One more time...help with auto sync

[anmanwar]

Ok...so last Friday I hooked iPad 2 up to my laptop one more time. On iTunes I right clicked my device and hit sync. I then unplugged my device and it did auto sync...many times in fact until I finally turned the laptop OFF. So today I decide to try this feature out again. Laptop is OFF and iPad 2 is plugged into power. Go under general settings and auto sync button is not highlighted. So in order to get this to work do I really have to have my 6 year old laptop ON at all times?? Please tell me what I'm doing wrong. I thought the whole point of the auto sync would be that I wouldn't have to use my old laptop anymore? Annette

 

[NYHorsewoman]

I am able to autosync anytime even without being plugged in....! My desktop is always on but iTunes isn't running. ??

 

[stevnim]

The Sync Now button has these words above it: "Automatically sync with iTunes on your computer when your iPad is plugged in to power and connected to Wi-Fi.". That does indeed mean that in order for a sync to happen BOTH devices need to be on.
However, my experience is that the Sync Now button is mostly grayed out all the time unless more than 24hrs have passed. Then, assuming that your laptop is on, you can force the sync with the button. The iPad will look on your network for your laptop occasionally on its own, however, and will sync in the background if one has not been done in a while and finds the laptop. This means that as long as you are using each device occasionally, syncs will happen on their own without needing to force it with the button. If you only powered the laptop on once a week or so, then forcing a sync may be in order.

 

[anmanwar]

The Sync Now button has these words above it: "Automatically sync with iTunes on your computer when your iPad is plugged in to power and connected to Wi-Fi.". That does indeed mean that in order for a sync to happen BOTH devices need to be on.
However, my experience is that the Sync Now button is mostly grayed out all the time unless more than 24hrs have passed. Then, assuming that your laptop is on, you can force the sync with the button. The iPad will look on your network for your laptop occasionally on its own, however, and will sync in the background if one has not been done in a while and finds the laptop. This means that as long as you are using each device occasionally, syncs will happen on their own without needing to force it with the button. If you only powered the laptop on once a week or so, then forcing a sync may be in order.

Ugh ok..so I do have to keep my old laptop on...bummer. I THOUGHT the new update meant i didnt have to rely on any computer for updates anymore. So, how would it work if someone had a new apple device and didn't have a computer at all? Would it just never sync?
Thanks for your help!! Annette

 

[stevnim]

Updates, as talked about in these forums, are iOS updates. You will not need a computer to go from iOS 5 to iOS 6 whenever that comes out. Syncing has to do with data, the information that is personal to you. Your songs are different than another persons songs. The iTunes sync will keep the songs on your iPad and computer the same. If you don't want to use a computer anymore, that's OK as far as the iPad is concerned. Your music will be on the iPad and Apples iTunes store. Other data such as emails, photos & such are going to be backed up to iCloud, assuming it has been activated.

Apple's vision of how things work is that a user (account) can have many devices, a Mac, iPhone, iPod, iPad, etc. With syncing and iCloud, you would be able to pick up any of your devices and be able to play, say, Beatles "All You Need is Love". Another user (account) in your household would have different devices and of course different data. Hope this helps!

 

[DefBref]

Wifi sync and cloud syncing are two different things, wifi sync requires syncing to itunes on a Pc/Mac. Icloud only requires a internet connection, I think you are confusing the two. Go to settings icloud to perform a icloud backup.

 

[ronwong]

Hi, for icloud sync, the space online is 5GB and the smallest ipad is 16GB, so its not too clear what happens, especially if you have 32 GB or 64 GB, and even syncing 5gb of stuff should be putting quite a lot of strain on bandwidth.

 

[DefBref]

Any itunes bought stuff (apps, music) doesn't count against your 5Gb limit, its already on apples servers so why create a copy. You won't need as much space as you think.

My 16Gb ipad has 13.1 Gb full but the icloud backup only comes to 700Mb.

 

[NYHorsewoman]

Any itunes bought stuff (apps, music) doesn't count against your 5Gb limit, its already on apples servers so why create a copy. You won't need as much space as you think.

My 16Gb ipad has 13.1 Gb full but the icloud backup only comes to 700Mb.

I don't know if that is true, I barely have any apps or data and I only have 1.8 GB left and when I looked at what it was syncing it was syncing large apps that I do not have any data on like the British Library Collection!

 

[DefBref]

It will be data, not familiar with the british library app, but it probably caches the books, and these aren't on apples servers so they get backed up as data with the app. The actual app is only 16.6 Mb, so if its associating more than that with the app on icloud, then it is data the app has created/downloaded from elsewhere (i.e. not apple)