News tagged ‘iCloud’

Apple is reportedly working on a process to merge multiple Apple IDs into a single login. Early developer testing of iOS 5 and iCloud have demonstrated that this issue was major.

TUAW described the problem back in July, and the answer at that time was that there was no way to consolidate Apple IDs:

Some readers have been managing two Apple IDs on purpose and are now frustrated about the fact that Apple is restricting logins for automatic downloads. Others have only just discovered that they have two IDs. Most of them have already contacted Apple, only to be given the same answer without exception: Apple will not consolidate Apple ID accounts.

MacRumors reader Robert emailed Apple CEO Tim Cook about the issue. Apple representative said that they understood the issue and that more people would run into the problem with iCloud, claiming that there is no way yet to combine accounts but revealed they are working on it.

One of the customers, who emailed Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO to express dismay over discontinuation of same MobileMe features, claims that the service is transitioned to iCloud and then Tim Cook called him noting that Apple is “open” to return some features as customers support their return.

"Specifically, I bemoaned the loss of sync services (syncing application preferences, keychain, etc.) and the loss of iDisk," the reader said of his initial email to Cook . "I was pleasantly surprised to get a call from his office just now.

According to Cook's people, while there are no plans to add those particular services to iCloud at this time, "Apple is open to it if there's enough feedback on the subject."

Apple's customer service call centers - AppleCare has reported AppleInsider that the company expects that a large influx  of iOS-related support calls beginning Monday, October 10th, suggesting that Apple may release the iOS 5 on this date.

For instance, one person familiar with the matter said his local AppleCare call center has been told to expect an eightfold increase in customer calls on that day, and that staff are being advised ahead of time for the increased traffic.

The person could not say with any certainty what will be released on that Monday, but noted that the increase in call volume is related to iOS. This led them to speculate that Apple could release iOS 5 and iCloud on Oct. 10.

Apple always releases its major iOS updates a couple of days ahead of the new hardware release. For example, the iPhone OS 3.0 was released on June 17th, 2009 while the iPhone 3GS was released on June 19th, 2009; last year iOS 4.0 was released on June 21st following the iPhone 4 release on June 24th. So, we may expect release of new iPhone 5 after October 10th. Moreover, there are lots of rumors suggesting that Apple is planning to announce its next-gen iPhone in mid-October.

Today Deutsche Telekom has begun offering first-served reservations for the iPhone 5 whenever it debuts. The company confirmed that the program is now in effect.

Deutsche Telekom AG (DTE) will allow customers to reserve the next generation of Apple Inc. (AAPL)’s iPhone as of today in anticipation of supply bottlenecks for the device, spokesman Alexander von Schmettow said by phone. The operator will hand out coupons to people who expressly request the successor model to the iPhone 4, without providing the name or release details of the device, he said.

Apple typically keeps its carrier partners in the dark about its release plans until it is ready to make a public release. So Deutsche Telecom seems to work on the ground of rumors rather than official information. Hints have been multiplying since last week that Apple could be close to unveiling a fifth-generation iPhone. Apple store employees have received their iOS 5 and iCloud training materia and internal Best Buy documents have pointed to a Sprint iPhone 5 launch in the first week of October.

We’ve heard that Apple has begun iOS 5 and iCloud training with retail store employees through a new section of the company’s recently released internal RetailMe application. Such fact might be an indication of a forthcoming release of the iPhone 5 as Apple typically introduces major iOS updates in the days surrounding new iPhone launches. Apple Store employees have begun receiving detailed information on Apple’s upcoming iCloud service and iOS 5. Apple originally said iCloud would be launching alongside iOS 5.  This iOS 5 and iCloud training news helps support rumors about  late September iPhone 5 pre-orders and an early October launch.

Yesterday, Tim Cook started redirecting customers’ e-mails to Eddy Cue, Apple's vice president for Internet services. Cook confirmed 9to5Mac that Cue was officially promoted to a senior vise president position.

From an internal Apple email sent by Tim Cook:

It is my pleasure to announce the promotion of Eddy Cue to Senior Vice President of Internet Software and Services. Eddy will report to me and will serve on Apple’s executive management team.

Eddy oversees Apple’s industry-leading content stores including the iTunes Store, the revolutionary App Store and the iBookstore, as well as iAd and Apple’s innovative iCloud services. He is a 22-year Apple veteran and leads a large organization of amazing people. He played a major role in creating the Apple online store in 1998, the iTunes Music Store in 2003 and the App Store in 2008.

Cue's promotion may be the first move in a reshuffling of Apple's leadership. The position of Chief Operating Officer is now vacant. Apple’s COO was Tim Cook until his ascension to the CEO position. And soon a position of a senior vice president for retail will be vacant as he takes the CEO position at J.C. Penney.

