Blackberry for very small company

[blackberrytek]

Originally Posted by tmd04020

Ever consider using Google Apps?

I would use the google sync apps and the google mail. You can get mail with specified Domain names through Google as well. I actually was in the process of writing an how to on setting something like this up and selling the setup with new blackberry's which I had access to at the time. Its a great idea for a company who does not want to pay for BES support or using Blackberry Specified software at all.

blackberrytek

[george99]

Originally Posted by blackberrytek

I would use the google sync apps and the google mail. You can get mail with specified Domain names through Google as well. I actually was in the process of writing an how to on setting something like this up and selling the setup with new blackberry's which I had access to at the time. Its a great idea for a company who does not want to pay for BES support or using Blackberry Specified software at all.

blackberrytek

Man I wish RIM made a Windows Mobile device. Easy Sync directly to an exchange server without all the BIS, BES, and BS.

Either way, I am using a Bold, which I really like, but I travel overseas a lot, and I use a local SIM card when I am overseas, but in order to use BES, I need to sign a 2 year deal for the BES, when I only really need it for a couple of weeks.

I am going overseas next month, so I looked for a few solutions. Blackberry Professional Software is rediculous. They advertise it like it is a simple great solution for small companies, but it isn't so easy and it isn't free.

I installed notifysync last night, but it was bad. First of all it reduced my battery life from 2 days to 2 hours. It is CONSTANTLY using the data connection for syncing. I keep seeing BB hourglass icon indicating the device is busy. It only lasts a few seconds, but it is very annoying.
Also, it erased my contacts, which it warned me about first, but it also created havoc when I tried to re-enter my contacts.
So I uninstalled it.

Now I am thinking about Astrasync, but I wanted to hear feedback from people here. Does it have the same issues as notifysync?

My other alternative is that when I travel overseas, I can just use my Palm Pro which is currently collecting dust in my closet. I can't stand its keyboard, but at least I don't need all the RIM BS. Activesync is much better and easier. I don't have major corporate secrets that I need to guard the way I see that some people have here. I just need to have my emails, contacts, and calendars synced. Why can't RIM make something for the simple people? I love the hardware, but the software is really annoying.

Any suggestions?

[Turk54]

We too have run into the same situation and don't have an answer for you. We have looked into both AstraSync and NotifySync and have discounted both for a variety of reasons. We have also tried Google 's sync products, but then you are creating a third wheel to solve your issue and there were some issues with Calendar sync'ing of Outlook meetings that caused things to get hosed. The simple solution is to have RIM create and support an ActiveSync client for those users like us! There was a no cost solution for a single individual which is/was called the Professional Express (or something like that) which was a single user version of BPS available for free download. Additional CAL's can be purchased for additional users if need be. The big downside of this is that there is no HTML support and that there will be no future enhancements to this product, but last I checked it was still available to download from the Blackberry website. Good luck, and let me know if you have found a solution since this is a problem for us as well.

[george99]

Thanks for the tip. I actually looked for the express thing, but I couldn't find it exactly. It seemed like I had to install a whole thing in on the server.

[Turk54]

I believe that you can go to BlackBerry - BlackBerry Professional Software Express and download the BPS Express software. This is loaded onto your exchange server and is a singlue user BPS. Our network admin guy that our company uses has installed this and BPS on several client sites and he says it works flawlessly. As I said previously, our company is picky about wanting HTML email, etc. and have chosen not to install this at this time, but we have seen it work.

[boiseit]

I use BPS for my small business (4 Blackberrys) and a client of mine who has 7 units on it. If you can tolerate the No HTML email issue it is perfect. Never have had one single issue in 6 months of utilization.

[Turk54]

BoiseIT - Thanks for the recommendation of BPS. I believe that we will bite the bullet and have me as the guinea pig to test BPS as a last ditch effort. We will probably install the BPS Express version (free one user CAL) and let me have at it. I have several questions about this however before we install. I didn't know if I could PM you to ask them directly of you or not? Let me know, thanks.

[ajfitzer]

I saw the posts on here, and wanted to see if anyone can lend me a hand. I have my own recruitment practice, and have been in business for about 7 years now. I have gone from pop3, to exchange hosted, to my current setup exchange hosted with BES. I pay about $30/month for 2 users and the BES.

Like so many others, I am looking to cutback on certain costs. I was able to reduce my web hosting cost by about 1/2 this month, but have been looking for a better e-mail option. The other evening I was watching my wife on her laptop, and caught a glimpse of google apps. Her school recently moved the whole district onto google apps. The e-mail setup looked solid, as did the calendar sync. The more I have been reading, the more I realize I am paying for more than I will ever use, and perhaps google aps would be a solid option for me.

I want to set up google apps professional for my business with 2 users, postini filtering service, using outlook, and synching it all with my Blackberry. Even though I am relatively technical, as I have no IT person, this seems beyond what I am comfortable doing myself (changing DNS records, trying not to lose any of my current e-mails, tweeking my blackberry settings, etc). I was hoping someone could help me, walk with me through this process. Google has great documentation, but I work better when I have a little first hand guidance. I would certainly be willing to compensate for someones time. If your interested in helping, I could really use it and look forward to hearing from you.

Best Regards,
Adam

[Tiassa]

sent you a PM. Let me know what you think.

[ajfitzer]

Thanks guys. However, I was able to set up Google Apps Sync with some help, spent 2 hours on the phone with RIM as my IMAP settings were not completely correct, and had to totally upgrade my OS on my Blackberry as well. After some time and effort however, I was able to get PUSH EMAIL synch between my Blackberry and my Desktop Outlook, using Google Apps Synch on Desktop, and using the Gmail plug in on my Blackberry. I am still waiting for my 2nd user account to work however, as I had some issues with the synch as I had originally set it up for the wrong e-mail account. Google makes me wait 5 days for that to correct. Otherwise, it works like a charm.

On a side note, the RIM folks mentioned to me that the delay on the synching from the desktop to the Blackberry has to do with them making NEW e-mails a priority versus updating old ones. This means that when I delete an e-mail on my desktop, it takes a bit for it to delete on my blackberry. However, when I delete an e-mail on my blackberry, it deletes on my desktop within seconds! I was told their is a big push at RIM right now to resolve this time lag, by making the older e-mails more of a priority. This could be resolved over the next few months. I will say the gmail plug in rocks too. I get a ton of spam even with postini filtering, so having the REPORT SPAM feature on my blackberry is really handy.

Fitz