Backup contacts to icloud

[Darrenvernon]

Hi i have a question relating to icloud backup of contacts. So i have turned contacts setting on in icloud and all of them therefore have been uploaded to icloud. But i dont know how this serves as a good backup. Someone could steal my iphone one day and delete lets say 10 contacts. Those 10 contacts would be deleted off my icloud account. So when i buy a new iphone, connect to icloud, i will have lost those 10 contacts.

So am i right in saying that you cannot rely on icloud to backup your contacts? Or is there a way of doing it that i not thought of?

 

[Deckyon]

And if you sync the same contacts to google, and someone steals your phone and deletes 10 contacts, you still lose 10 contacts.

Turning on "Contacts" in iCloud is not a backup, it is a sync.

Turning on iCloud Backup as opposed to backing up via iTunes is a backup.

If you want to feel absolutely safe, put a pass-code on your phone and set the timeout to 5 minutes or less. That way, the phone locks and no one can delete your contacts.

 

[Bluesjam]

I would be more concerned about that guy who stole my iPhone! Why wouldn't you use find my phone the get your phone back and put that guy in jail.

 

[Darrenvernon]

Turning on iCloud Backup as opposed to backing up via iTunes is a backup..

but I don't think iCloud backup does everything. I think it just does camera roll/music/pictures/apps. Doesn't do contacts/calendars etc

Obviously there are other precautions that one can take. But was hoping that iCloud could be used as an alternative to plugging into iTunes.

In fact if I want to backup contacts to outlook, iTunes complains that I could be duplicating contacts.

 

[Deckyon]

I will say this again.

iCloud Contacts, Calendar and Mail only sync - they are not backups. Changes on one device are sync'd to all other devices you have connected to iCloud.

iCloud backup is the same backup as using iTunes. If the phone fails and upgrade or needs to be restored, it pulls the data back from the iCloud backup as though it were an iTunes backup. All data is restored. Within iCloud, you can choose which apps' data you want backed up or not backed up.

You want your contacts backed up? Sync them to a Gmail account, and then export them to a CSV file.

 

[Deckyon]

In fact if I want to backup contacts to outlook, iTunes complains that I could be duplicating contacts.

This is not a backup - it is a sync.

 

[Darrenvernon]

So basically you are saying that the standard iTunes/iCloud backup will also include contacts/calendars etc. if so that's great as that's ultimately what I want to use iCloud for.

 

[Darrenvernon]

Ok now I have another question about iCloud backup. Thanks for help so far. If I have let's say 3gb of stuff stored on my phone that iCloud would normally backup when it's plugged into mains.

I backup in a daily basis, does this mean that my home broadband would consume 3gb of data everyday? If so that would rack up date of almost 100gb in a month and that would exceed my wifi allowance

Or would it just look at the key changes. Eg day 1 backup whole 3gb, day 2 take one photo and it would backup just 200kb.

 

[Deckyon]

It does not do incremental backups. You also do not have to do backups every day. I do it about once a week.

If you are that worried, backup to iTunes or find a coffee shop and do the backups there.

 

[Darrenvernon]

one thing i found is that you can turn off camera roll and apps. That would reduce my backing up to a small 50mb which is great. but would it still do contacts / calendars?

also, another thing i have thought of. all my contacts / calendars are stored on icloud. they arent stored physically on my phone. Does that mean icloud wont include them in the backup on the basis that they are not stored on the phone?

I think icloud is great by the way. but i think it would work brilliantly if one could predict what its actually gonna do.

 

[Deckyon]

not going to say the same thing over and over...

 

[Bluesjam]

It does not do incremental backups. You also do not have to do backups every day. I do it about once a week.

If you are that worried, backup to iTunes or find a coffee shop and do the backups there.

Great idea!!!!!!

 

[Darrenvernon]

Actually, surely if someone bucks your phone, they would be able to delete your backup from iCloud.

So while thing is pointless. Better off just backing up to iTunes.