A friend of mine recently purchased a BlackBerry, and he loves it. He says he loves that it keeps him up to the minute with e-mail thanks to push technology, adding that it's something Microsoft doesn't have. That's no longer true, however. Another friend is looking into purchasing an iPhone but is afraid that it won't work with ActiveSync. That's not true anymore, either. Finally, a blogger I read who uses Micr Technology changes and features advance so quickly, it can tough to know what’s really going on in Mobile Wars. Today I’m aiming to set some of the record straight in terms of some of the key mobile-e-mail features available to users and admins.Keep in mind that there are two sides to your mobile feature-set: The mobile device itself has to support specific feature enhancements and the servers need to provide that support as well. Traditionally, manufacturers wait for the server to include an ability and then release a new flavor of phone (or phone software).For example, with the release of Exchange 2007 SP1 there were some changes in the ActiveSync policy features for mobile users. Those changes require software enhancements. Mobile 5 and/or 6 users will need 6.1 to take advantage of those new features. Push technology: It’s true that BlackBerry offered instant e-mail first and became known for it. But once it was out and loved by all, the other companies went to work on creating their own flavors of it. Microsoft simulated the technology with Mobile 5.0 and offered true push with Mobile 6.0 (called Direct Push Technology). As I mentioned, the mobile is half the picture. The server needs to be able to perform the task too. With BlackBerry, the server pulls from the messaging server (Exchange perhaps) and pushes to the client. With Exchange 2003 and Mobile devices, a service pack has to be applied to add the feature, but with Exchange 2007, it’s included. The iPhone, meanwhile, has always had Yahoo-supported push e-mail, but Version 2.0 now allows for ActiveSync connection to an Exchange server. There are tons of other phones and solutions available, but the important point to remember, is that push technology is not new — and not on the BlackBerry only. Remote wipe: If you are a network administrator, you don’t want to allow any mobile device to connect to your network unless you the ability to wipe that device remotely in the event it is lost or stolen. But, if you have a BlackBerry server (with BlackBerry devices), an Exchange server (with Mobile devices), or even an Exchange ActiveSync-enabled device (such as the Nokia Eseries, a Sony Ericsson 3G, a Palm Treo 700 Series, a Motorola, a Symbian, a Helio Ocean, the iPhone 2.0, etc.) you can remote swipe the device. Exchange 2003 SP2 brought remote wipe to the administrator. Exchange 2007 gave users the ability to remote wipe through their Outlook Web Access client. And now with Exchange 2007 SP1, when a wipe is performed, both the users and the admin will be informed by an automatically generated e-mail. By comparison, BlackBerry Enterprise Server provides a kill command for admins to remote wipe, and BlackBerry Servers alert admins when a wipe is performed. : Admins do have the ability to control users on their mobile devices through policies. A BlackBerry Enterprise Server boasts hundreds of settings including password complexity, application availability, encryption settings, permission to use peripherals like the camera on the phone and so forth. Now if you’ve heard that Exchange 2007 doesn’t offer similar support, well, that’s no longer true. With Exchange 2007 RTM there were only a modicum of settings available, mostly relating to passwords and the ability to download attachments. But with SP1, there is a whole group of new settings that match many of the ones available with the BlackBerry: camera control, browser control, smartcard encryption requirements and so forth. But as I mentioned at the outset, these are additional features on the server, but in order to access them, the connecting mobile devices must have the latest changes as well. For example, Mobile 5/6 would need to go to 6.1) If a simple upgrade is not an option for you device (and with some of the devices that license the ActiveSync protocols, it might not be), you can have the features on the server, but it won’t affect your users.Oftentimes readers want the end of a discussion of this sort to state a winner for one device over another. But the entire purpose of this post is to show you that the devices and features are moving along quite nicely across the board and to eliminate the myths that may influence your decisions. You should choose your device based on many factors. Your personal preference is a huge one (so long as the network admin allows the device within your enterprise). As for features, many Outlook uses find it easier to work with a Windows Mobile device because of the similarity to their desktop experience. Most BlackBerry users I’ve talked to love their device. And iPhone Macites (as I like to call them) rave about their devices too.What do you use? From an enterprise Windows perspective, why do you feel that particular solution worked better for your environment? I’d like to know. Software DevelopmentSmall and Medium Business