Pocket Informant for iPhone: I sync, therefore I am…

There’s been a lot of hype and discussion about certain popular applications coming over to the iPhone platform, and Pocket Informant is no exception. The popular Windows Mobile Personal Information Manager is due out on the iPhone sometime in the future, but it’s most important feature is the one receiving the least amount of attention. It’s Sync engine is based on SyncML, specifically the open-source Funambol sync engine. It has it’s own Funambol client syncing to it’s own Calendar and task databases, since the iPhone doesn’t presently have a tasks database, nor does it expose the built-in Calendar to 3rd party applications.

So, essentially it works like Chapura’s Keysuite on the Palm; work around limitations of the platform’s databases by simply replacing them. It’s the Sync Engine though that really shows that the WebIS people are serious about making PI a heavyweight on the iPhone. Funambol allows for syncing many different types of devices and services, and allows for the “pushing” of information out to mobile devices. This could really make the iPhone really useful as a productivity device, by syncing Customer relationship managment (CRM) or sales force automation (SFA) data to the iPhone.

It’s been entertaining watching the App store releases; mostly eye-candy and fluff, but the next few months should be really entertaining as the heavyweights start entering the ring.

Originally posted to PalmAddicts here.

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