RIM Bolsters Blackberry To Better Compete With IBM, AppleRIM Bolsters Blackberry To Better Compete With IBM, Apple

Research In Motion plans to make it easier for BlackBerry users?one-third of whom are small-business users and consumers?to use their wireless e-mail.The new features aim to make mobile e-mailing more like e-mailing from a desktop computer, RIM said at IBM?s Lotusphere conference. They include the ability to edit documents directly from the Blackberry, to retrieve messages not stored on the handheld and to wirelessly update the device?s software.

The enhancements, which will be rolled out during the first half of this year, also better position the Waterloo, Ontario-based company as it faces growing competition from Microsoft and Apple, according to The Wall Street Journal.

In a separate announcement, RIM said it plans to make Lotus Connections business-networking software a free download for the Blackberry later this year.

?Organizations are embracing social networking tools to improve productivity and enable workers to find the experts and information within their organizations that can help them get their jobs done more effectively," said Mike Lazaridis, RIM co-CEO, said in a statement.The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg