General BlackBerry® Functions and Features

[Normunds]

Anyone has clear information on what mobile service options (APN-s) the Gmail application depends on?

The impression is that it needs (on a BES Blackberry) certainly a BES APN, but that is not enough (and also it looks like the actual Gmail content is not fetched through BES/MDS).

In Gmail "support" forums there are only questions, very few answers.

[JeremyKitching]

What wireless carrier do you use?

[tanzim]

Gmail application will work only if your put your carriers APN info in your TCP settings.

[Normunds]

Thanks for the hint, will check the tcpip definitions with the sim card which works.

[Normunds]

Unfortunately, also with the SIM card which supports Gmail client, the TCP/IP APN information is not filled in, in the device Options.

Anyway, provided that this app seems to be NOT using the "BES" APN, I suppose we should caution endusers against using it, due to possibility of higher telecom costs.

[tanzim]

If your on unlimited data plan then there is no additinal cost will be incurred.

One more thing integration of Gmail ID with BIS will give you faster send and receive of emails.

My personal opinion is using blackberry and having a 'extra' application for email doen't add any value. Any way it's individual difference and just my opinion.

[iebre]

Instead, I think that if you have a gmail mail address then you have a lot of advantages in using the Gmail client for mobile/blackberry.

You see all of your mail messages, they do not use your handled memory, you see your labels, you have the messages perfectly synchronised, you have the automatic completion of the mail address when you create a new one...they are not small advantages in my opinion.

You have almost all the features as if you were in front of your webmail on the pc...you cannot really say the same for the Blackberry native client 

[Normunds]

Sorry for being unclear - the discussed case is about a Gmail application on a BES Blackberry.

So our mobile subscriptions, naturally, are for the "BES" APN, and provided that in our case the flat fee definitively only applies to the BES APN (and it seems that Gmail app does not use it), there is some cost concern as well.

But my own main interest is a technical one - which exactly "APN" is being used?

Seems to be the BIS one, because even with the SIM cards supporting Gmail the "TCP/IP" info is empty on the BB.