# Mobile Me - Worth It?



## Dadi_oh (Nov 9, 2010)

I am considering whether it is worthwhile for me to setup a Mobile Me account or possible a family account and was hoping that someone who has been using it could share the benefits. Maybe I can describe my situation to set the stage for discussion.

My household is largely "Macified" (or should be "Appleized")? 

Network: Airport Extreme dual band N. It has a 1TB drive that is used as a Time Machine for all the Macs in the house.

Machine 1: Hackintosh (QuadCore, 8GB, 10TB) running Snow Leopard as my main server for the house. It serves up videos, music, photos, etc... It is also my video and photo editing work horse. Connected via Gigabit Ethernet to the network.

Machine 2: Mac Mini. My wife's main machine for her work. Connected Wireless N. 

Machine 3: Macbook Pro. My Wife's portable work machine. Wireless N.

Machine 4: Macbook. My Daughter's laptop. Mostly surfing and email.

Machine 5: Macbook. My Son's. Surfing and email.

Machine 6: iPad 32GB Wifi. My surfing and leisure machine.

Machine 7: iPhone 3GS. My cell.

So as you can see there are multiple users and multiple machines. Therefore multiple email addresses as well. From what I read on Mobile Me it would allow me to keep my emails, contacts and calendars synced between my machines. It also provides some cloud storage for common files.

However, for $100 (or $150 family) I would hope there are some innovative ways to use it for more than just syncing contacts. 

So, is it worth it? Do you have some innovative ways of using the capabilities that I haven't thought of? Any feedback or advice greatly appreciated.


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## Andrew Pratt (Feb 16, 2007)

Is it worth it? IMO for me and my family it is. We use it to sync email, contacts and most importantly calendars between our various machines. Its great that I can read/delete email on our iPad and have it synced across all my machines (and at work). iDisk is handy for transferring files though I'm starting to use dropbox as well for that.

As far as cost goes if you look online (sig electronics, ebay etc) you can find MobileMe much cheaper.


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## wonderings (Jun 10, 2003)

I like the integration with everything. I use it for myself, not a family, but have an iPhone 4, i5 iMac, iMac G4, MacBook Pro i5 and an iPad. I like keeping bookmarks unified, so I make a change on one and everything else is changed. Same for calendar and address book. I love that I can get a contact info on my phone and know its now on every device I own. I really like screen sharing with mobile me, and being able to access anything as I have the username and password, everything is at my fingertips and the speed of my download and upload service.

I dont use it for email, I have other addresses that I use as my main, I don't like being tied down to a pay service for email, when it can be avoided.


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## Dadi_oh (Nov 9, 2010)

Andrew Pratt said:


> Is it worth it? IMO for me and my family it is. We use it to sync email, contacts and most importantly calendars between our various machines. Its great that I can read/delete email on our iPad and have it synced across all my machines (and at work). iDisk is handy for transferring files though I'm starting to use dropbox as well for that.
> 
> As far as cost goes if you look online (sig electronics, ebay etc) you can find MobileMe much cheaper.


Thanks. Good info.

I didn't know you could get it cheaper since I assume this is an Apple run subscription service so I assumed I had to go through Apple? Will do some searching to see if it can be found at a better 1 year rate.


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## Dadi_oh (Nov 9, 2010)

wonderings said:


> I like the integration with everything. I use it for myself, not a family, but have an iPhone 4, i5 iMac, iMac G4, MacBook Pro i5 and an iPad. I like keeping bookmarks unified, so I make a change on one and everything else is changed. Same for calendar and address book. I love that I can get a contact info on my phone and know its now on every device I own. I really like screen sharing with mobile me, and being able to access anything as I have the username and password, everything is at my fingertips and the speed of my download and upload service.
> 
> I dont use it for email, I have other addresses that I use as my main, I don't like being tied down to a pay service for email, when it can be avoided.


Hmmm. Screen sharing. That might be pretty handy. I was assuming that I would probably get a family pack and include my kids in the deal. Do they have to be in the same house? One of daughters just got married and moved out so it would be nice if I could help her with any Mac issues from a distance.

As far as the email address goes I agree. If I decide later to drop the service I don;t want to lose all my email.


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## Dadi_oh (Nov 9, 2010)

So then I have a followup question. I have always kept my Airport secured from any outside access because I figure it is not worth the security risk. So if I open up access for something like screen sharing and have a fairly strong password would the risk of someone hacking my network be fairly low?


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## wonderings (Jun 10, 2003)

Dadi_oh said:


> So then I have a followup question. I have always kept my Airport secured from any outside access because I figure it is not worth the security risk. So if I open up access for something like screen sharing and have a fairly strong password would the risk of someone hacking my network be fairly low?


They can only see your computer if they have your mobile me account info. Its not just broadcasting it out.

You can use it anywhere, I could be in Peru and screen share my work computer as an example. I am constantly back and forth between my home computer and work computer from both work and at home. I use it to also help if my co-worker or parents/family needs help with something, its much easier to assist if I can see the screen. There can be issues with screen sharing though if the network is not set to allow it. I use iChat then to get around that and screen share that way, but its nicer with mobile me.


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## monokitty (Jan 26, 2002)

I use it exclusively. Mostly to keep contacts, calendars and appointments in tune between my iPhone and my Mac. I'm also a lifetime client with MobileMe because I've had a @mac.com email address now for over 5 years and it's not going away...


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## Dadi_oh (Nov 9, 2010)

Lars said:


> I use it exclusively. Mostly to keep contacts, calendars and appointments in tune between my iPhone and my Mac. I'm also a lifetime client with MobileMe because I've had a @mac.com email address now for over 5 years and it's not going away...


The email they gave me was @me.com so I guess the @mac.com is not used anymore? So are you lifetime for free or you just mean you would never choose to not pay for the service? (Kind of a confusing sentence... like "yes we have no bananas" but you get what I mean)


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## monokitty (Jan 26, 2002)

Dadi_oh said:


> The email they gave me was @me.com so I guess the @mac.com is not used anymore? So are you lifetime for free or you just mean you would never choose to not pay for the service? (Kind of a confusing sentence... like "yes we have no bananas" but you get what I mean)


Ha, I mean I'll keep paying the annual fee (when I don't get it free through my place of work, that is). And yes, @mac.com is discontinued; it's now @me.com but long-time subscribers got to keep their @mac.com addresses.


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## FeXL (Jan 2, 2004)

I don't see the value in it at $100/yr.

I have the main work desktop which syncs contacts, calendar, etc. to my smartphone via Missing Sync. I have my laptop which occasionally gets used as a viewing station for a commercial client or gets brought along on a business trip. If I require email with the laptop I'll use webmail which has the few email addys I use with any degree of regularity already stored. If I require another email address, I'll source the info on my smartphone.

We use another 4 or 5 computers for the business but none of them ever connect to the internet or email.

Wife's laptop has her own schedule on it & she manages that by herself unless she requires assistance, in which case a quick email, or, God forbid, breakfast conversation, gets me onboard.

Kids' laptop, nothing required.

It makes no financial sense for us. At $20 or $30/year, I'd look at it. Not at $100.


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## i-rui (Sep 13, 2006)

WAY overpriced at $110/year. They shouldn't be charging more than $50 (tops).

Having said that, it IS a nice service, and back to mac is great WHEN IT WORKS (which isn't all the time). Find my iphone is also another good feature. Syncing is handled well. The rest of what it offers is decent, but you can find free alternatives. I guess if you see value in the unique features mobile me offers then it might be ok.

you can sign up for a free 60 day trial. best to give it a whirl and see what you think.


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## darkscot (Nov 13, 2003)

i-rui said:


> WAY overpriced at $110/year. They shouldn't be charging more than $50 (tops).


I agree. $110 is pricey for this. They'd have better numbers at $50 I think.


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## Andrew Pratt (Feb 16, 2007)

Its only over price if you don't use the services...and pay full price. As I said its EASILY available online for a far more reasonable cost. For example the first hit I got on an eBay search said it was $75 buy now pricing which is inline with what I've paid before. At that price its very affordable for 5 licenses.


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## Dadi_oh (Nov 9, 2010)

Yeah. The price is my main obstacle. On eBay I see a family pack for $84 which would be at the edge of what I would pay. Signed up for the trial now and hope I remember to decide in 60 days.


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## monokitty (Jan 26, 2002)

Don't let anyone dictate to you what MobileMe is worth in their own mind - use the trial and decide for yourself. Personally, I'm OK with the yearly price based on the value I personally see in the services provided.


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## Dadi_oh (Nov 9, 2010)

Lars said:


> Don't let anyone dictate to you what MobileMe is worth in their own mind - use the trial and decide for yourself. Personally, I'm OK with the yearly price based on the value I personally see in the services provided.


