Sync iTunes with Windows Phone 8

Many people who have got their hands on one of the new generation of cool Windows Phones have been looking online for a guide on how to Sync iTunes with Windows Phone 8 devices. If you are one of the many frustrated users who have nearly gone mad in the process of trying to achieve this, then I may have some good news for you in the guide below.

This article focuses on users with Windows PCs (including Windows XP) who have their music already on their PC, either in an iTunes or a WMP (Windows Media Player) library. Even if this does not exactly describe you, you should find at least some of the tips below useful in syncing your music.

iTunes Alternatives

In working out how to successfully Sync iTunes with Windows Phone 8, I have tried several iTunes alternatives including Media Monkey and MusicBee. Of these two MusicBee is the simpler. You do have to go to Preferences (Edit Menu I think) select the Devices Menu and then activate support for MTP device for it to find your phone. This is not at all clear.

My recommendation however is to use DoubleTwist. This is a free application and very simple to use. Initially don’t connect your phone. Upon launch, the software scans your iTunes and Windows Media Player libraries. This seemed to be very painless and in my case all album artwork appeared as it does in iTunes. If you wish to just sync a subset of your music library, just create a playlist and then add the albums / tracks you wish to have on your phone.

IMPORTANT

To finally Sync iTunes with Windows Phone 8, go to your phone and turn off, yes turn off, the ‘Connect to XBox music’ setting. Find the Music+Videos app. Launch the app and then hit the … (bottom right) and choose Settings. Here turn off ‘Connect to XBox Music’. If you do not do this your music library will become corrupted by Microsoft’s dodgy database. You will end up with your music albums being split into several smaller chunks. This is really frustrating and took me ages to work out where the problem was.

If you already have a stuffed music library on your phone and have all your music securely backed up on your PC, I would recommend you delete all the music from your phone (in My Computer) and start again. Do not do this if you have purchased music on your phone and have any doubt as to whether it is backed up on your PC.

Sync iTunes with Windows Phone 8 – Setup & Sync

Now connect your phone to the PC, cancelling all the driver requests if you are on XP. DoubleTwist should detect your phone fairly quickly and it should then appear just above the Playlists on the Main Screen. Select your phone and go through the various tabs to set up the music, photos etc. synchronizations you require for your phone.

When you are ready hit sync and depending on the size of your library you should soon have all your music library on your phone.

Source:windowsphone8tips