Sync the HTC One X with Outlook

Posted on April 3, 2012 by David

The HTC One X has made its official debut, and it’s earning its fair share of favorable reviews. In fact, it is quickly becoming a top contender for being the best Android smartphone on the market today.

The One X features a large 4.7” screen, yet maintains a rather slim profile and, as such, HTC One X doesn’t feel abnormally large. It’s a good size, overall. The 1280×720 display is also one of the best smartphone displays currently available, making interacting with the device a pleasure. It’s also loaded with a quad-core (or dual-core, if you’re in the US) processor, 1GB of RAM, and 4G LTE. In short, the One X is a big, beautiful, and lighting fast smartphone. No wonder the reviewers love it.

Of course, when it comes to syncing the HTC One X with Outlook, or any other personal or professional CRM, look no further than CompanionLink. Our sync solution is primed and ready for the HTC One X. We offer a variety of sync methods, including a revamped USB sync called DejaConnect created specifically with Ice Cream Sandwich in mind.

CompanionLink works by syncing Outlook data to our free Android app, DejaOffice. DejaOffice offers powerful, business-class contacts, calendars, tasks, memos, and more, making it ideal for those who need to get work done on the go. And when you’re back at the computer, syncing any changes back to Outlook is quick and easy.

For more information on how CompanionLink syncs the HTC One X, visit www.companionlink.com/phones/htc-one.html. And for our friends in the US, we can’t wait for the One X to land here as well!

An Update on Syncing With Android 4.0: Ice Cream Sandwich

Posted on March 26, 2012 by David

CompanionLink fully supports two-way sync with Ice Cream Sandwich (Android 4.0) devices.

The latest version of Android, dubbed Ice Cream Sandwich, officially launched a few months back with the Galaxy Nexus. Beyond that, however, sightings of Ice Cream Sandwich on new or existing devices have been few and far between. That’s starting to change.

Just last week, HTC officially released the Ice Cream Sandwich upgrade for the Vivid on AT&T. The updates don’t stop there, though. AT&T announced plans to update 10 more Android smartphones and tablets in the near future. And that’s just from one carrier. The others are following suit as well.

At CompanionLink, we’ve had our hands on Ice Cream Sandwich for a while via our Galaxy Nexus. And we’ve been taking advantage of that. Not only have we ensured that DejaOffice runs properly on Android 4.0, but we’ve been busy adding features and improvements designed with this update in mind. For example, some Android 4.0 devices, like the Galaxy Nexus, don’t play nicely with out existing USB sync. To that end, we’ve developed an entirely new USB sync system. It’s even better than before, and it’s in beta right now. We’ll have more on that later.

We’re also taking the time to improve the interface and bring it more in line with the look and feel that Ice Cream Sandwich features. Expect to see those updates soon as well.

If you couldn’t already tell, we’re excited to see Ice Cream Sandwich come to more and more devices. We think it’s the best version of Android yet! But what about you? We’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments.

PSA: Secure Your Mobile Devices

Posted on March 23, 2012 by David

Think about all the data you have on your phone. These days, that’s more than just a list of phone numbers. We have email accounts, social networking profiles, mobile banking, private notes and documents, and so much more. If our phones were lost and consequently found by someone with less than honest intentions, the list of potentially compromised information would be daunting.

But just how bad could losing your phone be? Symantec recently decided to find out. They intentionally “lost” 50 Android smartphones across various large cities in the US and Canada. Each device was loaded with what appeared to be private data and fitted with special software that allowed Symantec to track what happened. The results? Well, they’re not promising.

Over 95% of the time, those who found the lost device made an attempt to access data such as email or online banking information.

Let that sink in for a minute. Based on the results of this study, it is safe to assume that if you lose your phone, someone will be poking through all your private and personal data. On a slightly happier note, some sort of attempt was made to return the phone about half the time. But even in those cases most people went snooping around first. Some even directly admitted to doing so, apologizing after the fact. Check out the full report here [PDF].

The moral of the story? Ensure your data is secure! Whether this is through a passcode or gesture based lock, remote wipe capabilities, encrypted data, private records (in the case of DejaOffice), or some combination of these. Your phone simply contains too much personal data to remain unsecured in some way.

CompanionLink Supports Syncing the Lumia 710 with Outlook

Posted on March 21, 2012 by David

Don’t let its simple design and unassuming price fool you – the Lumia packs a lot of bang for your buck. It really is a nice phone for the money.

Featuring a 1.4GHz processor, 3.7” display, and 8GB of storage, the Lumia 710 is a nice, mid-level device when it comes to the specs. And at the low price of free on contract from T-Mobile, it’s easily one of the best buys for those who want a great smartphone, but don’t need something with the power (or price) of the Galaxy Nexus or DROID RAZR, for example.

The Lumia 710 runs the latest version of Windows Phone – 7.5, or “Mango” as it’s often referred to. Combined with the great price, the unique tile-based interface of the Windows Phone platform has made the Lumia 710 one of the more popular devices on T-Mobile.

