Few weeks back Epocware rebranded their Handy Safe application into “Handy Safe Professional” adding more spices into its functionality and security measurements.The well renowned and loved PIM security application in S60 was totally retouched to be perfect in all its departments offering more control and reliability over your sensitive data,while ensuring safe access to all your personal data right on your palm.
OK, lets start from the scratch to digg into this conversation with the question”For what does the term “SMARTPHONE” stands out?”The answer might not be some what easy to be defined,as it depends on what you are and what you expect from a smartphone.So I’m not going to give life to a debate on who’s gonna come up with the correct one,but it’s all about a device that offers extended functionality,with a productive output while being the alltime companion that sits in your pocket(Obviously it should be a device that allows you to make calls).Also it is preferably a device which replaces certain things inyour day today life,things that are musts to be carried but bulkier and put you in potential risk in most of the time.Undoubtedly your wallet might occupy a leading place in this list,it should regardless of who you are and what you do,in most of the cases.So this where your smartphone comes in to your assistance by fully or partially replacing or sometimes reducing the bulk you carry in your pocket and your memory it self.
Epocware’s Handy Safe is the ideal S60 solution for this,as it allows multiple data type storing securely in your s60 device.So this post will discuss on features of Handy Safe and its improvements in the new release while opening the doors to your ideas on these type of applications.Sometimes you might not come across this,or haven’t tried it yet,maybe it not been listed as an essential application for your device.Anyway it’s all about ideas and dreams that turn into realities so if you come across this post and find it useful just let me know,also if you’ve already familiar with it or have used it even as a trial version and have some things to share with us just leave a comment.Among these feedback if I find things that might be useful to improve or significantly extend the productivity of the application in the future releases,you might have chance of walk away with free Handy Safe Licenses with courtesy of Epocware,the Number of Licenses I’m giving out will be announced shortly as it would be subjected to the amount of feed back we receive.Most probably it would be 2-3 licenses.
So let’s dig deeper into the Handy Safe,it might not be a review at all but rather a walkthrough along with my personal experience.
It’s on my 6630 that I first use this application and at that time it acted as my primary place to store serial numbers of both my phone and PC applications.So being an early user I can feel the improvements of the new version very much in personally.Though this is called as a update it rather goes as a new application starting from Version 1.0 and also you can install both Handy Safe and Handy Safe Professional together on the same device.
The main change that is visible in the first look is the change of Icon,which actually came in the last update of Handy Safe before it was rebranded as the Pro version.Also the logging interface too been changed a little.In the new version in default it is prompted the text mode to insert the password instead of the number mode offered in the previous versions.So gotta make sure you have inserted the correct password you needed especially at the first time use.
Moving on to the options menu three noticeable changes have been made,
1.There is an expandable option called “New” which will allow the user to create a new card,template or a folder replacing the “New Folder” option available on the previous version.
This new addition of creating the needed field(Card/Template/Folder) from the initial screen is very useful as it allows fast input of data into the system and later-on they can be organized accordingly,untill then these newly created Cards/Folders will be listed in the initial window in default.So you’ll easily notice what are the newly created cards/Folders.
The create new folder is also not available in the previous version,but It was possible by editing a default one to our needs,but with the new options it has become more easy than ever.You can select a custom icon for this from the available list of Icons which is also redesigned to look more appealingly.
2.Also a new option called ” Moved to Folder” is present in the option menu allowing the above mentioned fresh Cards/Folders to be moved into other folders for organizing purposes.
3.And another new option is been introduced as “More“,which allows you to do copy paste within the application also it would work with the built-in clipboard.
This is very useful for the new Nokia devices without Pencil Key,as the this little key was omitted from devices came after the N95 8GB the copy paste functions are not as easy as they were before.(Personally I use this Key very often,dunno why they removed it)
4.The Settings menu hasn’t changed.
Then in the initial screen window also you will notice some significant changes,
1.Previously available “Unfiled” folder is removed and “Custom Types” folder is renamed as “My Templates“.I’ve never used or came across any use of the folder “Unfiled” as it doesn’t seem to categorized any thing automatically or in default.So the omission looks reasonable as a part of improvement.
2.A new folder named “Deleted Items” is introduced to the main window.This is an essential componenent when dealing with sensitive data,there should be a way to retain them back in case of accidental deletion,so now to delete an item from the data base you have do it twice.
Let’s move further into the application,to manage your information coveiniently you can categorize the data into folders,already two sample folders are given in default you can either use them or create your own ones.OK,now time to explore the cards and templates,there are so many preset templates available in default to suite most of the card and other account types,but if you need more its just a matter of few key presses.
Also a new feature is added to organize your data more conveniently,that is the new sub folders feature.So if you have to categorize data based on different companies or sites etc; it’s better to use this new option.
