Dumped My Paid iCloud Drive Subscription. iCloud Drive Sucks.

[macUser2007]

iCloud seemed like a decent deal now, so even though I have Google Drive, Box and Dropbox (5TB plan I subscribed to it.

I added my girlfriend's iPhone (separate iCloud account) to my iCloud ID as Family, expecting the extra drive space to become available to her device.

Imagine my surprise when I realized that iCloud Drive is NOT part of the family sharing ecosystem.

The whole scheme is very misleading and rather id!otic: you can share apps, etc., but not drive space.

So, there is really no point to getting iCloud drive, which cannot be shared with other Family users. It's easier and obviously cheaper to stick to something like Dropbox or Google Drive and just share with whomever you want to share with.

Apple is either too greedy for its own good, or it has no clue. I am about to cancel my iCloud Drive subscription.

Is there something I am missing about this?

 

[Apple_Robert]

In my opinion, there is nothing "misleading" about the purpose and function of iCloud Drive. The problem is not with Apple. The problem is you expected iCloud Drive to do something it hasn't been advertised or setup to do.

 

[reese2147]

In my opinion, there is nothing "misleading" about the purpose and function of iCloud Drive. The problem is not with Apple. The problem is you expected iCloud Drive to do something it hasn't been advertised or setup to do.

In my opinion, iCloud drive is extremely misleading, unintuitive and just plain "doesn't work".

Exhibit A:

"Any kind of file on all of your devices"

Oh you want to create your own folder within iCloud drive to store a PDF? Good luck accessing it on your iPhone without some questionable third party app or apps.

You have a bunch of pictures not in iCloud photo library that you would like to store on iCloud drive? Good luck pulling them up on your iOS device.

 

[wannabelean]

In my opinion, iCloud drive is extremely misleading, unintuitive and just plain "doesn't work".

Exhibit A:

Image

"Any kind of file on all of your devices"

Oh you want to create your own folder within iCloud drive to store a PDF? Good luck accessing it on your iPhone without some questionable third party app or apps.

You have a bunch of pictures not in iCloud photo library that you would like to store on iCloud drive? Good luck pulling them up on your iOS device.

I can relate bro. I have a subscription too which I plan to cancel at the end of the monthly billing cycle. Totally sucks.

 

[ZombiePete]

I agree. icloud Drive has so far been a big failure as far as I'm concerned. Between lost data, folders duplicating inexplicably, and no way to directly access the Drive from iOS devices, it is just not ready for prime time and is not worth paying for when options like Google Drive exist.

 

[Apple_Robert]

In my opinion, iCloud drive is extremely misleading, unintuitive and just plain "doesn't work".

Exhibit A:

Image

"Any kind of file on all of your devices"

Oh you want to create your own folder within iCloud drive to store a PDF? Good luck accessing it on your iPhone without some questionable third party app or apps.

You have a bunch of pictures not in iCloud photo library that you would like to store on iCloud drive? Good luck pulling them up on your iOS device.

Nothing in the picture (or elsewhere) does Apple state that users can share iCloud Drive together in the manner that the OP expected. That is the point. The OP assumed and then got mad when his assumption didn't pan out. That isn't Apple's fault.

 

[sviato]

In my opinion, iCloud drive is extremely misleading, unintuitive and just plain "doesn't work".

Exhibit A:

"Any kind of file on all of your devices"

Oh you want to create your own folder within iCloud drive to store a PDF? Good luck accessing it on your iPhone without some questionable third party app or apps.

You have a bunch of pictures not in iCloud photo library that you would like to store on iCloud drive? Good luck pulling them up on your iOS device.

I agree. I was actually very keen on getting a subscription but decided to wait few weeks and I'm glad I did. It turns out iCloud Drive is quite poorly implemented and much more limited in functionality than was suggested in the previews.

It's a shame cause Apple could've really done this right and I was willing to switch from Google Drive.

 

[wannabelean]

Nothing in the picture (or elsewhere) does Apple state that users can share iCloud Drive together in the manner that the OP expected. That is the point. The OP assumed and then got mad when his assumption didn't pan out. That isn't Apple's fault.

