Wireless Sync Using the MobileMe Service (iPhone 4) Part 2

Setting Up Your iPhone to Access Your MobileMe Account

Now that you’ve set up your MobileMe account, you are ready to sign into it from your iPhone.

1. Tap your Settings icon.

2. Tap Mail, Contacts, Calendars.

3. Tap Add Account.

4. Tap MobileMe for the account type.

5. Enter your Name and your MobileMe email Address and Password, then tap Next.

6. Now you’ll see the MobileMe configuration screen showing your sync options.

7. To turn any synced item On or Off, tap the switch.

8. To turn on Find My iPhone, which will show your iPhone on a map on the MobileMe web site, move the switch to On.

NOTE: If you have any existing contacts, calendars, or other information on your iPhone, these will be kept separate from your MobileMe contacts and calendars.

9. When you are done, tap Save. You should be brought back to the Settings screen and see your MobileMe account listed with the selected items turned On for syncing.

Using MobileMe After Setup

Using MobileMe is fairly seamless once you get it set up. You update your contacts and calendar on your iPhone and the changes just appear on your computer. And, if you’ve set up other mobile devices, such as an iPad, on the same account, the changes appear there, too. Everything is kept in sync wirelessly and automatically.

MobileMe has a few very cool features that we will highlight here.

Find My iPhone, Send Message, and Remote Wipe

From any web browser, you can locate your iPhone using the Find My iPhone feature in MobileMe. You can send a message and play a loud sound to alert someone on your iPhone, even if it is locked. You can remotely lock your iPhone using a 4-digit code and remotely erase all information on your iPhone.

1. Login to MobileMe from any web browser on your computer by going to www.me.com.

2. Type your username and password and click Log In.

3. Click the Find My iPhonecon in the top nav bar to display the current location of your iPhone.

4. Re-enter your password for security purposes.

5. Now you have various options.

a. You can display a message or play sound on your iPhone.

b. You can remote lock your iPhone with a passcode.

c. You can completely erase or wipe your iPhone.

6. Click the Display a Message button to display a message on your iPhone and play a loud sound for up to two minutes or until the screen is tapped.

7. You will see a small alert window pop up on the iPhone and the sound will play.

8. If you want to lock your iPhone remotely, tap the Remote Lock button on the settings page.

9. Enter a new passcode twice to set it on your iPhone. Your iPhone will immediately be locked with this new passcode.

TIP: Since this overrides your existing passcode, you can also use this feature to unlock your iPhone if you forget your original passcode. Just set a new one using Remote Lock.

10. You can also erase all data from your iPhone by pressing the Remote Wipe button.

11. Mark the check box and click Erase All Data.

CAUTION: This will erase all data on your iPhone and cannot be undone. All your data stored on MobileMe will automatically re-sync when you set up the account again. However, applications and other non-MobileMe information will have to be restored from your iTunes backup or from the App store and iTunes.

Canceling Your MobileMe Account

Should you decide that MobileMe is not for you, you can cancel your account. If you cancel your account within the first 60 days, you can avoid the $99.00 charge.

1. To cancel the service, log in to MobileMe from any web browser on your computer by going to www.me.com.

2. Type your username and password and click Log In.

3. Click the Settings icon in the top row of icons.

4. Notice on the Summary tab the date your trial ends. In this image, the trial ends on June 4, 2010.

5. Click Account Options in the left column.

6. From the Account Options screen, click the Cancel Account button.

Additional Settings for Google/Exchange or MobileMe

Once you set up the Google/Exchange or MobileMe sync, you may notice a few new options on your Settings screen in addition to the ones shown in topic 19: "Working with Contacts," and topic 20: "Your Calendar."

1. Tap the Settings icon.

2. Tap Mail, Contacts, Calendars in the left column.

3. Scroll down the right column to the bottom to see the image shown here.

4. The new option in the Contacts section is the Default Account. You can set this to be either your Exchange/Google account or your computer’s account.

5. Notice that you can turn your New Invitation Alerts On or Off.

6. The new option in the Calendars section is Sync, which allows you to set how much of your calendar to sync (2 weeks, 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, or All events).

7. You can also select which is your Default Calendar for new events you add to your iPhone. You can change this calendar when you create a new event.