Apple soars with iCloud feature

Apple CEO Steve Jobs, by introducing a service that shares files across different internet-linked devices, takes another step toward sidelining the personal computer industry he pioneered. Jobs, who helped popularise home computers with the Apple II and the Mac in the 1970s and 80s, is counting on the new iCloud product to let users synchronise and access data on Apple devices and Windows PCs running iTunes. Jobs aims to make Apple the centre of consumers' digital lives, further decreasing dependence on Microsoft's once-dominant Windows software and Hewlett-Packard's market- leading PCs. With iCloud, files will be stored by Apple in remote data centres — known as the "cloud" in technology parlance — and automatically synchronise. That means the same content is available from any Apple gadget, without it cluttering up users' hard drives. "The PC will be the most visible casualty of the cloud revolution," said Steve Perlman, a former Apple engineer and the CEO of on-line game company OnLive Inc. "Apple knows it." Apple is trying to parlay the success of the iPhone and iPad into the leading role in the "post-PC" era. Already, customers have bought 25 million iPad tablets, eating into PC sales. Both Microsoft and Hewlett-Packard disappointed investors with their earnings last quarter, hurt in part by tablets weighing on the industry. ‘Demote the PC' In all, Apple has sold more than 200 million iOS devices, a category that includes the iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch, the California-based company said when it unveiled iCloud. Apple's App Store now has more than 425,000 applications that work with iOS. "We're going to demote the PC and the Mac to just be a device — just like an iPad, an iPhone or an iPod Touch," Jobs said. "We're going to move the hub of your digital life to the cloud." Apple recently completed a $1 billion (Dh3.67 billion) data centre in North Carolina that will serve as the backbone of the iCloud service. It will help devices synchronise calendar items, contacts, mail, iTunes songs, photos, apps and other files. "If you don't think we're serious about this, you're wrong," Jobs said while showing pictures of the data centre. Though he has been on medical leave since January 17, Jobs remains involved in Apple's decision making. His absence is the third since 2004 as he copes with a rare form of cancer. In racing to the cloud, Apple is competing with Amazon.com Inc., the biggest on-line retailer, and Google's Android software, which runs rival smartphones and tablet computers. Amazon is the top seller of e-books, and offers its own cloud service. Google's Android, meanwhile, runs smartphones from Samsung Electronics, HTC and Motorola Mobility Holdings. Android accounted for 36 per cent of smartphone sales in the first quarter of 2011, compared with 17 per cent for iPhone, according to Gartner Inc. A major piece of Apple's effort to dislodge the PC is eliminating the need for customers to plug their devices into a computer for updates. Synchronise wirelessly With the software upgrades announced by Apple, devices will synchronise wirelessly. For example, a picture that's taken with an iPhone will become immediately available to view on an iPad or Mac. "Keeping these devices in sync is driving us crazy," Jobs said. The various internet services Jobs introduced will only work with Apple's mobile devices. That improves the chance customers will stay within its ecosystem of gadgets and services, said Gene Munster, an analyst for Piper Jaffray Cos. in Minneapolis. "Apple is increasing the likelihood that consumers buy multiple Apple devices," he said in a note to clients. At the same time, Apple's closed approach presents an opportunity for rivals, including Google and online file-storage service Dropbox Inc., said Marc Benioff, CEO of Salesforce.com Inc. in San Francisco, which offers cloud services to businesses. ICloud will be available as a free download ICloud will be available as a free download when Apple releases the new version of iOS this fall. The feature will include 5 gigabytes of free storage for users' files, plus unlimited room for purchased apps and books, and recent photos. The new version of iOS will come with a notification system to alert users when they get text messages and updates from applications such as Facebook. Apple announces Twitter partnership Steve Jobs and his deputies unveiled new features for the company's software and announced a Twitter Inc. partnership aiming to build on gains in computers and mobile devices. Apple is adding 250 new features to the Mac OS X Lion software, including more touch options and a service called AirDrop that shares files over Wi-Fi, executives said at its developers conference in San Francisco.