No reese2147 isn't talking about the OP's issue but an issue separately all together. He's 100% bang on correct. Apple clearly dropped the ball here.

 

[macUser2007]

Nothing in the picture (or elsewhere) does Apple state that users can share iCloud Drive together in the manner that the OP expected. That is the point. The OP assumed and then got mad when his assumption didn't pan out. That isn't Apple's fault.

Actually, the message in the picture IS misleading. It implies things that users expect and which are available on most competing services, but iCloud doesn't deliver them.

Kind of like leasing a car from Apple that comes with a widely advertised set of "family" keys.

But while your girlfriend can sync her address book with the car's information system, she can't drive it, because her Family key is good only for syncing the address book. Oh, and the trunk accepts only Apple luggage. And even though the car runs on regular gas, the gas tank accepts only Apple authenticated gas.

Yes, I did assume it was a car like the other cars on the market, particularly since the ads imply that it is. It must be my fault that I make such preposterous assumptions, since Apple can do no wrong and really cares about us.

So, stupid me is canceling iCloud Drive.

I also advise anyone else considering iCloud Drive to read the fine print. iCloud is worse than useless, because so many of us are wasting our time setting it up, only to find out that our expectations are way to high for Apple.

 

[Apple_Robert]

No reese2147 isn't talking about the OP's issue but an issue separately all together. He's 100% bang on correct. Apple clearly dropped the ball here.

I think iCloud Drive leaves a lot to be desired at this point. Again, one cannot do what the OP wants to do with iCloud Drive. That is all I have been saying. I haven't been defending anything else with iCloud Drive.

 

[macUser2007]

Just cancelled.

But Apple will not allow immediate cancellation, they require that the billing cycle is completed.

I assume someone will sue and some class action attorneys will have employment for another year.... Apple certainly deserves it.

 

[tooobe]

You can't share the data plan with family members on Dropbox or gdrive either though can you?

 

[macUser2007]

You can't share the data plan with family members on Dropbox or gdrive either though can you?

For my rather pricey plan I get 5 users

BUT, even if you don't have multiple users, anyone with a single login can share all photos, from anywhere. Anyone can share 1Password keychains. You can put whatever you want on the drive.

Dropbox works like what you expect from a cloud drive. iCloud Drive does not.

 

[xmlninja]

Take my google drive and dropbox space with you haters. Im all out icloud and i love it.

 

[ZombiePete]

Take my google drive and dropbox space with you haters. Im all out icloud and i love it.

I assume you're kidding, but I honestly tried to make the best of iCloud Drive and it just isn't cutting it. I had a Pages document revert an essay I had written to an earlier version that was essentially blank, had folders duplicate randomly and inconsistently (e.g. sometimes the data was in the original folder, sometimes it was in the duplicate folder, etc.), lack of control over the folders in the drive (at least on the web), and general inability to access raw files from iOS just makes it an inferior solution.

I don't want to use Google Drive, but it's the only cloud storage I can get access to at work outside of iCloud so those are my choices.

 

[tooobe]

For my rather pricey plan I get 5 users

BUT, even if you don't have multiple users, anyone with a single login can share all photos, from anywhere. Anyone can share 1Password keychains. You can put whatever you want on the drive.

Dropbox works like what you expect from a cloud drive. iCloud Drive does not.

So I take it you pay 5 x 15$ per month? What do you pay for your icloud plan?

 

[reese2147]

It's a shame cause Apple could've really done this right and I was willing to switch from Google Drive.

I was in the exact same boat. I immediately jumped on board iCloud drive and purchased the 200GB plan thinking I would be in for a good experience since my household is 100% apple products. I quickly discovered I made a mistake. It was my own fault for not researching iCloud drive before purchasing it, but I'm only out 4 bucks to discover that it's not the service for me.

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Actually, the message in the picture IS misleading. It implies things that users expect and which are available on most competing services, but iCloud doesn't deliver them.

