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It's impossible to transfer Photos library to Vision Pro without iCloud 🤯

mongobongo

mongobongo

macrumors 6502
Original poster
May 1, 2007
321
500
Stockholm, Sweden
I just spent an hour on the phone with Apple trying to solve what I think should be really simple. I'd like to see my 90GB Photos library on the VP but I don't use iCloud and I don't want to upload my photos to the cloud.

Feels like basic functionality to me but Apple Suport wasn't able to help. I'd even have to sign up for 200GB iCloud just to get my photos on the headset.

Blows my mind that I can't sync Photos to my VP like I sync to my iPhone or an iPad. What do you think, am I using it wrong?
 
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chabig

macrumors G4
Sep 6, 2002
11,288
8,991
Since you asked, I do think you're trying to use it differently than it was intended. I view iCloud as a fundamental part of the Apple ecosystem and it provides value in my opinion–keeping everything I have synced among all of my devices. I'd encourage not to be afraid of iCloud. It really works well when used as designed.

I don't think it is something to fear. If data privacy is your concern, consider Advanced Data Protection. It's on for me, and completely transparent.

Advanced Data Protection for iCloud

iCloud uses best-in-class security technologies and employs strict policies to protect user data, including end-to-end encryption for 14 data categories such as Health, passwords in iCloud Keychain, and more.
support.apple.com
 
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Analog Kid

Analog Kid

macrumors G3
Mar 4, 2003
8,984
11,737
chabig said:
Since you asked, I do think you're trying to use it differently than it was intended. I view iCloud as a fundamental part of the Apple ecosystem and it provides value in my opinion–keeping everything I have synced among all of my devices. I'd encourage not to be afraid of iCloud. It really works well when used as designed.

I don't think it is something to fear. If data privacy is your concern, consider Advanced Data Protection. It's on for me, and completely transparent.

Advanced Data Protection for iCloud

iCloud uses best-in-class security technologies and employs strict policies to protect user data, including end-to-end encryption for 14 data categories such as Health, passwords in iCloud Keychain, and more.
support.apple.com
Click to expand...
I'm with OP on this one. I've never turned on iCloud backups or photos. I have a Mac and a wire, and it should be enough to connect two devices together and transfer data. I keep files and data in iCloud, mail, etc. But for bulk data, I don't see the point in pushing it over a relatively slow network link to a remote server just to pull it back down again to the device on the same desk as the original data.

This might be the world we're heading towards, but I really don't like it.
 
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G5isAlive

Contributor
Aug 28, 2003
2,642
4,580
Analog Kid said:
I'm with OP on this one. I've never turned on iCloud backups or photos. I have a Mac and a wire, and it should be enough to connect two devices together and transfer data. I keep files and data in iCloud, mail, etc. But for bulk data, I don't see the point in pushing it over a relatively slow network link to a remote server just to pull it back down again to the device on the same desk as the original data.

This might be the world we're heading towards, but I really don't like it.
Click to expand...

Alas there is no wire publicly available yet to do as you suggest, and I do wish there was because yes transferring 80 gb takes hours. Is what it is.
 
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G5isAlive

Contributor
Aug 28, 2003
2,642
4,580
mongobongo said:
I wouldn't say I fear it, just that I never felt I needed it. And it irks me that I would have to get a 200GB subscription just to get my photo library over to the VP.
Click to expand...

Sooo I guess a penny saved is a penny earned, but you are already in for $4000 or more with tax and AppleCare…is $3 a month an issue? Not trying to be snarky…

The bad news, if you go that route it’s going to be slow….which is why I’ve been trying to find better faster ways to transfer 10’s of gb’s of data. Hopefully someone else has an answer (ftp).
 
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dwhite601

macrumors member
Jan 1, 2021
45
74
I struggled with this too and found that AirDropping from my Mac would send files to my Vision Pro. If it recognized the format, like a photo or video format it could play, they would wind up in the photo app's file system. If not, I kept getting a dialog box indicating an error. I later realized that there was an option there to send that file to the downloads part of the files app. Then it would try to upload to their 'cloud' server.

