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Apple's iCloud cloud storage service is easy to use and packed with useful features. Even though it doesn't compete with Google in terms of free storage space (5GB vs. 15GB), it never hurts to have a bit more cloud storage. If you're ready to dip your toes in the Apple waters, we put together a comprehensive guide to get you started creating an iCloud account on an iOS device, a Mac, a PC, or on the web, which is handy if you use one of the best Chromebooks that doesn't have a large amount of onboard storage.
How to access Google Drive on any device
You can access Google Drive on almost any device, but the best way to access it changes by platform
Google Drive is one of the most-used cloud storage services in the world and comes as a standard app on Android phones. It's versatile, has a decent amount of free storage, and is great for consumers and businesses. There are options to upgrade the storage thanks to affordable Google One plans, which are a great option for people using one of the best budget Android phones that may not have much onboard storage.
How to download iCloud Photos
Downloading your photos from iCloud is straightforward and can be done with a few clicks
Switching from iOS to Android is simple when you use Google services. If you've been immersed in the Apple ecosystem for a long time and are considering an Android camera phone to replace your iPhone, learn how to download your photos from iCloud to bring them over. After all, our entire lives exist in our photo apps.
Gmail is a popular email service with a clean interface and useful features, such as sending encrypted emails and changing your display name. You can also use your Gmail account to send emails using other clients, which is useful if you want to bring your iCloud email account to your 5G Android smartphone or tablet. However, the process isn't straightforward. You must create an app-specific password first. This guide walks you through how to add an iCloud email to Gmail.
Most of Apple's services, including iCloud, don't technically have Android apps or a built-in way to access your cloud storage. That makes it complicated if you use both iOS and Android platforms or are switching from Apple to a different brand, like moving from an iPad to an Android tablet.
iCloud won't try to charge you for switching to a new iPhone anymore
Apple will give you temporary space for your iCloud backups when buying a new device
Switching to a new phone is challenging enough, and that's before you're prompted to pay upfront for cloud storage to move your files over. Thankfully, Apple is making a big change to its setup process. Starting with iOS 15, you no longer have to pay for extra storage to upload your iPhone's backup to the cloud.According to the complete list of iOS 15 details on Apple's website, you'll now be granted a temporary amount of iCloud storage space after you buy a new device to allow your backup to move freely from one phone or tablet to the next. This storage space is only meant to be used for backups, and it'll disappear after three weeks, but that's plenty of time to get all of your apps, photos, contacts, and messages onto your new iPhone. Considering the cost of a brand new iPhone, some temporary free storage to transfer a backup is a pretty nice gesture of goodwill.Apple is also improving the experience of moving from Android to iOS with its latest software. The setup process in iOS 15 will include a QR code that leads directly to the Move to iOS app in the Play Store for easy downloading. The Android app has also gained the ability to move photo albums, files and folders, and even accessibility settings to iPhone.This update continues Apple's quest to make switching to iOS easier than ever, but whether it'll be enough to win over anyone who hasn't already invested in its ecosystem remains to be seen.
Apple's Private Relay keeps your browsing so secret even Apple can't track you
Available to all paying iCloud subscribers at no extra cost
Security is on everyone's mind these days, with more people than ever looking to keep their browsing data hidden from prying eyes. Apple is introducing a new way to use your iPhone without having to worry about your information leaking to unknown forces.
Apple lets you natively transfer your iCloud media to Google Photos
It's now a lot easier to switch to Google's ecosystem
If you've used an iPhone, you probably know it's very easy to automatically backup your content using iCloud. However, if you decide to switch to another service, things aren't necessarily easy. Thankfully, Apple just made this a lot easier by providing a tool that lets you natively export your iCloud photos and videos to Google Photos.
Apple's iCloud Passwords extension arrives on the Chrome Web Store, but it's not working yet
It's supposed to be functional for Windows users
Read update
No matter how hard companies pitch the benefits of being in their ecosystem, more often than not, consumers end up buying products from different brands that render some ecosystem-exclusive features useless. In an attempt to make iCloud Keychain accessible to those with Windows PCs, Apple has released a Chrome extension. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to work at the time of writing.
Android's backup and restore features still haven't caught up to the iPhone
If Apple can get it right, why can't Google?
Android’s built-in backup system has improved immensely over the years, but it still falls short in a number of key areas, leading to much frustration for users. Its shortcomings are even more apparent when compared with Apple’s iCloud backup for iPhones, which — while not perfect — is better at copying over app data so users don’t have to spend hours setting up a new phone.
Apple’s software solutions mostly stay within the confines of its tightly controlled mobile and desktop platforms, barring the odd exception. But the more open nature the tech titan has lately been going after with a subscription-driven model for some services requires apps to work across operating systems. Taking baby steps in that direction, Apple has now optimized its iCloud website for mobile screens, bringing a few of its popular services to Android.
A court in Mannheim, Germany today held a preliminary hearing in a patent dispute between Motorola Mobility and Apple Sales International (a European Apple distribution subsidiary), and it seems like Apple's on the ropes.