Just like its older brother, the Lumia 800, CompanionLink supports syncing the Lumia 710 with Outlook. In fact, we offers two methods to sync Outlook contacts, calendar and tasks with the Lumia 710 – syncing through Google or via Window Live Hotmail. For Outlook users who aren’t on an Exchange server, these sync options make getting your data onto your phone fast and easy.

For more info on our Windows Phone sync options, check out www.companionlink.com/windowsphone/.

DejaOffice On The New iPad

Posted on March 20, 2012 by David

We’ve had our new iPad in the office for a few days now and have put it through its paces with DejaOffice and CompanionLink. I’m happy to report that everything is performing as expected. So don’t hesitate to download DejaOffice and start syncing that new iPad of yours.

On a related note, we are in the process of updating DejaOffice to take advantage of the new iPad’s Retina display. Expect a new version with crisp graphics soon!

Introducing DejaConnect – USB Syncing Now Easier Than Ever

Posted on March 9, 2012 by David

Syncing via USB shouldn’t be complicated.

It used to be that you could you could just plug in your phone to the computer and it would automatically start syncing. Somewhere along the way, we lost that standard.

Sure, today’s devices can sync with the cloud out of the box. That works well for some, but many of us still need the good, old-fashioned security of a USB sync. With DejaConnect USB, we’re making that sync easier than ever.

DejaConnect allows you to simply plug in your device to begin a sync. That’s it. It really can’t get much easier than that.

The first sync with DejaConnect mode requires a brief setup. After that, it’s up to you whether it syncs automatically when you plug it in, or only after you press sync. With DejaConnect, sync just happens. You don’t have to think about it, or worry if you’re doing it right. We’ll take care of the heavy lifting and let you focus on what’s important to you.

DejaConnect mode is currently in beta and is available in CompanionLink 5 build 5026 and DejaOffice 2.1.5 for Android. Download the updates today (CompanionLink | DejaOffice) to try it out for yourself. And be sure to let us know what you think!

Apple Unveils Their Latest iPad

Posted on March 7, 2012 by David

Apple announced the latest update to their iPad line today, dubbed simply “the iPad.” It would seem that Apple is moving away from the numbered naming system. Don’t let the name fool you, however, the new iPad is a significant improvement on the iPad 2 in many ways.

Apple's new iPad

Perhaps the most notable difference is the new 2048×1536 pixel Retina display. The hi-res screen makes images and videos pop with unparalleled clarity. Add in the optional 4G LTE speeds, quad core graphics processor, enhanced camera, and built-in dictation features, and you get the most powerful iPad yet, and perhaps the most powerful consumer tablet currently available. Learn all about the new iPad over at Apple’s site: https://www.apple.com/ipad.

And if you need to sync the new iPad with Outlook & more, CompanionLink and DejaOffice will work right out of the box! The core operating system is the same, and we’re already testing iOS 5.1 – the update version that the new iPad will ship with – on our current iPads. Watch this blog for any updates on that.

In the meantime, we’d love to hear your thoughts on the new iPad. Will you be buying one?

Sync the BlackBerry PlayBook with Outlook

Posted on March 1, 2012 by David

The long-awaited update to RIM’s BlackBerry tablet, dubbed the PlayBook, has arrived. PlayBook OS 2.0 brings with it a host of new features, including integrated contacts and calendar apps. As such, CompanionLink is now able to sync the PlayBook with Outlook via Google. Learn how to set up an Outlook sync via Google

Image Credit: Crackberry

While many of the features in PlayBook OS 2.0 are welcome additions, perhaps the most anticipated feature is the ability to install Android-based applications on the PlayBook.

Now, this doesn’t work with just any application – to work properly on the PlayBook, developers must first modify their app and submit it to the BlackBerry App World. So, this news begs the question: “Will we see DejaOffice on the PlayBook?”

Well, we’re in the process of looking into it. Bringing DejaOffice to the PlayBook would allow you to sync tasks and memos in addition to contacts and calendars. It would also open the doors for USB sync and WiFi sync options. Stay tuned for more news as we explore this possibility!

How to Sync Your Google Tasks with Outlook

Posted on February 28, 2012 by David

Google Tasks can be great – they’re easy to use and tied to your existing Gmail or Google Apps account. It’s definitely convenient. Getting tasks out of Gmail or Google Apps, however, can be anything but convenient. Until now.

CompanionLink has supported syncing Google Tasks for some time, but it was limited to a single task list within Google. With our most recent update to CompanionLink 5, you are now able to sync multiple Google Task lists with Outlook and DejaOffice.

Here’s how it works.

If a task in Outlook has a category that matches a task list name in Google, then the Outlook task will sync to that list in Google. Similarly, if a task in Google has a task list name that matches a category in Outlook, then the Google task will sync to that category in Outlook.

Alternatively, if a task in Outlook does not have a category that matches a task list name in Google, then the Outlook task will sync to the default list in Google. If the opposite is true and a task in Google has a task list name that is not a category in Outlook, CompanionLink will create a matching category as part of the sync process.

Google Tasks sync to Oulook with categories translated as Task Lists

Want to get started syncing your Google Tasks with Outlook today? Just download the latest build of CompanionLink 5: update | free trial