Why iCloud Is Like A Highway Service Stop
Photo by Kyle Bushnell on Unsplash.
I was obsessed with my first car. Didn’t matter that it was a used, high mileage faded blue Datsun 510. I cleaned all the windows, checked the oil, and adjusted the tire pressure every time I gassed up.
Tires were especially important since they were about the only performance upgrade I could manage on my freelance photographer’s income. I bought a pro quality Drager pressure gauge so I could measure the tire pressure down to the 1/2 pound. You could even adjust it to account for the changes in altitude or barometric pressure. I felt like my own pit crew. And, anyway, it was the rare air pump that came with its own pressure gauge back then.
So, coming back from a recent weekend trip to the Berkshires, the tire pressure warning light came on and I pulled into the first gas station on the highway to check it out. I grabbed my handy tire gauge from the glove box - the same old Drager - and started to check the tire pressures.
Sadly, the rubber seal on my trusty old tire gauge had dried out so I ended up just letting more air out of the tires without getting an accurate reading. Even if I added more air, I didn’t have a way to know if it was correct amount.
Being 2023, though, for only 2 dollars I could use the gas station’s automatic self-adjusting air pump to check and correct the pressure in all 4 tires.
Okay.
It bugged me to pay for “free” air at first. I’ve probably checked my tires a thousand times and crouched next to each valve while fiddling with the gauge to get a solid read, and I got very good with it. But like Steve Martin in L.A. Story, I saw the big sign overhead and it shouted “CONVENIENCE STORE” you idiot. I didn’t need to be a hero and stand in the drizzle to have safely inflated tires.
Sometimes, the world finds a better way. And that better way is not so much about the result, but about the experience.
I hear people complain about the cost of using iCloud, especially if they have enough data to need the 2TB (currently $9.99 per month) plan. But to me, iCloud is just like that gas station along the highway where $2 gets me a quick, accurate tire service on a rainy night. I’m thrilled that it’s there. I’ll pay a little extra for the convenience. And I’ll probably pay more attention to my tire pressure just because I don’t have to crawl around and fuss with the tire gauge thingy to get the proper pressure.
As it relates to Apple Photos, this is a huge deal.
iCloud includes an iCloud version of the Apple Photos Library that collects and distributes your priceless photos to all your Apple devices. It is bar none the simplest, easiest, most convenient way to back up and sync your photos across all your devices when used as designed.
And if that weren’t enough, you can:
Share up to 1000 original images from Photos using download links instead of cluttering up text and email with attachments
Create a collaborative iCloud Shared Library with your family
Post to and view multiple Shared Albums of photos
Choose to save space on your iPhone or other devices by Optimizing the images in Apple Photos
But that’s just photos. The iCloud service also delivers:
Mail Drop that can deliver up to a 5GB attachment as an email download link
Optimized Desktop and Documents to save space, back up, and sync your primary Mac folders to your other devices
Real-time collaboration for documents with Apple Pages, Numbers, Keynote, and Freeform
Version backup for apps saved to iCloud Drive
Shared files and folders using iCloud Drive
Syncing of Notes, Contacts, Passwords, and more across devices
Syncing of select 3rd party apps across devices
Privacy - No full featured cloud service is less interested in your personal data than Apple. Privacy and security is part of what you pay for.
And last but not least, you get a web version of all this content via iCloud.com using any browser.
For me, iCloud is the convenience store that makes the Apple experience unique and fun. It’s there when you need it. Open 24/7. Stocked with all the things you need and a few you probably don’t. But it’s ready to help on a rainy night when your tire alert goes off or you are about to run out of gas.
Photo by Jonathan Petersson on Unsplash.
So when I hear people say that they don’t use iCloud for their photos or anything else, I’m tempted to tell them that their trusty old air gauge is going to fail someday and they’ll wish they did.