Sleeping Lenovo laptops to get BlackBerry e-mail
By Peter Svensson, AP Technology Writer
New York (AP) — Even with it is turned off, a new ThinkPad laptop will be able to talk to a BlackBerry phone so their owner will be able to read and send e-mail faster, the companies behind the devices planned to announce Monday.
Lenovo Group Ltd., maker of the ThinkPad, and Research In Motion Ltd., maker of the BlackBerry, have together created an accessory card for the laptops that will wirelessly download e-mail through the owner's BlackBerry, even when the computer is off or in standby mode.
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That means that when the ThinkPad boots up, new e-mail will already be loaded. There's no need to establish a secure Internet connection to the employer's servers. The user will also be able to send e-mail from the ThinkPad through the BlackBerry without an additional Internet connection.
The "Lenovo Constant Connect" card will let users combine the always-on nature of the BlackBerry with the larger keyboard and screen of the laptop, said Rick Cheston, executive director at Lenovo. For instance, a traveler could flip open the laptop to do some quick e-mailing at an airport layover, rather than spending time to set up Internet access, he said.
The card will cost $150 or less when Lenovo starts selling it in the second quarter in the U.S. It will be available in the rest of the world later this year. Initially it will work only with Microsoft Corp.'s Outlook e-mail client, but Lenovo is working on supporting IBM Corp.'s Lotus Notes as well, Cheston said.
ThinkPads made last summer or later will be compatible with the Constant Connect card, and BlackBerrys made in the last few years will work with it, he added.
The card connects to a BlackBerry through the Bluetooth wireless technology. When the computer is off, the card stores new e-mail in flash memory.
It is already possible to connect a computer to the Internet through the Bluetooth feature of some phones, but this is a more lengthy, complicated process, and the computer must be fully on.