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sync posts

Gigabyte fixes iPhone sync issue with BIOS update

by Vladislav Savov posted Nov 9th 2009 at 8:47AM

The Intel P55 Express chipset snafu that caused iPhones to lose their syncing minds has now been remedied -- at least by one motherboard maker. Gigabyte has issued a BIOS update making things all hunky-dory between the phone and the mobo, putting your troubles to an end. The P55 is Intel's latest midrange chipset and orchestrates things for newer Core i5 / i7 machines. The other two P55 purveyors, ASUS and MSI, were also caught by the bug, and there are anecdotal reports of success with an ASUS BIOS update, but not official fixes as of yet. Given the competitive nature of this market, though, we'd be surprised if those two companies didn't quickly follow suit. All's well that ends well, right?

Read - Gigabyte Beta BIOS download page
Read - Update fixes iPhone sync problem

Apple TV 3.0.1 update prevents data from 'temporarily disappearing'

by Darren Murph posted Nov 7th 2009 at 6:51PM

Enjoy your Apple TV? Not so fond of your data picking up and vanishing whenever it darn well pleases? Then you'll probably want to force your Apple TV to update to 3.0.1... assuming you've already upgraded it to 3.0, of course. According to the engineers in Cupertino, this update prevents content "from temporarily disappearing until re-synced," and we're guessing that most of you would rather keep your content around if possible. Tap the read link for all the instructions, and whatever you do, don't make any sudden movements.

[Via TUAW]

Apple 'Grab & Go' sync patent application features... Engadget

by Nilay Patel posted Nov 5th 2009 at 2:41PM

Apple's applied for and gotten a ton of patents this year, and while most of them are fairly boring, we're intrigued by this recently-revealed application for a "Grab & Go" sync system -- and not just because one of the diagrams references Engadget. The idea is to simplify sync by pre-packaging sets of data into categories like family, business, and entertainment that a user could just grab, as well as make sharing files between devices like phones, computers, and even game consoles much easier. The software can adapt to fit multiple connection types and add various levels of encryption and security, including requiring devices to be in close proximity to each other in order to sync. All in all, it sounds like a solid evolutionary addition to MobileMe, and we're curious to see if any of this ever ships -- the patent application was just made public, so it could be a while.

[Via AppleInsider]

iPhone and Windows 7 don't play nice, Intel P55 chipset to blame

by Vladislav Savov posted Oct 31st 2009 at 5:20PM

The iPhone is one of the most wildly popular phones the world has ever seen, while Windows 7 is well on its way to becoming the globe's most ubiquitous OS. So compatibility between the two would be kinda sorta important, right? Tell that to Intel's quality control team who seem to have somehow missed an issue between Apple's app carrier deluxe and the P55 Express chipset's USB controller. Consistent (and persistent) syncing issues have been reported on Apple's support forums, wherein iTunes on Windows 7 machines recognizes the iPhone, but spits out an "error 0xE8000065" message whenever the user attempts to sync. While some have found limited success with using PCI-based USB cards (and bypassing the chipset), this is clearly a major issue and something Apple would expect to be fixed before shipping its Core i5 / i7 iMacs, which are likely to sport the chipset. Hit the read link for the original thread of sorrow and regret, and do chime in with your own experience in the comments.

[Via The Register]

Zune HD stops syncing playcounts with nary a firmware fix in sight

by Joseph L. Flatley posted Oct 27th 2009 at 12:06PM

This isn't exactly the same magnitude as last year's Z2K scare, but it's still an all-around bummer for all you Zune nuts. According to a spate of complaints posted to the Zune.net forums as of late, certain Zune HD units are not syncing their playcounts properly with the user's PC and Zune Social accounts. To be a little more specific, it seems that if you let a song play through on the device it will not be counted as played -- but if you skip to another tune before it has a chance to complete (but after 20 seconds or so), the play will be counted. A real pain, right? Of course, this is not only bad news for obsessive list keepers, but for Zune Social fans as well: if your listening habits aren't being properly tabulated, how are you supposed to make new friends and discover new music? Certainly not by going to noisy rock clubs and talking to people! Apparently a Microsoft Zune support team member has acknowledged the issue, but the company has made no statement relating to the bug -- or possible firmware fix -- as of yet. We'll keep you posted.

