Apple to change the cloud

IT giant, Apple says iOS 5 will be the first mobile operating system to provision itself over the air without the aid of a PC connection, reports Connected Planet.

CEO Steve Jobs says Apple is demoting the PC from its central role in the Apple-verse to the status of just another planet.

The Mac and the iTunes-powered PC will orbit around the iCloud just as iPads and iPhones used to orbit around the PC.

However, Apple says it's changing the definition of cloud. The way it is using cloud services is vastly different than the way Google and Amazon are using them.

iCloud can be viewed more as synchronisation and content management service between Apple devices with a few cloud storage features thrown into the mix.

The Register says iCloud will replace the company's existing MobileMe offering.

iCloud offers new versions of existing MobileMe services - including tools for storing contacts, calendars, and e-mail on the net - as well as various new services for storing photos, backups, and documents specific to applications that make use of new Apple APIs.

“This is going to be the glue that ties Apple devices together,” says Scott Sutherland, Wedbush Securities market analyst in a report by The Boston Herald.

“They do a great job building great devices, and I think this is making sure they have a great cloud service tying them together.”