Apple cuts iCloud prices for Australian users

TURBULENCE has erupted in the digital cloud, with Apple releasing revised Australian pricing for the iCloud.

TURBULENCE has erupted in the digital cloud with Apple releasing revised Australian pricing of its iCloud online storage service.

Apple has reduced the price of iCloud with the following the new prices: 5 Gigabytes of storage is free, 20GB costs $1.29 per month, 200 GB costs $4.99 per month, 500GB costs $12.99 per month and 1 terabyte (1000GB) is $24.99 per month.

Current iCloud pricing is 5GB free, 10 GB more costs $21 per year, 20 GB extra costs $42 per year while 50GB more costs $105 per year. Storage was billed annually but was equivalent to $1.75 per month for an additional 10GB, $3.50 per month for 20 GB more or $8.75 per month for 50GB more.

The new prices kick in with the release of the company’s new iOS 8 operating system on September 17.

A new iCloud format will let users create their own folders and store documents similarly to how they do with rival consumer cloud services. But rival cloud services claim to offer better value for money.

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For Apple iPhone, iPad and MacBook users, iCloud could be the way to go as it offers close integration with Apple devices. Many App Store apps that store and retrieve files have options to access them directly from iCloud.

The alternative is to use a rival service, which while offering cheaper storage, may not integrate so closely with iOS and OSX devices.

Dropbox for example offers 2GB free with 1 terabyte costing $10.99 per month

Google Drive storage offers 15GB free, 100GB for $US2 per month, 1 terabyte for $US10 per month, and 10 terabytes for $US100 per month.

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Microsoft OneDrive storage is similarly priced. Storage is free for 15GB, 100 GB costs $US2 per month, and 200GB costs $US4 per month. Office 365 users receive 1 terabyte of storage free for the duration of their subscription.

Another service, MediaFire, offers 15GB free, 1 Terabyte costs $US2.50 per month or $US24.99 per year.

Users have been urged to understand the privacy and security features of any cloud service they subscribe to, whether their files are encrypted and who has access to decryption of information, and the service’s policy about handing over stored data to authorities and other third parties.

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Security on the iCloud recently came under suspicion after numerous celebrities had their accounts hacked and nude photos stolen.

Chris Griffith travelled to the Apple event at Cupertino courtesy of Apple