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Apple Makes iMovie, GarageBand, and iWork Apps for Mac and iOS Free for All Users (macrumors.com)

Posted by msmash on from the free-stuff dept.

Apple today updated several of its Mac and iOS apps, making them available for all Mac and iOS users for free. From a report: iMovie, Numbers, Keynote, Pages, and GarageBand for both Mac and iOS devices have been updated and are now listed in the App Store for free. Previously, all of these apps were provided for free to customers who purchased a new Mac or iOS device, but now that purchase is not required to get the software. Many Apple customers were already likely eligible to download the software at no cost if they had made a device purchase in the last few years.

34 of 65 comments (clear)

  1. Still Don't Get It by xxxJonBoyxxx · · Score: 2

    >> all of these apps were provided for free to customers who purchased a new Mac or iOS device

    I still don't get it. What else would you run these apps on if not a Mac or iOS device? (To me, they've always been free so...what changed?)

    1. Re:Still Don't Get It by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Informative

      If you have a device bought before 2013 you had to pay for the apps. Now you can get them for free.

    2. Re:Still Don't Get It by Jimbookis · · Score: 2

      I always though it was ridiculous too. Turns out if you use some kind of profile management system to control a swag of iPads at a school for example then if you wanted to push out these iWork apps you'd have to purchase a copy for each device (because setting up management usually means wiping the iPads clean) ! This is nuts considering each device already had an entitlement for these programs out of the box - I never understood why Apple wanted to double dip this way apart from the benefits of double dipping for them.

    3. Re:Still Don't Get It by tlhIngan · · Score: 1

      I still don't get it. What else would you run these apps on if not a Mac or iOS device? (To me, they've always been free so...what changed?)

      You don't have to purchase a NEW iOS or Mac to get these apps anymore.

      That's what's different. Of course, given that Apple has had this thing going on for years now, I'd be surprised if there was someone that wasn't already eligible for them. You'd have to be toting around a really old iPhone (probably around the 3GS era) or a really old Mac (over 10 years old) to not qualify.

    4. Re:Still Don't Get It by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      You could give them a list of your orders with a device count and they'd give you codes for the apps or grant them to your MDM for managed distribution.

      https://www.jamf.com/jamf-nation/discussions/14296/vpp-for-iwork-ilife (the Apple KB now just refers to everything being free)

      Later they also added the ability to assign an app directly to a device instead of to a user, so your MDM could just push it out to however many devices you have licenses for.

    5. Re:Still Don't Get It by R.Mo_Robert · · Score: 1

      >> all of these apps were provided for free to customers who purchased a new Mac or iOS device

      I still don't get it. What else would you run these apps on if not a Mac or iOS device? (To me, they've always been free so...what changed?)

      They were free to download for you because you purchased a new Mac and/or iOS device. If you have only purchased Apple devices on the used market in the last four years or so, this would have excluded you, which I think is the part you're missing (besides the fact that a 4-year-old Mac would still be pretty good at this point and a four-year-old iPhone wouldn't be the worst thing, either, so it's not necessarily the case that everyone would have purchased a new--or used, though previously ineligible--Mac or iOS device by now).

      --
      R.Mo
    6. Re:Still Don't Get It by R.Mo_Robert · · Score: 1

      I still don't get it. What else would you run these apps on if not a Mac or iOS device? (To me, they've always been free so...what changed?)

      You don't have to purchase a NEW iOS or Mac to get these apps anymore.

      That's what's different. Of course, given that Apple has had this thing going on for years now, I'd be surprised if there was someone that wasn't already eligible for them. You'd have to be toting around a really old iPhone (probably around the 3GS era) or a really old Mac (over 10 years old) to not qualify.

      Please try your arithmetic again. Apple announced the previous change in 2013, as stated in the summary. Specifically, that was October of 2013, but the iPhone 5s was released in September. Thus, early adopters could have a device that was only recently discontinued and still fully supported by the latest version of iOS that is ineligible. Additionally, since Apple did, indeed, manufacture iMacs in 2013, there is no need to go back to 2007 in order to find a Mac that would not have been eligible for this, either.

      --
      R.Mo
    7. Re:Still Don't Get It by sit1963nz · · Score: 1

      >> all of these apps were provided for free to customers who purchased a new Mac or iOS device I still don't get it. What else would you run these apps on if not a Mac or iOS device? (To me, they've always been free so...what changed?)

      A Hackintosh

    8. Re:Still Don't Get It by Schnapple · · Score: 5, Informative

      is Device limited to mobile phone & purchasing apps? Because we sure as hell have 'Devices' in the house older than 2013 that came with those titles for free. On desktops & laptops. That's why OP's original question is still valid.

      Do you mean the mobile apps are now finally free too? (know yer history son).

      There's a few different things going on here with regards to the Mac versions.

      Versions of iWork prior to 2011 were traditional boxed commercial products - as in, you went to the store and bought a disc. The Mac App Store had been introduced in 2010 and in 2011 Apple released iWork '09, the then most recent version, on the Mac App Store as three separate apps at $19.99 a piece (which meant that the three together were cheaper than the $79 they had been charging for the iWork DVD-ROM).

