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Yes, really. I argue that iCloud is a more robust and coherent offering at this point. It goes toe-to-toe with Android Backup when it comes to backing up releva

by jpxxx 14y ago

Yes, really. I argue that iCloud is a more robust and coherent offering at this point. It goes toe-to-toe with Android Backup when it comes to backing up relevant user-state (like SMS history, a very valuable datatype), offers desirable features like find-a-phone and remote wipe, offers unsexy but fundamental functionality like Notes round-tripping, and offers ad-free IMAP mailboxes that don't explode on contact with desktop clients. iCloud still doesn't offer arbitrary file storage like Google Drive and its photo story is inadequate and confusing. But it is competitive on the whole, and Apple found some dogwhistle to blow that made "iCloud" a real thing for extremely tech-uninvolved people. (I'm not sure if this was anything they actually did on their part or if it was just coincident with the "cloud" buzzword coming to mean "I, the user, won't lose my stuff if my phone/laptop breaks") Also, Android backup is not a freebie: the manufacturer needs to be playing by OHA rules and staying in Google's good graces so that they can get access to all those Google-backed goodies. And then of course there's carrier-cloud and the vaporous S-Cloud and Asus cloud and all the third-party services and and.... and... Apple's put it together under one brand name and an ID you already have.

cageface 14y ago
I argue that iCloud is a more robust and coherent offering at this point. Robust is highly debatable, but the big problem with iCloud is that it's restricted to Apple devices only and is really only a benefit if you live entirely in the Apple ecosystem. The last few iOS apps I've written for clients haven't used it because we need to support Android and/or non-Mac desktop users as well.
- jpxxx 14y ago
  Quite true. But then in a world of Asus Cloud and S-cloud you're still in the same boat. Backup, sync, and asst. services are fragmenting.
  - cageface 14y ago
    Sure but the point is that any truly competitive cloud service has to be cross platform.
    - jpxxx 14y ago
      Ah, I see what you're arguing. Perhaps so. Ideally so, for sure.
- micampe 14y ago
  > the big problem with iCloud is that it's restricted to Apple devices only I am using iCloud contacts, calendar and mail on my Nexus 7. They are plain standard CardDAV, CalDAV and IMAP. To use Google contacts and calendar on any non-Android device you have to go through an old version of Exchange ActiveSync, which is quite limited and loses some information. This is basically the only reason that made me move from Gmail to iCloud: it’s easier to share the data across platforms. This is of course not true for documents sharing in apps, for which I still mainly use Dropbox.
  - cageface 14y ago
    But that stuff isn't what makes it interesting. It's the support for arbitrary backend structured storage, but few apps can afford to tie themselves to an Apple-only solution.

by jpxxx 14y ago

cageface 14y ago

I argue that iCloud is a more robust and coherent offering at this point. Robust is highly debatable, but the big problem with iCloud is that it's restricted to Apple devices only and is really only a benefit if you live entirely in the Apple ecosystem. The last few iOS apps I've written for clients haven't used it because we need to support Android and/or non-Mac desktop users as well.

jpxxx 14y ago
Quite true. But then in a world of Asus Cloud and S-cloud you're still in the same boat. Backup, sync, and asst. services are fragmenting.
- cageface 14y ago
  Sure but the point is that any truly competitive cloud service has to be cross platform.
  - jpxxx 14y ago
    Ah, I see what you're arguing. Perhaps so. Ideally so, for sure.
micampe 14y ago
> the big problem with iCloud is that it's restricted to Apple devices only I am using iCloud contacts, calendar and mail on my Nexus 7. They are plain standard CardDAV, CalDAV and IMAP. To use Google contacts and calendar on any non-Android device you have to go through an old version of Exchange ActiveSync, which is quite limited and loses some information. This is basically the only reason that made me move from Gmail to iCloud: it’s easier to share the data across platforms. This is of course not true for documents sharing in apps, for which I still mainly use Dropbox.
- cageface 14y ago
  But that stuff isn't what makes it interesting. It's the support for arbitrary backend structured storage, but few apps can afford to tie themselves to an Apple-only solution.