Research In Motion has its own beta program called the BlackBerry Beta Portal. Those qualified to enter the beta program will be rewarded with access to the latest up-and-coming features for BlackBerry devices. The latest beta should stir some excitement for Gmail users, because it supports threaded email conversations.One of the BlackBerry's weaknesses is its inability to support all that Gmail has to offer. My absolute favorite feature of Gmail is the way it presents emails in threaded conversations. Any email that arrives with the same subject heading is lumped into one conversation, and I can easily see all the different parts of that conversation at once no matter when the emails arrive.

In order to make up for this, Google provided its own version of Gmail for BlackBerry devices, but it is not powered by RIM's email servers. Rather, its the same simple Web-based app that is available on most feature phones. This app supports threaded email viewing, but its hardly enterprise worthy.

Apparently, RIM is looking to appease Gmail users with a new plug-in that just hit the BlackBerry Beta Portal. This plug-in brings some of Gmail's biggest features to the BlackBerry.

• See your Gmail based emails in Conversation View for simple topic management
• Add and remove labels and stars to emails to keep inbox organized
• Archive and report as spam actions for mailbox management on the go
• Search your entire Gmail inbox

These are all excellent new features. Right now, the beta is limited only to those enrolled in the BlackBerry Beta Portal program. I recently signed up for the portal, but have yet to be approved. If you're already a member -- and want a better Gmail experience on your BlackBerry -- be sure to check out the new plug-in.