Office Mobility Blog

Complete with Exchange ActiveSync from DataViz

At MWC in February, Sony Ericsson went public with their new G-series devices, namely the G700 and G900. These smartphones touchscreen organizers come complete with a 2.4 inch touchscreen display and a standard offering of smartphone ‘features’ (camera, Bluetooth, web browser, Exchange ActiveSync push email, etc.). They also offer a 'sticky note' app that lets you jot notes quickly (a definate advantage of going touchscreen). The G900 adds a better camera and wifi.

Expect these devices on the market in Q2 of this year. Check out the links below for reviews and a video clip of the organizers in action!

G700 & G900 on YouTube [IntoMobile]

Hands-on w/ the G900 [EngadgetMobile]

G700 Preview [GSMArena]

Posted by Jason Coup at 01:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

And Microsoft Publishes DataViz Case Study

Apple’s recent announcement that they’ve licensed Microsoft’s Exchange ActiveSync protocol for the iPhone has brought Exchange ActiveSync to the forefront of the mobile email discussion again. Many industry insiders such as Changewave’s Michael Shulman (who was recently interviewed on Fox Business with our CEO Dick Fontana) feel that this is going to turn the US enterprise smartphone battle in the into a two man race. In their discussion about the iPhone SDK announcement Shulman shared the following comments:

“The big news is push email, which is the heart of what a BlackBerry is. [Apple is] taking dead aim at the BlackBerry user and the corporate market.” ... “This sets up a world…where all other players are irrelevant. It’s the iPhone against the BlackBerry.”

While we may never know the exact details of how this licensing agreement between Microsoft and Apple came to be, the Exchange Team at Microsoft did shed a little light on the agreement and features in a recent post on the Exchange Team Blog.

As one of the few companies (and the first software vendor) to license the ActiveSync protocol, DataViz has some experience in this arena. In fact, Microsoft recently added a DataViz case study to their website which chronicles a bit of the process leading up to the licensing agreement. The case study also discusses what DataViz has been able to do as a result of the agreement, namely the creation of RoadSync: an ActiveSync client now available for 6 mobile platforms and well over 100 different mobile devices.

So, in the course of the coming months, Apple will be patching a corporate ‘hole’ in the iPhone by adding enterprise email, and RIM will be patching a corporate ‘hole’ in the BlackBerry by adding attachment editing via Documents To Go. Should be an interesting race, but I wouldn’t count the other players in the smartphone market out yet. We’ll have to wait and see if Windows Mobile, Palm, or any others make their own new play at the corporate smartphone market.

Microsoft - Case Study: DataViz

YouTube - DataViz Channel

Posted by Jason Coup at 04:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Will Apple open the door?

Earlier today CEO of DataViz, Inc., Dick Fontana, appeared on Fox Business Network to share his thoughts about the recently announced iPhone software development kit (SDK) and developing applications (such as the popular Microsoft Office suite, Documents To Go) for this platform.

With many other mobile device platforms, such as Palm and Windows Mobile, a software company like DataViz is free to develop at will as the software can be marketed through a variety of channels. Based on yesterday's announcement from Apple, it seems things may be a bit different for the iPhone:

"The fact that there's one path bringing software to the device means that we have to go to the keepers of that path..."

While some may consider this a negative, DataViz has a long relationship with Apple which gives Dick reason to be optimistic about the opportunities for DataViz with the iPhone:

"We were one of the first developers for the Macintosh in 1984 and they [Apple] have always proven to be good business partners... We have every reason to believe that the path will be open for us."

You can see all of Dick's comments at the DataViz Channel on YouTube.

Posted by Jason Coup at 01:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Friday March 7th at 10:45AM

Later this morning Dick Fontana (CEO, DataViz, Inc.) will be doing a live interview on the Fox Business Network. Topics may include the recent advancements to Documents To Go such as the revolutionary InTact Technology and discussion of DataViz future plans. On the heels of Apple's iPhone SDK news yesterday, the 'will you develop Documents To Go for the iPhone' question is bound to come up.

You can see this interview at 10:45am EST on channel 106 if you're a Comcast subscriber and channel 359 on DirecTV. For other providers, check your local listings.

Check back later for a post-interview recap.

Posted by Jason Coup at 09:51 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Affordable way to manage your social life and work life.

It’s been well documented that Palm’s marketshare has been declining over the past few years as RIM/BlackBerry and Windows Mobile have taken a more dominant chunk of the US smartphone market. However, the market for smartphones has been extending into some uncharted areas of late as devices become more powerful and more affordable at the same time.

Palm seems to be capitalizing on this trend, along with the recent strides in social media, by targeting their new Palm Centro to a younger crowd. While we have seen several smart devices at a similar price point ($99 w/ contract) I don’t recall seeing many so clearly targeted at a younger audience. Their messaging and ads focus on the social, ‘web 2.0-ish’ uses of a smartphone and this mentality extends to the included software and design as well. Apps for IM/text, music, pictures, video, web browsing as well as some vibrant color options will certainly help reign in the high school/college demographic.

While they may be focusing mostly on the younger audience, the Centro is certainly a viable solution for the price sensitive corporate user, too. The QWERTY keyboard, inclusion of DataViz Documents To Go and the plethora of third party apps available for Palm OS make this an affordable enterprise phone as well. Palm takes some hits from time to time for their aging OS, but there are a lot of people who have experience with other Palm devices will surely appreciate having little to no learning curve.

The Centro has been available through Sprint for a few months and was added to AT&T lineup last week. There are plenty of reviews out there so we’re not going to reinvent the wheel. Here are a few good reviews to take a look at:

Engadget - Palm Centro Review
PalmInfoCenter - AT&T Palm Centro Now Available
Treonauts - Palm Centro Review

If you own a Centro, make sure you’ve registered your copy of Documents To Go and take a look at the free 30 day demo of the Premium Edition!

Posted by Jason Coup at 04:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)