      In October 2013 they released new versions of all three, now just called "iWork" with no particular year or version designation, and now exclusively on the Mac App Store. They also made this version a free upgrade for iWork '09 users both to reward existing owners but also because this allowed them to transition to using the Mac App Store as their central software update platform. At this time, however, they were still three $19.99 applications.

      The way the free upgrade worked was that the Mac App Store looked to see if you had iWork '09 installed and if so it would install the newer iWork (leaving the old one intact) and associate your Apple ID account in the Mac App Store as having owned the apps. At the time there was a trick people discovered - by accident or design the Mac App Store was incapable of determining whether or not your copy of iWork '09 was the full version or the 30-day trial, which Apple had rescinded from their website but which was still floating around. If you installed iWork '09's trial and rebooted, the Mac App Store would start installing the new version of iWork and your account would now own the latest iWork even though you had not purchased iWork '09. In a statement, Apple acknowledged that this was possible but that they thought the convenience of upgrading and Mac App Store association was worth the potential loss in sales they might suffer as a result.

      In October 2014 Apple announced that the three iWork apps would be free with new hardware purchases. Prior to this point you had to either qualify for the free iWork '09 upgrade or purchase the apps, and anyone who didn't do the trick above would still need to buy the apps.

      What's changed today is that now the three iWork apps are outright free to everyone, not just people who bought a Mac after 2014 or were willing to perform the iWork '09 trial trick. If you had them on devices prior to 2013 for "free" then either you had taken advantage of some promotion or some bundling, or you may have gotten the upgrade as a result of the 2013 rollout.

      The iOS versions of iWork followed a similar trajectory, though skipping the part about being on DVD prior to 2013 and any upgrade tricks - they were released as three $9.99 apps, free with hardware purchases past 2014, and now just free to anyone.

      --

      Schnapple

    9. Re: Still Don't Get It by slazzy · · Score: 1

      Most of the time it came free on a new Mac, however you wouldn't get the latest version of iwork, imovie etc after a few years. At least that's what it seemed like to me.

      --
      Website Just Down For Me? Find out
    10. Re:Still Don't Get It by sabbede · · Score: 1

      But wouldn't that mean if you had a Mac that came with all this stuff and for whatever reason added a second user to it, you'd have to buy it all for the new user? Or that if you went through a breakup and let your ex keep the iTunes account (I did), you'd have to buy all the stuff you got for free?

    11. Re:Still Don't Get It by R.Mo_Robert · · Score: 1

      But wouldn't that mean if you had a Mac that came with all this stuff and for whatever reason added a second user to it, you'd have to buy it all for the new user?

      No, Mac App Store does system-wide installs, but the purchase and download are tied to one specific Apple ID. If that Apple ID is in use on a specific computer and there is another user on the computer tied to a different Apple ID, they can still use the app.

      Or that if you went through a breakup and let your ex keep the iTunes account (I did), you'd have to buy all the stuff you got for free?

      Yes, given that the purchase is tied to a specific Apple ID (e.g., iTunes account). I have, however, seen reports (or at least one; not sure if it was here or another forum) lately of people getting prompted if they would like to transfer the iWork/iLife suite licenses to another user, but I'm not sure what the conditions are under which it prompts. In any case, now that seems irrelevant.

      --
      R.Mo
    12. Re:Still Don't Get It by sabbede · · Score: 1

      Holy crap, you answered all my questions in a polite, respectful and thorough manner! I appreciate it.

  2. Small catch by schklerg · · Score: 4, Funny

    It requires a hardware key to activate which is available with an RS-232 connector. USB-C to RS-232 dongles sold separately.

    --
    Be Excellent To Each Other
    1. Re:Small catch by TheFakeTimCook · · Score: 2

      It requires a hardware key to activate which is available with an RS-232 connector. USB-C to RS-232 dongles sold separately.

      (Playing along with the joke) Unless you have an XServe. It has an RS-232 connector.

    2. Re:Small catch by HockeyPuck · · Score: 1

      RS-232 dongles sold separately

      Who knew iOS was powered by Bayan Vines.

  3. Re:New GarageBand ToS by GoRK · · Score: 2

    Can you provide any evidence for what you claim? GarageBand actually has a long history of having a very user-friendly approach to copyright. Some bad actors have made claims against certain GarageBand loops in the past, but they have all been trolls. With the exception of distributing single loops individually, content created with Garageband comes with a worldwide royalty free license and Apple doesn't claim to own or have any rights to user-produced content.

  4. Re:"With iCloud built in," by Captain+Splendid · · Score: 1

    Yawn. iCloud opt-out is trivial.

    --
    Linux, you magnificent bastard, I read the fucking manual!
  5. Also allows ownership change by SuperKendall · · Score: 2

    Something that just happened recently on a system update, was that it asked if I wanted to change ownership of my iMovie license - in the past I had installed iMove under a different user, so I could not update it when logged into the iTunes account I use for Mac apps...