I’m not going to write from A-Z on customizing these templates and cards,as it is up to you you deal on with what type of cards and info you need to keep inside this application.Just for an example I’ll list the ones I’ve used most,
1.Software Serials-All the serial numbers of my phone and PC are stored here,so after each and every format it’s the Handy Safe that saves me and my time.
2.VISA and other Bank Card details
3.ID card
4.Passport
5.Websites and Logins
But this is just a list of cards that I use frequently,your choices may differ largely from this depending on your life styles.
When shifting along with the update there are noticeable changes in this section too.
1. In the previous version,while you are inside a card the option menu is same for each and every card,regardless of the data fields it contains.But in the Pro edition this is changed to make more sense,now the option menu is changed depending on the data fields it consists of.For an example in the new Pro version the option menu offers the call function to all Number fields,kind of cool feature but yet it hasn’t developed to distinguish between just numbers and Telephone number formats,the result is even you might get confused sometimes by seeing the call option for a line like”1234″.
So if the field is a,
- Numeric one-Call/Send TXT
- Email-Send email
- Website-Open URL
2. Another change made in the new version is,when you open a card to view its details,you cannot go into the next card without pressing the back,whereas in the previous version the remaining cards in that folder are automatically tabbed adjacent to the opened card and it’s just a matter of going left or right to access them.I don’t know what’s the purpose for this change may be to prevent mis-selection of cards by pressing the Navigation keys,but for me this brings a big disappointment.I loved this tabbed feature especially when I was accessing the Software serial folder after a format,I used to insert the serial numbers by continuously navigating through the tabs by only using the right navikey,but with the new update it is no longer possible.
*I need feedback on this whether you like it or not.
Quoting From Official announcement
Handy Safe Pro features
- Store passwords, credit cards details, user names, codes, accounts (email, Internet, shopping, bank), web pages, addresses, travel info, insurance policies, software keys and much more.
- 35 unique information forms to store everything on your smartphone.
- Custom templates to store specific information according to your needs.
- Strong 448-bit data encryption (Blowfish) keeps your data private and secure. There is no effective codebreaking on Blowfish known publicly as of now.
- New! URLs are treated as hyperlinks
- New! Subfolders support
- New! Possibility to restore items in case of accidental deleting
- New! Autolock when Handy Safe is in background or if you don’t use Handy Safe for a certain period of time
OK,that’s all about the S60 3rd edition application and now it’s time to move on to the PC client.
With the new PC client it’s always easy to manage your data conveniently,especially I love to do the editing and updating the database from my PC client and then Sync it with the phone.The User Interface is very simple and navigation is well familiar due to the the Windows Explorer like built.You can see the root folders to the left as same as they appear on the phone screen.
After installing the application it’s very easy to do the synchronization with your S60 device and withing just seconds the databases will be updated.
Few features I that I was fancied over this application is the ability to set whether we see the passwords as it is or as hidden,this option is available at the right top cornnd you can set it as you wish.Also the send feature enables the user to send specific selected data or a card via email using this function.Another thing I love is the feature that let us to move the database to a custom location without damaging the sensitive data on files.this is very important when it comes to format your PC.Not to forget is the Import Feature which allows you to import your data from 6 different programs.OK,its not easy to cover this whole application in a single review,it has to be explored by yourself to discover its full potential.
Quoting from the Official Announcement
Handy Safe Desktop Professional – a PC companion
- Easy access to your smartphone information on PC
- Specially designed synchronization mechanism
- New! User defined database location
- New! Better usability: improved toolbar, database wizard, search results, hide password function and more
- New! Professional design
So before I finish this post let me add some of my personal Feedback Wishlist that I need to see in the next update.
1.Bringing Back the Tabbed Navigation while inside a specific folder.
2.Instead of going trough the “Find” feature,integrate a realtime search feature that will automatically prompt into action by just pressing the letter combination of the needed card.This will be something similar to Handy Shell’s “Search and Dial” feature or like the “SkyeQuiKey”.Such a option might be very useful for heavy application users who have long lists of person data stored in different folders.
3.And Online Synchonization service,This is a must that Epocware should work on,even by adding as a premium service it should be done.I’m sure you’ll get plenty of customers addicted to this as soon as it launched because nowadays people tend to carry only the phone leaving behind their Laptop at home.So a Sync service that could be accessed from anywhere in the globe is essential.So the users will be able to manage their information safely and easily even while they are on the go.
Try Handy Safe : 14 Days Trial
 |  | ||
| $44.95 | |||
Also there will be a 50% Discount on any Handy application Between December 16-28(except those for iPhone and iPod touch)
*Please leave your comments regarding the Improvements and wishlist suggestions with your email addresses,So it would be easy for me to contact you in case you win.
The below content is as in wordpress theme site and brought by 
