Well it started with my contact with Singtel Mio package ended and I received an SMS from Singtel that I have $100 free credit for new handset (meaning I got to choose any handset they offer, and for up to $100, it is free for me - being cheapo of course I would choose anything less than $100), plus free 3 month of MIO (3 month of free phonebill) in exchange of signing up with them for 24 months.
OK not a bad deal I guess, plus I am lazy to wait for another contractor to come to my flat to install stuff when I switch provider.
So I went to ComCenter (Singtel HQ) and got myself a new FREE sony ericsson K770i to upgrade my old K610i (I get to keep it, or in my case sell it off to recover some residual money of the old equipment although I do not think it will fecth any amount higher than $30.00).
I know the problem will start when the girl who handle my re-contract rush thru and told me that this is my new phone, with my existing SIM card transfered, and she turned-on the bluetooth and handed me over my old phone. She said I can transfer all the phonebook entries using bluetooth. Since I went there on lunch time, I have to rush back to office and I just left without trying.
That is my fault. It turns out that SONY being a smart ass decide that their phone will not show anything other than DEMO without SIM card inserted. And I happen to have just one SIM card.
The new phone also misbehave the same way. VERY SMART sony, NOT!
DUH!
OK so Sony Ericcson has something called PC Suite. I have never used it successfully in synchronising my phonebook, so I guess the new version that comes with K770i will probably fix the bug the old version that comes with K610i.
NOT!
Second DUH!
That CD is actually a free coaster given by Sony. It just drop halfway every time I tried to synch my phonebook on my old K619i with it.
So much for Sony software. I guess I will not going to trust any software that comes with any Sony hardware. It failed me 2x. The hardware is OK, it is the software that is really really a waste of time.
So that necessitate a second trip to ComCenter (Singtel HQ). After queueing endlessly the guy who spoke to me told me he cannot help me as they do not provide phonebook transfer service. One solution he offered is to save the phonebook entry into SIM card, which I do not want as I know Sony Ericsson phonebook entry is much more sophisticated than SIM card and I will have duplicate entry when I have saved more than one number e.g.: office number, mobilephone number and email from a contact. I might even miss the email entry, so I do not want that. So much for a service. Small phone shop does that (help me transfer using bluetooth). I guess Singtel is too big to care.
I do now even bother going to Sony (NO) service center at Wisma Atria (Orchard) because I know a lot of people are complaining with the kind of service the staff gives there.
Third DUH!
So a worldwide corporation Sony failed me. And the big fish in tiny aquarium Singtel failed me.
May be I should try google. Restraining myself from entering any expletives with my search query, I stumble upon a freeware called MyPhoneExplorer. I downloaded and installed this app recommended by others to replace Sony PC [Un]Suit[able].
First try failed, giving me OBEX problem. So I tried exploring menu to find if there is any setting I need to do. So there is "File" -> "Options F2" form Menubar. There I could set which COM port and which baud rate the connection between my PC and my mobile phone should talk to each other, etc and there is a buttton "Search for Device". My K610i connects at COM3 port (yours may be different, may be the same, who knows, this is arcane USB magic).
Man! This button should be right there in front rather than being buried in a dialog box. I click the button and the software runs and tested my phone, adjust everything form me and done. Click "OK" button.
Then before you do anything else, you want to again go thru "File" -> "Connect F1" from Menu. That will initiate connection with the mobile phone, and both my PC and old K610i are connected happily ever after.
Time to synch. Click the blue round button with 2 arrows going round. Then I can now Browse. I can see my contact (address book), my SMS (received, sent and even draft), my appointments, tasks, even the calls I have received, missed or called. Now it is time to do some exporting (before that, select the ones you want and then right click -> Export/Import -> Export Selected Messages... and a dialog box popped up for me to specify the filename. I exported my SMSes into different files, just in case it simply overwrites the files and not append. The same goes with Appointments, Task, but shame, I cannot save my Notes. There is add new note button but no browsing of notes or exporting notes. Oh well this is freeware, and so far so good, cannot complain too much.
I cannot be bothered with caller number logs, so I don't do anything about that. And now time to do something about the address book. Again select the entries that I want to transfer (shame there is no select all), right click -> Export/Import -> Export Selected Entries... and a dialog popped up for me to enter the filename. Save.
Backing up is done. Disconnect the USB connection, unplug the K60i, turn it off, transfer the SIM card to K770i, turn it on, and plug it to the PC (with its own USB cable, different from K660i).
The same ritual is done, you first need to make it "Search for Device", then "Connect". My K770i connects at COM7 port (yours may be different, may be the same, who knows, this is arcane USB magic).
Being a new phone, when I browsed, there is nothing in Phonebook (OK I lied, there are some new numbers copied over via SIM card which comes standard like Police, Ambulance, Fireman, Customer Hotline (aka Customer Abuse number), Toto, 4D, Horoscope, etc), no SMS etc.
Now I need to copy from the files into the new phone. I can import address book entries directly, on Address Book entries, right click -> Export/Import -> Import... a dialog popped up and I can then select the file which I have just created earlier for address book. Twiddle the thumb for some seconds and they are there! My old address book! In my new phone (well, almost). Not so fast, not all done yet. For SMS apparently I first need to click on archive link on the left, and import my old SMS from files to archive, and then from archieve, I can directly copy to my phone (weird). I would have tought it will first go from archieve to proper category such as received, sent, or draft, and then I need to synch. Anyway, never mind, so long they are there. So after each category sent to phone, I need to delete the archieve entry and import the next category.
Then not so fast, for the address book I need to Synch, so click on the blue round button and wait for a few seconds. Then all are done. Disconnect USB, disconnect phone and test it. All my phonebook entries selected are there, all my old SMSes selected are there in my new phone. The same goes for Appointments and Task. I just need to retype the few notes that I have and that's it (in fact I do not retype via phone, I add new notes using MyPhoneExplorer and it adds it in directly into the phone via the program - no synch necessary again).
All in all, this nifty MyPhoneExplorer is a life saver, especially if you are transferring the obvious from one Sony Ericsson mobile phone to another. It might not work for all models. It might not work for other brand of mobile phone. UI choices may not be very consistent but it does 90% of what I want and does it well.
So, BOOOOOOOO sony ericsson, for that PC [Un]Suit[able].
BOOOOOOOOOO Singtel, for that so called top class service. I bet if I am from other phone company and I insist that my phonebook entries are transferred before I sign the document, the guy will do it for me.
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