Apple One For Dummies

Introduction

I’m going to write something ridiculously obvious right from the start: The way we live and conduct our day-to-day ain’t quite like it used to be. I remember when you had to stay in one room to use the phone, and if you got happy feet there was always the cord to remind you of your place. If you wanted to know what was going on in politics and sports, you had to read the newspaper or wait until it was time for the local and national news programs to air. I was drawn to magazine racks in grocery stores like a cat to a mouse convention; my parents never had to wonder where I was while they shopped.

Computers were cool and all, but until the early 1980s, my only experience with one was our Pong console. Pictures were taken with a camera that you had to load with film, and then you had to have the film developed before you could see that you’d cut off the top of your subject’s head or that he was nearly out of the frame entirely. Calendars were something you hung on the wall and reminders and shopping lists were kept in clunky notebooks or planners. And music was something you could typically listen to only on fuzzy-sounding radios or on vinyl albums that emitted as much hiss as they did tunes. And don’t get me started on the heady days when we transitioned from 8-track to cassette tapes — as someone once put it, That’s one small step for (a) man, one giant leap for mankind.

As I said, things are different now. Everything I just mentioned can now be done with a small device you can hold in the palm of your hands. Smartphones have evolved from the aforementioned handset tethered to the wall to become one of the most important tools you own. That little rectangle makes phone calls and plays music with pristine clarity. You can get the news or read magazines on it almost instantaneously. You can take stunning snapshots on a whim and share, delete, or edit them in seconds. Calendar events and reminders pop up to keep you on top of your daily activities and responsibilities. Maybe you even use your smartphone to perform your job from just about anywhere — there's no need to lug your desk along, either.

Apple is one of the companies at the forefront of these cultural upheavals. The fruit company that made money one less thing Forrest Gump had to worry about has arguably become the most recognizable technology brand on the planet. At first, computers drove the bottom line at Apple. Next, the iPhone and iPad had the world welcoming their sleek products into their homes and hearts. Apple then got the groovy notion that they could provide services to folks who use their devices — services such as email, cloud-based storage, productivity apps, top-notch journalism, favorite songs, movies, and TV shows, and even exercise instruction. What the heck? Let’s throw video games into the mix, too!

And guess what happened? These services became popular — HUGELY so. So huge that they are now Apple’s second largest revenue stream, second only to the venerable iPhone, and accounting for about 20 percent of Apple’s annual income. Up until now, Apple offered these services — Music, TV+, Arcade, News+, Fitness+, and iCloud — as standalone products. Now, however, they are bundled together under the moniker Apple One. You can subscribe to Apple One at a substantially lower price than if you subscribed to each product individually.

That’s where this book comes in.

About This Book

Apple One For Dummies introduces you to the Apple One ecosystem. I tell you what Apple One is, how to get it, and how it works. I discuss each of the six services included in Apple One and show you how to take advantage of all they offer, using whatever Apple device you might use for your Apple content. I even help users of non-Apple devices learn how to access Apple One products — no discrimination here. If your product supports an Apple One service, I tell you how to access and use it.

I’ve written this tome in such a way that you can either read it cover to cover or, if the fancy strikes you, skip around to topics that most interest you. Dummies books are famous for their organization, information, and levity, and I strove to bring these qualities to this book as well.

Some items in the book, such as sidebars and Technical Stuff, are simply there because I thought they were cool to know about. Just because I like them or find them interesting doesn’t mean they’ll be your cup of tea, so feel free to bypass them or revisit them at a later date, if you prefer.

You’ll find a slew of URLs (web page addresses) that you can use to further check out the services I discuss and learn more about them. All of these URLs worked at the time of this writing, but they can change as often as a politician’s opinion.

Foolish Assumptions

You rightly picked up this volume with the expectation that I, the author, had something valuable to impart regarding Apple One. However, for you to take full advantage of my expertise, I must assume a few things about your technical acumen, too.

For example, because Apple One is entirely Internet based, I must assume that you know what the Internet is. If you have no idea what I mean by the term, you might lose interest quickly as you continue reading.

Another assumption I must make is that you use at least one Apple device in your day-to-day activities. Macs, iPhones, iPads, Apple TVs, and Apple Watches are all Apple devices that will grant you purchase into the world of Apple services. Without at least one of these (preferably more), your foray into Apple One will be limited at best.

I assume you know how to successfully operate your device. If you’re a seasoned user of computers, smartphones, and tablets, you should be fine, even if you’re new to Apple devices. However, if the aforementioned devices are entirely foreign to you, I suggest checking out a Dummies title that caters to the device(s) in question before proceeding with this book.

