Do a lot of people have a .Mac account?

[ItsMeDave]

I'm a recent switcher, it looks good but seems a bit pricey to me. Is it really worth the cash?

 

[Kash]

Some will tell you that it is, many will tell you that it's not.

You can use the .Mac 60 day trial (I think it's 60 days, might be 45) and see if you like it enough to warrant $99 a year. I personally didn't use it, so I have no use for it. There are some, however, that love the service.

 

[knightlie]

I use it as an easy way of making pages of photographs for friends using iWeb, but the service is not cheap, and IMO not value for money.

 

[MartinS]

Take the free trial and see what you think of it. I've taken the trial a few times and simply can't see that it offers me anything of value. If you're on the road a lot and want to sync a laptop and a desktop, for example, then it might be a different story...

 

[PapaNoHair]

I'm a recent switcher, it looks good but seems a bit pricey to me. Is it really worth the cash?

I have it and like it - plan of renewing it again. But your have to make up your own mind. You should know by the end of the trial.

 

[christm]

i do and have done for 2 years (on second year now, renwed in feb)

it is sort of worth it. but there are cheaper or free options out there.

 

[MartinS]

I've just looked at it again, and I really can't see anything that makes me thing "I just have to have this".

I'd love to be able to find a reason to subscribe...

 

[bobtomay]

I bought it with my MBP for myself and with the 20" iMac I gave to the kid. Neither of us use it.

 

[KoDorSean]

this question has been asked a few times.. here is the last thread started about it.

http://www.mac-forums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=51878&highlight=.mac

My wife and I have one .mac account and we share it.. The only things we use on it are the mail accounts and she uses the web stuff.. We find that its worth it but as others have said there are cheaper options out there.

 

[surfwax95]

Had it for a while, didn't like it, switched to Dreamhost.

 

[MartinS]

I think this is something Apple could make a lot of money out of if it offered the right services, particularly for home users with one desktop Mac.

As it is, everything on .mac feels outdated, as if no-one at Apple has looked at it for years due to more important tasks elsewhere.

So, other than off-site backup, which is available now, what services should they offer? What would make you think "I have to have that"?

 

[milessthomas]

I had it for a year cause I got a discount with the purchase of an Ibook in april 2006(they were probably trying to clear the ibooks out for the new macbooks i realize now). I used it while I had it but after awhile realized better solutions. I actually still use Iweb without the .mac service and instead of publishing to .mac I publish to my apache webhost folder. I never used any of the other services. .mac email was severly outdated and I got a lot of spam. And the backup service was useless seeing as I had a lot more important stuff than just one GB.

 

[GulfVetSAF]

I've only had a mac now for about 3 weeks, and I debated the issue when I first realized what it was. LOL I finally dropped the $100 simply b/c I like the ease of use when backing up important files AND the tutorials that come with it (the help section). There are more things available in .Mac but you have to look for them. I do have an external harddrive as well that I back up on but if I'm out of town... well, you get the point. I do think it's a little pricey though... this really could be something they could add on to a warranty or upgrade purchase.

 

[mraya]

I had it for 2 years, but i cancelled it this year. I have only two complains against it:
- It can be slow for hosting.
- You have to pay a full year in advance.
It isn't too expensive if you consider that it costs less than $9 per month, but you can get similar services for free.

 

[fleurya]

I've considered it, but just can't get passed the price tag when you can do pretty much everything it has and even get more space for free. Of course, .mac makes it easier; it's a matter of value and price sensitivity. I think it could be huge if they just offered more capacity and updated to software and offerings to add real value. It just seems like Apple isn't concerned with selling it, keeping it up to date or offering more/new features; the way they run the rest of the business.

I would go for it if they made these improvements.

 

[MacHeadCase]

I've had one since the beginning and I can't see when I'll ever stop it. I find it very useful for my stuff.

 

[powermacj7]

I had it from the beginning as well. I find it useful, and in fact most people don't really use all the features, and that is why they find it less useful and overpriced.
Using Backup, and sync my two Macs alone make it worth while to me. The other main reason is I have been using the @mac.com email for so long I hate to change now, too many contacts would get lost if I did so.

 

[iRye]

I wish I had it, but its rather pricey

 

[MartinS]

Hmmm. I published a photo slideshow to .mac yesterday in just a few clicks. I doub't there'd have been a more convenient "free" way. I also published a jokey comic strip from ComicLife. Again, extremely simple to do. Both are at: http://web.mac.com/msketchley/

 

[MartinS]

After spending this afternoon messing around with iWeb (to make a subsite of my main website), iPhoto, iTunes and such like, I have to say the integration of these applications is amazing. For example, I dragged a playlist into iWeb, and automatically created links to those songs on the iTunes store...

I'm now sold on .mac, even though I haven't yet used iDisk, Backup or any of the other features yet.