Absolutely. That is why the main point of my post was to see how innovatively people are using it. Because value to me goes up if it solves multiple issues. For example the remote screen would be of value to me. 

Think different. Sometimes I need to break out of old habits and find better ways. I think MobileMe could be one of those things.


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## fyrefly (Apr 16, 2005)

I also love MobileMe for all of the aforementioned reasons. Back to my Mac, Address/Contact Syncing, Calendar Syncing, etc... across my MackBook Air, iMac and iPhone/iPad. It's all pretty seamless and works 99% of the time that I've had to use it.

I split a family pack with my roommate, as I don't need all the disk space.


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## hayesk (Mar 5, 2000)

darkscot said:


> I agree. $110 is pricey for this. They'd have better numbers at $50 I think.


$110/year is less than $9/month. It's a fair price if you use more than one or two of its features.


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## Andrew Pratt (Feb 16, 2007)

Find my phone is nice too if I ever can't find my iPhone (or it gets stolen). The email is pretty clean too as I rarely get spam on that account.


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##  Dumpling (May 28, 2010)

I never thought I would really need the service until I bought an iPad. The more Apple gear I got, the more sense it made. I know that there are 3rd party solutions, but I felt a lot more comfortable going the Apple way. I agree that the mail is very clean and now I only hope the service is made even more affordable in the near future. I will definitely renew next year and take it form there. The 60 day trial should more than answer any questions people have and is enough time to see if it something you want or need.


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## mkolesa (Jul 22, 2008)

surprised no one has mention the mobileme gallery yet... once you create an album in iphoto all you have to do is click the mobileme icon and it'll publish your snaps in a very user friendly web portal (different viewing and security options), and then give you the option to alert people via email. i know there are other pic hosting options but this is a super easy and quite slick way to share your happy snaps to friends near and far. oh, there's also an iphone app to allow access.


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## tomtom (Apr 13, 2007)

I've always paid around $89 for the family pack. Email is clean. Gallery is nice and I use it to publish my iWeb site and blog. Not sophisticated enough for experts but works great for me.


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## Dadi_oh (Nov 9, 2010)

tomtom said:


> I've always paid around $89 for the family pack. Email is clean. Gallery is nice and I use it to publish my iWeb site and blog. Not sophisticated enough for experts but works great for me.


I'm thinking if I get a deal on ebay for a family pack at about $80 that would be ok given the features I think I would use. I might as well use up as much of the 60 day trial as I can


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## Ottawaman (Jan 16, 2005)

The family pack is a better value. It's worth it, but I wish it Apple would enhance it.


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## i-rui (Sep 13, 2006)

back to mac works about 50% of the time for me. I tried last night and i couldn't connect (tried several times), I also tested out find my iphone tonight and that seemed to be down as well.

I guess this is my biggest problem with mobile me. For the premium charged i expect much more reliable connections.


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## broad (Jun 2, 2009)

I have never once been unable to connect and I use it literally 8 or 10 times a day. Its bang on for me. 

I think if you are seriously going to be stressing over the diff between paying 109/annum vs 50/annum for something maybe you should be reevaluating needs vs wants and really taking a look at how you spend money.


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## racewalker (Sep 20, 2010)

Last weekend I lost my Iphone 4. I used the find my phone and found were I left it.That paid for the account right there. It would have been hundreds of dollars to replace it and if I couldn't have found it I could have wiped the data at least.


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## tilt (Mar 3, 2005)

Andrew Pratt said:


> As far as cost goes if you look online (sig electronics, ebay etc) you can find MobileMe much cheaper.


Andrew, that would be only for the first year. In the years following, your subscription would be billed automatically by Apple at Apple's retail rate instead of your SIG electronics or eBay rate, no? So, there is no real benefit to buying from eBay or SIG other than a few Dollars, once. Or am I wrong?

Cheers


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## SINC (Feb 16, 2001)

tilt said:


> Andrew, that would be only for the first year. In the years following, your subscription would be billed automatically by Apple at Apple's retail rate instead of your SIG electronics or eBay rate, no? So, there is no real benefit to buying from eBay or SIG other than a few Dollars, once. Or am I wrong?
> 
> Cheers


If you can buy a copy on sale at a discount, I think you can just enter the code into your account near expiry time and extend it for another year.


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## Macified (Sep 18, 2003)

SINC said:


> If you can buy a copy on sale at a discount, I think you can just enter the code into your account near expiry time and extend it for another year.