I must also assume that you’re familiar with web browsers, which are generally considered the main way to access the wonderful (and sometimes the not-so-wonderful) things the Internet has to offer. Understanding how to navigate a website and enter a URL are basics you’ll want to be familiar with.

Icons Used in This Book

From time to time, you’ll see one of the following icons, which will help you discern the type of topic I’m discussing.

Tip Pay particular attention to information beside this icon. Tips are intended to help you achieve tasks being covered more easily, or may help you avoid potential snafus.

Remember Someone very close to me (sorry, I can’t name names, but you know who you are) is a strong proponent of writing reminders and appointments on his or her arm and wrist with a pen. Dummies titles use the Remember icon to help you avoid such; just open the book and there the reminder is.

Warning This icon means business; don’t ignore it! I use it to draw attention to potential pitfalls you may run into.

Technical Stuff If you’re a nerd like me, this icon will be a beacon for you. This information isn’t necessary for you to successfully complete a task it may be associated with, but it may help you dig a bit deeper into it.

Beyond the Book

In addition to what you’re reading right now, this book comes with an access-anywhere cheat sheet that provides information on how to get the most out of Siri on your Apple TV remote, as well as which browsers will give you the best experience with iCloud.com. To get the cheat sheet, simply go to www.dummies.com and search for Apple One For Dummies Cheat Sheet in the Search box.

Where to Go from Here

I’ve written this book with the intention that you, dear reader, would be able to approach Apple One either in the order that I’ve presented here or in any order you desire. No rule demands that you read this book sequentially, especially if online content services aren’t new to you. However, if you are new to the concept, you may be best served to start at the beginning and work your way forward. At the very least, if you are indeed a total newb, read the chapters in Part 1 before skipping ahead.

Although I do sometimes yearn to sit back in a recliner with my newspaper, listening to vinyl records, this new digital services craze is right up my alley. The ability to access the things I love the most, or the news I want to hear, or to work from just about anywhere using the devices in my pocket or backpack is a thing of beauty to my mind. The Jetsons would be so proud of where we’re headed.

Part 1

Services, Please!

IN THIS PART …

Introducing Apple Services

Learning which devices you can use with Apple Services

Chapter 1

Getting a Handle on Apple Services

IN THIS CHAPTER

Bullet Learning about Apple services

Bullet Discovering what each service does

Bullet Checking out Apple One plans

Apple’s known for their capability to surprise us. Remember the small all-in-one computers that looked like lollipops on people’s desks? Surprise! iMacs were a HUGE hit and helped pull Apple from the brink of obscurity. How about that little white rectangle with the circular dial on the front that held thousands of songs on it? You know, the thing Steve Jobs called an iPod, which made you toss your CD Walkman in the trash? Surprise! Or how about the surprise of surprises: this time a black rectangle with a touchscreen that could not only hold your songs but also let you place phone calls while you surfed the web with a real web browser? Again, I say, surprise!

Apple's move into the multimedia market — providing music, movies, magazines, games, and the like for their legions of users (that is, fans) — wasn’t exactly a surprise. But their enormous success has been. Let’s find out together just what Apple services are and what they provide.

What Are Apple Services?

Apple services are not religious gatherings designed to spread the good news of the Cupertino company’s wares, even though some Apple afficionados may appear to worship everything they do. In this case, these services are software platforms designed to deliver a particular set of goods to a customer.

Are you a music lover who wishes you could take all your music everywhere you go, but you don’t want to clog all your devices with gigabytes of songs? Would you like to take a photo on your iPhone and instantly share it with someone across the globe? Apple can provide these types of amenities to customers through their services.

Apple’s services include the following:

Apple Music

Apple TV+

Apple Arcade

Apple News+

Apple Fitness+

iCloud (finally, one that doesn’t start with Apple!)

Each of these services is designed to meet a customer’s needs in the simple and intuitive style Apple is known for. They’re also made to work seamlessly across the spectrum of Apple’s hardware devices, allowing you to move from device to device while barely skipping a beat. For example, you can watch a movie on the train after work, and then pick up right where you left off on your Apple TV the minute you walk into your apartment.

To a large extent, these services also work across non-Apple devices. Let’s say you’re at a friend’s house working on a spreadsheet in Numbers on your iPad, but its battery dies (and, of course, you left the charger at home). No worries: Just fire up the web browser on your friend’s PC, log in to iCloud.com, open Numbers from there, and get straight back to work — picking up exactly where you left off when your iPad decided to take a nap.

Now that’s not just service with a smile but services that cause a smile. :)

Apple Services in a