Android Microsoft Exchange Support? Sorta Kinda.
Business folks have been on edge regarding Android, wondering if the open atmosphere would also unlock mobile potential for entrprise and professionals. It very possibly could, but much of the discussion surrounding Android’s ability in the suit-and-tie world has centered on whether or not Android would have Microsoft Exchange Support.
Google Execs made it very clear that Android would NOT suppore Microsoft Exchange out of the box but that this was just the kind of thing that creative and innovative 3rd party developers could, should and likely would bring to the table. Scratch that… Did.
ContactsSync, a free app distributed by net project-management software maker Wrike, is the first ever Android Application to offer support for Microsoft Exchange. But unfortunately it’s only a half baked solution at this point. Updating your contacts from your computer will sync that data to your phone but the data stream is one way… changing contacts on your phone will not result in your computer contacts being updated.
But stay tuned because according to the developer, two-way syncing is in the cards and will be available in the future (near/far we don’t know). Calendar syncing is not yet supported by the Android SDK/API but will likely be included in a future release of the Android OS and as far as email goes, users can already access their Exchange via IMAP so the company isn’t tackling that challenge.
Either way, its good to see developers plugging up the vacancies in functionality and features in the Android OS. When it comes down to it, Google didn’t provide Applications just for the purpose of providing applications. The perennial powerhouses were included such as GMail, Browser, Gtalk, etc… but Google purposefully left some apps wide open for development. Afterall, why play favorites? The whole platform is about allowing the free market to innovate and this is a great start.
Many people may see this development and laugh, “HA! How pitiful!”, but its case and point – 3rd Party Developers are stepping up to the plate and still a single Android Phone cannot be found in retail stores. While that will only last a couple short days, how much more will developers be motivated when there are 2 Android Phones on the market? 3? 5? 10?
Android is going places… this is just very, very beginning.
[Via Gizmodo]