Correct you are, Sinc. I just had mine renew from a code rather than credit card. Be sure to buy a full boxed unit and not a potentially illicit code only option.


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## Andrew Pratt (Feb 16, 2007)

Correct just enter the update code when its time to renew and you are good for another year. A word of warning though make sure you buy the renewal plenty ahead of when you need it. I got caught with slow shipping this time round and had to pay full price when it rolled over onto my credit card. Oh well I'm still happy with the service and for me its worth the cost anyway.


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## tomtom (Apr 13, 2007)

I think you can update your code at any time and it will remain in your account 'til needed. I know I put mine in quite early, and if I see it on sale at a good price again I'll enter it straight away in case I lose the box.


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## Dadi_oh (Nov 9, 2010)

tomtom said:


> I think you can update your code at any time and it will remain in your account 'til needed. I know I put mine in quite early, and if I see it on sale at a good price again I'll enter it straight away in case I lose the box.


Now that would be great. Why make us remember when to enter the code? 

I am on a 60 day trial now. I wonder if I buy a year subscription and enter the code will the year start right after the 60 days or right away? Anyone know? (yeah, I know I'm cheap)


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## tomtom (Apr 13, 2007)

Not sure how it works with the free trial.


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## RunTheWorldOnMac (Apr 23, 2006)

I never leave home without it. Get the free trial; test drive it but you will want it.


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## Dadi_oh (Nov 9, 2010)

I am already liking the sync capabilities. Mac pro, iPad, iPhone all on the same page now. I just wish it could sync notes. My iPhone syncs notes to my work PC (outlook) but MobileMe doesn't sync notes. Maybe someday.


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## RunTheWorldOnMac (Apr 23, 2006)

I'm not sure what is going on with syncing notes; sometimes it syncs them in Mail. Not sure what the difficuty is.


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## hdh607 (Sep 8, 2008)

I love MobileMe. Use it for work and home. Pretty much every feature but Mail. We sync our calendars and Address book and that alone is a big plus - and in doing so creates a backup online and the ability to access that info online via the browser login. I also have used it for iWeb, iChat, the photo gallery, file sharing for larger files that can't be emailed - like big PP files, and find my iPhone. Been using it for 5 years now. wouldn't even consider not renewing....would love for it to be free though!


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## chas_m (Dec 2, 2007)

I've posted my thoughts on MobileMe many times here, so I'll try to avoid repeating myself.

When I worked for Apple I got it free. When I left Apple I started paying for it. I use a lot of the services and would never consider voluntarily giving it up -- I've even paid in years when we were pretty poor.

Two things I particularly like that most people don't mention is the hassle-free hosting and the lack of ads. Yes, the hosting is limited to a personal-type site -- but for that needs, it's totally hassle-free. I never have to think about bandwidth, or cost overruns or downtime.

And the ads -- well, all I'll say about that is that by comparison, EVERYTHING Google does for people is a front for collecting as much personal info on you as possible, and in turn selling advertising base on that info. That's fine if you don't mind that, to some extent I don't mind it either -- but I really do appreciate Apple's lack of interest in doing that to their subscribers.


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## crawford (Oct 8, 2005)

I bought MobileMe primarily for iDisk syncing and have been sorely disappointed. It's possible that I could be doing something wrong (though I don't see how), but when I was working on documents that were saved to the local iDisk, I would _*constantly*_ get sync errors. Highly annoying when it interrupted my work and required multiple clicks to dismiss the error messages. For this intended use, Dropbox works like a charm.

The few times I have used Back to my Mac, I was greatly impressed. Kind of amazed, actually. Contact and calendar syncing are ok, but Apple's inability to handle meeting requests generated by Outlook preclude me from using the calendar service. (seriously, Apple, how hard can it be?)

As for the other services, I use my own domain for email, sync my bookmarks in the browser and much prefer Flickr for photo hosting / sharing.

I guess the bottom line is that there are so many services included in MobileMe that you'll have to use the trial and determine whether it provides the value that you're looking for.


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## RiceBoy (Aug 1, 2009)

Dadi_oh said:


> I am on a 60 day trial now. I wonder if I buy a year subscription and enter the code will the year start right after the 60 days or right away? Anyone know? (yeah, I know I'm cheap)


It starts right after your trial period ends.


