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Windows Phone 7 Connector for Mac Beta Now Available
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As a - hush now - Microsoft employee with a MacBook Pro, iPhone 4, and soon a HTC Mozart, I very much welcome this! Who doesn't support choice, competition and greater connectivity and compatibility?
I love to evangelise products like Windows Phone, Surface and Kinect - but that doesn't mean I ignore the wonderful hardware available by Apple.
There are plenty of WP7 devices out in Asia and Europe. The US is coming next month, but there are other regions too!
I love to evangelise products like Windows Phone, Surface and Kinect - but that doesn't mean I ignore the wonderful hardware available by Apple.
There are plenty of WP7 devices out in Asia and Europe. The US is coming next month, but there are other regions too!
I have to support Windows and Microsoft software for my work, yet I have been using Macs personally pretty much since they came out. Situations being what they are, I can easily see a situation where I might need to have a WP7 device. I might not like it, but it is a real possibility.
Different scenario.
Palm used Apple's USB id. Microsoft is using an open method:
Apple publishes their iTunes playlist XML format, just so others can write a Mac based sync app.
Fantastic, I cannot wait to plug in my slick cool phone running Windows Phone 7. (It's funny as Windows Phone 7 OS is quite slick and "futuristic", unlike iOS which was futuristic, in 2007.)
Hell HAS frozen over! Remember, this is made by the same company that brought us the Zune, Vista and cannot punctuate a sentence correctly. (Neither can I but...)
Hell HAS frozen over! Remember, this is made by the same company that brought us the Zune, Vista and cannot punctuate a sentence correctly. (Neither can I but...)
Lazy and cash-strapped until HP bought them.
They're no longer cash-strapped.
I jest; for a company that put a lot of effort in WebOS, synchronizing seems trivial.Lest people forget, they tried to go against both Apple AND the USB Implementers Forum by using USB Hardware IDs assigned to Apple. Their protest to the USB-IF got slapped right back in their face. With all the work involved in trying to fool iTunes, they could have used the open methods to access iTunes media with no problems.
iTunes does more than simply provide access to media, but that media is, as you ponder, freely available on the machine through other published and approved methods.
(Just a thought: I realize that it isn't widely talked about any more, but could MS simply have written a plug-in for iSync, or is that deprecated?)
See? Apple does do open stuff. Want to write your own software to access your music? Fine with Apple.
I don't like Microsoft (apologies, Darkwater -- I liked your post, btw), but I see this as a good thing. Some Mac users want Win 7 phones, and Microsoft is catering to their customers needs as they should do.
As we get more and more industry standards involved, we'll see more of this mixing-and-matching of tech. Why should anyone care who is accessing something, as long as they follow standards? That's how the Web is built, after all.
I don't like Microsoft (apologies, Darkwater -- I liked your post, btw), but I see this as a good thing. Some Mac users want Win 7 phones, and Microsoft is catering to their customers needs as they should do.
As we get more and more industry standards involved, we'll see more of this mixing-and-matching of tech. Why should anyone care who is accessing something, as long as they follow standards? That's how the Web is built, after all.
This came verbatim from the download site, and this is the second time in two days that I have seen an official document from Microsoft that was not submitted to rigorous - hell, cursory - editing and/or a simple spell check.
Have you used one? I would like to know why it's trash if you have experance. If you're just trolling because it's Microsoft then never mind.
Trash? You've used it? Tested out the different models? Perhaps you can elaborate as to why the majority of reviews are mostly positive then?
Windows Mobile with Mac OSX
Actually, I am one of the very few people who have a Windows Mobile 6.5 phone (an HTC Touch Pro 2) and I synch with my MacBook Pro using "missing synch".
I bought an iPhone 3G when it initially came out, but the functionality (back then) didn't support LogMeIn (which it does now) - which I absolutely required for work, and the bluetooth functionality was COMPLETELY nobbled. There were a couple of other things the iPhone couldn't match with the Windows Mobile platform (back then) - and still today, the iPhone doesn't have wireless tethering.
I also hated AT&T. My first bill was over $600. I switched back to sprint and argued my bill down to $200. They really tried to rip me off, and it wasted SO much time talking with them.
I still own my iPhone - I use it like an iTouch - with the benefit of the camera. I love it, and it now has far more than the Windows Mobile platform provides. But I got burnt by AT&T - so I'm waiting for the CDMA version. I could've got TMobile - but the speed of the network is VERY important.
However, my 3G iPad is awesome. I'm quite happy with the $20 or so per month for the AT&T data - but realistically my iPad and my iPhone works a LOT faster through my Sprint Touch Pro 2 when I'm wireless tethering.
I am VERY impressed that Microsoft has connectivity to the Mac though with their new phones. Proves that Microsoft is very wary not to alienate the market share that Apple has these days.
But, I'm not planning on getting Windows Mobile 7. I think Microsoft has missed the boat, and their new phone OS is going to tank. Only existing Windows Phone users "might" get the new phone - and theres not so many of them anymore.
Actually, I am one of the very few people who have a Windows Mobile 6.5 phone (an HTC Touch Pro 2) and I synch with my MacBook Pro using "missing synch".
