sync calendar/contacts with iCloud versus iTunes

Agreed. Please voice your complaint like I did through: https://www.apple.com/feedback/itunesapp.html

If anyone has any media contacts or anyone with a technology site, blog, or YouTube channel, we need to get them to highlight the loss of this function. Even today if you search the web for this change you will find nothing except what we all have written in this community.

This would be a big loss of feature for me also. I started seeing this after upgrading to iTunes 12.11.3.17.

If this feature is important for you, suggest providing feedback via the following form:

https://www.apple.com/feedback/itunesapp.html

Hopefully, if there is sufficient interest and request for this feature, it may not be removed in future.

To piggyback on Lucia555's message below...in June 2015, I awoke to my iPhone having been erased (set up your new iPhone message appeared), and once at my PC, I had email messages that someone accessed my iCloud and changed my password.

Someone hacked into my iCloud to hold my data hostage, changed my password, and sent me a "ransom" message though the find my iPhone feature to provide them large sums of money to release my data. Fortunately, I had minimal, old data on the cloud and had since began to use iTunes backups to my laptop.

I used DoD-level password complexity, never wrote it down anywhere, and didn't logon at a Starbucks or anything like that and rarely even went into iTunes, period. I have no idea how someone got into my account. One of my intel buddies told me that he is certain iTunes has significant security holes; maybe I am captaining the obvious here.

ITunes is not secure and the the cloud is not safe and I will never rely on it. Had I not backed up locally - all my stuff would have been gone.

In my talk with Apple, I came to find out that the email address I'd received in the ransom message was associated with an active US-based iTunes account. I turned the case over to the local police. Apple would not turnover the info on the US-based account corresponding to that email address that stole my info and demanded payment.

I use my Outlook contacts and calendar extensively with my iPhone. This will likely be an Apple deal breaker for me and I will likely switch to Droid or other.

JoAnaSings wrote:

PLEASE DO NOT DELETE ITUNES SYNC WITH OUTLOOK!

No one reading here is capable of doing (or preventing) that. If you want Apple to know your thoughts, use the feedback page:

Product Feedback - Apple

jimbob5941 wrote:

Is there another way you could post a downlevel version of iTunes?

The further information area of Troubleshooting issues with iTunes for Windows updates has direct links to older builds of iTunes along with advice on reverting to an older version. Links to the most recent builds are now at the bottom of the page.

tt2

Davy_ray wrote:

I do not know where to get either 12.11.3.17 or 12.12.1.1 as a standalone in the event I need to reinstall my OS on my computer.

Scroll to the bottom of Troubleshooting issues with iTunes for Windows update - Apple Community.

tt2

@Davy_ray:

TuringTest2 (tt2) posted the link to older versions some time back. Here it is:

https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-6562#versions

As for WHEN we'll have to bite the bullet on this, no one here knows for sure. BUT, I do recall, once, that I got a warning that I needed to update iTunes for it to work with the OS I now had loaded on my iPhone. If/When they have that same requirement, we'll looking at all the other options for synching offered in this thread.

dndell wrote:

Thanks, I wish I could download older itunes versions through the Microsoft Store.

You can't do that, but you can find recent versions of the standalone installer at the bottom of Troubleshooting issues with iTunes for Windows updates - Apple Community as well as advice on rolling back the library when this is necessary elsewhere in the user tip.

tt2

Thanks for confirming the support with iTunes 12.12.5.8 and iOS 15.6.

I tried a sync with iOS 16.0.2 using iTunes 12.12.5.8, and it is working.

I have also submitted feedback to Apple explaining how critical this feature is, and would encourage everyone who is interested in this feature to do the same:

Feedback - iTunes - Apple

DD1509 wrote:

However, was the jist of this thread that Apple wants to stop allowing ITunes to do this?

Yes. See If you see an alert in iTunes that says syncing contacts and calendars has been deprecated - Apple Support.

tt2

I tried with iOS 16.1.1 and iTunes 12.12.6.1, the sync is working. This is on an existing (old) iPhone. Do not have a new iPhone for trying out.

It would be useful to hear about more experiences with new iPhone being setup for local syncing... it seems like Apple has already dropped support for local outlook sync for new devices?

Also, if I were to upgrade the computer and setup iTunes on a new computer, then try syncing the old phone by using old outlook.pst, it seems like it would appear as a "new" phone owing to the new install of iTunes, so that might also not work?

If this feature is important for you, suggest providing feedback via the following form:

Feedback - iTunes - Apple

Well I don't sync. my iPhone to Outlook (2013 - 32bit) all that often...

Today ... the sync. of contacts worked fine... but NOT calendar :-(

I'm not sure if it is just coincidence or not ....

Previously

I blocked iTunes from accessing the internet and had at least one successful

sync.

Now

calendar sync. Does not work … it “processes” for about 30 seconds, posts no

error messages, but does not update the iPhone calendar.

If anybody has any ideas … I’d love to hear them!

Here’s what I’ve tried so far…

•  Ran ScanPST repeatedly
• Both itunes and iphone were set
• to 30-day sync-window  I changed them both to 90
• tried again … no good … put them back to 30 days … no good…
• Made sure “extra” calenders were turned off in iPhone
• Rebooting phone, rebooting laptop
• In iTunes sync / advanced:  “replace information on this iphone…” for Calendar only…
• Chanced from sync “all” calendars sync only “selected” … ( I only HAVE one calendar,

but I thought it might help … no … so I switched it back to “all”.

• Was running iOS 14.7.0   upgraded iOS to 14.7.1  (upgraded without using iTunes)

sigh..............

Great news! I'm surprised syncing through iTunes 12.12.6.1 still works, as it was announced in various places that version 12.11.3.17 would be the last one to do the job.

Anyway, reading all the above, I decided to update from iOS 15 to 16 this morning. And everything works fine! My config:

• iPhone 12 with iOS 16.1.1
• iTunes 1.11.3.17
• Outlook 2016
• Sync through USB OK!

@thotnavy: 12.13.1.3 iTunes with 16.7.2 and Office 2019 still works fine.