iPhone and sync services

As some of you may have deduced from my previous, rather negative entry about Google's SSL practices, I have spent a great deal of time investing their services as of late. Overall, and despite the aforementioned disappointment, I am extremely impressed by the quality of the offering.

Most iPhone users using Google Calendar, however, will inevitably hit a roadblock when it comes to getting their phone, which uses iCal, and Google, which uses, well, itself, to communicate. That roadblock was lifted a little while ago by the absolutely stellar BusySync, that features direct integration between Mac OS X's sync services and Google Calendar. In fact, I am planning to roll out BusySync across the office very soon.

By direct, I mean that BusySync integrates remarkably well with the general synchronization system in Mac OS X and provides a local experience akin to that of an Apple application — if not a better one. Most interestingly, the application also foregoes the use of a third-party or intermediary server and offers to directly contact Google through SSL.

Today, I noticed something relatively strange in the way iPhone syncing was handled. Indeed, the system seems built around the action of "docking" the phone instead of truly "syncing" it.

Every morning, when coming into the office, I dock my iPhone, which triggers the usual iTunes extravaganza: launch, warning dialog, barber pole, sync, more barber poles, more sync (*). Immediately, BusySync kicks in and automatically updates my Google Calendar. By the time I open my Google Calendar instance in Fluid, the events I added on my iPhone are already there.

Now, the reverse, of course, is trickier. While I would love to see Fluid hook into BusySync, that is not going to happen any time soon, and triggering a BusySync update manually is inevitable.

What, however, about the last step? Once the sync is triggered, the sync services are aware that my data has changed. What's more, iTunes knows my iPhone is still docked because it still displays it in its source list. Sure enough, however, no sync happens back to the iPhone until I manually sync it again.

Like most office workers, I update my calendar dozens of time a day: adding this and that, inputting reminders, etc. Yet, I dock twice a day on average: upon arrival in the morning and, of course, upon returning from lunch — OK, and dinner, and supper and breakfast the day after before finally going home.

MobileMe offers over-the-air synchronization, and I assume the wired syncing process will no longer be streamlined or improved much, now that there is a commercial incentive not to do so. Plus, after all, it works "well enough."

I am surprised, however, that the iPhone's reliance on iTunes prevents it from being made aware of updates more smoothly. Maybe the phone would be better served if it were hooked directly into sync services and could sync without the application launching — even if, of course, buttons and controls were kept within iTunes to keep up appearances.

(*) Can you sense the slight annoyance creeping up? Bring back iSync! (OK, kidding…)