We all live in a world of constant connection these days, how many times have you replied to or read an email relating to work on an evening via a smart phone or tablet? I know I have done hundreds maybe thousands or times! At times it is great to save a small task the next day and get a message out to colleagues, clients or even your boss. But I started to realise this kind of behaviour was getting more and more frequent.
My solution was to put my work or corporate emails and tasks on a separate smart phone and leave this turned off in my work bag once I got home. Not an ideal solution as I would rather use one device as my daily driver. Plus on occasion I would like to easily choose to send the odd email or catch up on some work in an evening.
What had been happening was almost everyday I would be picking up messages relating to work and responding in my own time each and every time. This wasn't healthy for my home life and I simply had to remove them from temptation!
KNOX offered up perhaps a solution to my situation from first inspection but has it really helped? Well in short the answer is yes.... a little! It does offer up the ability to place your corporate emails within a secure password protected area. This is also great news for the super paranoid IT geeks who seem to stress and worry about corporate connections via a 'normal' android device. For me this has some negatives and positive. Firstly I can have my social networks, personal email accounts and other apps in a standard android environment. Great news for my evening browsing and break time chatting!
It also allows my corporate emails, contacts and work documents to be placed within the secure KNOX area. So while I am out working I can sign into KNOX mode and keep my attention on work priorities and tasks. Another upside I found was that when I leave my handset within my work bag and scramble up some ladders doing my day job. I know nobody within my work team can be sneaking a peak at my emails or messages through KNOX.
A downside for me and this is how KNOX has been deigned to work its not a fault or bug. Is the ability to copy text, links or phone numbers within KNOX and then paste them within the standard Android environment. You can not copy anything from KNOX and then paste it outside of the KNOX area. This principle also applies to screen shots, it just wont allow them to be taken. I can understand why this has been put in place, to protect your data upon loss or theft of your device. It is a trade off but one I understand and work with! Details about setting up KNOX and the screenshot issue can be seen here.
I like the fact Dropbox can be protected within KNOX again this pleases the IT guys! It also allows files to be shared quickly and easily via emails etc.
You still get notifications that emails have arrived within the standard Android area so the temptation is still there. I know you can set times etc to retrieve emails and help stop things like this but that isn't a solution long term for me due to the shift patterns I work. But the fact you have to input a password to access those emails is kind of a reminder to me that hey this is your time now. Don't worry about site access arrangements for tomorrows work. Do something fun and watch some funny cats on YouTube or something!
The setup I have now is all my corporate emails and files are stored within KNOX, even down to contacts and phone numbers. Its another defence in the event my phone gets stolen or lost but also a mechanism for me to switch off from work.
Plus on the same device I have an area to enjoy all the many wonderful android features away from work keeping those things locked away until work time!
Do I think it is an ideal solution to my particular situation? Not really. But is it helpful and useful? Yes it is!
Those of you lucky enough to be able to switch out of work mode and just pass over those emails or messages without my kind of OCD I salute you. Those of you who don't mind or embrace working 24/7 great stuff. But for those of you like me who would find a barrier to such things useful check out KNOX and the Samsung Galaxy Note 3
More details direct from Samsung can be found here
