RIM Confirms BIS 3.0 Features Making No Mention of 2 Way Gmail Synchronization!!!

I am not sure how we all missed this one. RIM released a knowledge base article on their website this past Monday called “New features of BlackBerry Internet Service 3.0.” There are a few small tidbits RIM threw in that we did not know before but there is one HUGE omission. While RIM does mention that there are enhancements to the Google Mail Plugin they only mention that you will be able to create and delete labels from your BlackBerry. They even provide a knowledge base article describing how to create and delete labels.

One of the biggest features I have been waiting for was the rumored addition of 2 way Gmail and Google Mail sync in BIS 3.0. I have heard from a couple sources that this was coming in BIS 3.0 but you would think RIM would mention such a big feature in their list.

I really hope that 2 way Gmail sync is still coming with BIS 3.0 but we will definitely find out this weekend when it goes live in the EMEA.

From the knowledge base article:

New features of BlackBerry Internet Service 3.0 – Overview

The BlackBerry Internet Service is designed to provide subscribers with access to email messaging, instant messaging, Internet browsing, and more. BlackBerry Internet Service subscribers can receive automatic delivery of email messages for up to ten email accounts on their BlackBerry smartphones.

BlackBerry Internet Service 3.0 is the latest version of the BlackBerry Internet Service offered by Research In Motion.

• Enhancements to the Google Mail Plug-in
  • Create and delete labels from the BlackBerry smartphone

Note: The Google Mail Plug-in requires BlackBerry® Device Software 4.5 or later and a Google Mail integration, using Internet Message Access Protocol (IMAP), within BlackBerry Internet Service.

• Additional Language Support for Basque, Catalan, Galician, Romanian
• Increased Attachment Compatibility
  • OpenDocument Presentations (.odp)
  • OpenDocument Spreadsheets (.ods)
  • OpenDocument Text (.odt)
  • OpenDocument Text Templates (.ott)
  • Windows Media Audio (.wma)

• Extensible Hypertext Markup Language (xHTML) Support for non Thick Clients
  BlackBerry Internet Service 3.0 is designed to support xHTML for non Thick Clients, providing BlackBerry smartphone users with a richer user experience, allowing for buttons, additional fonts, and colour controls when subscribers access and toggle their user settings.

• Device Switch Revalidation
  Changes to optimize the email setup and deactivation experience when the subscriber switches BlackBerry smartphones or Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) cards.

• Hosted Email Address Passwords
  Allows BlackBerry smartphone users to re-claim the BlackBerry email address if their BlackBerry Internet Service account is ever deleted.
  Note: After BlackBerry Internet Service 3.0, only newly created BlackBerry email “Username/Password” accounts will be prompted to create a password, secret question, and secret answer. For information on how to create a BlackBerry email address, see KB04553.
• Send Delivery Receipts
  BlackBerry Internet Service users now have the ability to configure whether to allow sending delivery receipts or not. For more information, see KB12835.