I 100% agree with this. Most other cloud storage providers (Dropbox, Onedrive, Box, etc) have very similar features and functionality. I think its safe to assume that most people who have been unimpressed with iCloud drive assumed (rightly so) that iCloud drive would function in a similar fashion with the industry standard.

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You can't share the data plan with family members on Dropbox or gdrive either though can you?

If you use the same user information you can.

Addidtionally.....My family uses OneDrive. We all have our own Microsoft accounts, but are able to pick and choose what we share with others. (Yet another industry standard feature missing in iCloud drive)

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I think iCloud Drive leaves a lot to be desired at this point. Again, one cannot do what the OP wants to do with iCloud Drive. That is all I have been saying. I haven't been defending anything else with iCloud Drive.

I certainly wasn't trying to pick a fight....... the sheer fact that Apple is willing to release a product that leave so much to be desired for so many people is very disturbing to me.

I trust and enjoy apple's hardware.... cloud storage.... no way.

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I don't want to use Google Drive, but it's the only cloud storage I can get access to at work outside of iCloud so those are my choices.

If Apple would loosen the stranglehold of forcing people to use their ecosystem, more would use their products. I am in a similar situation and do not have access to my Mac or iPad at work.... we use PCs. Therefore, I use web versions of everything. iCloud.com is an absolute joke

 

[Wild-Bill]

I agree. icloud Drive has so far been a big failure as far as I'm concerned. Between lost data, folders duplicating inexplicably, and no way to directly access the Drive from iOS devices, it is just not ready for prime time and is not worth paying for when options like Google Drive exist.

What the hell is going on over at Apple???!!!

Keeping within just the last few months, the iOS 8 rollout was PATHETIC, Yosemite is....well....., and the iPad Air 2 resonates/vibrates so badly when music is played because they made the thing too thin.

Tim Cook needs to stop counting beans and start paying attention to quality control.

 

[ZombiePete]

If Apple would loosen the stranglehold of forcing people to use their ecosystem, more would use their products. I am in a similar situation and do not have access to my Mac or iPad at work.... we use PCs. Therefore, I use web versions of everything. iCloud.com is an absolute joke

I agree; I've never been a big fan of iCloud.com to begin with, but the Drive app on there is downright ugly. All those unused folders; why do I need an Automater folder? I don't care for it.

I think that OneDrive, if you have Office 365, is a great option with generous storage plans, but since it's blocked where I work for some reason Google Drive is the next best choice.

 

[reese2147]

I think that OneDrive, if you have Office 365, is a great option with generous storage plans, but since it's blocked where I work for some reason Google Drive is the next best choice.

My family is setup with OneDrive and there isn't a better deal out there.

$99/year for FIVE users to have 1TB (each!) of **real** cloud storage... PLUS Microsoft Office on each of our mac and ipads? Can't beat it!

Its so odd, I love OneDrive... but hate PCs... ha ha

 

[acm1108]

I ended up going the office 365 route as well. 5 users with 1 TB of cloud storage each, plus they all can use the microsoft office suite. Can't beat it for $10/month.

 

[bgro]

I agree. icloud Drive has so far been a big failure as far as I'm concerned. Between lost data, folders duplicating inexplicably, and no way to directly access the Drive from iOS devices, it is just not ready for prime time and is not worth paying for when options like Google Drive exist.

Agree with this completely. In it's current state, iCloud Drive just sucks. I have lost files, files have disappeared and reappeared. There's just no reason to use it now with Google Drive and Dropbox available. I use Google Drive (and Docs) and I love the service.

 

[CausticSoda]

I agree 100 % with the OP and similar. I am sick to death of all this rubbish from Apple about accessing all files on all devices, blah blah bah. Yesterday, I really badly needed to look at the name of a file on my iCloud drive - yes, just the name. Imagine my surprise when I went to "iCloud.com" on my iPhone (all I had to hand) to find some garbage about setting up iCloud on my device (done already) and no way to access the cloud drive and see a list of my files. It is pitiful, yes, genuinely pitiful that Apple release this and don't even include a simple app to view the contents of the drive. I just wonder what they are thinking at the moment, I really do...

