and password
  • Note: This feature will be available approximately one week after the BlackBerry Internet Service upgrade.
• Windows Live Hotmail revalidation:
  • With BlackBerry Internet Service 2.8, new Windows Live Hotmail mail integrations will be defaulted to a protocol that is designed so as not to require 90 day reauthorization.
  • Note: Existing BlackBerry smart phone users accessing Windows Live Hotmail using Microsoft MSP will still be required to revalidate their Windows Live Hotmail account every 90 days.

The roll out seems to have gone smoothly for the most part. Did you experience an outage in your area or had to re-add/validate your email accounts after the update? How about the features, are you satisfied with them or would you like to see some more enhancements in the future? Let me know in the comments!

via BGR

Earlier this year I mentioned the HulloMail visual voicemail service and how some T-Mobile UK customers were petitioning for T-Mobile UK to stop divert charges just because they didn’t want to use their default voicemail. T-Mobile UK was probably charging their customers for using services like HulloMail because they want them to keep using their own service, but default carrier voicemail is very inadequate when it comes to features and ease of use.

That’s why there are services like HulloMail and YouMail (one of the first visual voicemail services). These services allow us to do more with our voicemail rather than just calling in, listening to annoying prompts and then our voicemails.

• HulloMail lets you:
  • Receive and play voice-emails directly in your inbox, mobile and the web
  • Get notified of any missed call, even in areas with no mobile reception
  • Take control of your voice-emails – it’s up to you, not the operator
  • Share, delete and keep your voice-emails forever, within a click
  • See who’s calling you instantly from your email contacts
  • Access, view, and manage your voice-emails, all from one place
• The HulloMail mobile application also gives you:
  • One click access to all your voice-emails
  • An enhanced single view of your voice-emails
  • Embedded rich contact information from your phone or your Gmail contacts

The HulloMail visual voicemail app is available for the Curve 8900, Bold 9000 and Tour 9630 with support for other models coming soon. To download it directly to your BlackBerry visit hullomail.com from your BlackBerry Browser for “early access”. Both the web service and app are available free.

More info in the full press release after the jump.

(If you’ve used YouMail and try HulloMail, let me know which you think is best in the comments!)

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RIM has announced via their BlackBerry Support Forums that the Enhanced Google Mail Plug-in for BlackBerry is now available!

The Enhanced Google Mail™ plug-in for BlackBerry® smartphones introduces an advanced level of email service integration for BlackBerry smartphones. It supports additional Google Mail™ features that provide BlackBerry® Internet Service subscribers with broader access to their Google Mail accounts while on the go.  The Enhanced Google Mail plug-in is optional. Existing and new Google Mail integrations will continue to function without it.

Features:

• Add and remove labels and stars on email messages
• Report spam email messages
• Perform local and remote searches
• Archive email messages
• View related email messages as a single conversation (threaded view)

Synchronization only happens from your BlackBerry to your Google Mail account, meaning some changes made through your Google Mail account won’t sync to your BlackBerry. Your BlackBerry must be running at least OS 4.5 (get your latest OS here) in order to download the Enhanced Google Mail plug-in, and your Google Mail account must be associated with BlackBerry Internet Service (BIS) through your carrier.

Once you associate your Google Mail account you will receive a PIN with instructions on how to download the plug-in. If you already have your Google Mail accounts associated with your BIS you will need to re-associate them. In addition, your Google Mail account must have IMAP enabled, not POP. Detailed info available in the following RIM Knowledge Base articles:

• System requirements and installation of the Enhanced Google Mail plug-in
• Features of the Enhanced Google Mail plug-in
• Limitations of the Enhanced Google Mail plug-in
• How to associate email accounts with the BlackBerry Internet Service
• How to remove an integrated email address from the BlackBerry Internet Service

Let me know how this works for you in the comments!

Google has just officially announced that the Google Apps Connector for BlackBerry Enterprise Server is now available!

A weeks ago I mentioned that Google had updated the ETA for the Google Apps Connector and it looks like they just made it. Here’s an updated feature list:

• Messages sent to your Gmail inbox are pushed to your BlackBerry within 60 seconds.
• Emails read/deleted on your BlackBerry are marked as read/deleted in Gmail, and vice-versa.
• Emails archived/starred on your BlackBerry are archived/starred in Gmail, and vice-versa.
• BlackBerry folders are synchronized with labels in Gmail.
• You can search for contact information of coworkers from the global address list on your BlackBerry.
• Contacts in Gmail are automatically synchronized with your BlackBerry address book.
• You can view your Google Calendar schedule with the native BlackBerry application, with one-way synchronization from Google Calendar to your BlackBerry device. Two-way calendar sync with the ability to accept, decline and schedule meetings from your BlackBerry device is not available with this release but we are working on it.
• Administrators can use the management and security tools that are part of BlackBerry Enterprise Server.

Google Apps Premier and Education Edition customers worldwide can get this feature free of charge by downloading  the Google Apps Connector for BlackBerry Enterprise Server.

For more info about the mobile options for Google Apps visit www.google.com/apps/mobile.

Well the announced July 2009 launch date for the Google Apps Connector for BlackBerry Enterprise Server has already passed and it looks like Google has updated the ETA for August 2009, less than a month away!

A recap on the features:

• Messages sent to your Gmail inbox are pushed to your BlackBerry within 60 seconds.
• Emails read/deleted on your BlackBerry are marked as read/deleted in Gmail, and vice-versa.
• Synchronize BlackBerry folders with labels in Gmail.
• Search for email addresses and phone numbers of other users on your company domain.
• View your Google Calendar schedule on your native BlackBerry application, with one-way synchronization from Google Calendar to your BlackBerry device.
• Contacts in Gmail are automatically synchronized with your BlackBerry address book.

