Sync OS X Contacts with iCloud - Is It This Simple...??

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Level 1

135 points

Sync OS X Contacts with iCloud - Is It This Simple...??

I am trying to sync my iCloud contacts with my Google Contacts and by all accounts this is not possible from what I have read. However.....

I started off by adding my Google account to OS X Contacts (currently syncing with iCloud) so I ended up with both accounts inside the Contacts app on 10.8.4. The iCloud account is populated with 145 contacts and the Google account with none at this point.

I then selected all 145 contacts and dragged and dropped them onto the Google account from iCloud. Sure enough the 145 contacts are now in Google and iCloud.

Now here's the strange thing. The OS X Contacts app for ALL CONTACTS is still only showing 145 contacts, no duplicates. If I make a change to an iCloud contact it is immediately sync'd up to Google, both locally, on the web and on my Anroid phone.

Now I appreciate that changes made to iCloud outside of my Mac will not get sync'd as I guess my Mac is acting as the sync element (which is fine with me) but i'm just wondering if its that simpe to have iCloud contacts and Google Contacts in sync (all be it via an intermediary machine) or am I entering some dangerous territory where this loophole will be closed in say Mavericks??

Interested to hear from anyone else doing the same. Now if this only worked on the calendar side of things I'd be laughing.

Posted on Jun 30, 2013 12:32 PM

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Answer 1

Csound1

Level 9

59,973 points

Jun 30, 2013 12:53 PM in response to Niall Mallyon

Niall Mallyon wrote:

I am trying to sync my iCloud contacts with my Google Contacts and by all accounts this is not possible from what I have read. However.....

I started off by adding my Google account to OS X Contacts (currently syncing with iCloud) so I ended up with both accounts inside the Contacts app on 10.8.4. The iCloud account is populated with 145 contacts and the Google account with none at this point.

I then selected all 145 contacts and dragged and dropped them onto the Google account from iCloud. Sure enough the 145 contacts are now in Google and iCloud.

Now here's the strange thing. The OS X Contacts app for ALL CONTACTS is still only showing 145 contacts, no duplicates. If I make a change to an iCloud contact it is immediately sync'd up to Google, both locally, on the web and on my Anroid phone.

Now I appreciate that changes made to iCloud outside of my Mac will not get sync'd as I guess my Mac is acting as the sync element (which is fine with me) but i'm just wondering if its that simpe to have iCloud contacts and Google Contacts in sync (all be it via an intermediary machine) or am I entering some dangerous territory where this loophole will be closed in say Mavericks??

Interested to hear from anyone else doing the same. Now if this only worked on the calendar side of things I'd be laughing.

Your contacts are no longer on iCloud, you moved them to Google (which syncs to your Android Phone), you still see them in Contacts because they are in an account (Google) which is connected to Contacts.app

They are not sync'd.

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Answer 2

Niall Mallyon Author

Level 1

135 points

Jun 30, 2013 1:27 PM in response to Csound1

Thanks for the reply but I'd have to disagree,

I sync contacts via iCloud to and iPhone 5 and I sync via Google to my Android. My iPhone (and the iCloud website) have remained fully populated with the contacts and they have also appeared on Google Contacts.

Any change I make when in the 'All Contacts' level in the Contacts app on the Mac gets transferred to the iPhone, Android, iCloud web and Google web.

If I make a change at either the iCloud or Google levels in the contacts app then it only get reflected at those levels outside the Mac. Which is to be expected. It does leave the contact in the Contacts app with both changes in place and greyed out from editing but the change can be reversed to correct from the place it was originally made. Not ideal but liveable.

Clearly I will have to go careful where I edit etc but I can live with that.

If only iCloud was available to sync from Android direct I just cant get calendars working successfully across both Android and iOS when using Google calendars - the alarms and alerts get all screwed up.

Thanks for taking the time to reply anyway.

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Answer 3

Csound1

Level 9

59,973 points

Jun 30, 2013 1:33 PM in response to Niall Mallyon

Go to www.icloud.com and look at them there.

Or just sync iCloud with your Android phone directly.

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