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How to locally sync an iPhone with OS X Mavericks? iCloud is NOT an option.

I read that OS X Mavericks will no longer allow me to use iTunes to sync my iPhone to a local system but makes iCloud mandatory? Is that correct?


iCloud is not a valid option for me since I have no control about my data there, I need to keep all my data (contacts, calendar...) on a system under my control and so far iTunes allowed me to do that which was one of the reasons I didn't even consider Android or Windows Phone.

OS X Mountain Lion (10.8.5)

Posted on Oct 20, 2013 8:54 AM

Reply
3,162 replies

Mar 17, 2014 5:45 PM in response to fogr4

Re Eltima's SyncMate 5 beta <http://www.sync-mac.com/subscribe_syncmate5.html>

fogr4 wrote:


I also was not able to sync my entire contact list. . . . I had to resort to creating groups of about 400 each.


I've done some more tests — I've now been able to sync four groups for a total of about 1,150 contacts. One group of 1,500 failed. Does anybody else have any results?

Mar 18, 2014 3:42 AM in response to Matt Schultz

Matt Schultz wrote:


P J M wrote:


There was no notification that they were going to reduce functionality so people like me could have refrained completely from the supposed "upgrade"

If Apple had explained to everyone in an upfront, honest fashion that USB local sync was no longer supported in Mavericks, it would've negatively impacted the adoption rate.

Just like the removal of the floppy drive, and then the optical drive had a negative affect on sales.


Oh, no they didn't


Speculating on what 'might' have happened is also known as guessing.

Mar 18, 2014 4:33 AM in response to Csound1

Just like the removal of the floppy drive, and then the optical drive had a negative affect on sales.


More of this nonsense, I see. Not only did Apple market the benefits of these developments, but more importantly, they maintained support for these disks within the software.


Apple still sells external SuperDrives today in their very own store.


http://store.apple.com/us/product/MD564ZM/A/apple-usb-superdrive?fnode=5b3abcc45 4654c56a0e1d775d3d6376db8041083c9ce7e2898d21e1eb184a3ad6e0cfc3bf2491a37e86048c22 a77079570707acc4e2677e2a7d412cfb3146608

Mar 18, 2014 6:37 AM in response to ndawg

Apple made existing hardware stop working.


Really? That's strange, because my Mac and iOS hardware is still working after the Mavericks upgrade. Maybe yours is faulty...?


They only removed the software that allowed syncing contacts & calendars over USB. The hardware still works. I know, because I can still sync photos, movies, apps etc. using exactly the same hardware and USB cable. Just the software that allowed contacts & calendars to be synced the same way is gone.

Mar 18, 2014 7:25 AM in response to dU2mDUifydkRa0E9ic5A

That's precisely why the floppy drive and optical drive comparisons make the local sync changes look inconsistent. The contrast is what is notable - this change in Mavericks is radically different than how Apple has transitioned other technologies.


When Apple released the iMac, it didn't cripple support for floppy disks in the software. When Apple released the MacBook Air, it didn't cripple support for optical discs in the software.


Yet with Mavericks, Apple crippled support for local sync. The floppy drive transition doesn't explain Apple's move - it mystifies the situation.

Mar 18, 2014 8:32 AM in response to Csound1

Csound, sorry, I realized I didn't answer your question.


Yeah, I am using alternatives. I'm not interested in the more technical options for my personal use case, so for contacts, I went back to my pre-iPhone days of manually managing separate contact lists on my phone and computer. For calendars, I sync with my work's Exchange Server and don't bother putting them on my computer at all. The irony of course being that a piece of Microsoft software now supports a feature for my iPhone that Apple's own OS X does not(!).


But more to the point, there keep being comments on this thread justifying iCloud-only that have nothing to do with technical alternatives to iCloud. Doesn't it pique your curiosity even slightly about what Apple is doing?

How to locally sync an iPhone with OS X Mavericks? iCloud is NOT an option.

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