Apple ID holders can now switch from third-party email address logins to Apple email domai...
Apple on Tuesday updated its Apple ID policy, allowing account holders using third-party email addresses as login credentials to switch to an Apple-provided email address.
Apple has long allowed new customers to sign up for an Apple ID, which is used to authenticate and manage a user's Apple account across services ranging from iTunes to the online Apple store, using third-party email addresses like those from Google and Yahoo.
Until now, the company let users switch their login to another third-party account, but not an Apple domain such as "@icloud.com," "@me.com" or "@mac.com." For example, an Apple ID holder using "[email protected]" might switch their login to "[email protected]," but they were restricted from transitioning to one of Apple's email addresses.
That is no longer the case, as one MacRumors reader points out. Earlier this month, the person sent a letter to multiple Apple executives requesting the Apple ID login quirk be fixed. A reply from an executive relations employee said the problem was being reviewed by Apple's engineering team.
Today, the reader, identified as Dillon, received a phone call saying the issue has been resolved.
Apple has subsequently updated a support document titled "Change your Apple ID" to reflect the account management modification.
As noted in a new section regarding third-party email addresses, the company cautions that switching login information from a third-party service to an @icloud.com, @me.com or @mac.com account is a one-way process.
Apple has long allowed new customers to sign up for an Apple ID, which is used to authenticate and manage a user's Apple account across services ranging from iTunes to the online Apple store, using third-party email addresses like those from Google and Yahoo.
Until now, the company let users switch their login to another third-party account, but not an Apple domain such as "@icloud.com," "@me.com" or "@mac.com." For example, an Apple ID holder using "[email protected]" might switch their login to "[email protected]," but they were restricted from transitioning to one of Apple's email addresses.
That is no longer the case, as one MacRumors reader points out. Earlier this month, the person sent a letter to multiple Apple executives requesting the Apple ID login quirk be fixed. A reply from an executive relations employee said the problem was being reviewed by Apple's engineering team.
Today, the reader, identified as Dillon, received a phone call saying the issue has been resolved.
Apple has subsequently updated a support document titled "Change your Apple ID" to reflect the account management modification.
As noted in a new section regarding third-party email addresses, the company cautions that switching login information from a third-party service to an @icloud.com, @me.com or @mac.com account is a one-way process.
The change should be a boon for users, especially platform switchers, who used a non-Apple email address to set up their Apple ID account before transitioning to Apple's suite of services.If you enter a new Apple ID that ends with @icloud.com, @me.com, or @mac.com, you see a message to confirm. When you change your Apple ID to an @icloud.com, @me.com, or @mac.com account, you can't change it back to a third-party email account. Your former Apple ID that ends with a third-party email, becomes an additional email address for your Apple ID account.
Comments
I think the email protocol is fine how it is and it's been many years (since the MobileMe days) that I remember getting copious amount of spam not blocked by their servers, but I'd love here some thoughts of how it can be better.
From a client aspect, they have made it easily in iOS Mail to unsubscribe, and in all their OSes they've increased data detectors to be more useful with contacts, phone numbers, addresses, events, dates, etc. so that even in other apps they show up as possible options.
You understand that if Dillion was the only one to make this request that he wouldn't hav received a reply. It's likely only because he was one of the last ones to request it when they had a resolution on the ready that he was picked.
not allow it. I get an error message stating I can’t use iCloud addresses.
But seriously, that's the mindset that gave us Microsoft Word -- an app that did a good job of what it was designed to do getting so bloated with fluff that it's now much more difficult to use for its intended purpose. Let's not let email (or text messaging for that matter) devolve into a cluttered, confusing mess like that.
As for Apple's new policy, I don't understand why it's a "one-way street" that once you change to an Apple domain you can no longer use a third-party address.
Neither do I understand why Apple's email won't allow me to use my own domain name. Doesn't Gmail let you do that?
edit: I just checked my mail portals for my private domain v my Gmail account. The former lists Mail on the left-handside column and the latter lists Gmail.
Seriously - create the id AND the iCloud account that's married to it. It's free. It'll always be there to rescue you. You don't have to use it every day or even much at all but some day, some time it may just save your bacon.
As an example, a friend years ago set up her iPhone with a "verizon.net" email as AppleID. I had politely suggested that she not do that but she forcefully defended her decision saying that she didn't need any of that Apple email **** so there. Mmmmkay. Besides, Verizon's a big company and that email isn't going to change.
Fast forward a few years and - lordy lordy - the Verizon email IS changing and going to AOL domains. Although Verizon had some scheme for retaining existing addresses, this was unacceptable so she bailed on that and now has a new and different gmail address for her AppleID (as well as her everything else).
Now she's upset because her friends are confused that "Messages" to her go to [email protected] but email is to [email protected] and they're all confused. And this is Apple's fault.
So just remember - any time you create a new AppleID for someone, always ALWAYS create along with it the matching icloud.com address. You can't do it later, so do it right the first time. Do NOT take "no" for an answer.
I’m sure there are millions like myself who started purchasing iTunes content before getting an Apple ID, and thus are now still forced to have two separate accounts in order to keep the previous content. Which of course now means that my Apple Music ID is still a stupid Gmail account as well.
What is needed is the ability to merge accounts to one synchronous Apple ID. From some other posts here it seems like Apple is not allowing this, which seems like a huge fucking slap in the face from Tim and Apple, who promised the ability to merge accounts years ago. I figured changing the file system would be the final thing that allowed for this. Guess fucking not.
I went from elated to pissed pretty fast with this story.