iCloud Drive Review

iCloud_logo_125x1253.1/5
★★★✩✩
PRICING & PLANS
★★★★★★★★✩✩
8.0/10
EASE OF USE
★★★★★★★★✩✩
8.0/10
FILE SYNCING
★★★★★✩✩✩✩✩
5.0/10
FILE SHARING
★★★★★★✩✩✩✩
5.5/10
RETRIEVING FILES
★★★★✩✩✩✩✩✩
4.0/10
SECURITY
★★★★★★✩✩✩✩
6.0/10
SUPPORT
★★★★★★★★✩✩
7.5/10
ADDITIONAL FEATURES
★★★★★★✩✩✩✩
6.0/10

PROS

  • Great integration with apple devices
  • Decent prices
  • Good syncing speeds
  • Phone call support

CONS

  • Not suitable for users without apple devices
  • Bare-bones sync desktop client
  • No real file versioning system
  • Prone to interference from U.S. government
  • No email support

iCloud Drive Review

iCloud Drive Review: As you probably already know the iCloud Drive is an Apple product. And as that it’s meant for users that own Apple devices. iCloud Drive pricing & plans are similar to other top cloud storages with the exception of the 2TB plan which is a tad cheaper. The whole system is easy to use but lacks some advanced options like file sharing and file versioning. The security is good, however not the best possible. Keep in mind that Apple offers no protection against warrants and will disclose all your information if required to. If you’re searching for safe cloud storage check out this list.

Read the full iCloud Drive review down below.


iCloud Drive Alternatives

pcloud_logo_125x125pCloud
4.6/5
★★★★★
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Sync.com_logo_125x125Sync.com
4.6/5
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✔️Sync Folder
✔️Selective Sync
✔️Link Sharing
✔️Zero Knowledge


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Icedrive_logo_125x125Icedrive
4.5/5
★★★★★
10-10 000 GB
10 GB Free

✔️Sync Folder
❌Selective Sync
✔️Link Sharing
✔️Zero Knowledge


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Cubbit_logo_125x125Cubbit
4.5/5
★★★★★
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Mega_logo_125x125Mega
4.2/5
★★★★✩
15-16000 GB
15 GB Free

✔️Sync Folder
✔️Selective Sync
✔️Link Sharing
✔️Zero Knowledge


Read Review

Jump to:

Pricing & Plans
Who is it for?
Ease of use
File syncing
File sharing
Retrieving files
Security
Online support
Additional features
Conclusion


iCloud Features

Pricing & Plans
Free storage 5 GB
Free trial
Lifetime plans
Payment methodsCredit card, PayPal
Ease of use
Open in-browser PDF, Music, Images
Edit in-browser
Mobile apps iOS
WebDAV
File syncing
Supported systems Windows, macOS
Imaginary drive 
An imaginary drive allows you to access all of the files that are in the cloud directly from your desktop via an application without taking up local storage space.
Sync folder 
A sync folder allows you to access all of the files that are in the cloud directly from your desktop via an application. Since it synchronises the files to the device, it takes up local storage space.
Block-level file sync
Selective sync 
Selective sync allows you to choose which folders that are located in the cloud should and shouldn't be synchronised to your device.
Sync any folder 
The sync any folder feature allows you to choose any local folder and synchronise it to the cloud without any further actions.
File sharing
Share download links
Link password protection
Link expiration dates
Link branding
Link download limits
Link stats
Share upload links
Share folders
Set folder permissions
Retrieving files
File versioning system
Trash bin
Rewind feature 
The rewind feature allows you to go back in time and inspect your cloud storage as it was in that moment. This enables easy retrieval of files in various scenarios such as malware infection.
Security
Server location US
HIPAA Compliance
Encryption protocol 128-bit AES
At-rest encryption
In-transit encryption
Client-side encryption
Zero-knowledge privacy
Two-factor authentication
Online support
FAQ base
Forums
E-mail support
Live chat support
Phone support

Pricing & Plans

iCloud has taken a very simple approach regarding their plans. You don’t get any additional features if you upgrade, there are no yearly discounts and so on. If you decide to go for the upgrade, you’ll get additional storage, and that’s pretty much it. Everything else is available to you without upgrading.

iCloud offers a free permanent solution with 5 GB of cloud storage.

