61 of 63 people found the following review helpful:
It works but has some quirks.
This program can be great. I use it to sync my phone with Outlook 2003, to transfer pictures and video to my phone and to save a bundle on ringtones.
You can edit ringtones from your audio CD's. I love jazz and using a Miles Davis ringtone is incredible.
It works great with Outlook 2003. The one thing I will say is that it works best using a...
Worst software EVER, Motorola should be ashamed
It could not recognize my plain vanilla T-Mobile GSM Razr V3 automatically but I did manage to walk the installation software through a device list on the fourth try. It does not backup flash memory, only the contact info, in no more detail than your SIM saves phone numbers. The multimedia studio would neither save audio clips of .mp3s to the PC nor transfer them to the...
This program can be great. I use it to sync my phone with Outlook 2003, to transfer pictures and video to my phone and to save a bundle on ringtones.
You can edit ringtones from your audio CD's. I love jazz and using a Miles Davis ringtone is incredible.
It works great with Outlook 2003. The one thing I will say is that it works best using a data cable. The bluetooth just does not work well and when I tried to use it it was just plain frustrating so I subtracted one star. I purchased this(Mororola Phone Tools) from Avanquest/BVRP online, downloaded the software and ordered the backup CD (worth it because I did have to reinstall the program twice). I would check their web page to see if your phone is compatable even if you don't purchase it from their site; I wish I had been an Amazon user then because it is much cheaper here on Amazon.
My software was purchased a couple of years ago for my Motorola V660. About a week ago my toddler tossed my phone into the full washing machine while I was adding fabric softner to a load of laundry. They don't still make my old phone, my insurance replaced it with a V3.
I lost my ringtones and address book. My husband already had a data cable for this phone so I just plugged my phone in hoping it would allow me to sync with outlook(He took his data cable to work but I found a replacement on Amazon for less than $5.00). Imagine my surprise when the software recognized a new phone promped me to update the software and install a profile for the new phone. All I had to do was copy all my old information on to my new phone and go.
I consider myself somewhat computer savy but I honestly did not check to see if this program would work with other phones when I purchased it.
I am not a techie I just want technology to work for me with as little hassle as possible - I'm busy I just want it to do what it should and I am happy this program still works for me two years and one phone later.
Update, March 2007- I still use this and it works great with my V3. I loved using it for ringtones until someone gave me Ringtone Media Studio 2. It was obtained with a new phone as a promotion and since this person already had purchased it previously, I got the free copy. Ringtone Media Studio 2 is also made by Avanquest/BVRP and this software makes it so much easier to edit ringtones. The verson in Phone Tools is stripped down and very basic in compariston but is probably good for the price.
If you are looking for software only for ringtones I suggest Ringtome Media Studio 2.
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OK, as we all know, service providers (Alltel, Suncom, Verizon, etc. etc.) are in the business to make money. Once you get a cool phone (We recently purchased 3 Motorola E815's) you want to use all of the features. You want cool ring tones that don't sound like a childs' toy. You want your favorite picture to appear when that person calls. You want short video clips quickly available to show your friends.
Well, your service provider usually forces you to purchase an application, and buy the above (Ring tones, photo downloads) for a price. Ring tones cost about $1.25 each, and getting pictures to our phones was difficult, as well, and expensive, at $6 a month. And, that's PER PHONE.
Here's how we're using the software:
We were able to easily move pictures from the home computer to all of our phones. Works very well, and you can use the pictures for wallpaper, or caller ID information. Only shortcoming here was the inability to select a GROUP of photos, clik on the "Fit to phone" button which fits your picture to the perfect size for your phone, and then transfer ALL of the selected pictures to the phone. You have to do it one at a time.
For ring tones, we all purchased a few, and it cost us roughly $18 for 15 ring tones. With the ring tone creator, you can very easily take an MP3 on your computer, and cut out a portion of the song for your ring tone. I stripped the first 15 seconds or so of Led Zepplin's Kashmir for one ring tone. I found 2 shortcomings with this portion of the program. The first was the software doesn't work with songs you've purchased from MSN, or other service providers that are copy protected in some way. The next shortcoming was that it does not work with MWA files (An alternative to the MP3 format).
Video creation is quick and easy, as well. I took a few video clips that we had taken with our Nikon 8800 (.MOV files), and tried to convert them using this software, but it only works on MPEG files. So, I had to convert the .MOV to .MEG (I found a program from Cucusoft that I'll purchase next week) before using them.
I also used this software to backup our pictures and videos we had taken with ou phones. When memory runs low (I think you have about 40 Mb of internal space on the Motorola E815), I won't hesitate to delete some files, knowing it's backup up on the home computer.
You CAN synchronize your Outlook calendar with this software, but we don't us the calendar feature of Outlook.
Although I complained about a few shortcomings of this software, we're very pleased with it. The shortcomings can be overcome, it just takes additional time and effort. This is a MONEY SAVER for you, if you really want to customize your phone.
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It could not recognize my plain vanilla T-Mobile GSM Razr V3 automatically but I did manage to walk the installation software through a device list on the fourth try. It does not backup flash memory, only the contact info, in no more detail than your SIM saves phone numbers. The multimedia studio would neither save audio clips of .mp3s to the PC nor transfer them to the phone as ringtones, insisting that my computer lacked an .mp3 codec. The only functioning aspect seemed to be switching on the usb modem. The motorola branded usb cable which shipped with the software was malformed at the mini USB end and would not fit the phone's usb port easily. This is the level of Motorola's committment to connectedness? Disgraceful.
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If I could give this zero stars I would. Not only is the interface awful, the claims of "synchronization" with Outlook are absurd. This application doesn't synchronize; it mangles, overwrites and otherwise ruins any calendar information stored in Outlook. At best, it can manage a one-way, single-item transfer. Usually it will delete pertinent information and restore deleted infromation. Performance is sub-par.
