Filed under: Software, Productivity, Internet Tools
Mark/Space releases SyncTogether 1.0, the alternative to .Mac syncing
Mark/Space's has at last released SyncTogether, the spawn of their acquisition of MySync. SyncTogether fills the much sought-after void of application syncing on the Mac, a niche which Apple's .Mac currently has cornered. A $50 one-time purchase which covers up to 3 Macs will allow you to sync everything Apple's SyncServices (which .Mac uses) can, with a few additional perks. For example, instead of syncing your entire Address Book between two Macs, you could keep most of your contacts private by syncing only a specific group with family members. In contrast to Apple's $100 yearly subscription .Mac service (which, to their credit also offers email, web hosting and more), SyncTogether looks to be a powerful alternative for many who are only interested in this specific feature.SyncTogether doesn't come without its disadvantages. First, if you own more than three Macs you want to sync, you'll need to purchase a second $50 license to cover those other machines. Also, SyncTogether uses a direct connection between Macs (even when you're out and about) to do the actual syncing, which is a double-edged sword: on one hand, the security nuts in the audience will likely have peace of mind knowing that their data isn't lying around on anyone's servers, but this also means that setting up SyncTogether isn't quite as "it just works" as Apple's .Mac. Lastly, and this is a major gripe many users have against Mark/Space's practices: SyncTogether doesn't have a demo. The company seems fond of forcing customers into paying up front to get their hands on the software, so all we can tell you is purchase at your own risk. Any readers care to share experiences in the comments?
At the end of the day, this .Mac customer is definitely interested in what SyncTogether has to offer, especially since I'm only on board these days for app syncing and the iDisk. Still, I think I'm going to have to wait until comments roll in from those more adventurous (and financially mobile) than I before making any leaps of Mark/Space faith.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
PixelPrototype said 5:58PM on 1-31-2007
For me, this isn't any sort of good news. I've always been extremely disappointed with their products. It doesn't seem like they consider "usability" or keep to any of Apple's design guidlines. For example, how the heck can I manage/add/delete phones with Missing Sync without having to go through some convoluted process? I would caution anybody from purchasing this product until the verdict is in.
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mapin0518 said 6:19PM on 1-31-2007
I use Missing Sync for my WinMobile device and for my mom's Palm device. The applications work flawlessly. They look ugly and their GUI doesn't look very mac-like. But they get the job done and do it well.
This app looks great, but unfortunatey the price is a bit steep. If it was $30, i'd go for it. Now with Spanning Sync on the horizon, I'm just gonna wait this one out.
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Paul Kerton said 7:29PM on 1-31-2007
Spanning Sync is all well and good if all you want to do is sync calendars (and I do...), but I also want to sync my address book too.
I tried out MySync a little while ago and was suitably impressed by the fact that I could sync up 3 Macs, a Nokia mobile phone and have no crossover or duplication.
I've been setting up a local (network) WebDAV server here to attempt to mimic .Mac - and I'll continue to do so as part of a learning experience - however, when I saw that SyncTogether had been released, I whipped out my Credit Card and bought it.
I've used the program - it's slightly different from MySync in the way it is able to sync with other programs (such as Transmit and Yojimbo), but it does it all with ease and without causing me headaches - something I find to be a plus.
I guess it all depends on what you are looking for (sync wise) as to whether you'll buy this or not. A demo would definitely be of some assurance to users, especially now that the MySync site has totally disappeared - they've pointed the whole domain to the Mark/Space one - even if it restricted the number of addresses/calendar appointments transferred.
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Steve C said 7:28PM on 1-31-2007
It seems like a decent start but I see 2 things missing that will prevent me from getting this: keychain and (for example) my Documents folder. Or another specified folder that I use between 2 different Macs. And yeah the "no demo" thing sucks.
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Ted said 8:04PM on 1-31-2007
It's basically just a rebranding of MySync, which Mark/Space bought. What really disappointed me about it is that I DO need Internet based syncing because some of my computers are at the office and some at home. Even if it let you sync to your own FTP server, that would be awesome, and a full replacement of .Mac.
Right now, my best method is to create a new username every 3 months on .Mac and use their trial. Because $100 per year is not worth it just for the syncing. I would buy this product in an instant if it had server support.
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Zeno Davatz said 8:38AM on 2-01-2007
Dudes! I just bought SyncTogether and it works great! If you have a remote computer you can also sync remotly via somebody@domain.com. I synced 3 address books and it worked flawlessly (local network, remotel I did not try yet). I also use MissingSync for my Treo680 and that one works great now as well (after I contacted the support for the iphoto conduit). The next thing I'm waiting for is SpanningSync. But first they have to get back online.
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SjG said 4:42PM on 2-01-2007
I'd be wary about Mark/Space. When I bought Missing Sync for Palm, it worked really well. But when it was "upgraded" to use sync services, it's become buggy and dangerous. Even when following the convoluted directions, I've had my data wiped on upgrades (fortunately, I'm paranoid about backups, so I didn't lose anything permanently).
Not the kind of performance I'd expect from a $40 program.
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Reid Sorenson said 4:50PM on 2-02-2007
I use a combination of Plaxo for my address book and Google Synchronizer for Firefox bookmarks/passwords. Not only do these solutions allow me to sync everything I need to between multiple computers at home and at work, they're both cross-platform. So my Windows PC and my Macs are always current with the same data. Best of all, both of these services are FREE.
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