Synchronize Phone Data with a PC

Synchronize the Contacts list, calendar, to-do list, and email messages on a Nokia device with PIM applications on PCs.

When PDAs first came out in the 1990s, their killer feature was the ability to synchronize PIM application data between the mobile device and the PC. PIM data typically includes contact business cards, calendar items, to-do lists, and email messages. A typical synchronization workflow is as follows: the user adds and updates PIM data directly from the PC using the full-screen keyboard. Then, she simply synchronizes all the changes to the mobile device and is ready to go. While on the move, she makes changes to the PIM data on the device (e.g., to add new business cards, receive email messages, or update the calendar). At the end of the day, she simply synchronizes all the changes made on the mobile device back to the computer.

Synchronization is a two-way updating process. It merges the changes made on both ends of the synchronization (e.g., the computer and the mobile device) since they were last synchronized. If an item is updated on both the computer and the mobile device, a conflict can emerge. In this case, the synchronization program prompts you to resolve the conflict. Or, the conflict could be resolved according to a predefined policy. For example, you could specify that the synchronization program always use the version on the mobile phone when there is a conflict.

Synchronization is typically initiated by the desktop computer and processed by the synchronization software on the computer. The computer acts as the main repository of all your PIM data. It backs up the data in the mobile device and supports advanced PIM management features not available on small devices. In addition, mobile devices can synchronize with each other by using a computer as a common repository.

I discussed methods to exchange individual contact items between devices and desktop computers. Synchronization automates the process by tracking the changes on multiple devices at the same time.

The Nokia PC Suite contains a Synchronise program, which helps to synchronize contacts, calendar events, to-do notes, and email messages from your phone to the Microsoft Outlook or IBM Lotus applications on a Windows PC.