Today’s society is increasingly well-off, but when it comes to time we seem to be poorer than ever. We’re all looking for ways to speed up our lives, and a great way to do this is with a Windows Mobile device, keeping your information and files to hand while away from your computer.
However, so much time can be wasted trying to synchronise the information held on your PC with a mobile device, that for some people, the chore of doing it can often outweigh the benefi ts.
The whole point of Windows Vista is to make our lives easier, and a new feature called Windows Mobile Device Center has been included so you can update your mobile device in less time than it takes to make your coffee.
To get started simply plug your Windows Mobile device into your PC’s USB port – or if you’ve got a Bluetooth connection for your PC you can synchronise your devices wirelessly. Once connected, Windows Mobile Device Center will automatically appear and show a picture of your device. You’ll then be presented with two options.
If you’re connecting to the PC which you will be synchronising your files with on a daily basis then select Set up your device which will make a permanent pairing between your PC and that specific device. If this is a one-off pairing then click Connect without setting up your device.
You’ll then be given a list of the types of data that can be automatically synchronised with your device. If you use Microsoft Office Outlook, you can set it to automatically synchronise your inbox, contacts, appointments and calendar, so wherever you are, you’ll never be without that vital information.
Tweak to fit
These synchronization settings can be changed at anytime by plugging in your device as usual and going to Mobile Device Settings > Change content sync setting. Simply check or uncheck each type of information to control whether it will be updated when the device is synched. Most options also have a menu called Sync Settings where elements can be tweaked.
With Windows Vista your mobile devices don’t have to be about just work. Windows Mobile Device Center seamlessly links into Windows Media Player where it’s easy to add music, pictures and videos to synched devices. Just drag and drop files into the sync pane on the right-hand side, click Start Sync and let Windows Vista do the rest. All that’s left now is to enjoy that coffee – and your extra bit of free time.
Setting up your mobile device
1. Connect. Plug in your device using the USB cable (or use Bluetooth to connect wirelessly) and Windows Mobile Device Center should recognize it and start up automatically. If for some reason it doesn’t load you can search for it in the Start Search box or locate it in the start menu, and open it manually.
2. Pair Up. When you plug in your device for the first time you can choose whether to start a permanent partnership, or have your device as a oneoff ‘guest’ on the computer. If this is your main PC, choose to ‘set up your device’ to save effort next time. You can always delete the partnership later if you wish.
3. Start Synching. You will then be presented with a list of the media types you can synchronise. The items you choose from this list will be updated each time you synch the device with your PC. If you want to use email, contacts and calendar synchronisation you will need to be using Microsoft Office Outlook.
4. Explore. You can use Windows Mobile Device Center to peruse the data on your phone. This allows you to add fi les manually to the device, or copy data from the phone to your hard drive using Windows Explorer.
5. Multimedia. Setting up your mobile device doesn’t have to be about boring emails and calendar appointments. Windows Mobile Device Center lets you easily set up pictures, music and video clips which you can easily export to your device. Go to Pictures, Music and Video > Add media from Windows Media Player to use the new synch functions for ultimate mobile entertainment.
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