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Should RIM also license Exchange ActiveSync?

I was pretty impressed by the RIM BlackBerry Bold (see my first impressions post) and the display and keyboard sold me on it. I still think the display and keyboard are both fantastic and it is definitely the best BlackBerry device to date. However, due to the lack of Exchange ActiveSync support I am being forced to return it and move on. I tried the Outlook Web Access (OWA) method of connecting to my work email account, but the security settings on our server won't allow it to fully function for me. Also, this would only give me email access and not calendar, contacts, or task synchronization. Is it too much to ask RIM to add support for Exchange ActiveSync like Palm, Apple and Nokia have already?
Written by Matthew Miller, Contributing Writer

I was pretty impressed by the RIM BlackBerry Bold (see my first impressions post) and the display and keyboard sold me on it. I still think the display and keyboard are both fantastic and it is definitely the best BlackBerry device to date. However, due to the lack of Exchange ActiveSync support I am being forced to return it and move on. I tried the Outlook Web Access (OWA) method of connecting to my work email account, but the security settings on our server won't allow it to fully function for me. Also, this would only give me email access and not calendar, contacts, or task synchronization. Is it too much to ask RIM to add support for Exchange ActiveSync like Palm, Apple and Nokia have already?

RIM makes some great devices that are becoming more and more consumer friendly. I still think they have work to do on making things look more modern (take a look at the text list of options), but they have started adding some media functionality. I like that they support Java applications and find many of them highly functional (Gmail, for example) and wish Windows Mobile would do a better job with this functionality. The BlackBerry Bold is a very nice piece of hardware with an amazing display and well-designed keyboard. There are Windows Mobile devices that are similar, but not as good and I am not looking for a Windows Mobile-based Bold here. I would like the same BlackBerry OS, hardware and experience, except for the ability to sync to an Exchange server.

One other thing about BlackBerry devices is that they communicate through the BlackBerry servers or other servers with the BES. I would prefer to rely upon my company's server with Exchange to provide me with full service at all times, rather than suffering the occasional BlackBerry outage.

I could have lived with the Bold as a secondary personal device with my AT&T SIM, but I already have the T-Mobile G1 that doesn't sync with Exchange and I cannot have two primary devices with no Exchange support.

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