BlackBerry Link Personal Information Import and Synchronization – Update

Since the launch of the BlackBerry Z10 smartphone and the new BlackBerry Link desktop software, we’ve been getting feedback from customers on two things in particular. A few of you have reached out and reported difficulties when trying to transfer personal information from your previous BlackBerry smartphone to your new BlackBerry Z10. Additionally, some of you want the ability to sync PIM data directly between computer applications like Outlook and the BlackBerry Z10 using BlackBerry Link.

We would like to address both of these topics in this post, but first I would like to thank everyone for your passion and loyalty, and all of the help with providing detailed reports on the forums and to our support staff.

I am very happy to share that today we are releasing an update of BlackBerry Link for both Windows and Mac OS, which fixes some issues of transferring data from a previous BlackBerry smartphone to a new BlackBerry Z10. An updated version of BlackBerry 10 OS for the BlackBerry Z10 is being provided to carriers for testing and will be released soon to further address device switch issues. You can download the new version of BlackBerry Link here.

On the question of a direct sync between Outlook and the BlackBerry Z10 using BlackBerry Link, this is currently in the works and will come in two stages. In the first update, which will be available in the coming weeks, you’ll be able to perform a one way import of your contacts and calendar info from Outlook (on Windows PCs) to your BlackBerry Z10. Shortly thereafter, a second update will give you full two-way USB sync of your personal information with computer applications such as Outlook

We understand the importance of this, and we are doing our best to deliver this capability to you.

On a final note, many of you have also been asking if there is any way in general to sync the BlackBerry Z10 with applications like Outlook on Windows, or Address Book on Mac OS. The answer is – yes, absolutely! And no USB cable is needed for this. The BlackBerry Z10 is an advanced smartphone that provides a wireless sync capability that was not previously supported on BlackBerry (OS 7.1 and earlier) smartphones. We encourage you to setup your BlackBerry Z10 with an email service that supports wireless synchronization. If you are interested in moving to wireless sync, check out the “Links” and “Tips” sections below that can help you out. If you need assistance or have some questions please reach out to @BlackBerryHelp on Twitter or visit the BlackBerry Customer Support Forums

To summarize all the information we have provided:

• Switching from a previous BlackBerry smartphone to your BlackBerry Z10: An updated version of BlackBerry Link has been released today that fixes some data transfer issues when switching from a previous BlackBerry smartphone to a BlackBerry Z10. An updated version of BlackBerry 10 OS for the BlackBerry Z10 is being provided to carriers for testing and will be released soon to further address device switch issues.
• Support for USB synchronization with Outlook: In the next few weeks we will be releasing an update of BlackBerry Link (particular for Windows PCs) that will allow you to import your contacts and calendar information directly from Outlook to your BlackBerry Z10. Support for two-way sync of calendar and contacts info using BlackBerry Link for PC and Mac will be released shortly afterwards. For more information and updates on release dates, visit this blog as well as http://blackberry.com/blackberrylink
• Update 05/13/2013 – Thanks for your patience, in a few weeks we will be releasing an update to BlackBerry Link that supports two-way synchronization. For more information and updates on release dates, visit this blog as well as http://blackberry.com/blackberrylink.

Links:

• How to setup Outlook to wirelessly synchronize your contacts and calendar with a BlackBerry Z10 smartphone
• How to import contacts to a webmail service
• BlackBerry Z10 User Guide – Before you switch devices
• BlackBerry Device Switch Website
  • Switching from an iPhone to a BlackBerry Z10
  • Switching from an Android Device (Galaxy, Droid, Nexus, etc.) to a BlackBerry Z10
  • Switching from a Feature Phone (Nokia Flip, Motorola Razor, etc.) to a BlackBerry Z10
• BlackBerry How To Demo – Device Switch

Tips:

• When you setup BBM, Facebook, Twitter and/or LinkedIn on your BlackBerry Z10, your Contacts app will link these contacts in addition to your personal contacts. To change a contact picture from one source to another, tap the contact followed by tapping the picture and you can select a new one.
• If you have two entries for the same contact but they have a slightly different name, you can link them together to merge their contact details into one entry on your smartphone. Open the entry with the name you’d like to appear, tap Add Link and search the other entry, followed by tapping Save.
• To setup a new address book or calendar account on your smartphone check out the BlackBerry How To Demo or on your Home screen, swipe down from the top, tap Settings followed by Accounts. When setting up one of these accounts most of the time you can just enter the email address associated with it but if needed, follow the Advanced Account setup instructions.
• Mark contacts as Favorites for fast access and a more personalized experience
• To view a specific set of contacts, open the Contacts app and tap the contact button in the bottom left corner
• To hide a specific set of contacts, open the Contacts app, swipe down from the top and tap Settings.

To close, we hope over the air synchronization is an option for you, however we understand this does not work for everyone, so we are working hard and committed to support direct USB based personal information synchronization in BlackBerry Link. For more information please follow this blog as well as http://blackberry.com/blackberrylink.

Thank you again for your passionate feedback and support!