Cingular Wireless and Nokia today introduced to the U.S. marketplace the EDGE-powered Nokia 9300 business device with BlackBerry Connect. Cingular is the first U.S. carrier to launch the popular BlackBerry wireless services on a third-party handset via the BlackBerry Connect licensing program from Research In Motion (RIM). The Nokia 9300 will be available in the U.S. through Cingular Wireless beginning in November.
Corporate customers can now choose the Nokia 9300 business device as an option to use with the behind-the-firewall BlackBerry Enterprise Server, and individual and small business customers can use the Nokia 9300 with BlackBerry Connect to access popular Internet Service Provider (ISP) e-mail accounts through BlackBerry Internet Service.
In addition to offering the BlackBerry Connect e-mail solution, the Nokia 9300 device also is compatible with several third-party applications to provide individuals and businesses of all sizes with a comprehensive wireless solution operating on EDGE, the largest and fastest national wireless data network in America. EDGE is available in 13,000 cities and towns, and along more than 40,000 miles of major highways in the U.S.
The Cingular-enabled Nokia 9300 business device with BlackBerry Connect is designed for the mobile professional seeking a high-quality combination of PDA, phone and mobile email in a sleek, compact device. From a traditional handset on the outside, opening to a full keyboard on the inside for fast, efficient text and data input, the Nokia 9300 device offers a compelling voice and data experience. Further, it boasts a wide, brilliant, 65,536 color screen for a best-in-class HTML desktop-like web browsing experience.
The tri-band (850 / 1800 / 1900), Symbian OS-based Nokia 9300 device delivers the high-quality voice experience that customers have come to expect from the Nokia brand, with key calling features such as five-way conference call capability, an easy-to-use speaker phone and Bluetooth connectivity for use with an optional Bluetooth headset.
"The Nokia 9300 phone marks the convergence of two eagerly anticipated, business-focused wireless products - the Nokia 9300 and BlackBerry Connect - with Cingular's nationwide EDGE network, the largest and fastest national wireless data network in the U.S.," said Kent Mathy, president, Business Markets Group, Cingular's B2B organization. "By bringing all of these together, Cingular is offering a truly powerful tool and complete voice and data solution both to businesses and individual users."
"Our goals to grow the impact of mobility and be the mobile device of choice for the enterprise is an exciting opportunity that we look forward to achieving with the help of partners like Cingular Wireless and RIM," said Mary T. McDowell, executive vice president and general manager, Nokia Enterprise Solutions. "In a marketplace where many professionals carry more than one device - one for voice, one for data - the Nokia 9300 business device is a compelling alternative for companies ready to mobilize their employees with a single reliable, manageable, business optimized device."
"BlackBerry Connect is an important part of our global strategy to expand the reach of BlackBerry services and provide customers with a broader choice of handsets while maintaining the important benefits of the BlackBerry architecture, infrastructure and security model," said Mike Lazaridis, president and co-CEO at Research In Motion. "Together with Cingular and Nokia, we are providing customers with another powerful business solution that addresses the needs of both users and IT departments."
E-mail Access
BlackBerry Connect will enable the popular, push-based BlackBerry services initially on the Nokia 9300 for those users who want to access their e-mail and prefer the look, feel and features of the Nokia phone.
In conjunction with BlackBerry Enterprise Server, corporate users of Microsoft Exchange and Lotus Domino can have synchronized access to their corporate e-mail as well as calendar functions, remote address book lookup and attachment viewing capabilities in a secure environment. E-mail administrators also can take advantage of the BlackBerry Enterprise Server security features such as remote deletion of messaging data should a device be lost or stolen. Through BlackBerry Internet Service, individuals and small business customers can use the Nokia 9300 with BlackBerry Connect to receive e-mail automatically from up to 10 ISP e-mail accounts, including popular services such as AOL, Yahoo! and Comcast. Set-up for the individual solution is done easily via a Web-based set-up and configuration process that is started by clicking on an icon that is sent over-the-air to the Nokia 9300 desktop when the user activates BlackBerry Connect. Customers can choose to use the corporate solution or the individual solution, or both at the same time.
Cingular also will offer a second "push" e-mail service on the Nokia 9300 - Cingular Xpress Mail - that is targeted to individuals and small businesses that want to access work and personal e-mail. Available in Cingular retail stores and based on the popular e-mail platform from SEVEN, users have access to e-mail, calendar and contacts, and have the ability to view attachments. Cingular Xpress Mail supports Microsoft Outlook and Lotus Notes corporate e-mail, as well as popular POP3/IMAP personal e-mail accounts.
The Nokia 9300 from Cingular also will support Nokia Business Center announced earlier this month. The Nokia Business Center is a new software solution enabling collaborative business applications for the mobile world, starting with push e-mail. Available through accredited resellers, the Nokia Business Center brings mobile e-mail to the corporate masses, changing the economics of mobile email adoption so that employees at all levels can reap the rewards of virtually anytime, anywhere access to their corporate email on their mobile phones. Nokia Business Center complements Nokia's existing portfolio of today's popular email solutions available for its business-optimized mobile devices.
Application Ecosystem
Above and beyond e-mail, Cingular and Nokia, through Cingular's developer program and Forum Nokia, the industry's largest mobile developer organization, are building a business solutions ecosystem to support the Nokia 9300 device. At its inception, there will be several third-party applications certified by Cingular for use on the device to present business customers with a compelling and complete wireless voice and data solution right out of the box. Applications to be available at launch include those in the areas of sales force automation, field service and security.
"It's not enough to present companies with a highly functional device enabled for a powerful network - they need to know what they can do with that device to connect to their office applications and solve the critical needs of their business in a mobile environment," Mathy explained. "That's why Cingular and Nokia are working together to deliver a complete portfolio of e-mail and industry-specific applications for the Nokia 9300 to give businesses a complete set of tools to extend their key processes wirelessly into the field."
Pricing and Availability
The Nokia 9300 business device will be available in the U.S. through its direct B2B sales beginning in November. Cingular will offer the Nokia 9300 for as low as $299.99 with a two-year contract and after $50 mail-in rebate. Customers can choose from either a $44.99 BlackBerry unlimited data plan or a $34.99 4Mb BlackBerry data plan when they also choose a qualifying voice plan. The $44.99 and $34.99 plans both include data service for BlackBerry Connect, Web browsing and other applications. In addition, corporate customers, as needed, can purchase BlackBerry Enterprise Server for a complete enterprise messaging solution directly from Cingular and select resellers.