Prices vary depending on which country you live in. When compared with other top cloud storages the prices are very similar, perhaps a tad more expensive. A very decent 2TB cloud storage can be found for less than $10 at pCloud or Sync.com.


Currency50 GB200 GB2000 GB
USD$0.99$2.99$9.99
Euro€0.99€2.99€9.99
GBP£0.79£2.49£6.99

You can find the full list of pricing & plans for all the countries at support.apple.com. iCloud Drive is a cheap cloud storage but one must always look further than just the price.

iCloud offers no lifetime cloud storage plans.


Who is it for?

I think it’s pretty obvious that this cloud storage isn’t meant for anyone else than the people that have Apple products. Even if you’re an Apple user yourself, you’ll still need to get a hold of additional cloud storage that will allow you to perform more complex and advanced actions such as sharing your files, having a real versioning system, etc.

If you’re looking for cloud storage that does that check our Best Cloud Storage List and find the one that suits you best.


Ease of use

If you own an Apple device, you already have everything that you need to just login into your iCloud Drive. You just need the Apple ID & password, and you’re in. The registration process is relatively simple if you don’t own an Apple account.

The interface itself is probably one of the easiest ones I have ever seen. Too simple, perhaps. While I was using the system, I felt like certain advanced settings were missing like uploading entire folders, sharing them through links, versioning system, etc.

iCloud Drive Review Interface

File previews & edits

iCloud Drive allows you to preview PDF documents directly from the browser but you aren’t able to preview or edit Office documents.

You can listen to music and preview images but aren’t able to watch videos directly in the browser.


File syncing

iCloud Drive application is available for Windows and macOS systems.

The iCloud app allows you to access your files from the desktop by creating an imaginary drive. It also gives you the ability to sync your contacts, calendars with Outlook, Photos and Bookmarks. The application stores all of your iCloud Drive files locally as well which takes up local storage space.

The results from speed tests were very surprising. Uploading a file directly to the browser was incredibly slow and downloading it from there wasn’t much different. After I installed the application that changed completely. If you upload the file through your application, it gets synced across all your devices with decent speed.

iCloud Drive Review Syncing

It also installs a separate imaginary drive called “iCloud Photos”. You can use that for all your photos. They are then synced across all your devices.

iCloud Drive does not support block-level sync which would enable you to upload updates files at faster speeds. It also doesn’t provide selective sync and doesn’t enable you to sync any folder on your computer.

The file size is limited to 50GB.

iCloud Drive also features no backup features so have a look at our best cloud backup services list if that’s what you need.


File sharing

iCloud Drive isn’t your standard cloud storage when it comes to file sharing. It’s possible to share photos and videos with people that have Apple accounts by creating shared folders. That can get annoying sometimes though due to the fact that the other side needs an Apple account as well.

iCloud finally also introduced a link-sharing feature. It’s still very limited but at least they made the effort to implement it after many years.

iCloud Drive Review Add People

It’s possible to both share folders and single files. Both options have the same menu options as shown above. You can:

  • Set who can access: Either just the people you invite or anyone with the link.
  • Set permission: Either full edit mode or view-only.

It’s also possible to stop sharing a folder/file at any point in time.

This is a step in the right direction but it’s still far from great. Any advanced features such as password protection, expiry dates, download limits,… are off the table. The same goes for upload links which have been added as a feature to many cloud storage providers such as pCloud or Sync.com.


Retrieving files

Versioning system is necessary to have, especially if you’re dealing with documents that are relevant to your job. The problem with iCloud is that it lacks the compatibility with Microsoft programs which makes everything that you do harder. There is no real versioning system for files within the iCloud Drive.

Deleted files stay in the trash bin for up to 30 days after which they are permanently removed.

iCloud Drive Review Trash Bin

Security

Apple has its iCloud servers located across the US, Denmark and Asia.

