Last November, I wrote a post detailing the customer service issues and software problems with SplashData ‘s SplashID for Android software.
That post is the most popular page on the Internet dealing with the problems in SplashID for Android, and when SplashData pushed an upgrade to SplashID for Android earlier today, I immediately reached out to them.
And they responded quickly. As you may recall, I pointed out how fast SplashData’s customer service response times were back in the original post, and I’m happy to report that hasn’t changed.
<Sigh>
Has SplashData addressed the issues in SplashID for Android? In part, yes they have.
Once you get everything configured, you no longer need to know your IP address. The Synchronize command is no longer hidden away. And . . . everything else is still bad.
OK, strike that; SplashID Version 5 for Android looks better, and has a few usability and functionality tweaks added; it IS better than the previous version.
But after all the noise we heard about the problems in SplashID Version 4 and their admission that it wasn’t what it should have been, I’m astonished that SplashData is charging a ten dollar upgrade fee for SplashID Version 5. And the technical issues aren’t exactly gone; I’ll give SplashData a pass for continuing the need to sync the desktop and handheld versions over WiFi instead of your phone network, but the fact that you still have to start the software on both sides to make a sync happen and that you can still initiate the sync only from the Android device? Incredible.
It’s just too many steps in an era of don’t-need-to-be-computer-literate-to-use-your-device SmartPhones.
Kudos once again to SplashData for their responsiveness in the customer service department. But as someone who’s used SplashID for over a decade I just can’t believe that this software is still being released in what feels like a rushed, unfinished state.
I have a user who changed his password and now can’t access splashid. there seems to be no backup system (security question) to let him reset. Do you have a suggestion?
Michelle, I have TWO suggestions.
First: SplashID keeps multiple iterations of your database in the BACKUP folder (likely underneath MY DOCUMENTS, but poke around). Restore one of the earlier versions by changing its name to match your latest one and the old password should work (although you will of course lose any work done in SplashID since that file was created).
Second, if all else fails, send e-mail to christina AT splashdata.com. I know she watches the discussion on THIS PAGE, so you might even try to get her attention by posting a comment there.
I just recently bought SplashID for my new Draid X. I too had been a loyal and happy customer first of the Palm version and then on my iPod touch. Because of my prior happy experiences I just went ahead and laid out the $30 for the app ($10) and the desktop ($20). Big mistake. The Android version simply will not sync with my desktop. I am running Windows 7 with Norton security. Support is poor–strictly email,very slow, and basically just a recital of their FAQs. Their advice included turning off my virus protection and unencryting my wireless network. I have asked for a refund. We will see how their “100% money back gurantee” works.
Thanks for chiming in, Larry.
I started having the same problem as you’re reporting after the latest upgrade. I said plenty of bad things in the original piece, but was also able to scrape a few nice words together…at the time. Sadly, at this point I think SplashID is simply a “stay away from this thing” product, at least on Android.
You are 100% correct. I have a very similar history with Splash ID. I bought Splash ID for a Palm PDA, later paid to transition to a smart phone running Windows mobile, then paid again to change to a palm smart phone and finally to the Droid X. I was a big Splash ID supporter and the fact that I could sync to my home and work PC was great, since my big fingers do far better with the PC keyboard. Now it is a pain when I can get it to work. I have never been able to get the second PC to sync since I can’t load the software, as it won’t take the code they gave me. I have written the company twice but never got a response. In the early days I asked a question and got a nice reply back with great instructions. It was clear back then that they cared about their customers. Now the answer to the product’s lousy sync ability is to bring out another new version that I am expected to pay for. Sad to see such a great company turn into this.
Scott, I wish I had something more to add than you laid out. SplashData has gone to hell, and SplashID (at least) just can’t be recommended any more. And it’s a pity.
Jeff,
My historical experience with SplashID was similar to yours, except I didn’t leave WM for Android until Nov 2011, so I missed the earlier sync complexity. Though clumsy, in comparison, you previously synchronized with a USB cable connected to your PC, and so of course both devices had to be turned on to work, and in the WM 6.5 era there were two confusing sync mechanisms, one direct and one using Microsoft Active Sync. So though different, I didn’t find the new sync method as shocking and unusable as you, but like you, I think they could have done better, such as using a cloud solution.
My main purpose for writing though is that now, as of a month or so ago, sync appears totally broken, partially or completely corrupting the mobile database and then transferring the corrupted data back to the PC. I found the same behavior on my AT&T Galaxy SII Skyrocket (Android 2.3.6) and ASUS Transformer Prime (Android 4.0.3). I was also chagrined to find the backup and recovery different as the desktop uses VID files and the mobile app requires the .db and .xml files. Recovered my data, but sheesh! Sigh! Awaiting a tech support solution…
Pat, I really appreciate all the detail you put into that. I’ll get with you make yet another point about SplashID in more recent times:
I gave up on it ENTIRELY over a year ago when I also ran into ‘doesn’t work at all’ issues. I spent too much time working on it then, and I’m in no position to recap the steps I took, so … yeah, they’re dead to me. Makes me sad; I still think SplashID was the best utility of its kind until they broke it.