Blackberry Connect Now in Final Beta!
Finally! Like many I was beginning to think that Blackberry Connect on our Treo was nothing more that bad hype but now I can tell you that it's real, that it's in final beta (still no ETA for full release) and that it looks pretty cool from the little time that I had to play around with it. I hope to provide you with an update on this a litlle later though...
Treonauts can't wait to BB Connect... 
Our 3GSM coverage is made possible thanks to the kind support of MMPlayer, SplashData and Pocket Tunes.
Comments
Lets hope it comes soon I am tired of carrying both BB and Treo, any idea how one gets to be a Beta tester
LOL
Will it support any and all blackberry enterprise installation or will we need to get IT to set it up for us?
Any reason to believe this app *won't* be made available for the Treo 600?
At the risk of sounding like "me too", lemmie just say "me too" If there is anyway to get it onto my T600 asap, I'm in!
Do you know what versions of BES its compatible with? Is it an implementation of 4.0? 3.6?
"GoodLink manages to out-Blackberry the Blackberry." The Economist, May 2004
If you want The Palm Treo 600/650 today you want to use GoodLink.
Industry Standards
GoodLink™ 4.0 supports the handhelds and mobile platforms that enterprises want. Today, we’re focused on the Treo and Pocket PC handheld and Nokia products on the Symbian platform. All of these are based on industry standards
Good for Enterprises
Industry-standard compatibility with multiple handhelds, platforms, and carriers
Low TCO due to secure OTA software management and zero-desktop installation
Enterprise-class security with AES encryption and remote erase capability
Role-based administration for reduced IT support costs and increased security
Increased IT efficiency with centralized fleet management and monitoring
Increased user productivity—since handhelds can be wirelessly updated and maintained
Support for Hosted Exchange allows small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs) to use GoodLink via their hosted Exchange provider
Familiar Outlook-like visual experience on the most popular new Palm OS and Windows Mobile handhelds
Cradle-free, true push wireless synchronization between the handheld and the desktop keeps information up-to-date
Rich attachment viewing and editing (including Word, Excel, PDF, and PowerPoint®) let users:
Project PowerPoint presentations directly from their handheld
Receive faxes in TIFF format
Print documents from their smartphone
Increased efficiency with the ability to multi-task between applications
Worldwide coverage on any carrier in the world
If you want to know more about GoodLink on the Treo 600/650 and why it is killing BlackBerry contact [email protected]
Or you could wait till BlackBerry get out of Beta (still no ETA for full release)on the Treo.
What the Press have to say about GoodLink:
"GoodLink manages to out-Blackberry the Blackberry." The Economist, May 2004
"Good Link's server based email is more convenient and secure than PC-based services." Business Week, September 2004
"Law firms dump Blackberry for Good." Network World Fusion, August 2003
"It's like having your desktop in a handheld." Business Week, September 2004
goodlink = $400 plus $20/month with hosted exchange provider (I don't imagine it's any cheaper to own)
blackberry = $10/month period with hosted exchange provider.
I'd love to get goodlink - but they need a clue on pricing strategy. That's ok though, as it seems soon they won't need to be in business
GoodLink is AWESOME but really expensive.
Good product, high price. Thats life :(
I'm losing my Good since my IT dept won't pay for it on my Treo 650.
Anyone know if BB Connect manages the calendar? I've heard rumors that its only email..
Treo + Blackberry = A long long wait for a working Blackberry on Treo you can trust
Love the BB koolaid. TCO on Goodlink from a total deployment perspective destroys BB. Costs are very similar in the enterprise markets.
"Love the BB koolaid. TCO on Goodlink from a total deployment perspective destroys BB. Costs are very similar in the enterprise markets."
Actually you're wrong. We run both systems internally and I can tell you that the TCO for Good is much much higher than BlackBerry, by a _long_ shot. The Good client is very capable but it's not without drawbacks. You can't do ad hoc global directory lookups which has turned a lot of people off and while the web browser is very good you can't get to internal (read: intranet) web sites without spending a lot more $$$ for yet another server and software package. (Functionality that comes for free with BES)
As for the BB Connect client I wouldn't expect miracles. We've looked closely at BB Connect on mulitple devices over the past two years and to be blunt they've all been very poor implementations. Perhaps PalmOne will surprise us and I hope they do, but I'm not holding out hope. Functionality on BB Connect has disappointingly trailed full BB functionality. If you'd never used a mobile middleware solution you'd think it was acceptable but if you'd ever used a real BlackBerry (or GoodLink) you'd be sorely disappointed.
