If you have an iPhone and Windows Phone and haven’t yet synced your Google Email (Gmail) account with your phone’s built-in Exchange server, now is the time to do it: Google on Friday announced it was retiring a number of services as part of “winter cleaning,” among them Google Sync, the program that supports the Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync® protocol found the iPhone and Windows Phone devices, allowing users to link Gmail, Google Calendar and Google Contacts.
“Starting January 30, 2013, consumers won’t be able to set up new devices using Google Sync,” wrote Google VP of engineering Venkat Panchapakesan in a blog post.
Google notes, however, that users who have already activated the sync will be able to continue using it, and it will still be supported for new customers of Google Apps For Businesses, Government and Education.
Users who wish to sync Gmail on the iPhone can still do so using two new protocols, CardDAV and CalDV. The Verge offers a handy step-by-step guide on doing this. Windows Phone users are out of luck and must use the Google Email mobile site instead.
