The new sync capabilities are also available for any other phone that supports the SyncML standard.

Some Problems

One problem with this new system is that it will replace all your existing contacts on your phone with your Gmail contacts, which might be a deal breaker for some. Another deal breaker might be the fact that you can only configure one Active Sync account on the iPhone, which would be a problem for those of us who maintain more than one calendar (one private - one for work) and would like to use push for all of those.

Also, your Gmail contact list might a lot messier than you have realized, and it might take some work to manually recreate your current address book in Gmail.

Gmail Push Coming Soon?

Interestingly, Google now uses Microsoft's ActiveSync protocol to push updates wirelessly to the phone, which leads us to believe that enabling push email is the next logical step for Google. Chances are that Google is testing its infrastructure by only supporting ActiveSync for calendars and contacts first, and that it will release support for push email in the near future.

One feature still missing from Syncplicity, which came out of beta late last year, was a Mac client. We were able to get some invites to the private Mac beta of Syncplicity, however. You can claim yours at the bottom of this post.

Synplicity, as the name implies, allows you to synchronize your files and folders between different computers and store them online. More interestingly, however, Syncplicity also allows you to sync your documents with your Google Docs account. You can also edit your documents with Zoho and work on your pictures with Picnik.

Just like Microsoft's Live Mesh, Syncplicity synchronizes your files automatically whenever you change a file. The client encrypts your documents before the transfer and your documents are also encrypted on Syncplicity's servers.

Talk About a Crowded Market

Syncplicity is working in a very crowded market. Most importantly, Microsoft's Live Mesh and Live Sync offer more storage, though also a slightly different feature set (of course, it wouldn't be Microsoft if they didn't offer at least two solutions to the same problem). But there are also numerous other startups like Wuala, SugarSync, Mozy, Box.net, and Dropbox that offer similar synchronization and backup solutions. All of these services, however, will definitely be facing the competition from Microsoft once it releases it online version of Office and integrates that with its online storage services.

For now, however, Syncplicity offers one of the most compelling services in this market.

Pricing

Syncplicity's basic service, with 2GB of storage and syncing between 2 computers, is available for free. For $9.99 a month or $99 a year, you get 50GB of storage and the ability to sync data between an unlimited amount of machines.

Mac Client Beta Invites

One feature that was still missing from Syncplicity was a Mac client. Syncplicity gave us 300 beta invites for its new Mac client. Just head over here and claim yours.

This synchronization feature was already part of Opera's desktop browser, but version 9.7 of the SDK will also give developers the ability to integrate it into their own devices. According to Opera's CEO, Jon von Tetzchner, Opera wants to give operators the ability to create a unified experience across their triple-play offerings and on phones, computers, TVs (or entertainment devices like the Wii).

Opera Zoon

The new version of the SDK also includes Opera's new hardware-accelerated zooming capability for devices with small screens. While not as elegant or intuitive as Apple's multi-touch gestures, Opera Zoom, which saw its debut on the Nintendo Wii, does work quite well.

Syncing Bookmarks as Competitive Advantage

Opera already syncs its bookmarks with the online version of Opera Link, but it would be great if Opera also allowed you to sync with other online bookmarking services like Yahoo's delicious. Other devices like the iPhone also allow users to sync bookmarks between the desktop and mobile phones.

Now that web browsing is slowly becoming a standard activity on mobile devices, being able to keep bookmarks in sync is clearly starting to become more important. Opera is in a good position to leverage its experience in cross-platform development here, though Mozilla and other browser developers are also working on similar projects.