[Thanks, Jon]

MobileMe media sync detailed in Apple patent application

by Joseph L. Flatley posted Oct 19th 2009 at 3:26PM

What do you know? It looks like Apple's filed yet another patent application. The company's newest is named (in the short, pithy way that patents are named) Synchronization of Media State Across Multiple Devices. Combining the ubiquity of MobileMe with the media syncing that goes down when you dock your iPod or iPhone, the application suggests that soon you might find all your Engadget Show episodes automagically picking up where you left 'em when you switch devices -- without any lag time or any pesky cables. As Macworld points out, also included in the paperwork is distance tracking functionality -- just the thing for automating sync operations when two devices come within range (it's unclear whether this will be done via Bluetooth or WiFi). Perhaps this news isn't exciting to the couch potatoes among us (you know, because they never leave the couch) but all you TV addicts "on the go" must be psyched.

[Via Macworld]

Palm WebOS 1.2.1 now available, 'fixes' iTunes media sync

by Thomas Ricker posted Oct 3rd 2009 at 4:20AM

The game's back on. Palm just announced the availability of its 1.2.1 update to WebOS for the Palm Pre and, well, that's it for the time being. It fixes Exchange mail syncing issues experienced by some users, which is nice, but for everyone else it re-enables media sync with iTunes 9.0.1, with or without the USB-IF's support. In fact, Palm has signaled its commitment to its rogue approach by improving synchronization with the Photos app to keep the album structure in tact while allowing lower-resolution images to be synced to the Pre. Oh happy day -- enjoy it while it lasts Pre owners.

Poll: Is your Zune device out of sync with Zune software?

by Ross Miller posted Sep 29th 2009 at 7:04PM

Are older Zune models going the way of the brick? We've received a handful of tips pointing us to the official Zune forums, where reports are coming in that apparently a number of the non-Zune HD units haven't been able to sync with Zune 4.0 software. Although a few people have elaborated on some steps to take (hint: it involves a lot of downgrading and reinstallation of both firmware and Zune software), there doesn't seem to be a clear consensus on its effectiveness. Honestly, it's hard to tell from our end if this is really a widespread issue and we haven't seen it ourselves, so we're putting it to you, deer reader: has your Zune device forgotten how to sync with the mothership?

Read - Sync Error Code C1010007
Read - More info on sync errors

Apple, Palm hear privately from USB-IF on iTunes spat, involvement unlikely (update: the Forum's not pleased)

by Chris Ziegler posted Sep 22nd 2009 at 9:46PM

The very public fight between Palm and Apple to allow the Pre to sync directly to iTunes (without just... you know, doing it the same way as everyone else) is showing no signs of slowing down, with Palm continuing to pursue every angle it can to rile up Cupertino -- most recently taking the battle up to the USB Implementers' Forum in an effort to stop Apple from restricting iTunes usage by the hardware's Vendor ID. Hard to say what ended up going down behind closed doors, but on an official level, the USB-IF is issuing a terse statement that it "communicated its position on the matter to both companies" and won't be speaking further on the issue "at this time." We'll see if anything ends up changing on the software side from the conversation, but separately, the Forum has mentioned to us that it considers this a member-to-member concern -- so in all likelihood, they're taking a hands-off approach.

Update: Digital Daily has come away with a very, very different story from the actual leaked communication, and it turns out that the USB-IF has actually sided against Palm on two different fronts. First, the Forum has told Palm that it doesn't see how blocking Palm's Vendor ID from accessing iTunes violates its policies; and second -- this might be the big one -- Palm's actually riled up the Forum by saying that it'll be using Apple's Vendor ID on the Pre going forward. It wants a clarification of Palm's "intent" within a week, saying such a move would be contrary to the rules and regs set out for the proper use of USB. At this point the question becomes, how many companies and industry bodies is Palm willing to piss off to keep iTunes working exactly the way it wants?

Google adds support for push Gmail via Exchange ActiveSync

by Chris Ziegler posted Sep 22nd 2009 at 12:38PM

Google Sync's pretty awesome as it is, but it's had one glaring flaw in its implementation: no support for Gmail, just Calendar and Contacts, which means you aren't able to get true push email delivered. Well, they've gone ahead and completed the holy Google trinity today with the introduction of Gmail support into the Exchange ActiveSync mix, so any phone with Exchange support should theoretically be able to get in on the action. We say "theoretically" because they're only quoting support for the iPhone and Windows Mobile at this point, but it seems like anything that can speak the EAS protocol should be able to make this happen. Let us know your trials, tribulations, and successes getting this set up in comments, won't you?

Video: Opera 10 promises Turbo browsing using Scandinavian flat-packing knowhow

by Thomas Ricker posted Sep 1st 2009 at 3:41AM

We've got to hand it to the kids at Opera who somehow manage to maintain relevance while battling Microsoft, Apple, Google and Mozilla for browser market-share. Opera 10 is now available for download featuring a redesigned UI, a resizable tab bar with Visual Tab thumbnail previews of each loaded page, and Opera Link synchronization for keeping bookmarks and more synchronized between all your Opera devices. It's biggest feature, however, is Opera Turbo: a new compression technology that Ikea flat-packs web pages for fast transport over slow connections. See it demonstrated in the video after the break.