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## SINC (Feb 16, 2001)

I've had .Mac for eight years now. Oh sorry, it's MobileMe now, that awful sounding, Microsoft sounding, ill sounding name.

But I digress.

Would never be without it and my sync problems have been zero in all those years.


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## canada eh (Dec 8, 2009)

I bought mobile me twice, I have not had nearly as many problems as some people have had, my email always work, I have seen one outage where every thing was down for about a half an hour but it was soon fixed. every thing for my iphone is in the cloud and on apples servers, it was no hassle for me to get my email, contacts and calendars on my iphone 4 when I got it because I had everything in sync with my mac already. I would like to see a price drop or possibly free, I think the $110 is a little much IMO maybe $49, it does have its benefits.

I have made a few websites on iWeb and used them as school projects where I just have to give my teacher an internet address. And the lack of ads is very nice, I would like to see them remove the part about getting a free trial if you have already paid for it, seems like a bit of a waste.

I like the fact that it is not so well known so my school doesn't have it blocked so it allows me to check my email and all of mobile me's services at school without using proxy servers (which obviously arn't allowed.)

Overall I am quite pleased with it, but I have a lack of internet so I can't use the idisk to the full potential but I like the email address how it is short with @me.com. I also like the general integration with mac os x, I don't have to deal with third party applications like googles mail app or windows live mail. it is all integrated with the applications that come with it. and with me owning a Mac, iPhone 4 and iPad it keeps everything happy and worry free.


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## Alex Taylor (Nov 28, 2008)

The biggest advantage of MobileMe is that it supports wide range of Apple devices (no surprise, it was developed for them ). One of the disadvantages is its annual fee. 

I guess you can check sync apps also, in case if you need to sync your data only.


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## iphoneottawa (Apr 21, 2010)

I already use exchange and drop box so the only advantage I see in mobile me is the " find my phone"


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## Andrew Pratt (Feb 16, 2007)

> already use exchange and drop box so the only advantage I see in mobile me is the " find my phone"


Which is now free for current generation hardware.


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## racewalker (Sep 20, 2010)

"Which is now free for current generation hardware."
How would I have done this last weekend when I lost my Iphone in Saskatoon?


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## Andrew Pratt (Feb 16, 2007)

You'd need someone else's iPhone4 or a computer with web access to enter me.com with your Apple ID.


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## iphoneottawa (Apr 21, 2010)

Andrew Pratt said:


> Which is now free for current generation hardware.


NICE!
Thank you Apple!


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## Northone (May 10, 2008)

*Reliability*

I've been a MobileMe subscriber for about 3 years now, and am considering switching my primary email address over to the .me domain. Love the sync features. Just bought the iPad to join with my Mac book, iMac and touch. 

I travel a lot and have noticed that hotels will often block the sending of emails from my ISP email through the mail program and am tired of responding through web based websites. The imap system seems to work through their filters. 

I'm curious as to the reliability of the .me domain email system in recent terms. Only one mention in this thread about it being down for a few minutes. Anyone who uses it regularly have concerns or issues in that regard. I understand that sometimes technology has glitches, and I'm hardly someone that is in a position to make life or death decisions based on sent or received emails, but like to know that my service is at least good, if not excellent. 

Thanks. 

Northone


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##  Dumpling (May 28, 2010)

I personally find mail very reliable. I have had no issues with it's dependability whatsoever as a recent subscriber to the service. Its the best mail service that I have and I would use the term excellent to describe it.


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## mkolesa (Jul 22, 2008)

i'd say it's excellent in terms of email as well. i've used it as my primary email for close to 9 years and only remember a couple short interruptions in service and those were years ago... the spam filters they use also seem quite good.


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## SINC (Feb 16, 2001)

I have used .Mac for over 10 years now and would never be without it. I just found it on sale at amazon.ca (Thanks MacWorld) for about $65 and added to my subscription that will now not expire until 02/2012. That said, I still cannot get used to calling it MobileMe and my email address remains @ mac.com, way cooler than me.com.


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## mkolesa (Jul 22, 2008)

SINC said:


> I have used .Mac for over 10 years now and would never be without it. I just found it on sale at amazon.ca (Thanks MacWorld) for about $65 and added to my subscription that will now not expire until 02/2012. That said, I still cannot get used to calling it MobileMe and my email address remains @ mac.com, way cooler than me.com.


you made me curious so i checked and saw that like you said, amazon.ca has one from a place in nyc for $65. how can they do that while apple charges $109? it makes no sense to me... since my mobileme renewal date is jan 24, can i buy one from amazon as you did and use the code to add on to my account before my card gets charged for auto renewal?


