iCloud is Apple's cloud storage service, which lets you upload photos, documents, app content, and more to your iCloud account. It also makes it possible for you to download music, movies and TV shows you purchase on iTunes across all your devices. You can sync email, calendar, notes, and reminders, too. Apple is always working on new features and trying to make it perfect for every user.
Though there aren't many rumors floating around about what's in store for the future of iCloud, there are some interesting possibilities on the horizon. Here's what we know so far!
March 27, 2018: Apple's education moves could hint at iCloud updates
Apple's iCloud service for education customers got several big boosts at Apple's education event on Tuesday, with a storage limit increase to 500GB and multi-user support further expanding Apple's education reach. On the consumer side, both these aspects could prove exceedingly useful in a family household, but they've yet to be implemented; that said, we're hoping these features will make it into iOS 12 to make guest management a sinch.
Will Apple increase the free iCloud storage tier?
You can upgrade from 5GB of free iCloud storage on a personal plan for as low as $0.99 USD to 50GB, but it's getting harder to stick with the free tier, and some other cloud storage companies offer more storage for free.
With Apple's iPad Education event, the company added a special free tier for educators and students. Any student with an Apple ID issued by their school now gets 200GB of iCloud storage free. This causes one to ponder whether an increase in the standard free tier is coming. Though we haven't heard anything official, it's possible that Apple is looking into offering a little more storage in the free tier, doubling it to 10GB, or even pushing it to 15GB.
Will Apple add iTunes content to iCloud.com?
There have long been rumors that Apple is working on making it possible for you to start watching a movie or listening to a song on one device and then finishing it on another via Handoff. It would be even more awesome if Apple made it possible for you to access all your music and movies via iTunes on the web. Apple could add iTunes to its icloud.com access from any computer or device. All our iTunes-purchased movies, tv shows, and music are already in iCloud anyway.
What about controlling iCloud Photo Library syncing? Will we get more control?
This might be more of a pipe dream than a rumor, but iMore Managing Editor, Serenity Caldwell, will tell you how much she'd love Apple to give us the option to actually select whether we want videos, for example, to sync in iCloud. It would be a great improvement to see Apple give us a little more freedom for which folders get added to the iCloud list and which ones we prefer to stay put on our devices.
Are there any other rumored features coming to iCloud?
There isn't a whole lot of information swirling around about big changes to iCloud this year, but there is a chance Apple will let us selectively save iCloud desktop and documents folders instead of only being able to save all or nothing.
There are plenty of things we'd like to see come to iCloud, but we won't know anything for sure until we hear it straight from Apple.
Updated May 2018: Updated for WWDC 2018
