iCloud must have heard this word for about zillion times. But do you know what exactly it is, or what does it do? Well, here it is. iCloud is an umbrella name for all the services provided by Apple through the cloud, including iCloud Drive, iCloud Photo Library, and all the information saved from the iOS device. Since all the information is saved online, it can be accessed on any other Apple device including iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Mac, and even Windows computers through the iCloud ID. It helps to back up all your iOS data in case it needs to be restored on another device for any reason.
What Can iCloud Do?
The question should be, what iCloud cannot do! To start with, iCloud can save you from the nightmare of losing all the contact information on your device. iCloud enables you to sync across your iOS and macOS devices automatically. With just one contact list across your iOS and macOS, you can add or delete names from a single device, and it will sync with the rest of your iOS devices. The same goes for your events, birthdays, and holidays. All of these will sync automatically across all of your Apple devices. Moving to your Notes, Reminders, iWork your iMessages can be backed up to iCloud and synced across all the Apple devices that you own.
Talking about iCloud Drive, it is similar to Google Drive, Dropbox, or any other storage service. You can easily drag and drop folders and other stuff into your iCloud Drive from anywhere on your Mac. Not to mention, any changes you make in the iCloud drive will be synced across all of your macOS and iOS devices.
How Much Does iCloud Cost?
The best thing about this service is, it is free of cost up till 5GB of free storage, which is more than enough for a standard user. This free storage space can be used for iCloud backup, including iMessages, photos, and iCloud Drive. In case, you require more storage space, you can purchase it at an affordable price. This will provide you with more room to back up all your apps, files, data, pictures, and more. So how much will iCloud charge you for extra storage space?
- 50GB storage space at $0.99 a month.
- 200GB storage space at $2.99 a month.
- 2TB storage space at $9.99 a month.
Enabling iCloud Drive
While you are setting up a new iOS or Mac device, you will be asked if you want to use the iCloud service. If you answer a yes at this time, iOS will take you through the steps to set up the service. This is considered to be the easiest way to enable iCloud Drive on your device. In case, you don’t set up iCloud Drive during the initial set up, you can enable it later without much hassle. So, here is how to enable this service across any iCloud-enabled platform.
- iOS or iPadOS
Step 1. Set up a user name for the service. Once done, you will notice your username appearing at the top of your settings screen. Tap on it.
Step 2. Select iCloud and turn it on.
Step 3. You will see all your apps, photos, mail, contacts, iOS backups, etc. taking up your iCloud storage on the screen.
- macOS
Step 1. Navigate to the Apple menu at the top left, and select System Preferences, then Apple ID.
Step 2. Tap iCloud and sign in using your Apple ID.
Step 3. First, tick marks the iCloud Drive, and then everything you want to sync.
- Windows
Step 1. To operate iCloud on Windows, you first need to download iCloud for Windows from the Microsoft Store
Step 2. Install the downloaded file on Windows. Navigate to Start, open Apps or Programs, then click iCloud for Windows.
Step 3. Log in with your Apple ID.
Step 4. Click iCloud Drive and select Apply.
iCloud has become an important part of iOS and macOS users. The high levels of its back up capacity are commendable. If you have your data stored on iCloud, you don’t have to worry about losing it at all. Unless you delete the backup.
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