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## Dadi_oh (Nov 9, 2010)

mkolesa said:


> you made me curious so i checked and saw that like you said, amazon.ca has one from a place in nyc for $65. how can they do that while apple charges $109? it makes no sense to me... since my mobileme renewal date is jan 24, can i buy one from amazon as you did and use the code to add on to my account before my card gets charged for auto renewal?


Earlier in the thread someone indicated this is indeed true. Assuming you do it with enough lead time.


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## Bjornbro (Feb 19, 2000)

Dadi_oh said:


> Mobile Me - Worth It?


The fact that you need to ask just means you really want it. I've been using it since it was called iTools (back in the OS 9 days) and I wouldn't be without it!


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## SINC (Feb 16, 2001)

mkolesa said:


> you made me curious so i checked and saw that like you said, amazon.ca has one from a place in nyc for $65. how can they do that while apple charges $109? it makes no sense to me... since my mobileme renewal date is jan 24, can i buy one from amazon as you did and use the code to add on to my account before my card gets charged for auto renewal?


Yep, that is what I did after receiving an email from MacWorld and clicking the link from this hint:

A less-expensive MobileMe subscription | Productivity Apps | Mac 911 | Macworld

EDIT: To more fully answer your question, Amazon's price is likely determined by one of two things. Either Apple's markup represents most of the price difference, or they are using the item as a "loss leader" to attract Mac users to other more profitable items they sell that are Mac related.


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## Dadi_oh (Nov 9, 2010)

Bjornbro said:


> The fact that you need to ask just means you really want it. I've been using it since it was called iTools (back in the OS 9 days) and I wouldn't be without it!


Yes. I was leaning that way. I just wanted to see if there were be benefits that I hadn't thought about. The question has generated some good discussion which I am glad for. 

I have an eye on a sealed family pack on eBay for $70 plus a small among for shipping.


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## Specks (Nov 25, 2010)

For the longest time I held off adopting MobileMe and used gmail to sync my email and Address Book. I wanted it for iCal, and wow. I love the full package and do not regret purchasing it. It's a great product.


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## Dadi_oh (Nov 9, 2010)

I picked up a family pack and applied it to my free trial. The 1 year starts immediately rather than waiting until the end of the trial period. Not a big deal. I will be renewing in 1 year from the looks of things so far


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## SD-B (Oct 28, 2009)

if anyone is interested..............look in the classifieds here-------i have 2 for sale at the moment, unopened

I am in Toronto $60 single license
about $5 for shipping


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## SD-B (Oct 28, 2009)

iphoneottawa said:


> I already use exchange and drop box so the only advantage I see in mobile me is the " find my phone"




I dont know.
I have 2 mobile mes for sale and am thinking of keeping one for myself after all instead of selling both for that very reason, Drop Box


I downloaded it last week and it took me HOURS over 2 nights to get all my contacts in order because they all use different formats, unless i was doing something wrong?

I had recently had to reset my iPhone and for some reason ended up with an old contact list and lost all the ones i had put on my phone since that I forgotten to put onto my computer.

So, I went into mail and found that the files i had to save for my contacts were different than the ones for yahoo.com.....and so on and it was a TON of work.

So the drop box thing didnt really help me

i have a feeling this mobile me is far supeior to drop box


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## SD-B (Oct 28, 2009)

BTW, the new ability to Find Your Phone with iphones is only available on the iphone 4........I haven't yet updated to the latest release and am yet to try it but i hae tried 3rd hand applications and found them to be less accurate than they promise

I am going to assume from what i have seen, that this apple one, or in mobile me, will be as accurate as it can be......hopefully apple will be able to copy this for the new update on 4


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## SD-B (Oct 28, 2009)

I just looked it up, the trial for 2 months.........unfortunately its another one of those deals whereby you MUST give them your credit card number and after 2 months, you will start to be charged for it IF I suppose you dont tell them first that you dont want it.

I can speak for anyone else but I for one wont sign up for deals like that. I would IF they just gave it to you for the two months and then perhaps a week before it expires, if you do want it, you purchase it then, at that time.
I expect that the rationale is that many will forget to say no, at the end of the two month period and be charged full price for the next year........but i wonder how many they lose, and if they lose more than they gain IF they were to just let people use it first without giving all of the information away and then buying it if they want it but this way, what is it for Apple to give up 2 months ( if that for many might buy it before that 2 month period is up ) to secure people for one full year?

