Cingular Wireless, Palm, Inc. (Nasdaq:PALM) and Research In Motion (RIM) (Nasdaq:RIMM)(TSX:RIM) today announced availability of BlackBerry(R) Connect(TM) for the Palm(R) Treo(TM) 650 smart device. With BlackBerry Connect software, Cingular customers now can enjoy the feature-rich Treo 650 with the BlackBerry service for a robust and secure solution on the nationwide Cingular EDGE wireless data network.

“The availability of BlackBerry Connect on the Palm Treo 650 represents a marriage of two very popular wireless offerings that now gives Cingular customers more choice,” said Michael Woodward, executive director, mobile professional solutions, for Cingular Wireless. “Businesses can now leverage their existing BlackBerry Enterprise Server while giving employees a powerful, new wireless device option.”

BlackBerry Connect for the Treo 650 enables users to benefit from many popular features of the unique “push”-based BlackBerry architecture via BlackBerry Enterprise Server(TM). For corporate customers, BlackBerry Enterprise Server software tightly integrates with Microsoft(R) Exchange and IBM Lotus(R) Domino(R) and works with existing enterprise systems to enable secure, push-based wireless access to email and other corporate data. The Treo 650 operates on Cingular’s EDGE network, the largest high-speed national wireless data network in the United States with availability in 13,000 cities and towns and along some 40,000 miles of major highways.

BlackBerry Connect for the Treo 650 supports the following features:

– “Push” Corporate Email delivers messages automatically — and wirelessly — to the Treo 650′s inbox. Changes to the inbox, including read/unread status and deletion, can be automatically synchronized between the user’s email account and the Treo 650.

– Wireless Calendar Synchronization keeps the Treo 650′s built-in Calendar up to date remotely, allowing users to receive, accept or decline meeting requests on the go.

– Attachment Viewing lets users view Excel, Word, PowerPoint, and PDF documents in original format.

– Remote Address Lookup (RAL) allows users to search their corporate directory wirelessly for email addresses without the need to download every name to the Treo 650.

– Enables centralized device management, including support for IT policies such as over-the-air device disablement and password device lock, as well as end-to-end security with Triple DES encryption.

“We are happy to provide another choice for companies that have deployed BlackBerry Enterprise Server or are planning to do so,” said Tim Roper, vice president of U.S. region for Palm. “Treo 650 already is one of the most compelling mobile-computing devices available today for business users, and the BlackBerry Connect functionality gives Cingular customers another great reason to adopt Treo as a vital business-productivity tool.”

“BlackBerry Connect allows Treo 650 users to tap into the power of the BlackBerry wireless architecture,” said Mark Guibert, vice president, corporate marketing, at Research In Motion. “We see a growing opportunity for wireless connectivity in the enterprise, and we’re very pleased to be working with Cingular and Palm to broaden the reach of BlackBerry and to help customers enhance their mobile communications and productivity.”

BlackBerry Connect on the Treo 650 requires a BlackBerry Connect rate plan from Cingular. The solution is available today for Cingular Treo 650 customers through Cingular’s B2B sales organization. More information is available at http://www.palm.com/cingularbbc and www.cingular.com/midtolarge/blackberry, or by calling 866-4CW-SB2B to speak with a Cingular sales representative.

The Palm Treo 650 is available from Cingular for $299.99 with a two-year contract and qualified voice plan. Unlimited BlackBerry Connect monthly service plans begin at $44.99.

More than 100 million mobile phone subscribers have signed up for 3G, according to the latest report from Strategy Analytics on Thursday.

According to the report, around 70 million subscribers have signed up for WCDMA technologies, with another 30 million using CDMA2000 EV-DO systems. It is widely acknowledged that EV-DO entered the market significantly later than WCDMA.

The research firm said that “finally, 3G has become a want-item for the user.

Sara Harris, who authored the report, said “Much of this success is due to the strong pushes by influential carriers like NTTDoCoMo, Hutchison 3G and SK Telecom… and more recently Vodafone and Verizon Wireless, who have worked hard to drive 3G uptake among their subscribers.”

Strategy Analytics believes the US market is set for rapid growth during 2007 when the country’s largest mobile phone provider Cingular Wireless launches its HSDPA technology.

Pantech Wireless and Cingular Wireless announced the introduction in North America of the Pantech C300, the world’s smallest camera flip phone in the GSM arena.

Offered in the U.S. by Cingular Wireless, the new phone is likely to strongly appeal to trend conscious U.S. consumers because of its groundbreaking compact yet stylish design. The Pantech C300 will be a cornerstone of Pantech’s strategy to increase sales and market share in North America over the coming year and is the first branded GSM handset to be launched by Pantech in the U.S.

Sung Kyu Lee, President & CEO, Pantech Wireless, Inc., said: “The launch of the C300 in the U.S. represents a huge step forward in the development of Pantech as a global brand. The U.S. is one of the most dynamic mobile markets in the world and we are excited to be working in partnership with Cingular to introduce our new and innovative handsets to American users.”

The Pantech C300 phone is just 2.72 inches tall, 1.69 inches wide and only 0.76 inches thick with the flip closed, yet boasts bright, large font color screens both inside and out. It is equipped with a VGA camera with flash and zoom, as well as MP3 ringtones, SMS/MMS/IM client and e-mail messaging.

Pantech plans to ramp up sales in the U.S. by 20% in 2006, through a greater focus on developing its brand awareness in the market place and an increase in direct supplies to major U.S. service operators. Direct supplies to U.S. service operators, through regional subsidiary Pantech Wireless, are expected to account for about 70% of the company’s exports to the North American market by the end of this year.

Pantech C300 features include:
VGA Camera with 4x digital zoom
Display: 1.52 inch 260K TFT
Dimension: 69 * 43 * 19.2 mm (2.72 *1.69*0.76 inches)/Weight: 70.9g
MP3 Ring tones / 64 Polyphonic ringtone
Messaging: SMS/MMS/OZ IM Client/email
Photo caller ID, Voice memo
Organizer, Speakerphone