Apple granting temporary iCloud storage space for device upgrades

Apple will give users with free iCloud accounts unlimited, temporary storage to facilitate data transfers to new devices.

Non-paying iCloud accounts have long been capped at 5 gigabytes, which meant that anyone who kept a large amount of data on their iPhone would run into issues when transferring large amounts of data between devices without a computer.

Now, Apple is granting free, unlimited storage for those who are transferring data from one device to another. The storage will be available for up to three weeks, giving users plenty of time to obtain a new device, such as an iPhone, and transfer their data to it.

"Now when you buy a new device you can use iCloud Backup to move your data to your new device, even if you're low on storage," Apple said. "iCloud will grant you as much storage as you need to complete a temporary backup, free of charge, for up to three weeks. This allows you to get all your apps, data, and settings onto your device automatically."

At WWDC 2021, Apple announced a new iCloud+ service, which includes a Private Relay VPN, a new Hide My Email capability, and support for unlimited secure HomeKit video cameras.

Follow all of WWDC 2021 with comprehensive AppleInsider coverage of the week-long event from June 7 through June 11, including details on iOS 15, iPadOS 15, watchOS 8, macOS Monterey and more.

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7 Comments

linkman 1040 comments · 11 Years

About 3 years ago

Apple is lagging behind on upping the bottom storage tier. IIRC the free tier has been at 5 GB for a full decade. With the smallest new iPhone capacity at 64 GB and iPad at 32 GB, most users won't be able to stay on the free tier very long for backups.

kurai_kage 115 comments · 5 Years

About 3 years ago

linkman said:

Apple is lagging behind on upping the bottom storage tier. IIRC the free tier has been at 5 GB for a full decade. With the smallest new iPhone capacity at 64 GB and iPad at 32 GB, most users won't be able to stay on the free tier very long for backups.

There is certainly a concern for Photos, but a significant amount of space used on users devices is by Apps, and those are never backed up. Take a quick peek at Settings > General > iPhone Storage and it is likely that Apps are taking up 3-4 times the space of your photo library.

I help upgrade my extended families devices every year the biggest pain point during device migration is finding room for the device backup, and frequently that involves freeing up room due to extra long videos. (filmed by kids using the devices) This change is going to save people a lot of headaches (and sometimes heartaches) when needing to free up space for the reasons above.

While I agree that it would be nice for Apple to upgrade the free tier, this is going to go a long way to helping out users unable to buy in.

entropys 4302 comments · 13 Years

About 3 years ago

It would be pretty straightforward to just give an iCloud limit that is the same as the capacity of the iPhone you own. Would not that be good?
This temporary expansion initially sounds cool, until you realise it is just trying to avoid doing something about the woefully small free tier that comes with the iPhone (I pay for 2TB, so meaningless for me anyway).

Temporary expansion of iCloud backup for larger capacity devices like macs would make more sense.