Update: Apple is now reporting all services are back up and running.

MobileMe is currently down for some via client (Mail on Mac and iPhone — count me in), and the Web (working fine for me). Maybe they were upset we gave GoogleSync all the love this morning?

Let us know how it’s working for you, and we’ll update when it’s back online for everyone.

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

Updated: MobileMe Mail Down (Fixed!)

Synchronization of Media State Across Multiple Devices, one of the latest patents filed by Apple, aims to use MobileMe to make sure if you start watching a movie in iTunes or on the AppleTV, then switch to your iPhone, you’re at the exact same place in the movie (and back again) — with no USB sync required.

Last month, prompted by reader Seth Clifford, TiPb asked for just such “WhisperSync” (to use the Amazon Kindle term) functionality. Not only would this be great for users with multiple Windows, Macs, iPhones, and/or iPod touches, but it would be a great way for Apple to add value to MobileMe, whose $99 a year is non-competitive to say the least, especially for Windows users (who don’t benefit from iLife, Back to my Mac, Mac sync, etc.) So, yeah, Apple — make this happen!

[Patently Apple via Macworld via Engadget. Thanks @sethclifford!]

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

MobileMe Media Sync — Apple Patent Watch

Apple’s MobileMe News page has posted two updates today, one on recent MobileMe service improvements, including direct access to Find my iPhone, and the other on iDisk public folder updates.

First up, the service improvements:

As part of an update to the MobileMe web applications, you can now access Find My iPhone directly from the MobileMe toolbar. This support article contains information about this and other service improvements.

Second, iDisk:

Your iDisk Public folder, a place where you can share files with friends, now matches the look of me.com and supports drag and drop for moving files between folders. You can manage your Public folder preferences at me.com including allowing visitors to upload, move, and delete files, and setting a password to protect your Public folder. To edit preferences simply click the Action button (gear icon) in the iDisk web application and select Preferences. You can then upload or move files to your Public folder at me.com, and your friends can access them by visiting http://public.me.com/[YourMemberName].

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

Apple “Improves” MobileMe, Find my iPhone, Updates iDisk Public Folder

Apple’s MobileMe News “blog” is touting a new feature: you can now remotely set a passcode lock with Find My iPhone and iPhone 3.1:

With Find My iPhone, you can help protect the information on a missing iPhone by remotely assigning a four-digit passcode lock. This is especially useful if you’ve never set a passcode before or if you want to set a new one.

This is a nice half-way ground between leaving it wide open, or having to wipe it clean, if you can’t find it but aren’t sure you’ve permanently lost it.

And, again, it shows MobileMe is all about the incremental update. Very incremental…

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

iPhone 3.1: Remotely Set a Passcode Lock via MobileMe

With Apple’s September 9, “It’s only rock and roll, but we like it” event fast approaching, and its promises of new iTunes 9 social media and app management features, here’s something else, just like @sethclifford, we’d love to see added to the list: “WhisperSync”. More specifically, for MobileMe to do a little over-the-air syncing of our location in a podcast, audiobook, or lengthy video so we can switch between the iPhone, iPod touch, or iTunes and always be at the same location in our media, regardless of where we continue listening or watching.

We can do this now, of course, but it requires a tethered USB sync between our iPhone and/or iPod touch and our computer. Amazon’s Kindle, however, does this transparently and automagically over the air using WhisperSync, and yes, we want Apple to iClone it. (Well, we don’t care about the likely-trademarked name, we just want the tech!)

So, next time we finish our run and hit pause on our iPhone’s player, we can wash off, grab a tasty beverage, flop down into the couch, and keep listening right from our Apple TV.

How about it, Apple?

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

We Want: “WhisperSync” for iPhone and iTunes

A robbery victim has taken advantage of his MobileMe service and put it to good use. A Pittsburgh man, who’s name has been withheld, told police he was forced to turn over his wallet, his PIN number and his iPhone at gun point (Pellet Gun as it turns out) by 3 robbers early Sunday morning. Lacking any tech savvy skills or common sense for that matter, the robbers were clueless about one of MobileMe’s very helpful features, “Find My iPhone“.