If you don't use Outlook and just want to back up phone numbers, this will probably do. If you do use Outlook and would like to keep information on your handset, run away as fast as you can...
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I have a Razr V3m. I find the phone slow to react to my touch. Entering my phone book would have been a nightmare. I went to CES (Consumer Electronics Show in Vegas) and met with the Motorola people and found out about Phone Tools. No only can you add and update you phonebook, but you can make ringtones and not pay that rip off $2.50.
They keep this under wraps - and now I know why.
It is difficult to hook up and they have made so many versions of the phone that it is difficult to set up. I had to go to the Motorola website and sign on as a developer to get the drivers to get my phone to be recognized by the software. After repeatedly trying different combinations, I got the software to work. I work with technology everyday and if it stumps me, I pity the average user.
The software is not bad if you get it working. I was able to update my phonebook and fully back it up to my computer. I was able to make a ring tone from a CD and put it on the phone.
I'd be more impressed if I did not think that this should have been built into the phone and managed over the Internet. My Sprint website is a train wreck. It is just an up sell site with almost no useful features. All the features of phone tools should be available online as part of phone service.
Motorola charges $40 for this program and it is difficult to set up. I paid $12 here. The aftermarket company's customer service delivered a promised.
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The old definition of "chutzpah" was murdering your parents and then pleading for leniency from the court because you were an orphan. The new definition is charging money for this product. It should be included with Motorola's phones for free.
I don't use this product to sync my calendar and address book with my RAZR. Apple's OS X does that easily and with no additional software/fee. I bought it so that I could add customized ring tones.
Working on another computer using Windows XP, I've had to reinstall the software practically every time I wanted to use it. The software refuses to recognize my RAZR even though Windows does. After repeated attempts to get the software to recognize my phone, I resort to uninstall/reinstall, which works every time.
Fortunately, I don't need this product every day.
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I have been very happy with the use of this software, although cell phone software of this type comes with an important caveat (see below). This software, as advertised, allows me to transfer files from the mobile phone to my computer and vice versa. So when I purchased my cell phone (Motorola RAZR), I was able to transfer all my phone contacts into it. This was very important since it avoiding having to retype hundreds of names and phone numbers.
It also allows me to save the contact lists back onto my computer. This is helpful because I add contacts in my phone from time to time. I want to be able to back them up so that I have the numbers in case I lose the phone.
When I take pictures with my cell phone camera, I can transfer them onto the computer. This is nice because it avoids the multimedia use charges of e-mailing the pictures. I can also take pictures from the computer, once appropriately shrunk, and put them onto my cell phone. This is not a big deal, but it's kind of cute sometimes.
Some comments on the implementation of the system, and in comments about synchronizing PCs to cell phones.
The software needs to be installed from the CD. I did purchase the CD from Amazon.com, but later when I got my phone, it had the identical CD with it already. Along with the mini USB cable. (It's handy to be able to use such a common connector cable, instead of the elaborate and specialized ones that other phones sometimes use. Originally I was leery about using one port for the three functions -- data synchronization, battery charging, and microphones/earphone headset. But it has been working okay.)
I cannot get the system to work unless I was logged in as the administrator. Oh well. Sometimes when you try a second function after the first (like image file transfer after you've done the phone synchronization), it crashes and you have to start all over again. The software is reasonably obvious to use, but it does take some fumbling around in the beginning. I also like the feature that allows you to transfer text messages onto your hard drive. I actually use this quite a bit.
Your contacts need to be put into Outlook or Outlook Express. (Some other mail tools work also.) If you have contacts in there already, then those will get dumped onto your phone also. So you should really clean out your resident contact list before you do this. I keep my work and contacts in the normal account upon which I log into my computer, but then I log in as administrator when I use this function. So my mail server only has phone contacts in it anyway.
The file transfer function works okay, I enjoy having access to pictures in both directions.
Overall, the software is easy to use. Nokia has an analogous system for their phones. It works reasonably well also, but I marginally prefer Motorola's.
Cell phone synchronization in general: before you do this, make sure that you can actually synchronize your phone. WARNING! Many cell phone service providers disable PC synchronization functions. Service providers like Verizon, Sprint, and many others make sure that these functions do not work. So even though the phone is built with these capacities, they somehow make them nonfunctional. Most company representatives do not know this or, I suspect, are trained not to discuss it.
I got my Motorola phone from my third-party long-distance provider, CREDO (formerly Working Assets). After spending lots of time unsuccessfully trying to get the software to work with the Motorola phone, I came to find out that the phones that they issue have these functions intentionally broken. I returned the phone and quit service with them.
I learned that the only service providers that actually let you use the phones that have this function are AT&T and T-Mobile. I therefore went out, signed up with AT&T, got another Motorola phone, plugged it into my computer, and it worked fine.
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I spent more time getting this software to work than if I'd entered all my data by hand several times over. It continues to insist the phone is not sycn-able and forced me to use unorthodox methods to make it work. I pity the non-techo-person who has a problem with this miserably written, totally user UNFRIENDLY, non-intuitive SoftWare.
I suggest using FREE software that comes on your computer...see other reviews on OSX et. al. SAVE YOUR MONEY, BUT MORE THAN THAT, SAVE YOUR SANITY!!!
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Yes, Motorola Mobile Phone Tools 4.0 does work with the new Motorola MOTOKRZR K1m. Unfortunately with Verizon you can only access contacts and calendar. This program does not allow access to ringtones or photos when using Verizon. The program is good but is limited by Verizon.
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![Motorola Mobile Phone Tools 4.0 for all Motorola Phones [Motorola Retail Packaging]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41PJXYDN31L._SL160_SL90_.jpg)
