Root Problems backing up phone contacts to Gmail account

[Pobinr]

'Sync' is switched on on my phone so I don't know why I need to manually upload my phone contacts from my SD card then attach them & email them to my google account.
I just tried to attach phone contacts from SD card to a Gmail to send to my gmail account then log into my PC & import that file into my gmail account from there, but it will only let me attach photos !
So I tried emailing as an attachment from phone using my yahoo account.
That does allow me to attach contacts but it sits there without actually attaching them !
I just found I need to tick all contacts to get to attach. So I have to check 200 ticks as there's no check all option !
So one by one I tick all & gets sent as 200 attachments in an email.
So then download to PC hard drive.
Then in Gmail import contacts I have to browse for vCard files. However I can't select all so have to manually browse for each vCard file then import one at a time.
There's no option in contacts to select a contact then 'Star in android'.
I presume if something's starred in Android then the sync between phone contacts & gmail should work properly. Even then if you add new contact to phone there's no option in the phone to star it.
The only importy/export options are to & from SD card !
Why not to & from a Google acount ?
Not to mention why not an option to check all ?
Ha ha ha very automatic syncing.... NOT !
Do geeks live on this planet or planet Android

I wonder if they ever come here to see the problems that people have.
That way they'd realise what needs fixing.
Anyone know why auto sync doesn't automatically sync my phone contacts into my gmail contacts ?

 

[vikingisson]

I don't know what problems you're having but if google contacts didn't auto sync between the phone and gmail/contacts then it wouldn't be very useful now would it? It does work and works fantastic. I just picked up a replacement S and moments after logging in for the first time all my contacts sync'd up and are now on the phone.

Besides all the ticking you say you did did you enter all those contacts into the phone one by one? Hint, enter them into gmail from a pc and watch how they auto sync back to the phone within seconds. Now look at them on the phone and see what is different because something is different or just wrong.

Doesn't Samsung have some goofy contact system? Perhaps you entered them as that instead as a google contact.

 

[Pobinr]

I don't know what problems you're having but if google contacts didn't auto sync between the phone and gmail/contacts then it wouldn't be very useful now would it? It does work and works fantastic. I just picked up a replacement S and moments after logging in for the first time all my contacts sync'd up and are now on the phone.

Besides all the ticking you say you did did you enter all those contacts into the phone one by one? Hint, enter them into gmail from a pc and watch how they auto sync back to the phone within seconds. Now look at them on the phone and see what is different because something is different or just wrong.

Doesn't Samsung have some goofy contact system? Perhaps you entered them as that instead as a google contact.

Thanks. I think it's probably easier for Google to send contacts to the phone than visa versa.
What I need the phone to do is send all my existing 200 phone numbers to my Gmail account so they're backed up if I lose the phone. I would have thought sync means sync so it would do just that.

 

[tashunka]

I think I'm having a similar issue... to a certain degree. Basically I'm trying to get all my old contacts off my Motorola w385 and the only way I can do it is by bluetooth-ing them individually to my galaxy. So when I dig up the VCFs out of the bluetooth folder and click on "register" it automatically puts them on the "Phone" list. When you create a new contact though, it gives you the option of where you want to save it to "Phone", "Sim" or each of your gmail accounts. Is there now way to copy the contacts from the Phone to my Gmail. When I sync them they don't go... but I've tested it and my sync is working fine otherwise.... ???? Seems odd that you can just move it from the phone.

 

[Pobinr]

As far as I can tell it's not possible for Gmail contacts to sync with phone. Even with 'auto sync' set in settings !
If you save a new contact on your phone you can save it either to gmail or phone but not both !
That means when you look up phone contacts you have to include 'display gmail contacts' for that to display, which can be a pain when you only want phone numbers listed, not email address's.
You can't save existing phone contacts to gmail, only new ones as you enter them on phone !
The only way to get your existing contacts from phone to gmail is the painful one by one process as individual vCards emailed as attachments to an email from your phone !
Then you have to import one file at a time in Gmail 'browse new contacts'. At that point you are given the option to 'star in android' whatever that means. It does mean a star immediately appears by the contact in your phone.
My conclusions are the only sync in the sync function is that it gives me a sinking feeling !

 

[lekky]

You are very confused, let me help.

only store contacts as google type, do not have ANY phone type

To transfer phone contacts into google contacts do the following:

contacts
menu
more
import/export
export to sdcard

THEN

wipe all phone type contacts
then do the same as above, but this time import contacts
then choose google type

in your contacts app, press menu then display options, then tick only contacts with phones

I think this will solve all your problems right?

 

[vikingisson]

Some more clarification; Samsung has their own (default) type for contacts, calendar, and maybe other things. I have no idea why I would want to use their special type so always choose google type.

And what ^he said about getting it all back to googly goodness and go from there.

 

[theredkrawler]

I exported all my sim contacts to a VCF (using the method described above by lekky: export to sdcard), emailed the VCF to myself, logged into Gmail and imported the VCF, edited up all my contacts exactly how I like it (much faster to do on the computer), wiped ALL contacts from the phone and SIM and then synced Google.

Worked perfectly, now my entire contact list is all perfectly arranged and syncs with Google instead of using that horrible "linked accounts" rubbish that the TouchWiz (I assume) modifications seem to want the contact lists to do.

 

[Natwolf]

Thanks to Lekky I was able to import my contacts onto the GMail account. I'm glad thats out of the way now!

But whats the story here-
1. when I edit my contacts on the GMail web base, arranging my contacts into groups, the contact cannot be found on the phone list unless I perform a search, the stupid thing it does not even indicate where this contact is sitting.

2. Why does GMail not sync groups back onto the phone, instead place all my 800 contacts back into one list? I've never experienced this before since syncing been available.

3. I have a duplicated contact and I want to delete one of them from the phone, instead it deletes both conatcts.

4. Is there a better syncing program out there, one where outlook can also be synced.

Wolf.

 

[teocem]

Some more clarification; Samsung has their own (default) type for contacts, calendar, and maybe other things. I have no idea why I would want to use their special type so always choose google type.

And what ^he said about getting it all back to googly goodness and go from there.

Thanks but how do I choose Google type ? Where in the menu I have this option ?