Apple iPhone Gets Set To Take On Blackberry

Apple's iPhone is set to take on well-entrenched smart phones like the Blackberry. Apple's iPhone 2.0 beta release includes new enterprise features such as support for Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync to provide secure, over-the-air push email, contacts and calendars as well as remote wipe, and the addition of Cisco IPsec VPN for encrypted access to private corporate networks, in addition to the iPhone Software Development Kit (SDK).

Apple has previewed its iPhone 2.0 software, scheduled for release this June, and announced the immediate availability of a beta release of the software to selected developers and enterprise customers.

“We’re excited about creating a vibrant third party developer community with potentially thousands of native applications for iPhone and iPod touch,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “iPhone’s enterprise features combined with its revolutionary Multi-Touch user interface and advanced software architecture provide the best user experience and the most advanced software platform ever for a mobile device.”

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Apple has licensed Exchange ActiveSync from Microsoft and is building it right into the iPhone, so that iPhone will connect to Microsoft Exchange Servers 2003 and 2007 for secure over-the-air push email, contacts, calendars and global address lists. Built-in Exchange ActiveSync support also enables security features such as remote wipe, password policies and auto-discovery.

In addition to these new iPhone network and security features, the beta iPhone 2.0 software claims to provide several new mail features such as the ability to view PowerPoint attachments, in addition to Word and Excel, as well as the ability to mass delete and move email messages.

The iPhone SDK provides developers with a set of Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) and tools to create applications for iPhone and iPod touch. Apple has also introduced its new iPhone Developer Programme, to enable developers create native applications, and the new App Store, a way for developers to wirelessly deliver their applications to iPhone and iPod touch users.