Continue reading Video: Opera 10 promises Turbo browsing using Scandinavian flat-packing knowhow

Editorial: Palm, iTunes, and the ties that don't bind

by Nilay Patel posted Jul 30th 2009 at 4:00PM

So I was out of town last week when Apple and Palm got into it over the Pre syncing with iTunes, and the more I think about it, the more ridiculous the situation has become. If you'll remember, the Pre shipped with a hack that allowed it to appear as an iPod, which was inevitably blocked by Apple, and Palm's latest move was to spoof the Pre's USB Vendor ID to make it look like an Apple product while simultaneously complaining to the USB Implementor's Forum that Apple improperly uses the field. Yeah, it's messy, and the end result is that while Palm is getting a lot of attention for jabbing at Apple, Pre owners are being left with a jury-rigged hack of a solution that will almost certainly be blocked by the next iTunes update -- and Palm's official advice is that you should hold off on updating iTunes to ensure Pre compatibility.

Let's just say it: this is insane.

Gallery: Apps syncing with iTunes

Continue reading Editorial: Palm, iTunes, and the ties that don't bind

iTunes 8.2.1 brings Pre's music syncing capability to a halt (updated)

by Chris Ziegler posted Jul 15th 2009 at 7:37PM

Palm itself had warned that the Pre's iTunes sync functionality could be broken at a moment's notice (and at Apple's whim), but we're pretty sure no one expected it'd happen this quickly. We've been able to confirm that version 8.2.1 of the software prevents the sync from working, meaning that you've got to add music the old-fashioned way -- the Pre functions as a USB drive, too -- until Palm gets around to patching the hack (if they decide to patch it, that is). This could end up being a protracted game of cat-and-mouse, which is entertaining to watch but nightmarish for the consumers down in the trenches actually trying to use this stuff. Funny thing is, Apple's straight up saying in its release notes that the update "addresses an issue with verification of Apple devices" -- in other words, they weren't being verified before, and now they are, thank goodness. Peaceful sleep is once again within our reach.

Update: Apple's now gone beyond the "verification of Apple devices" phrase, calling out the Pre by name in a statement issued to BusinessWeek: "It also disables devices falsely pretending to be iPods, including the Palm Pre. As we've said before, newer versions of Apple's iTunes software may no longer provide syncing functionality with unsupported digital media players." In other words, "we told you this was going to happen, and it did." For its part, Palm appears to have re-issued the same statement it made a while back, saying that Apple's move is a "direct blow" to its users. Words are one thing, but here's the real question: is there a quick counterstrike fix planned from Palm's side?

Palm responds to iTunes / Pre statement, defiant and unfazed

by Ross Miller posted Jun 17th 2009 at 5:11PM

We're still not 100 percent clear what Apple's next move is, but we do know they're a little more than nonplussed about Pre's ad hoc iTunes syncing methods. Despite Cupertino's update to its support site last night, Palm seems unconcerned, as relayed by a spokesperson to Digital Daily. In a statement, the company said disabling the sync "will be a direct blow to their users who will be deprived of a seamless synchronization experience" and that "there are other third-party applications we could consider." In other word, it'd be Apple's loss. We're not quite sure we agree there, nor would we really think "stay with the iTunes version that works to sync their music on their Pre" method is really the best suggestion, but hey, we're not the multimillion dollar phone manufacturer here. We anxiously await to see if and when this cold war is turned up a few notches.

Apple says iTunes syncing only for Apple devices, looks sternly at Palm

by Nilay Patel posted Jun 16th 2009 at 8:08PM

Looks like Apple's response to the Pre's support for iTunes syncing is starting to take form -- a snippy little note titled "About unsupported third-party digital media players" was just posted to the company's support site. The money quote:

Apple does not provide support for, or test for compatibility with, non-Apple digital media players and, because software changes over time, newer versions of Apple's iTunes software may no longer provide syncing functionality with non-Apple digital media players.

Here's where it gets interesting: since the Pre identifies itself to iTunes as a bog-standard iPod, Apple would have to actively code in a USB node check to actually block syncing, which is just a little bit more aggressive than the "software changes over time" mentioned here. We'll see if Apple decides to engage in a cat-and-mouse with a company now run by the former head of the iPod division -- we've got a feeling this could get messy.

[Via Daring Fireball]