Unlike Windows Mobile, the Palm operating system doesn't shipped with a native email application. Instead, Palm OS licensees, such as palmOne and Sony, have delivered their own mobile email solutions.

Today, at CTIA Wireless in Atlanta, PalmSource, the developer and manager of the Palm OS, and Visto Corporation, unveiled the results of a partnership first announced last June to create an email application for Palm OS based PDAs and smartphones.

The result of the partnership is a standard email client for the Palm platform called Mobile Mail 5.0 for Palm OS Cobalt, the latest version of the Palm OS, and Palm OS Garnet, previously Palm 5.x.

End-users won't be able to purchase Mobile Mail directly, but it is now available to Wireless operators and Palm OS licensees. In addition, IT departments can use Mobile Mail with Visto Mobile Enterprise Server, giving enterprise employees access to corporate data and email from Microsoft Exchange, Lotus Domino, and POP3/IMAP email servers on their Palm devices.

Like with Research In Motion and its BlackBerry Enterprise Server, which promises to be a direct competitor, Mobile Mail delivers over-the-air push email as well as scheduled or user initiated email synchronization. Security is provides through SSL support and encrypted authentication.

"We are pleased to deliver Mobile Mail 5.0 as the standard platform email client for Palm OS," said David Nagel, president and chief executive officer of PalmSource, Inc. "We believe this solution will enable Palm OS licensees, wireless operators and software developers to quickly and efficiently deploy a variety of Palm Powered products and solutions tailored to the mobile professional."