1. Backing up with iCloud
An item of note before I explain the backup process: Apple has changed their iCloud storage tiers over time. You can see the current plans here, or by going to Settings → iCloud → Storage → Change Storage Plan.
For the US, the current plans and pricing are:
- 5 GB — Free (same as ever)
- 50 GB — $1/month
- 200 GB — $3/month
- 1 TB — $10/month
With that said, here’s how to back your data up to iCloud. First, let’s determine what you want to include in (or exclude from) the backup. To do that, navigate to Settings → iCloud → Storage → Manage Storage → Choose your device under ‘Backups’.
Under Backup Options you will see a list of toggles for the photo library and every app on your device, sorted by file size:
Everything will be toggled on by default, so turn off any items you’d rather not back up. If you’ve upgraded to one of the new storage tiers listed above and space is no concern, then we recommend leaving everything on.
Once you’ve determined what to back up, make sure the device is on a Wi-Fi network and, for best results, connected to a power source (this process can take a while). Now, navigate back to Settings → iCloud → Backup and ensure iCloud Backup is toggled on. If it is, you’ll see a Back Up Now option. Just tap that button and wait for the process to complete.
Also note that iCloud backups can happen automatically at night. Assuming your iOS device is plugged in and charging and is also connected to a Wi-Fi network, it will automatically back up to iCloud. If you’ve been running the iOS 9 betas on your iPhone/iPad/iPod, be sure that it has a current backup before setting up. Some versions of the public beta had issues making iCloud backups.
Issues with backing up iOS Device data via iCloud
1. iCloud doesn’t work if you use iPhone under iOS 6 or iOS 5;
2. iCloud can’t restore parts of data selectively.
3. You are allowed to get 5 GB of free iCloud storage. And you can’t backup to iCould if you don’t have enough space
2. Backing up with iTunes
An iTunes backup is a great option if: (a) you need more space than the free/paid tier of iCloud storage you have allows; or (b) you want an extra layer of backup in addition to your iCloud backup.
The process is simple:
- Plug your device into your Mac or PC.
- Open iTunes and select the iDevices icon in the upper-left corner.
- Click the Summary tab and scroll down to the Backups section.
- Click the Back Up Now button and wait for the backup to complete.
- To verify that the backup worked, open iTunes Preferences and select the Devices tab. If the backup was successful, you’ll see it listed there.
Issues with backing up iOS Device data via iTunes:
1. iTunes may ask you to sync or upgrade your iOS and wipe all the contents.
2. iTunes can’t selectively backup data, it will takes you a few hours each time the iPhone backs up since doing an image backup.
3. Backing up with MobileTrans
Run and Install MobileTrans on your computer, and connect your old idevices and new one to it via 2 USB cables > Select the content you want to backup > Start Copy. In the pop-up dialog, you can see the transfer progress. When it’s finished, the data on your old data will be transferred to your new iPad/iPhone/iPad.
4. External Hard Drive
The iTunes library is a database iTunes uses to organize your music and movies. The best way to back up your iTunes library is to consolidate your library into one folder and then copy that folder to an external hard drive. Here are official steps on how to backup iTunes library to external hard drive.
5. Sync iPhone/iPad/iPod Data to Google
To backup iOS data without iTunes, you can choose to sync iPhone/iPad/iPod Mail, Calendar, and Contacts to Google. Here is a step-by-step guide to set up Google Sync with your iOS device.
Note: Google Sync is only supported on Apple iOS versions 3.0 and above
6. Using a Third-party iOS Backup Software
Not only being taken as an iOS Data Recovery, Wondershare Dr.Fone for iOS (Mac) can also flexibly and selectively backup files from iOS devices to computer. With it, you can scan files like photos, contacts, SMS, voice memos, reminders, call history, SMS attachments, Safari bookmarks and more saved on your iPhone, and you are allowed to preview all files and select which are important to save on your computer. Windows users can refer to this review.
Tips: Highly recommend iOS backup before:
- Accidently deleted files.
- Restored to Factory settings without backup.
- Lost iPhone/iPad/iPod data due to jailbreak or iOS update.
- iDevices were inaccessible when it is stuck in Apple logo screen, locked with passcode.
- iOS devices was lost, broken, wet or stolen.
- Getting a new iPhone/iPod/iPad.
- Sync with iTunes.
Related Software:
Wondershare TunesGo (Mac): Frees your music anywhere from iPhone/iPad/iPod, doing what iTunes can’t.
Wondershare Dr.Fone for Android (Mac): A quick way to recover your lost or deleted data from Android.
Wondershare MobileTrans for Mac: One-click phone transfer tool to let you transfer data between Android, iOS, and Symbian devices.
iFastime Video Converter Ultimate for Mac: Make all your Blu-ray, DVD collections and movie library compatible with iOS devices.
Have more questions about how to backup your iPhone, iPad, iPod on Windows and Mac, please feel free to contact us>> or leave a message at Facebook.
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- Retrieve iPhone Lost Data after Restoring to Factory Settings
