• Jan 14, 2012

• How Has iCloud Changed Your Life?

• by G.W. Childs IV in Mac OSX

• Genre: Productivity
• Level: All
• Time to Complete: 5-15 minutes
• 0 comments — Start Discussion

After several years of re-packaging .Mac, MobileMe, etc., in different forms and different prices, we now have iCloud. Apple went all out, and made it impossible for all iPhone users not to use it. They even went ahead and created a large, Pentagon-sized building with nothing but servers in it to support the infrastructure of iCloud for a long, long time. 

As we’re beginning the proverbial end of the world in 2012, and as many writers are now writing articles like “How did 2011 affect you?”, “2011: A Year in Your Life” and “How Many Clowns Did You Hit With Your Automobile in 2011?”, we here at MacProVideo thought it would be awesome to see how iCloud has changed your life... Or, at least confirm how it’s changed life for all of us.

First, let me ask the question:

Are YOU Using iCloud?

If you haven’t started using iCloud for either fear of privacy, or an over inflation of new features, and you own an iPhone... you’re missing out. The setup is so simple it’s unbelievable.

Go to Settings:

Turn on iCloud:

And follow the instructions... It’s that easy. 

What has iCloud given us all? And, why should you care? 

Photos

Let’s face it, iPhone users take tons of photos. Whether you’re out partying at the club, at an infant birthday party, or just fancy having picture taken of yourself with some guy dressed as your favorite childhood cartoon character, you will inevitably take a picture using your iPhone, and iPad... etc. It’s also true that we all love to show off photos, well, at least the G-Rated, and PG rated photos. 

Photo Stream, incorporated when iCloud is enabled on your iPhone, or iPad automatically shares the last thousand photos between each device... And, it’s highly helpful. I had backed up my photos a few nights ago, and all of my photos were wiped from my phone so I could free up space. Later, during a conversation with a friend, I wanted to show off a photo, or two I’d taken. My photos were gone! Then I remembered... Photo Stream was enabled on my iPhone!

There in Apple marked cyberspace (iCloud), all of my photos were waiting for me to show off, and looking beautiful as ever. Later on the same day, when I was using my iPad, it was a real pleasure to find that all of my photos were viewable through my iPad without having to do any work to get them over to it from my iPhone. 

For photo enthusiasts, this really has turned in to a real pleasure... Because it’s sooo seamless. If you have multiple i-devices, make sure to Photo Stream on, on all of the devices to so that you can view any of the photos in every device, even Apple TV. For example: In your iPhone Settings, go to Photos, and enable Photo Stream.

Find My Phone

Let’s face it, iPhones and iPads don’t grow on trees, and as much as we can’t live without them, theft can strike at any time and force us to live without them. Or, can it?

Find my iPhone is Apple’s first step forward in allowing i-Users to take the law in to their own hands. By simply enabling ‘Find My Phone’ under Location services in your iPhone and iPad, you can easily track your i-device locations, should they go missing. 

But, Apple took it a step farther. The fact that you can wipe your iDevices remotely (in case you don’t currently own any brass knuckles) or send friendly messages (or, intimidating messages while you find your brass knuckles) by simply logging in to iCloud from any computer makes you feel much better about your investment... And, also Apple's investment in their customer. 

In all seriousness, should you lose your device, it’s best to avoid taking the law in to your own hands. Let the police know where your phone is, send a polite message. No one needs to get hurt!

Conclusion and Moving Forward

There are several more reasons to jump on the free service that is iCloud, but before seeing it as a free synchronization service that, from a distance, could appear gimmicky, consider this:


Because of how iCloud is set up by Apple, it can be upgraded at any point to incorporate even more new features. This could include storage, document sharing, music collaboration, and more.

Do yourself a favor in 2012 and get iCloud!