I bought an iPhone 3G when it initially came out, but the functionality (back then) didn't support LogMeIn (which it does now) - which I absolutely required for work, and the bluetooth functionality was COMPLETELY nobbled. There were a couple of other things the iPhone couldn't match with the Windows Mobile platform (back then) - and still today, the iPhone doesn't have wireless tethering.
I also hated AT&T. My first bill was over $600. I switched back to sprint and argued my bill down to $200. They really tried to rip me off, and it wasted SO much time talking with them.
I still own my iPhone - I use it like an iTouch - with the benefit of the camera. I love it, and it now has far more than the Windows Mobile platform provides. But I got burnt by AT&T - so I'm waiting for the CDMA version. I could've got TMobile - but the speed of the network is VERY important.
However, my 3G iPad is awesome. I'm quite happy with the $20 or so per month for the AT&T data - but realistically my iPad and my iPhone works a LOT faster through my Sprint Touch Pro 2 when I'm wireless tethering.
I am VERY impressed that Microsoft has connectivity to the Mac though with their new phones. Proves that Microsoft is very wary not to alienate the market share that Apple has these days.
But, I'm not planning on getting Windows Mobile 7. I think Microsoft has missed the boat, and their new phone OS is going to tank. Only existing Windows Phone users "might" get the new phone - and theres not so many of them anymore.
Yes, I completely forgot about that situation. Makes much more sense now. Thanks!
Interesting. It seems iSync has been a forgotten application. I have had many clients with Palm and WM devices that switched to OS X and needed to sync their devices to their new system. MarkSpace makes a program called "The Missing Sync" that uses conduits for specific devices to sync with Address Book, Safari, OS X Mail, Notes, etc. It is very handy when needing to download your PDA info to your Mac for the first time, allows for future syncing of non-Apple devices or simply allows for moving your information to the appropriate applications to use and iPhone/iPod, etc.
The Missing Sync®
Yes, it does.
Just need itunes 9.2, iphone 3g or later with iOS 4.x
http://www.wireless.att.com/answer-center/main.jsp?solutionId=KB111130&t=solutionTab
Just the typical iDiot who doesn't buy anything non-Apple. Nothing to see here.
This is not an iTunes hack. This is MSFT's own software running on a Mac that links to WP7 devices. Unlike the post-Hawkins Palm, this is not an underhanded move passively condoned by management.
Since you mentioned it, that webOS / iTunes hack really hurt Palm in the long run. I'm am sure it contributed to Apple not having any interest in buying Palm.
Palm could have easily put together a ligit desktop app that would sync with their devices and played nice with iTunes. Instead someone that got happy hacking USB packets and it got out.
Wonder if those who were a part of that are still with Palm after the buyout.
This is both true and false.
TRUE: You can write programs to access the iTunes library to implement your own syncing in your own program. This is what MS is probably doing with Windows Phone 7. There are other sync programs that do this as well.
KIND OF TRUE: If you want your device to show up in iTunes as in the "Devices" section, Apple needs to add specific support to it in iTunes. This is why Palm faked its ID so that iTunes thought it was an iPod. Palm didn't want to write its own syncing program and thought users might like iTunes better anyway. A good idea but was a major hack that Apple really didn't like. iTunes actually does support a few non-Apple MP3 players, such as a few Motorola phones that came out before the iPhone (circa 2005), and a few MP3 players that came out before the iPod (pre 2001).
Last time I used s Microsoft OS phone was about 2 years ago. It was a motorola phone running windows. It locked up all the time. Motorola sent me a new phone. Same stuff, locking up, etc. I went through 4 more phones. Maybe the new windows phone is better, but I would rather do Android than go back to Windows.
I applaud Microsoft for allowing syncing from WP7 to iTunes content. How many iPhones can sync with Windows Media Player? Microsoft has proven that it cares about product shares and where it needs to reach it's customers. I love macs, and I did enjoy my iPod touch for the year and a half I owned it, but the simple fact is that the lack of long-term support and poor compatibility with Windows PCs means that I am usually left in the dust when it comes to new features from Apple. To be fair, Apple does release iTunes for windows, but they still do not allow syncing to third part devices. Having been a dual Mac and Windows user for 5 years now, and being a windows user for 15, I have yet to see the decisions made by Apple work well in the favor of the general population. Sure, Apple tries it's best to please the Apple fans, and program support it finally starting to come around, but Apple still hasn't pushed it's products to the point where I can leave my PCs behind, and trust me, if I could, I would, I much prefer the Mac OS over Windows XP, and although Windows 7 is better, I still lean towards Mac OS X. This type of decision by Microsoft shows me that they are still the authority when it comes to program and product support, Even though I would never buy a WP7 Phone (It's android for me until at least iPhone 5), this type of announcement still influences my opinions of the company.
I had the same problem with Motorola, it didn't matter which phone I used, be it the RAZR, KRZR, or even the pitiful Backflip that I really wanted to like. They don't make phones like they used to back in the early 2000s.
I had the same problem with Motorola, it didn't matter which phone I used, be it the RAZR, KRZR, or even the pitiful Backflip that I really wanted to like. They don't make phones like they used to back in the early 2000s.