So far it looks like the only thing that was changed at the product page was the ETA date, everything else looks pretty much the same.

If you are interested you can contact an Apps sales rep, or visit the Google Apps Connector page for more info and screenshots.

If I missed something or you know more about the development of the Google Apps Connector feel free to mention it in the comments!

Sharpcast Inc’s SugarSync application is getting some new features which allow it to be more interactive and social. SugarSync users will have improved folder sharing capabilities allowing them to easily collaborate with anyone in their Gmail, Hotmail, AOL or Yahoo Mail contact lists.

With this product release SugarSync will also be improving its industry-leading mobile offering, which includes free applications for BlackBerry, Apple iPhone, iPod Touch and Windows Mobile platforms. Updates to the mobile service include an enhanced BlackBerry interface allowing easy navigation of large folders and account registration and full support for shared folders on all Windows Mobile devices.

In addition to these new features SugarSync users will be able increase the size of their accounts for free by referring someone to open an account. Users can add as many as 10 GB per referral, which can be accomplished by sharing a SugarSync folder with them or by sending an invitation through Facebook or Twitter.

You can download SugarSync OTA at m.sugarsync.com or visit the main site for more info. SugarSync also offers a free 2GB plan which you can read more about here.

Full press release after the jump.

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Soon BlackBerry owners on BES will  be able to experience Google Apps through the new Google Apps Connector for BlackBerry Enterprise Server.

Features:

• Messages sent to your Gmail inbox are pushed to your BlackBerry within 60 seconds.
• Emails read/deleted on your BlackBerry are marked as read/deleted in Gmail, and vice-versa.
• Synchronize BlackBerry folders with labels in Gmail.
• Search for email addresses and phone numbers of other users on your company domain.
• View your Google Calendar schedule on your native BlackBerry application, with one-way synchronization from Google Calendar to your BlackBerry device.
• Contacts in Gmail are automatically synchronized with your BlackBerry address book.

Google Apps Connector for BES is curretly in beta and will be available in Google Apps Premier Edition and Education Edition in July of 2009.

If you are interested you can contact an Apps sales rep, or visit the Google Apps page for the Google Apps Connector for more info and screenshots.

RIM completed its upgrade to BIS 2.6 in North America this morning. BIS 2.6 has a few nice fixes and optimizations that I’m sure you will all appreciate!

• Display of password characters
  • BlackBerry smartphone users have the option to display password characters when configuring email addresses with the BlackBerry Internet Service. This feature makes it easier for BlackBerry smartphone users to integrate third-party email addresses, especially when using a BlackBerry smartphone with the SureType® input method.
• Improved descriptive support and error messages
  • BlackBerry smartphone users that have integrated a third-party email account using Post Office Protocol (POP) receive a personal identification number (PIN) message that includes instructions on how to leave email messages on the messaging server for successful delivery to the BlackBerry smartphone.
• Option to change signatures from the BlackBerry smartphone
  • BlackBerry smartphone users that use Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) automatic login can change the signatures for email messages using the BlackBerry smartphone.
• Improved language support
  • Dutch is now an available language for the BlackBerry Internet Service 2.6.
• Gmail integration using IMAP
  • BlackBerry Internet Service 2.6 uses Internet Message Access Protocol (IMAP) to integrate Gmail® webmail accounts. This integration protocol introduces the following benefits:
    • Elimination of sent email messages appearing as received email messages in the message list on the BlackBerry smartphone
    • One-way synchronization of read status, sent items, and deleted items.
  • To use these improvements, BlackBerry smartphone users must remove and reintegrate their Gmail webmail accounts.

According to BGR, before using IMAP Gmail you need to delete your account and then re-add it from the BIS admin.

It looks like every BlackBerry is supported, except for those on Verizon. Way to win the consumer’s heart, Verizon. Here’s why:

Verizon is the only carrier blocks LifeInPocket (and other 3rd party applications) access to BlackBerry internal GPS**, unless a “business agreement” is established. That means we will have to charge users for our services and split revenue with Verizon just like VZ Navigator ($9.99/month), SocialLife ($1.49/month), Chaperone ($9.99/month), WeatherBug($2.99/month), Wireless Sync Email ($19.99/month) etc. ———— While our preference is to offer our services to end users for free. ———— In order to do so, the alternative way is to use external Bluetooth GPS receivers just like Telenav’s $9.99/month service. More…

Some highlights from the press release:

• Building on the success in the one billion units per year Java phone market, RoadComm, Inc. today made available its LifeInPocket mobile suite, http://LifeInPocket.com to RIM’s BlackBerry smart phones.
• Free of charge, LifeInPocket will upgrade Blackberries with a greater array of functionality than the iPhone. Those features include GPS, navigation, location messaging, friends/family locator, and much more.
• Unlike iPhone’s limited sync capability, LifeInPocket™ enables address book sync/import/export with Yahoo, Gmail, MSN, Hotmail, Outlook Express, Palm Desktop, etc. Users can one-click on those synced contacts to “call”, to “mail” and to “navigate” via their phones.
• The only mobile application/services platform of its kind, LifeInPocket™ symbolizes the next generation of application and services that offers power of top of the line smart phones to regular cell phones and making smart phones smarter.

Read the full press release after the jump.

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