2 months of free software is not worth the hassle of being stuck with it if you dont want it yet forget to tell them in time that you dont want it. At least in my opinion.


Anyhow, great thread for its now got me thinking as to whether i should keep one or not........but with only one mac and one iphone, I am not sure i need it


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## meall (Aug 15, 2007)

It is time for me to renew the MobileMe Family pack and I looked online to see if there was good deals out there. I saw that on Amazon.com (USA):

Amazon.com: mobileme

Is it possible to get the family pack at such a low price ~$75?


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## SD-B (Oct 28, 2009)

For anyone interested, the one i am selling is the NEW one, which sells at Amazon for $64.99 and to the poster above, yes, it is very possible to get it at that price with Amazon.
If its advertised as so, then it is---------now, that said, they only have so many and will sell out quickly I assume and once they do, then it may not be so easy to get it again


( Mine is a single though, not family pack )


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## SD-B (Oct 28, 2009)

meall said:


> It is time for me to renew the MobileMe Family pack and I looked online to see if there was good deals out there. I saw that on Amazon.com (USA):
> 
> Amazon.com: mobileme
> 
> Is it possible to get the family pack at such a low price ~$75?




that's a good link
i may buy the apple care for my iphone 4
that's a good deal
and i stupidly passed up on those some time ago that were offered me 

its US dollars though.........which wont be much different

i imagine there is an amazon.ca?
ive never shopped via amazon yet.......


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## mkolesa (Jul 22, 2008)

SD-B said:


> that's a good link
> i may buy the apple care for my iphone 4
> that's a good deal
> and i stupidly passed up on those some time ago that were offered me
> ...


yep, amazon.ca has the same u.s. vendor listed. i missed the first chance when i saw it offered at that price but then they had a few more yesterday and i bought one. haven't received it yet though... 

btw, the other great deal i got yesterday was a blue snowball usb mic for $66, from amazon.com, but i don't think it's still at that price.


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## meall (Aug 15, 2007)

mkolesa said:


> yep, amazon.ca has the same u.s. vendor listed.


Amazon.ca don't sell everything Amazon.com sell. And for MobileMe pack, they don't seam to have any...


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## SD-B (Oct 28, 2009)

Ok well I set up my Mobile me and I am a bit disappointed in the FIND MY PHONE aspect........I live in an apartment building at St Clair and Spadina.
When searching for my phone, it showed it in a house 1 street over on Russell Hill Road.

Not sure how this might help IF the phone were lost or stolen?

I had tried a 3rd party find my iphone type app before with the same sort of results.
Therefore, I can only imagine that it is useful if you really do leave it somewhere and cant recall where for you were at so many different places---finding it on the map at least narrows it down to where you think you last left it IF no one has stolen it since

With mine, being on Rogers..........I lost one iPhone before and am much more careful now for a Rogers iPhone would never be returned but either kept or sold on CL within hours, sine anyone can use them........unlike a phone with Bell which cant be.


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## mkolesa (Jul 22, 2008)

meall said:


> Amazon.ca don't sell everything Amazon.com sell. And for MobileMe pack, they don't seam to have any...


the vendor only had a few at that price. you might want to check back. fyi, you're right that amazon.com and amazon.ca can have different merchandise, but you can often still order through amazon.com.


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## mkolesa (Jul 22, 2008)

SD-B said:


> Ok well I set up my Mobile me and I am a bit disappointed in the FIND MY PHONE aspect........I live in an apartment building at St Clair and Spadina.
> When searching for my phone, it showed it in a house 1 street over on Russell Hill Road.
> 
> Not sure how this might help IF the phone were lost or stolen?


not sure about your experience but there have been many news articles about lost or stolen iphones that were located using the 'find my iphone' feature, so your experience must not be typical... or maybe it has something specifically to do with your location? you might want to try it when you're out and about (you can just use maps and see if it can locate exactly where you are).


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## SD-B (Oct 28, 2009)

mkolesa said:


> not sure about your experience but there have been many news articles about lost or stolen iphones that were located using the 'find my iphone' feature, so your experience must not be typical... or maybe it has something specifically to do with your location? you might want to try it when you're out and about (you can just use maps and see if it can locate exactly where you are).






