Mobile Magazine » mobile email

Peek 9 handheld email only device gets social networking and map apps

Michael Kwan — Tue, 21 Sep 2010 21:50:07 +0000

Do you remember the Peek? It might look like a QWERTY packing smartphone, but the only thing it can really do is send and receive email. In this day and age of smartphones that do so much more, why on Earth would you want a dedicated email device? Well, that hasn’t stopped the unveiling of the new Peek 9.

Yes, it’s a “brand new” device from the same people that brought you the other Peek devices in the past. From the outside, it looks an awful lot like its predecessors, featuring a color display and a hardware keyboard. Considering that they had a hard time selling the “lifetime” service for a significantly reduced price, I don’t fathom that the new Peek 9 will make huge waves either.

If you must know, the Peek 9 can do a little more than just email, but it is a text-only device. No voice calls. Beyond email (with support for MS Exchange), the Peek can do text messaging, social networking, PeekMaps (but no GPS), and even “PeekTop Apps.” Those are apps managed in the cloud; Like a built-in streaming RSS reader, view Word and PDF documents, open spreadsheet attachments, and support for Microsoft Outlook Exchange ActiveSync.

The Peek 9 itself is cheap at $70, but you’re still forking out $20 a month for very limited functionality. My advice? If you want email on the go without the smartphone premium, get one of those cheap messaging phones instead.

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Text’nDrive iPhone and Blackberry voice-to-txt app keeps your hands on the wheel

Michael Kwan — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 20:29:51 +0000

There are laws in many jurisdictions that restrict the use of cell phones while driving. Many people have invested in Bluetooth headsets for handsfree calling, but what about text and email messaging? For that, you may want to take a look at the Text’nDrive app. Announced today for BlackBerry and iPhones, this app makes use of “intelligent speech technology” so you can listen to and reply to emails without actually picking up the phone. You stay as legal and safe as possible while still getting the message sent through, although you do have to deal with a robotic sounding voice synth.

Text’nDrive should work through in-car speakerphones and Bluetooth headsets, so you don’t have to give up that solution for your voice calls either. It’ll really depend on how accurate the speech recognition software is. If you can help it, it’s probably better just to pull over or wait until you get to your destination. You can find the free app on the iTunes App Store or BlackBerry App World. A “pro” version chimes in at $19.95, though it’s not entirely clear what the “pro” features really entail. They’re working on an Android app too.

[TextnDrive.com]

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Mobile Email Service for Life with Peek Pronto Messenger

Michael Kwan — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 20:55:29 +0000

Even though things don’t always work out quite the way you expect them to work out, convergence devices seem to be the way that we are heading. Our cell phones can play music, take pictures, and surf the web. Even so, there is still a certain appeal to standalone devices and that’s what Peek is trying to offer you.

The Peek Pronto isn’t a new device, but Peek is offering a rather scary-sounding deal for people obsessed with mobile email access. Rather than buying the Peek handheld and then paying for each month of service as you go along, you can instead pay one flat fee in the beginning and get email for life. Or at least as long as the Peek service stays up and running.

The newest deal attempting to sway people in Peek’s direction is $300. For that one-time price (presumably plus tax), you get your hands on a Peek Pronto and lifetime service. You never have to pay a monthly fee again. If you’d prefer something a little cheaper, they also have a $229 deal for one year of service and a Peek Pronto.

Keep in mind that the regular price charged by Peek for its mobile email service is $20 a month. If you take the lifetime plan for $300, even if you assume the handheld is free, you earn your money back in just 15 months. Then again, you might prefer having your smartphone for email. I know I do.

Source: Gizmodo

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Get Labels and Stars with BlackBerry Enhanced Gmail Plugin

Michael Kwan — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 18:21:30 +0000

I think that most of us would agree that the BlackBerry is probably one of the better platforms when it comes to mobile email management, but what if you do everything through Gmail? You want the same functionality as the online desktop, right? Research in Motion thinks so too.

RIM has already done a fantastic job with managing enterprise-level email, but it’s not quite as robust when it comes to Gmail. That may soon change, as the Waterloo-based company is working on an “Enhanced Gmail Plugin” that brings in many familiar features.

With this new plugin, your BlackBerry will be able to display Gmail-based emails in Conversation View, threading those message just like how they appear on the Gmail website. Further still, you can manage labels and stars that are attached to email messages.

Other notable highlights include the ability to archive your email, mark messages as spam, and search your entire Gmail inbox. I would assume that the Enhanced Gmail Plugin will be free too, so we’ll just have to sit tight until RIM is ready to release it.

Source: BerryReview

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