Mossberg gives Apple's MobileMe thumbs up

Apple's MobileMe Web service has finally received Walt Mossberg's seal of approval.

(Credit: Apple)

Apple's MobileMe Web service has finally improved to the point where The Wall Street Journal's Walt Mossberg feels it worthy of a recommendation.

Mossberg, whose opinion can make or break a product or service, has revisited his earlier take on the MobileMe service, which got off to a disastrous start when it was launched last summer. MobileMe lets Mac or Windows users sync their contacts, calendar info, and e-mail across Macs, PCs, and iPhones for $99 a year.

When the revamped service hit the Internet last July, it was plagued with so many outages and glitches that Mossberg--usually high on Apple products--felt compelled to steer his readers away from the service. Apple eventually apologized for rushing the MobileMe launch during a complicated month in which it launched the iPhone 3G, the App Store, and the iPhone 2.0 software.

But "Apple has fixed all of the speed and reliability issues I encountered last year," Mossberg wrote, in giving the service a thumbs up. He did warn readers of ongoing issues involving Outlook data syncing between Windows PCs and Macs, which Apple has apparently promised to fix. It seems MobileMe is more adept at syncing data within one platform--be it Mac or Windows--and has trouble within a mixed environment of Mac and Windows PCs, according to Mossberg.

MobileMe is an important service for Apple, as it gives those wary about switching completely to the Mac a way to stay tethered to Windows, while also improving the usability of the iPhone. More than a few personal computing companies think that in the future such Web services will be crucial for average users with two or more mixed-platform computers, be they Macs, PCs, smartphones, or other mobile devices.

[chili_dawg]

I've always been a windows user until I got an iphone. I now use MobileMe and love it.

[JCPayne]

How about they buy Yahoo. Then they'd have a Browser and a portal just like Microsoft...

[rrod182]

Safari? Portals are useless just like Yahoo!, all Yahoo has going for it is the IM/Messenger user base.

[websterphreaky]

HA!!

Goatberg - SUPREME Apple Hack Media Pimp!

Goatberg undoubtedly just received his allotment of FREE Apple Gadgets and a Fat Check in the Mail from Apple Public Relations.

EVERYONE knows Walt Mossberg is a HACK and on Apple's PAYROLL. ANYTHING this Hack writes is only good to line your birdcage with. Same goes for Radio Apple Hack, Leo Laporte.

[Vegaman_Dan]

Who is this 'EVERYONE' you refer to? Do you have any evidence to back up your accusations? We need proof to believe your comments.

If you are just making generalisations, then that's another matter all together.

As for Leo Laporte, he doesn't make any pretenses that he likes his Apple products, but he's also quick to criticize when Apple does something stupid as well. You hear this for yourself in the many podcasts he runs including This Week in Tech, MacBreak Weekly and Windows Weekly. He gives all the tech companies a run for their money and doesn't take payouts or other compensation. He's gone to great lengths to ensure that he doesn't get any favors from the OEM's at all.

[Get_a_life_Leo]

So much of a pro-Apple hack that he told people to avoid using MobileMe when it was rolled out. Yup, sounds like Mossberg has Steve Jobs in his pants alright.....

I do use MobileMe and I find it works well and is reliable. In fact, I often forget how seamlessly it syncs my computers. But I don't think it should be a cash-cow for Apple - instead it should be a bundled service for iPhone owners and half price for others.

[tgrenier]

Here' some news. "Someone wrote a review of a service."

[oldmanangry]

Stop the presses! Stop the presses! Stop the presses!

Extra, extra read all about it:

Someone else wrote something about something.

Extra, extra read all about it!

[Vegaman_Dan]

It's good to hear some positive news about MobileMe. it's had a rocky start and a hard time convincing customers that it was reliable enough for their use. Times change and things improve.

[Macbrewer]

Mossberg is no big 'fan' of the Mac, just an honest journalist who is willing to stand up for the best products, even when writing for a publication who's readers are about 99% windows users. Find one thing he wrote about the Mac and just TRY to show that it's not true. Can't do it, he won't go out on a limb for Apple, he is probably the best computer journalist on the internet.

[jscott418]

Mossberg used to stick up for Apple more then he has lately. I really have not used Mobile Me since its horrible start and do not intend to go back. If you read Apple's own support forums some are still having big problems with mail and syncing. The problems seem to be more with PC user's trying to use the services. Not surprising Apple has never been too good at getting their software onto PC's without problems. I still resent having to pay $100 a year for many services that I will not use. A one price fits all is not what Mobile Me should be. It would be better to offer a free or almost free email service for Mac user's. But with limited storage. Not everyone wants or needs some of the rest Mobile Me offer's.

[Daddio2009]

I too got bit when I bought into the initial release of MobileMe. Like jscott418, I will not go back and try the newer version. $100 is just too much for something that should be free to Apple users. I have 2 iMacs, a Macbook, an iPhone and a coupla iPods... I like Apple - but $100 is way too much!

[BogusBasin]

Lord, thank you for all the Apple products I use every day that make my life so much easier. Please help the poor ignorant Apple bashers, for they know not what they do. Amen

[monkeyfun14]

MobileMe is still not worth 99 a year

[CrashPad63]

Youre sounding very Bogus to me on this. So much so your ignorance is showing.

[truthortroll]

I'll stick with Live Mesh which, while still in beta, is free.

[baconstang]

Too expensive? Less than $2/week. Well, if it saved me three minutes a week syncing my iMac, MacBook and Touch it's worth it. Oh yeah and the other stuff too.

[johnmorgan2]

WHO CARES what CRUSTY OLD Walt Mossberg has to say? I'm sick and tired of that old fart slowly getting around to review something and then expecting us to care. The only way Ole' Walt can break some news (instead of wind) is by using his influence as a Tech Columnist for the largest financial publication (WSJ) to get advance access to tech gear. He TOTALLY doesn't deserve it either.. from what I can tell he has a bunch of staff doing most of his work for him these days. When is that guy going to be cast a side to the dust bins of tech journalism - where he belongs...

Oh.. yeah... I read about the improvements to MobileMe like a MONTH AGO.

[B-McGee]

Why pay $99 for a service that google offers for free? I used to have MobileMe until my subscription ran out, and I chose not to renew it because google's gmail, contacts, address book, etc works flawlessly and I can use that to sync with my windows computer at work that's protected by a proxy server. MobileMe cannot handle proxies, or at least they didn't for the better part of the year I had it, if they added this service, hooray, but still not worth paying for when free options exist that provide identical functionality.

[artistjoh]

It seems like forever ago that Mobile Me was flaky. Over recent months it has worked perfectyly. It is a dream come true for my business as items changed on the Calendar automatically sync across 3 computers and the iPhone. I love it.

[alawaiblowfish]

As a college student, i find Mobile Me has grown on me to the point of it becoming a necessity. I can work in the world of Windows that proliferate the school and work environments I go to everyday, and still fetch, modify, and upload my files, contacts, and calendars (deadlines!). I?m amazed that using a simple web interface allows me to upload my on-the-go work to my mac, which is happily sitting at home on the desk reflecting the changes in real time. No USB keys to lose, Mac gets to stay safe at home, no need to bring papers with you...print where you are! It really is one of the best add-ons for OS X.