Good to know that it has worked properly for others so I will take ur advice and try it outside later and will comment at the time if it worked better or not


again, i know this isn't the place---its in classifieds but i have one mobile me left, single pack new if anyone wants it for $50 ----i dont think the new one is that low on amazon


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## mkolesa (Jul 22, 2008)

i got a shipment notification from the place offering the mobileme at such a good price and afterwards received an activation code via email. not sure whether that means i'll actually receive a box or not but i used the code and it did extend my subscription for a year, so it seems like it's legit. if there are any probs down the road i'll post.


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## SD-B (Oct 28, 2009)

I just opened the box i have here which is legit and all you get is an activation code anyhow---i was expecting a CD or something but no.....just the code and a small set of instructions---so yours is probably ok.

You bought the family pack?
if you dont mind my asking, how much was it after taxes etc?


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## SD-B (Oct 28, 2009)

was it the old one or the new one u bought???

they were offering both


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## mkolesa (Jul 22, 2008)

it was the single user 'updated 2009 version' that amazon.ca retailer 'Priced Great' was offering for CDN$69.03. they've got it now for $54.99 + $9.04 shipping:
Amazon.ca: Used and New: Apple MobileMe (Updated 2009 Version)


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## SD-B (Oct 28, 2009)

Really?
I thought it was more.

You should have bought it off me for less as I am in Toronto mid-downtown as well.
Anyway, too late now


But I have a question....there is NO software to download with this, right?
I am looking at mobile me at my spot on the web in the iDisck and under a folder named Software and then Backup, I see mobilemebackupv3.2.dmg


We dont need to download that or do we?


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## Atroz (Aug 7, 2005)

SD-B said:


> We dont need to download that or do we?


You don't need to, but may want to. It's backup software the makes use of the iDisk. Gets the important files backed up in a different location.


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## SD-B (Oct 28, 2009)

Atroz said:


> You don't need to, but may want to. It's backup software the makes use of the iDisk. Gets the important files backed up in a different location.



Good to know.
I will do so then.

thanks


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## SD-B (Oct 28, 2009)

This MOBILE me is fantastic. I dont know how i Lived without it before.
There is absolutely NO comparison to Drop Box which I found to be seriously lacking........

It has made my life so much easier and so far i only own one mac and one iphone-i plan to get a second mac soon and it will even add to it

But what i like about this, is that as soon as i enter a phone number into my iPhone, for example, right away, it sync's into my address book.
Before this, if i didnt remember to add it into my address book as well, which i never did BTW, I was forever trying to decide which number was correct, IF like many people their numbers change often.
Id have an old number on my computer and perhaps a new one on the iPhone but i never knew which one was which.

Not to mention that number of times i would enter something onto my calendar on my computer but then forget to add it to my iPhone as well.
Now, as soon as i do, it automatically syncs it with both.

Drop box doesn't work like that.

I tend to agree that asking $109 per year might be a bit high, although now i KNOW how well it works I would pay it but at $50 what i have one for and Amazon at the same, I cant see why anyone wold be without it.

Unfortunately, the ads dont make it clear as to how well it works.
I really thought Drop Box would work the same but it doesn't.

This has made my life much easier just in the past few days of owning one.
I wont go without it next year now i see how well it works.

I do wish though, we could still get an @mac.com address......rather than @me ;-(


If i had known how well it worked before, I would have bought one a year ago.


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## Dr T (May 16, 2009)

*Convert single Mobile Me family to family?*



tomtom said:


> I've always paid around $89 for the family pack. Email is clean. Gallery is nice and I use it to publish my iWeb site and blog. Not sophisticated enough for experts but works great for me.


Can I convert a single MobileMe account to a family one?

And how exactly does the family account work? Are the emails totally segregated, or do all members of the family receive all the emails?


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## Dadi_oh (Nov 9, 2010)

klokeid said:


> Can I convert a single MobileMe account to a family one?
> 
> And how exactly does the family account work? Are the emails totally segregated, or do all members of the family receive all the emails?


I think that if you enter teh family code it should update you automatically.

Each person gets their own unique email address and online storage.


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## Macified (Sep 18, 2003)

Dropbox is a completely different animal. It is strictly a shared and synchronized folder. No calendars, no contacts, etc. The great thing about it though is that it synchronizes when I have internet access. If I'm away from internet, I can still access the files in the box. I can even access the files from my iPhone and iPad using a native app or one of many others.

I use both and am very happy with both. MobileMe is overpriced but I will continue to pay for the convenience.


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