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MARCH 19, 2008 Backup Pal I first met two Backup-Pal reps in another company’s booth at CES 2008. They were PR people who were roving the halls of CES and handing out folders full of info about Backup-Pal to anyone who looked alive. I am glad they found me. Most heavy cell phone users who lose their phone or drop them in water are more unhappy about having to collect and reenter all their date than they are with the need to replace the phone. There are computer based backup solutions for this but Backup-Pal is so easy to use that anyone who has more than a few contacts in their phone should own one. To quote from the Backup-Pal website: Backup-Pal needs three AAA batteries to power it. It also comes with a number of connectors that are made specifically to fit certain phones. My package included connectors for Nokia, Motorola, and Samsung. A list of supported phones for each of those companies came with the package as well as instructions as to which connector to use. The Backup-Pal website is updated as more companies and phones are added to the list. You can also go to the website to see if your phone is supported. This does not mean that all phones for every company are supported completely so a trip to the website is highly recommended. When I received the backup-Pal I was reviewing two new Samsung phones, one AT&T the other T-Mobile, and they were not supported by Backup-Pal at that time. That was also true of my Samsung Sync.
A Graphic of the Status light indicator guide Copy the backed up data from your old phone to your new one even if it is made by another manufacturer or another service provider. As long as Backup-Pal supports both the old and the new phone you are good to go. Be sure to check their site for availability of connectors. Once you own a Backup-Pal it is easy to order additional connectors when you change your phone. Backup-Pal is smart enough to make the changes in your contact data if your old phone supported multiple numbers under one name but the new one does not. It will create a separate entry for each number. The name associated with each will have a 1, 2, or 3 at the end to differentiate between them. Harry1, Harry2, Harry3. Go to Backup-Pal FAQ page for details on this or other questions. Pricing varies between package options so check the website to be sure of cost as well as the one that will fit your phone/s. Without some effort on the part of Backup-Pal I might never have heard of this product. It is simple to use, seems to be made to last, and has found a place in my life. I hope you will give it a chance in yours. Product Specifications |
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After searching in several junk drawers I found a four year old Motorola V552 that fit one of the Motorola Connectors in the box. I charged it up, turned it on, and found my old address book with all my contacts was still there. The instructions say to open the phone while it is turned on and connect it to the Backup-Pal. Then press the Backup button. Flashing of colored lights in certain sequences allows you to see if things are progressing or not. Orange lights flashed on the Backup-Pal to show it was trying to connect with the phone but the lights that signal that the backup task was completed did not come up. I tried several times with no results. I was informed that my old phone might have dirty connectors so I swabbed them with rubbing alcohol, connected everything, and again pressed the BACKUP button. I was in business. A backup was made. I then deleted the contacts from the phone, connected things again and pressed the RESTORE button. The entire address book was restored in about two minutes. It will take longer if you are one of those who have 300 or four hundred entries. If you want to redo your backup to keep up with additions/deletions/changes in contacts it is NOT necessary to press and hold the reset button on the Backup-Pal first. Just Press Backup. Should you accidentally connect Backup-Pal to a different phone, Backup-Pal will refuse to wipe out your data and blink Orange/Red. This helps keep your data safe. Reset does need to be pressed if you have moved to a new phone if you want to do a backup of that phone.