After calling the police, the man used his computer and MobileMe to track down his iPhone along with the 3 not so smart criminals having a late night snack at a local restaurant.

Police said they will charge Bryant Rather, 22, of West Mifflin, Brent Ray Potter, 22, of Swissvale, and Myron Knox, Jr., 22, of Homewood, with two counts each of access device fraud, conspiracy, receiving stolen property and possessing instruments of crime. Mr. Rather and Mr. Potter will also be charged with robbery.

Moral of the story: crime doesn’t pay.

[Via Post-Gazette]

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

MobileMe’s “Find My iPhone” Serving Justice

Just downloaded the new Apple MobileMe iDisk app [Free - iTunes link] to your iPhone or iPod touch and eager to know it better? Apple wants to show you how, literally. MobileMe News covers Apple’s latest App Store app, and Apple.com has a video tutorial available to get you started.

For example, it explains that documents get downloaded to your iPhone, and recent documents remain stored for offline viewing. Nice.

If you pick up any other tricks, or have any pro tips for iDisk on iPhone, let us know in the comments!

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

Apple Posts MobileMe iDisk App Video Tutorial

Apple has released MobileMe iDisk [Free - iTunes link] for iPhone and iPod touch. Announced during WWDC 2009 back in June, with nary a peep — though lots of questions and conjecture — heard since then, MobileMe iDisk showing up in the App Store today should be the kind of surprise that no longer comes as one.

Using the app, similar to how 3rd party solutions worked previously, you can log into MobileMe, see the contents of your iDisk, view any supported file formats (the typical jpg, png, Microsoft Office, iWork, and audio/video files), swipe to delete, and otherwise move through the file system.

When you tap on a file, you can also choose to share it or trash it. Sharing opens up an Email Link window where you can forward on access information via email. Shared files show up with a green Shared label and icon in list view there after. (Expired shared items show up with orange labels and grayed-out icons.)

Like Remote (and unlike Keynote Remote and Texas Hold’em), Apple’s fourth App Store entry is free. If you try it out, let us know how it works for you. If you already use a 3rd party iDisk utility, let us know how it compares.

Screenshots after the break!

[Thanks to AppAdvice for the tip!]

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

Quick App: Apple Releases MobileMe iDisk App for iPhone

Apple has updated their MobileMe News “blog” with a helpful tip for added security, and for when that security necessitates the need for a helpful little reminder.

First up, Apple reminds everyone that even good passwords, left static for too long, grow old and stale.

One simple way to increase the security of your life online is to change your account password periodically.

You can change your MobileMe password via the Account icon, and Apple provides some suggestions for picking good passwords. (Here’s ours — use something long and with lots of numbers and symbols thrown in. Pseudo-random is the best. Use GRC.com to generate it, or use a good password manager (I use 1Password on the Mac, my PC friends recommend RoboForm) to both generate and store lots of logins).

Next up is what to do if you forget your MobileMe password, and it’s fairly standard stuff, involving a secret question:

Should you ever forget your MobileMe password, go to the MobileMe login page at me.com and click the Forgot password link. You’ll be taken to a page and given the option of resetting your password by answering a secret question to establish your identity.

Pro tip: If you’re even a semi-public figure, or just “don’t trust anyone” make up a fake history, with fake maiden names, pet names, etc. or anyone who knows your background can hack your account as easily as they did Salma Hayak’s.

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

How To: Recover Your MobileMe Password and Update it Often for Added Security

According to a tech note, which recently appeared then disappeared from Apple’s website (but can be seen at TUAW), our wait for the iDisk iPhone app may soon be over.

Surely you remember a little iDisk app that Apple promised to all of it’s MobileMe customers back around WWDC 2009? The biggest feature, at least to us here at TiPb, being file sharing. Need to email a large file that is stored on your iDisk but you are away from your computer? No problem, just send it to whomever you’d like via iDisk for iPhone. Not too shabby.

Granted the above linked note does not mention anything in the way of functionality or release date, it is a sign that this app should appear in the very near future. Or we all can at least hope that is the case.

How many of you MobileMe customers out there have been craving to get your hands on this one?

[Via TUAW]

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

iDisk App for iPhone Release Imminent?