Apple sends out emails telling iCloud users their complimentary storage has expired
We all new this day was coming. Apple has sent out emails informing iCloud users their complimentary iCloud storage has expired. The iCloud storage was a free extra 20 GB of space for MobileMe members. Now all those members will be downgraded to the free 5 GB of iCloud storage all iCloud members get. Here's the email I got from Apple earlier today:
Dear Michael Grothaus,As a thank you for being a former MobileMe member, you received a 20 GB complimentary storage upgrade when you moved to iCloud. Your upgrade has expired.
Your iCloud storage has been automatically adjusted to the free 5 GB plan. You are currently using 4 GB of storage.
For more information, see this article.
The iCloud Team
To be sure, any free storage is a good deal. However, 5 GB seems a bit skimpy in an age where everything is moving to the cloud. But most other reputable online storage solutions (like Amazon and Google) only offer a free 5 GB, while Microsoft offers 7 GB and Dropbox has a paltry 2 GB.
Note that if you had more than 5 GB of data stored on iCloud but didn't upgrade to a paid plan, Apple also turns off your iCloud email. So these emails will bounce. Which doesn't seem very Apple-like.
