• Recommend:
• 0 Comments

Check E-Mail on Your Palm VII

ThinAirApps.com's ThinAirMail lets you access e-mail accounts on the wireless Palm VII.

By Cameron Crouch, PCWorld   

On Tuesday, ThinAirApps.com announced the launch of ThinAirMail, a free e-mail application for 3Com's Palm VII that connects to your personal e-mail accounts, other than Palm VII iMessenger. The company also announced its ThinAirMail Secure Server. Scheduled for release in October, the Server offers secure delivery of corporate e-mail onto the Palm VII.

E-Mail on the Go

Available now, ThinAirMail uses POP3 and IMAP transports to give Palm VII users access to their personal e-mail accounts. It also supports Hotmail's browser-based e-mail service and lets you access a Hotmail account and two other POP3 e-mail accounts. The service connects to these accounts via a Web clipping application for Palm Computing's Palm.Net network.

The Palm VII's integrated wireless technology makes it a different product from the other Palm Pilots on the market, says John Oakes, cofounder of ThinAirApps.com. With the free ThinAirMail, "our goal is to make it the top mail application for the Palm VII."

Oakes sees the integrated connectivity of the Palm VII as the future for handheld devices. Although focusing on the wireless VII, ThinAirApps.com is also planning to provide near-term Web-based support for the Palm III and Palm V. Meanwhile, 3Com is working on a Palm V add-on that will give it wireless access as well.

The Palm of the Enterprise

Though Palms have not been regularly issued devices in corporations, Oakes predicts that enterprises will begin to rely more on the handhelds. ThinAirApps.com has as its goal--and revenue source--plans for enterprise Palm tools such as the ThinAirMail Secure Server. It promises secure business e-mail connectivity for a price that's still to be determined.

As we anticipate the nationwide rollout of Palm VII, there is still doubt as to how it will fare at its $599 sticker price. As Oakes says, "whatever happens with the Palm VII will be a strong indicator about how this market moves."