Looks like Australia will be getting the i-mate Smartphone 2 very, very soon

Matt M from MTekk reports:

We previously wrote about Telstra's Exchange Mobile Mail offering - which features your choice of the i-mate Pocket PC Phone or i-mate Smartphone 2, along with unlimited Server ActiveSync data - and mentioned that the i-mate Smartphone 2 had not yet been released. We now have more information regarding this, which is especially timely given the delay in releasing the O2 XPhone to Australia.

My sources at Telstra tell me that - pending successful completion of network testing and stock delivery - the i-mate Smartphone 2 will be made available to Australia by late January, with their estimation being February at the latest. This is very good news for those who were desperately awaiting the O2 XPhone, and it means that the i-mate is now favorite to be the first Windows Mobile 2003 based Smartphone to have general availability in Australia.

This ties into Carrier Devices' press release dated January 13, 2004 - which mentions an aggressive rollout strategy for the i-Mate Pocket PC Phone Edition. It seems that this will be the case for the Smartphone too, especially since it seems that Telstra won't officially release their Exchange Mobile Mail product until both devices are available.

Indicative pricing on the Exchange Mobile Mail product - with an i-mate Smartphone 2 or Pocket PC Phone Edition included - is AUD$2,640 over 24 months for the i-mate Smartphone2, or AUD$2,880 for the i-mate Pocket PC Phone. This translates into, respectively, AUD$110 per month and AUD$120 per month, as per our previous reports.

Given that this deal does not look like it will include a GPRS allowance or voice calls - but does include unlimited data via Exchange ActiveSync - it's probably not a great deal for the end user, but will most likely appeal to the higher end SME, corporate, and government (which is the main target of the product).

So start saving your money folks - the i-mate Smartphone 2 is fast approaching!

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