Answers!

Wow! It’s really exciting to see so much interest in eWallet for iPhone. Even negative comments are great from my perspective because it tells me you are at least giving us the opportunity to help you! Thanks!

That said, this entire blog post is dedicated to answering the many questions that have come up over the past week or so. I hope that this will help everyone to understand what is going on and know what the future holds!

Is It Out Yet?
As of this posting, no. We’re still waiting. Seriously, we don’t know what the issue as. All we know is that it says it is waiting for the export approval (that thing that has to do with the encryption and shipping overseas.)

When Will Sync Be Available?
We expect to have a version with full synchronization available around August 13th (Apple willing.) So about 30 days from now.

How Much Will It Cost?
Although it may change in the future, the initial pricing for eWallet on iPhone is $9.99.

Is There a Discount for Existing Users?
Right now, Apple doesn’t give us a way to offer discounts to existing users. In fact other than having it on the store and giving it a price we have no other control. That is part of the reason we decided to go with the $9.99 price tag. It basically offers the software at the $10.00 upgrade price.

Why Are Other Company’s Apps in the Store But You Aren’t?
Boy, we’d sure like to know! We’ve talked to the folks at Apple and so far we’ve simply been told that all we can do is wait. It’s making us crazy since they told us we’d be in by the 11th! Unfortunately, when it comes to Apple there is very little you can do or find out. You simply have to say “OK Apple” and hope for the best. As we said before, our application still tells us they are waiting for export approval.

 Why Did You Implement Other Features and not Sync?
Sync is huge. Putting a rounded corner on a card is simple. It isn’t that we spent the time we could have used for sync on doing card formatting options. It’s simply that sync by itself is almost as big as the rest of the program (complexity wise). As I mentioned, we could have just waited 30 days to release the whole thing but it really seemed like we should get the application out there as soon as possible.

Why Didn’t You Throw More Resources at This to Get It Done?
We threw as much as we could at this project. As most of you know, we’re not a huge company and we have a lot of bases to cover. Had we thrown any more at this project it would have meant pulling folks off of eWallet 6.1. We just didn’t feel that doing that would have been fair to our existing customers, especially since those features were part of a promise we made to FlexWallet users.

Will the Upgrade to the Sync Version be Free?
Yes. The upgrade should be completely free. It should come through as a normal application upgrade in the AppStore.

If I Make a Wallet Now Will it Work in August?
Yes. Your data should remain intact when you upgrade.

Can I Use 1 Password to Sync for Now?
Sorry. At this point the only solution is to wait the 30 days. I really wish I could offer a better solution.

Is There a Desktop Version?
Some of you may be new to eWallet so I want to answer this one. There is a full featured Windows PC desktop solution for eWallet. It is already available and offers full sync to network computers, ftp sites, Windows Mobile devices, Palm OS, USB cards, and more. This is the same version of the software that you will use to sync with your iPhone version.

Why Are You Penalising Existing Users?
But we aren’t! However you cut it, eWallet with sync wasn’t going to be out until mid-August. That was the simple reality of how long it took to develop the application. The only difference is that we decided to release the current version first just to get it out there and let folks start using it!

“Even a workaround hack (used at the user’s own risk) is acceptable.”
I’m not sure that we can officially release workaround hacks. That sort of thing tends to get you in trouble with the OS. What I can tell you is that eWallet for iPhone uses a standard .WLT file. That means the same old file you use on your Windows PC is what we’re using to access data on the iPhone side. Once eWallet goes out, if someone could figure out how to stick a wallet in the right place, we certainly wouldn’t try to silence them.

I…NEED…MY…WALLET…NOW!!!!!
OK, OK. I hear you. The Web Companion beta is tight but if you are in a bad situation (going on vacation) and need SOME way of getting to your data on your iPhone before August 13th, email me directly with the subject HELP ME. I will try to push you through into the Web Companion beta and then you can at least access your data there! Please only email me if you are in a really tight spot because as I mentioned, we have limited space at the moment – let’s work together to leave room for the people who really need to get in!

Nice Explanation But Not Good Enough!
I know that for some folks this will be a “Sorry, I’m out of here” issue. As I said, we could have waited until August but we really felt that this was the best route to take. If waiting the additional 30 days is too much we totally understand. Everyone has their limit and we respect that. You need to do what works best for you.

Can I Beta Test eWallet for iPhone?
Unfortunately, Apple doesn’t give us a way to get beta versions out to people. We get a certain number of “test unit” registrations in-house but that’s it. I think it is all part of the “don’t let anyone else distribute” thing but it sure is a pain for us.

When Will ListPro for iPhone Be Out?
I don’t have a release date yet but I’m guessing within the next month or two. Just a guess though.

You Must Tell Us! What About OSX/Mac?
Fine, you’ve beaten me down! We are planning an OSX version of eWallet for and probably ListPro. When will it be available? Let us get through this first and then we’ll let you know! I’m guessing later this year but that’s just a guess.

 

AND FINALLY

 

Can’t You Do ANYTHING For Us?
I can do one thing. We still need to work out the details but we plan to do the following…anyone who buys eWallet for iPhone before the release of the sync version in August will get either (their choice):

1. The eWallet 6.1 desktop version at no charge.
2. $5.00 off your next purchase at Ilium Software if you already have the desktop version.

UPDATE 09-19-08: This offer was only valid before the 6.1.2 sync upgrade came out. The upgrade went live in the App Store on September 7th, at which time this promotion ended. The desktop version of eWallet is $9.95 for all iPhone eWallet owners. You can find upgrade details here on our site.

Like I said, we need to work out the details but that is our intent. Hopefully that will help to soften the blow a little bit at least!