Apple protects your data while in transit and on the server with a minimum of 128-bit AES encryption. Bear in mind that the encryption is available only when you use the latest iOS or macOS. Apple uses end-to-end encryption on certain services, iCloud Drive is not one of them. The decryption keys are stored on Apple servers in the U.S which means that somebody could steal them or the government could have a look into your files whenever needed. For true security, you should opt-in for a zero-knowledge cloud storage provider. They use client-side encryption which means that only you hold the encryption keys that are used to decrypt your files (for example pCloud and Sync.com).

Their privacy policy states that they can disclose your personal information to third parties in order to improve Apple’s products and services but will never share the personal information for the marketing purposes of third parties.

HIPAA compliance is not something iCloud deals with.

Two-factor authentication: If you choose to enable this you’ll add another layer of security to your account. Whenever you want to sign in with your Apple ID on a new device, you’ll be asked for a 6-digit code which will be displayed on a separate Apple device that you trust. I would suggest enabling this feature since it does help if your password gets hacked.

Due to the reasons listed above, iCloud Drive doesn’t fall between the most secure cloud storage providers.


Subpoena:

Law enforcement can retrieve basic iCloud subscriber information, such as name, mailing address, email address, and telephone number. Connection logs for the iCloud account, including IP addresses, are available and retained for up to 30 days. The list about subpoena goes on and on but in essence: If they get a warrant for somebodies information, files or anything they will disclose everything they have to the authorities. That is the disadvantage of not being part of cloud storage that uses Zero-Knowledge privacy.

If you wish to know more about iCloud Drive security, read it here.


Online support

Apple offers an FAQ section that provides answers to the most simple questions. If you’re having any problems with their service, you have the option to call them directly from 09:00 to 16:00 (Monday through Friday). They don’t provide any email or live chat support though. A large number of folks prefer to use support that doesn’t require a phone call. It’s quite strange that Apple opted-in for live calls but fails to provide the very basic support options. For non-official support, you can turn to their community forums to dig for more info.

iCloud Drive Review FAQ

Additional features


Apple Apps

By joining iCloud Drive, you also get access to a number of applications that are all part of the Apple circle. Bear in mind that these apps really come to use if you own an iPhone, iPad or Mac.

iCloud Drive Review Apps

Mobile Application

The mobile application is available only on Apple products such as iPhone and iPad. It’s integrated into the whole system. iCloud is used to back up pretty much everything on your phone.

iCloud Drive can be used to access all of the files that you synced across your devices. The application is plain and simple but without all the advanced features that someone would want for decent cloud storage.


Conclusion

iCloud Drive is a decent cloud storage and will satisfy you if you’re the most basic user that needs just some space to upload a few files. When we get to more advanced stuff like file sharing and retrieving iCloud fails to provide what any other cloud storage already does. Cloud storages like pCloud, Dropbox, Sync.com, Google Drive are ahead of iCloud by miles. Due to the lack of these features, I would seriously advise you not to use iCloud Drive for business needs.

You can find the best cloud storage in our Top 10 Cloud Storage Providers list.



Hopefully, we’ve gone through everything that you wanted to know about iCloud Drive within this iCloud Drive review. If you have any unanswered questions feel free to ask them in the comments section down below and I’ll answer them shortly!

3 thoughts on “iCloud Drive Review”

  1. A fact I like about the apple products is that they are very classic and of high quality. Personally, I’ve never used an iPhone, iPad or MacBook laptops but I’ve always wanted to. So that tells you that I don’t know much about the iCloud too so that means your article is quite informative to me, since I am searching for a cloud storage.

    I’ll check your Best cloud storage list to find a more suitable cloud storage.

    One thing I don’t like about Apple products is that all software and applications are strictly for their gadgets and the prize is too high. I hope in future they will try to upgrade and come up with universal applications and software that can be shared with other gadgets.

    1. Dejan Administrator

      Hello there,

      I doubt they will ever move in the direction of having applications more open and universal. Apple likes to keep everything within their reach and under control.

      And as you said, check out my cloud storage list and try to find something suitable for you.

      Dejan

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