Apple just announced a significant expansion of its iCloud+ cloud storage plans in response to our ever-growing digital footprint.
For the first time ever, customers can now sign up for allowances much larger than 2TB from the start, thanks to the launch of new 6TB and 12TB plans.
The announcement, which saw little actual screen time, was somewhat overshadowed by the unveiling of Cupertino’s latest hardware: the iPhone 15 family and Series 9 and Ultra 2 versions of the Apple Watch.
iCloud+ boost
iCloud+ is one of the most widely used cloud storage services of its kind, thanks to the way it integrates neatly into all of Apple’s hardware, including iPads and Macs. In addition to the free allowance of 5 GB, users can choose to expand to 50 GB, 200 GB and 2 TB for a fee.
From September 18 (the same time iOS goes live), iCloud+ subscribers can upgrade their storage to a 6TB plan for $29.99 / £26.99 / AU$44.99 per month, or to a 12TB plan for $59.99 / £54.99 / AU$89.99 per month.
Until now, users looking for more than 2TB had to pay an extra 50GB, 200GB or 2TB at the usual fixed price.
Apple confirmed that the two new plans will still gain access to “premium features” such as Private Relay, Hide My Email, Custom Email Domains, and HomeKit Secure Video, but it’s unclear whether these more expensive plans will bring additional benefits. The company did not immediately respond TechRadar Pro‘s request for confirmation.
Given the huge emphasis Apple is putting on its environmental work for this year’s devices, the decision to encourage customers to upgrade their storage seems a bit counterintuitive. Data centers are known for consuming large amounts of energy, water and other resources. We asked the company to shed some light on this as well, but so far we haven’t received a response.