I turned off the files app access to the cloud. After the transfer, control panel still complains, though, and I'm working on fixing that.

To make a long story not so long, I can use Airdrop on my Mac to send files and folders directly to the files app with a couple of extra steps.
 
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ZombiePhysicist

ZombiePhysicist

macrumors 68030
May 22, 2014
2,797
2,703
G5isAlive said:
Sooo I guess a penny saved is a penny earned, but you are already in for $4000 or more with tax and AppleCare…is $3 a month an issue? Not trying to be snarky…

The bad news, if you go that route it’s going to be slow….which is why I’ve been trying to find better faster ways to transfer 10’s of gb’s of data. Hopefully someone else has an answer (ftp).
Click to expand...

How about i do not like icloud. i do not want it. i should be able to own my own data and move it on to my own devices.

I get that may not be YOUR preference. Which is totally cool. But for those for whom it is their preference, it's really a bit grating to keep telling them to love the cloud, when some of us, quite dislike the cloud.

It's like people telling me to just get spotify or apple music. Yea, I HATE those services. Steve Jobs did at one time too, saying, people dont want to rent their music. Well turns out he was wrong. Many love paying lots of money and owning nothing. But some of us still do and abide by that notion.

Namely, I own my own data. I decide where it lives.
 
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laptech

laptech

macrumors 68040
Apr 26, 2013
3,601
4,006
Earth
Apple want's it's users to use icloud and the interaction between the OP and Apple support is evidence of that. Apple supports response would be to get OP to use icloud, upload all the photo's to icloud and then log into icloud via the VP to view the photo's but because the OP does not want to use icloud, Apple support appear clueless how to help because it is probably something they was not expecting.

It is just another way for Apple to make money from it's users.
 
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Abazigal

Abazigal

Contributor
Jul 18, 2011
19,684
22,227
Singapore
G5isAlive said:
Sooo I guess a penny saved is a penny earned, but you are already in for $4000 or more with tax and AppleCare…is $3 a month an issue? Not trying to be snarky…

The bad news, if you go that route it’s going to be slow….which is why I’ve been trying to find better faster ways to transfer 10’s of gb’s of data. Hopefully someone else has an answer (ftp).
Click to expand...

Seems like cloud storage is the way to go? It doesn’t seem like the Vision Pro has a usb port that you can plug a hard drive in to? So it’s even more locked down than an iPad? More like a giant Apple TV for your face.
 
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boss.king

boss.king

macrumors 603
Apr 8, 2009
6,144
6,909
chabig said:
Since you asked, I do think you're trying to use it differently than it was intended. I view iCloud as a fundamental part of the Apple ecosystem and it provides value in my opinion–keeping everything I have synced among all of my devices. I'd encourage not to be afraid of iCloud. It really works well when used as designed.

I don't think it is something to fear. If data privacy is your concern, consider Advanced Data Protection. It's on for me, and completely transparent.

Advanced Data Protection for iCloud

iCloud uses best-in-class security technologies and employs strict policies to protect user data, including end-to-end encryption for 14 data categories such as Health, passwords in iCloud Keychain, and more.
support.apple.com
Click to expand...
I’m sorry but this is insane. I pay for iCloud and get good use out of it, but if it’s fundamental to the experience then Apple should just say that. Or include more than the measly free 5gigs if the device costs $3500 and needs it to transfer images.

Assuming you actually need iCloud to do what OP is trying to do, this would be a horrible oversight at best or an incredibly greedy and user-hostile decision at worst.
 
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laptech

laptech

macrumors 68040
Apr 26, 2013
3,601
4,006
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Apple need to find a solution to this and fast because otherwise they could get into trouble for this which is to basically tell users who have over 5 gigs of photos/videos that they must purchase icloud+ and upload all of their photos/videos to the icloud+ if they want to view them on the VP. VP owners should be able to sync their Apple devices to the VP so they can view their photo's and video. They should not have to pay for increase icloud storage to do so.
 
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