iTunes and Contacts Question

[ClemsonMarshal]

Ok, first question. Both my parents both got their first iPhones (5s) this past week. My mom already had an itunes account since she had an iPad but my dad did not. They both use the same computer, listen to the same music and everything. So how do I keep them on the same itunes account, but keep their contacts and txts and everything seperated whenever they sync it? For example, when I set my dad's phone up to her itunes account, my mom started getting all of his imessages and he had all of her txts in his phone. I'm trying to keep them on the same account so that if one downloads an app or song or movie that the other wants, they won't have to buy it twice.

Also, my dad had a milestone x (droid) before and he had his contacts synced to his google account. I know you can do it on the computer, but is there a way to sync his contacts over his phone from his google account?

 

[ClemsonMarshal]

Problem here is you got to take care of the first problem. Can't they get separate log ons and passwords for iTunes? I would think they could, I'm not certain.

Now as far as your Dad's contacts, when you log into iTunes under his password the phone will sync. I believe the second tab is for contacts and it has a selection for Google Contacts. I selected that and all my Gmail contacts synced over.

I see a lot of people ask the first question and I'm not sure about my first answer, but the Google/Gmail thing I am absolutely sure about.

Yeah I know how to do it from a computer. I was seeing if you could so it from the phone itself. Do you know if you can wipe out the contact from the phone?

 

[ClemsonMarshal]

Yes. Phone/contacts. Select contact/edit and scroll down. You will see delete contact a big red bright bar.

Now that's how you would remove it from the phone. You'd still have to go into gmail and remove the contact from gmail. That's on the left side of the gmail screen, see contacts. And you can use the phones browser to get there in the event of no computer.

Sorry I wasn't clear. I know how to remove a single contact. I want to wipe ALL contacts from the phone. I restored his phone from my mom's backup but he didn't want all the contacts. So how do we delete all his contacts to start from scratch?

 

[ClemsonMarshal]

I can't guarantee this will work but it might. First again, you would have your dad clear his gmail contacts completely. Then he would import his gmail contacts and sync on iTunes

If there is nothing in there it should remove the contacts on the phone. I think. Other then that, I wouldn't know.

You mean clear his google contacts and then sync with google to get it to erase all existing contacts?

 

[ClemsonMarshal]

Yep, that's what I'm thinking. It would update the new contacts with nothing. Hopefully.

If you remove contacts from Gmail and update your phone will update accordingly, that I know. I'm thinking the same would happen if you deleted all Gmail contacts.

But the problem there would be that gmail is where all of HIS contacts are stored. We're trying to get rid of all of my mom's contacts from his phone, which came from iTunes. So if we did it that way he would lose all of his contacts and her contacts and have no way of getting any of them back.

 

[ClemsonMarshal]

I realize that he'd lose his contacts. You didn't say anything about deleting just moms contacts you said all contacts. Is Moms contacts in his gmail too?

Ok right now he's got his and mom's, which is a lot of cases duplicated a lot of contacts and added a bunch of her work people that he doesn't want. So I'm wanting to delete them all, and then just sync back with his google and get just his back. If there's a way to delete just hers, I'd be glad to know.

 

[ClemsonMarshal]

When you tell it to sync google contacts, it should only use Google Contacts. If there are other contacts there I believe they will be deleted.

Just make sure that Gmail doesn't have a lot of duplicates itself. Try it. You're not going to get duplicates of existing contacts, just updated to whatever Google has.

Ok I'll look at his google contacts later.

 

[ClemsonMarshal]

When you tell it to sync google contacts, it should only use Google Contacts. If there are other contacts there I believe they will be deleted.

Just make sure that Gmail doesn't have a lot of duplicates itself. Try it. You're not going to get duplicates of existing contacts, just updated to whatever Google has.

His google contacts had doubled. We fixed them online and when we did it fixed everything.