 

[ZombiePete]

I just sent an email outlining my issues to tcook@apple.com. As I note in the email, I tried to send it using the feedback tool but it barely allows any text in the form at all:

Good Afternoon Mr. Cook and Staff,

I tried to use the online Feedback site to send this, sir, but it wouldn’t even fit the first paragraph into the form. I hope that your staff reads this and will send it to the right people.

I signed up for iCloud Drive as soon as it was available; it's a service I've been looking forward to for some time now, and now that it's here I have to say that it's been an incredible disappointment that does not live up the standards that I've come to expect from Apple products. I would like to share some of my experiences with iCloud Drive since its public release, and thoughts on why I will be using another cloud storage service for the time being:


- iCloud Drive is unreliable. On at least two occasions while using Pages and storing Pages documents on iCloud Drive, I have saved a document only to come back to it later and find that it had reverted to an earlier state, erasing potentially hours of work and leaving me with no recourse for recovering it. When you’re advancing this as part of the file system, users should be able to expect a certain level of reliability without the risk of losing data.


- For some reason, iCloud Drive insists on constantly restoring folders and files that I have deleted or, sometimes, that I have not deleted which creates a copy of those folders. For example, I keep an archive of old school documents that I’ve created over the years in a folder called “School Archive”. On more than one occasion, I’ve gone into iCloud Drive to find a second folder called “School Archive 1” there, inexplicably. Sometimes the original folder has the actual files, sometimes the copy does. If you go into my Drive right now, in the Pages folder (which I emptied along with the rest of the drive yesterday), there are several folders, many of which are copies of each other. It’s utterly bizarre behavior which adds the unreliability of the product.


- Speaking of Pages, the application folders are annoying. I don’t use most of the applications that you’re forcing me to have folders for, and it makes my drive feel cluttered and is visually unappealing. I want to manage my storage my way, not the way you think I should. This is tantamount to forcing me to store the files on my hard drive in a certain way; I have a very particular methodology for storing my files, and I don’t want to be beholden to your idea of how I should do it. The fact that I can’t have multiple nested folders in them only heightens the lack of intuitive design and pointlessness of these folders.


- Why is it that I can access all my raw files on Google Drive on my iOS devices, but not my iCloud Drive files? Doesn’t it seem odd that a rival company is offering me better access to my files than Apple is? There needs to be an iCloud Drive app that allows me to manage/open/upload files from my devices; without it, iCloud Drive is not a drive at all but just a fancier version of Documents in the Cloud, which I find to be too limiting.


- The iCloud Drive web app’s behavior is unintuitive. Let me explain: if I drag-and-drop a Word document into the Pages web app, I can then open it in that app and make edits to it. If I try to open a Word document from the iCloud Drive web app, it tries to open it in Word or downloads the file, but doesn’t give me any options for editing in the Pages web app, even when the Word document is stored in the Pages folder. Why such a huge disconnect between two web applications on the same platform? Combined with the new Photos app, it becomes clear that these apps were not designed to work together, giving iCloud.com a hugely disjointed feeling.


- Kind of beside the point, but the change to the background of iCloud.com recently to a blue and orange gradient is ugly in my opinion. I’m not sure what was wrong with the old dynamic wallpaper background, but if you had to change it the choice you made was a bad one from my perspective.


Frankly, this feels like something that was rushed out the door to meet a deadline rather than a quality Apple experience designed to “just work”. I can assure you from personal experience that it doesn’t work, and I will not be using it for the foreseeable future.


Respectfully,

Pete ****

 

[macUser2007]

I just sent an email outlining my issues to tcook@apple.com. As I note in the email, I tried to send it using the feedback tool but it barely allows any text in the form at all:....

This is good summary, but I can't believe that much of it is "not a bug, but a feature."

I'd add the lack of Family sharing access to iCloud Drive, as well as the unacceptable and bizarre automatic reduction of the quality of the photos stored on iCloud Drive.

The only good thing in all this for me was that I became aware of the aggressive One Drive pricing.