Microsoft's My Phone Service Open To All

[Ed Hansberry]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://myphone.microsoft.com' target='_blank'>http://myphone.microsoft.com</a><br /><br /></div><p>Microsoft's My Phone service is still in beta but you no longer need a registration code to get started. If you haven't yet subscribed to the service on your Windows Mobile 6.x device, now you can. It will back up your text messages, emails, contacts, appointments, documents, music and photos from your device or storage card.</p><p>It can be scheduled to back up in the wee hours of the morning so you never have to mess with it. It won't back up any data that is tied to an Exchange account though, as it assumes that is your backup plan for that data. Supported documents only includes what your device natively supports, like Word, Excel and text files. Third party documents, like those added by ListPro or HanDBase will not be backed up.</p><p>It is free and requires you to install an app on your device to get going.</p><p><strong>Update:</strong> I forgot to mention, it is now available in 25 languages, so this should now work on a number of devices that couldn't participate in the earlier beta stages.</p>

[Fritzly]

What about Mesh? It is a much more comprehensive and flexible set of services than this "My phone".

[samkatta]

What will happen after the beta period ends? will I lose my stored content if I didn't wish to subscribe?

[Ed Hansberry]

What about Mesh? It is a much more comprehensive and flexible set of services than this "My phone".

Mesh is a better file sync tool (though not perfect - cannot sync your Favorites for example) but it doesn't sync email, SMS or any of your PIM info. Mesh is also a memory hog.

Two different tools. Perhaps they could combine them in the future, but right now, aimed at different audinces.

[typoink]

MyPhone is an interesting service. I wish I liked it more, but it's not useless.

It's not quite as nice a service as Dashwire, IMO, but it's a LOT more reliable and doesn't create contact duplicates as Dashwire is prone to do.

But I've also had issues with MyPhone failing to sync. Frequently. Making it far less useful than it could be.

And it's also no replacement for Google Sync, since MS's online calender is much less user-friendly than Google's (and push for Events can be very useful).

[virain]

I stay with Mesh & Exchange, for now

[Fritzly]

I stay with Mesh & Exchange, for now

Same here; btw Mesh was supposed to receive an update and be able to sync with Smartphones. And this was quite a while ago. I hope MS will keep updating Mesh services; nowadays you never know....

[Bob Anderson]

Same here; btw Mesh was supposed to receive an update and be able to sync with Smartphones. And this was quite a while ago.

They did release a mobile client, i'm using it on my WinMo Pro 6.1 device. It is very cool - my pictures taken on the phone end up in my mesh - along with other folders and documents.

As with other commenters - I use Exchange for my basic PIM synchronization tasks - and can't imagine NOT using Exchange anymore! So the Contacts/Calendar/Tasks synch that MyPhone offers is not critical to me, but the other things it backs up - namely SMS - make it very handy. Hopefully it stays "free" and will be another "value add" for the WinMo camp as we go against the iPhone and Android juggernauts!

[Twain]

Supported documents only includes what your device natively supports, like Word, Excel and text files. Third party documents, like those added by ListPro or HanDBase will not be backed up.


Evidently Microsoft is already crippling the new service. What the heck does it matter whether the file is a "third party document" or not? As long as the user deems the file necessary for backing up, the service simply ought to back up those files without question. Is the assumption that any file in a format other than Microsoft formatted files are not worth saving? How short sighted. Looks like those bright "Azure" clouds I thought I saw are turning a gloomy dark grey...

[Jason Dunn]

It's a typical v1 service: a good start, but missing a few pieces. I use hosted Exchange, so I don't need to PIM data sync, but when I switched phones last week it was nice to get my text messages pushed over to the new phone. What's missing for me is the Internet Explorer Mobile Favorites...it's a pain to not have them sync. :(

[cab124]

Is anyone else having trouble signing in to MyPhone from IE 8 on Windows 7 RC 1?

I can log in using FF, but not IE 8.