Yesterday Apple released a beta of the iTunes Match for developers. Apple described the system as follows:

iTunes Match stores your complete music library in iCloud, allowing you to enjoy your collection anywhere, anytime, on any iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, or computer.

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Frank Shaw, Microsoft's Corporate Vice President, said that now industry is in a “PC plus” era and rejected that “Post-PC” era has begun.

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9to5mac reports that Apple might launch the next-generation iPhone on October 7, with pre-orders likely starting on September 30, a week before the launch.

Apple currently plans to begin pre-orders for their next-generation smartphone in the final days of September. The company has still not finalized the pre-order start date, but is debating between Thursday, September 29th and Friday, September 30th. The 30th seems more likely at this point according to one of our sources.

If pre-orders scheduled for September 30, so Apple would need to unveil the new iPhone in September. Many believes that Apple will announce new device at the traditional Fall media event: whereas the company has usually preferred September to hold a music event to announce new iPods and new versions of iTunes.

If Apple doesn’t release a new iPhone this summer, the company is expected to unveil the device as its usual event in the Fall, with iCloud, OS X 10.7.2 and iOS 5 also believed to drop by then.

While many of the iOS developers are currently playing around with iOS 5 beta 5 it looks like we may expect 6th beta... today!

Last week iCloudil.com found that one of the files of iOS 5 beta 5 had been remotely updated by Apple. After the release of iOS 5 beta 5 the update file was created on “2011-08-17”, but now it shows the date of “2011-08-18” which means Apple has postponed the update date by a day.

Though it can be considered as an iTunes’ check for update date, there are many chances this is a date for a new iOS 5 update, since the iOS 5 updates come fortnightly.

AppleNApps claims that Apple plans to release a new low-cost iPhone in the coming months. Such low-cost model of iPhone will contain significantly reduced onboard storage and instead rely primarily on streaming content from the company's new iCloud service. That is why some experts call that device as the "iCloud iPhone". But such service would put significant strain on wireless carriers charged with moving data down from the cloud every time it is needed.

We have three independent sources contributing to this report who are all connected to Apple in different capacities. The main takeaway is that Apple intends to launch two iPhone models in the fall with a full upgraded iPhone 5 as expected, as well as a cheaper iPhone which will be the iCloud iPhone.

The iPhone 5 will reportedly appear in a thinner form factor carrying the A5 chip. The iCloud iPhone will have almost the same components currently used in the iPhone 4.

One of our contacts is familiar with the design of the iPhone 4, and says that Apple is cutting the cost of making an iPhone 4 without sacrificing any of its qualities. The main cost cutting will come from Apple reducing on board storage, using a smoother yet cheaper aluminum back and siding, and already having a majority of the supplies on hand. The result will be a cloud based iPhone experience that is unique in the market that will be accessible to a large percentage of users because of the price point.

Today Apple released two new builds for developers. First is the seventh beta version of the iCloud build for Mac and second is OS X Lion 10.7.2 Build 11C37. iCloud for Mac can easily make user’s Macs iCloud compatible, and it includes improved Find my Mac, Documents and Data in the Cloud and Back to my Mac services. Both builds can be downloaded via the iCloud developer portal.

As CNet reports, rumored iTunes Replay service from Apple is delayed. According to the sources of the publication, Apple has still not reached the agreements for movies with at least four of the main six film studios. Reportedly, Apple began negotiations over these agreements earlier this year, but sources note that this process "could drag on for months".

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After giving developers access to Find My iPhone feature in iCloud service, it became known that Apple has also turned on Find My Mac feature in this service. Now it is available to developers for beta testing of iCloud service. The service was officially offered in Developer Preview 4 although its addition to Lion was leaked earlier. The user can activate this function within iCloud control panel in system preferences and their Macs will be displayed on iCloud.com.

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Apple is requiring developers to start testing iCloud beta 5 and install Mac OS X 10.7.2 build 11C26 for that purpose, but the company has not provided its developers with any information on test builds of Mac OS X 10.7.1 yet.

"You must install OS X Lion 10.7.2 in order to use iCloud for OS X Lion beta 5," Apple reportedly told developers. "This pre-release version of OS X Lion is being provided solely for testing iCloud."

People familiar with the Apple’s plans believe that Apple will initiate a separate beta test for Mac OS X 10.7.1 in the coming days or weeks. Moreover, developers, who have installed Mac OS X 10.7.2 and iCloud beta 5 note changes in Lion's "Mail, Contacts & Calendars" control panel and iCloud management interface that provides tools for managing storage, backups, and purchasing additional storage and lets users choose which forms of data they'd like synced to the cloud.

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