ActiveSync and Outlook calendar
 

My wife is looking into getting a PDA/phone, mainly so that she can use Outlook on the road.

I have read that Microsoft ActiveSync software lets you 'push' email from Microsoft Outlook on your PC to your PDA, even if you don't have Exchange Server.

Does it let you push your Outlook Calendar and Contacts data as well, without using Exchange Server but just your PC? Can anyone confirm that it works?

Also, to make matters worse, she doesn't want a Windows Mobile-based PDA but rather a Sony-Ericsson M600 which has Symbian I believe. Supposedly ActiveSync works on that too, but if anyone knows please advise.

ActiveSync no longer supports wireless sync over a network; you must use Bluetooth, USB or Serial connectivity. For that reason, I would in no way qualify ActiveSync as capable of "push email." While it will certainly update your PDA with email, contacts, appointments, tasks, etc. received, it doesn't do it real-time nor while you're away from the device on which Outlook is installed.

I don't believe ActiveSync works with Symbian devices (never used one, but my suspicion is that Microsoft isn't that interested in supporting anything other than WM). My guess is PumaTech's IntelliSync is what's used on the M600. Works at least as well as ActiveSync, given the caveats above.

AS is out on several Nokia and SonyEricsson Symbian phones. Fairly limited, but it's there.

To get push email you will need an exchange server OR a third party exchange service like www.4smartphone.net . Expect to pay around $50 a year for the service.

Thanks guys, you just saved me a lot of grief. That's lame about ActiveSync not working realtime. It's weird that the Sony-Ericsson product page for the M600 even advertises the push email, without saying you have to have Exchange Server.

Any idea if the third-party Exchange services work with Outlook Calendar as well as email?

Yes most of them do, but it costs a little extra. I have a plan that syncs email with my PDA, but their $6.99/m plan syncs with outlook on your desktop and over the air with your PDA (contacts, email and calendar).

Microsoft has been licensing Active Sync for a while. Several non WM phones support it.

Sorry, this is just wrong. I have two Windows Mobile devices, a Verizon Palm Treo 700w and an HTC TyTN. Active Sync does not work over a LOCAL (device to device) connection wirelessly but works fine over the internet. In other words, over the EvDO or GPRS connection on the phone Active Sync works.

Does your wife use an Exchange server? If so, then if it is over a certain version it has built in Push Email support. On both of my devices when an email hits the Exchange Server it immediately is pushed to my device if the device is set that way. You can set the handheld to sync "As Items Arrive" which enables push email or at various time intervals or only manually (say for improved battery life or while roaming).

I would recommend very strongly against Symbian in this case. From what I have been able to tell it seems to have very limited capabilities for Active Sync when compared to the implementation on Windows Mobile devices.

I have a WM5-based PDA and ActiveSync 4.1. I cannot synchronize my PDA over any connection other than a local one (Bluetooth or USB). Earlier versions of ActiveSync supported network synchronization, but that was apparently disabled after v3.8 due to, according to Microsoft, a security risk . . . and WM5 doesn't work with older versions of Activesync.

What version of ActiveSync are you running? I don't have a WM-based SmartPhone; I needed something I could rely on so I went with a BlackBerry ;)

What are you trying to Sync to? Mine syncs to an Exchange Server. It can using either a WiFi connection or the phone connection (GPRS/EDGE/UMTS) on the HTC TyTN or over the phone connection on the Treo. Both are Windows Mobile 5 devices with the latest Active Sync. I also have a Windows Mobile 5 Smartphone device that will sync remotely but last time I checked it wouldnt push mail. It needs a firmware upgrade for that I think.

Thanks for the further discussion. My wife does have Small Business Server 2003 so I think Exchange Server is bundled in there, but her IT support is awful so unlikely they could get it running. She likes the 4smartphone idea, no problem paying $7/month. She's also dead set on the Sony Ericsson M600 since the Bond girl in Casino Royale had one. :D

But the did the Bond girl use Exchange sync functionality? I dont know about SE's implementation of Active Sync but from looking into the Nokia based Symbian version of Active Sync I think it is worthy of Ian Fleming to say it works at all. It seems to basically just give you inbox and outbox whereas the Windows Mobile version gives you all of your folders in your mail. That is a huge difference.

If you don't have Exchange, you don't have "Push/Wireless sync." If you'd read the rest of this thread, you would've seen that it was mentioned a number of times that Push needs Exchange. ActiveSync alone doesn't provide it, and I was correcting Capite's misapprehension on that front.

I did read the thread. Im confused by what you are saying here versus what you said in post #2 and other previous posts. In post #2 you said that WM5 devices cant sync outside of the office, or at least that is what I thought you were saying. You also subsequently said you could only synchronize locally. That is why I asked what you were syncing to, because if it is Exchange, you certainly can sync remotely over the internet with WM5 and WM5 Smartphone and you can get Push mail.

This emphasized text is the specific misapprehension I was addressing. Network synchronization/Push is not possible with WM5 devices unless Exchange is involved. Network Sync was, however, possible with earlier versions of ActiveSync (3.8) and WM2K3, without Exchange. Local synchronization for WM5 devices is the only option when Exchange is not available.

Sorry, I understand what you were trying to say now. Yes, you are correct, it has to be through the server. That works quite well if you have the server available.

Ack. OK, do I have this correct?

1. In order to really get push email, I need BOTH ActiveSync and Exchange Server.

2. I can rent Exchange Server from 4smartphone.net, so I don't really need to have my own server.

3. But even with ActiveSync and 4smartphone.net, with a Symbian device I can only get inbox/outbox emails. No other email folders.

Is that right? Can anyone confirm #3 who has a Sony Ericsson?

Also, does anyone know about getting contacts and calendar pushed to an SE phone via ActiveSync and 4smartphone.net?

1) yes

2) I'll trust ScottC on this, I havent used them but if they are using an Exchange server it should be fine.

3) You might go to the SE forum at www.howardforums.com to try to learn more about this. Let us know if you are able to find out.

No luck on howardforums. If anyone here can confirm that only inbox emails can be synched on a Sony Ericsson, please post. Or if anyone with a Sony Ericsson can sync their Outlook calendar and contacts without a physical link, please let me know that too!

I have a SonyEricsson M600i and use ActiveSync with my employers Exchange server. DirectPush works perfectly, and email arrives on my mobile prior to it making its way to either Outlook or Pine (which I use as mail reader under Linux). I am also very happy with the way it syncs the calendar and contacts. It DOES look like I am only able to access the inbox, but I actually had not noticed that until now as I don't need to access any other mailfolders while mobile.
All this is done over GPRS or 3G, so no physical link or bluetooth involved.

That sounds pretty good, although if you only have the Inbox then you probably can't organize your incoming emails until you get to your PC.

Also, I guess if it works with Exchange Server it should be the same with 4smartphone.net, since that's just an outsourced Exchanger Server service, right?

Right.
Don't know about that one, but I'm sure someone else can answer that.

Wirelessly posted (HTC TyTN: Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 6.0; Windows CE; PPC; 240x240) Opera 8.60 [en])

The inbox only is a complete dealbreaker for me. I have dozens of file i use to track projects, set reminders, etc. With my Treo or TyTN i see them all and can move mail to any of them. I can also mark any to sync while out of the office and fetch mail from that folder while on the road. It more or less rovides complete Outlook function while travelling.

Yeah, I think for myself I'll get a TyTN. I'm not a fashion hound like my wife. Unless, of course, you consider bleeding-edge technology "nerd fashionable". :p