As for the person who indicates Good is "killing" BlackBerry, I'd be surprised if that were true. We deploy 140 BlackBerries for every 1 Good device and from talking to my peers in the industry we're not alone. The 7100 series took the air right out of Treo 600 deployments. We're seeing an uptick in interest again with the release of the GSM version of the 650, but it's too early to tell if that movement has legs or not.
I agree Goodlink is nuts they have a great product but there price per device is so far from reality i'm not sure what to say. To make matters worse their idiotic subcription based model meaning you'll have to spend about $300 per device per year to use their service. on top of your provider cost.
We may deploy this year simply to make a few users who want treo's happy but after that we're done. Esp w/ native active sync support and blackberry entering the market.
who know's maby Goodlink's pricing is a last ditch effort to save the company. Their done in 2 years.
Hmm the old Blackberry versus Good debate. I hear Blackberry pricing is due to go up soon to pay for their R&D. And they reckon v4.0 is really unstable and buggy. Having done some thorough researcg I'll be recommending my IT department implement Good. If you want the best you expect to pay slightly higher prices. It's like getting a BMW rather than a Ford. Yes they're both cars but think of what they do for your lifestyle - that's where the difference lies.
GoodLink is the future. That guy who said Blackberry is dead is oh so right.
We did a thorough cost benefit analysis of all available products/solutions (Rim, Good, Open-hand etc) and Good still came out on top for price and features and of course you can't beat the open standards. We've rolled out Good to 1400 of our consultants and no complaints yet.
I doubt very much Good will be dead in two years. I heard they'll float at the beginning of the next FY. And have you seen their client list - very impressive.
Not Bad Client list for GoodLink
Visa
"Security is top concern when the IT team evaluates new products. VISA chose GoodLink because it delivers the highest level of security."
Buckingham, Doolittle & Burroughs, LLP
"Our firm looked at many options before selecting GoodLink—this unit gives us the ability to be mobile, yet effectively stay in touch with our office and retrieve and send data securely and efficiently," said Nicholas T. George, President and CEO of Buckingham, Doolittle & Burroughs, LLP. "Technology enhancements like the GoodLink, help us to exceed client expectations and keep in touch 24/7."
Silicon Valley Bank
"Silicon Valley Bank strives to provide the best possible customer service to clients so we deployed GoodLink to our managers to improve customer response time. For these users, instant access to Email is a necessity, so they love the completely synchronized wireless connection to corporate Email and information—especially the attachments—with no cradling required," said Rebekah Westlake, information technology manager at Silicon Valley Bank. "In addition, Good Technology provides excellent customer service and some of the best support representatives that I have dealt with during my career in IT."
VeriSign
"VeriSign selected and deployed Good Technology's wireless corporate messaging and data system for our mobile users because GoodLink is the only wireless system that meets our stringent security requirements, even when transmitting data over a wireless network," said Mahi De Silva, Vice President of Corporate Technology Strategies at VeriSign, Inc. "GoodLink's advanced security technology to ensure an encrypted communication from end to end, between the synchronizing server behind the firewall and the wireless handheld. The true next-generation of wireless security infrastructure."
ADT
"ADT needed a wireless Email solution that delivered immediate benefits to our employees without any barriers like long implementation, high costs, or heavy user training," said Dean Seavers, SVP of Operations at ADT Security. "GoodLink Edition delivers an easy-to-use solution that allows our employees to stay in constant contact with their Email inboxes, contact lists, and calendars—without requiring significant investment from our IT team."
Dell
"By offering a standards-based wireless system that supports multiple platforms, networks and devices, we are providing tremendous value and maximum flexibility for customer choice now and in the future," said John Medica, senior vice president of Dell's Product Group. "The GoodLink messaging products enable our customers to have access to the information that's important to them whenever and wherever they happen to be."
We obviously touched upon a sensitive issue here...
Following contacts made with Good and BlackBerry at 3GSM I hope to be able to test both solutions within the next couple of weeks.
I am curious to hear about people (like Natty above) involved in large scale Good and BB enterprise deployments (on or off the record) to get a better idea of what the issues are. Please email me at treonauts(at)pobox.com.
Also, Natty, when you mention 1,400 consultants with Good are they all using Treo's? Is this your/their preferred device?
Cheers, A.
Correction: I got too fast on the trigger there, our actual ratio is 14:1, not 140 to 1! Mea Culpa
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