A brighter Outlook for mobile staff

Mobile software developer Equisys has released a tool that lets business users access their personal Microsoft Outlook information via any mobile phone with a Wap browser and SMS capabilities. But potential customers may be put off by the price.

Zetalink, which is available now, is aimed at businesses with between 50 and 500 employees, particularly those where the workforce is highly mobile. The software provides a similar level of functionality to a personal digital assistant on any Wap-enabled mobile phone, according to Equisys.

Linking to a company's Exchange server, Zetalink gives users access to their Outlook account from a Wap browser, allowing them to read and send email in the usual manner.

Staff can also access calendar appointments, contact information, display and accept meeting requests, and view or amend tasks. Zetalink can be set up to notify users of urgent mail and appointments via SMS, and can provide a daily calendar summary using this method.

Zetalink also provides users with a remote printing function. This lets mobile staff print any information they require to a fax machine near their current location.

Parmjit Mankoo, wireless product manager at Equisys, said that Zetalink could help to reduce wasted time between meetings and business visits, and would reduce the number of times that users have to check with their offices to collect messages and make appointments. He added that the software has several levels of security to protect data.

Zetalink is priced at £4,195 + VAT for a 50-user starter system, plus an annual maintenance charge of £1,045 + VAT. The charge for an additional 50 users is £4,095 + VAT.