    So that has gotten better as well, probably part of the same change where they don't care if you switch the owner to be a different iCloud user as long as you are running on a Mac.

    --
    "There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
  6. Re:New GarageBand ToS by TheFakeTimCook · · Score: 4, Informative

    Make sure you read the new ToS!

    There is no such thing as a free lunch. Make sure you're not giving Apple rights to all of your creative works by using their "free" apps.

    It's NOT Free. You bought an Apple hardware Product at some point.

  7. Re:"With iCloud built in," by TheFakeTimCook · · Score: 2

    Welcome back to customer lock-in central.

    Funny. I don't participate in any iCloud stuff with any of my Apple gear.

  8. Re:New GarageBand ToS by MikeJones8766 · · Score: 1

    Can you provide any evidence for what you claim?

    He didn't claim anything.

  9. Keynote's pretty slick by SpiceWare · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I use Keynote to give my Atari 2600 Homebrew presentation. To give the presentation I use both my iPhone and iPad. The iPhone plugs into the projector (after turning on Do Not Disturb, of course!). After launching Keynote on both devices I then use the Keynote Remote option from the iPad to connect to the iPhone (via bluetooth or wifi). The larger screen on the iPad makes it easy to see the slide side-by-side with my presenter notes, plus I'm free to walk around the stage without worrying about tripping over wires. There's also a virtual laser pointer and colored marker set that lets you point out things and draw on the slides during the presentation.

    1. Re:Keynote's pretty slick by Maury+Markowitz · · Score: 1

      Keynote remains the jewel of the collection.

      Pages and Numbers had many interesting features before they went cross platform, but both were incomplete. They needed another year of development before they would be really good.

      That did not happen. They spent that time moving to iOS, eliminating any features that they couldn't implement on iOS. And that's still where we are today.

  10. here's the catch by humankind · · Score: 1

    I assume the reason for this is Apple makes their money selling storage in the cloud. The more you use those apps, the more storage you need.

    1. Re:here's the catch by Sir+Holo · · Score: 3, Informative

      I assume the reason for this is Apple makes their money selling storage in the cloud. The more you use those apps, the more storage you need.

      There is no requirement to use anything iCloud to use these Apps. You can, if you wish, though.

      If you do, the price is in line with other cloud services. $2.99.mo. for 200 GB, for example.

  11. Re:New GarageBand ToS by Immerman · · Score: 1

    He certainly made an implied accusation. The meaning of language extends far beyond the immediate literal meaning of the words used.

    --
    --- Most topics have many sides worth arguing, allow me to take one opposite you.
  12. Re:Yeah, nice BUT... by bill_mcgonigle · · Score: 1

    I really don't want to see some huge charge on my credit card 'cause the kids were playing with the computer....

    If that's really your only hesitation you can get a prepaid Visa at Walmart for less than any of these apps used to cost, then you'll get them all.

    Hey, I still use iMovie after trying to make any of the open source "options" work at all for very simple home-movie editing. They were all crash-prone, couldn't handle the video from my Android or Canon, or just had a UI that was so tough to use that I spent more time fixing problems than editing.

    I don't even like the current iMovie - I'd really prefer a stable open source system that emulated iMovie from 15 years ago, but alas, that's not in the cards. And at least I can make a simple video with a few audio and video tracks in only 3x runtime with the current iMovie.

    --
    My God, it's Full of Source!
    OUTSIDE_IP=$(dig +short my.ip @outsideip.net)
  13. Re:Yeah, nice BUT... by j-beda · · Score: 1

    But can I update them without providing a credit card number and creating an Apple account?

    There's a reason I use LibreOffice daily and don't touch Pages....

    I really don't want to see some huge charge on my credit card 'cause the kids were playing with the computer....

    If your only fear is your kids, then you don't need to give them your AppleID password and they won't be able to run up the charges.

    If you want to avoid a CC on file with Apple, you can set up an AppleID with "none" for payment information, and just fund it with gift cards if needed. Zero cost purchases work fine with no payment info, however to set up "family sharing" with linked accounts to share purchases and kids needing approval before they can make purchases on their kid accounts, I think a CC on file for one of the "parents" is required (at least it was a few months back when I last checked.

  14. Seirra required to "purchase" most of the apps by j-beda · · Score: 1

    For the Mac software, it looks like from a Mac OS X 10.11 "El Capitan" installation, only GarageBand can be purchased, as the latest version of the other applications require macOS 10.12 Sierra.

    If you make the purchase on "Sierra" so that the software is listed as "purchased" in your account, you can probably download versions that will work on earlier OS versions - at least that is how "purchased" software typically works in my experience.

    For the iOS software, making the purchase from within iTunes gets the software added to your list of purchased apps. Probably if you attempt to download it to a less-than-current version of iOS you'll be able to get an older version of the software, at least that is how I have accessed older versions of iOS software in the past.

  15. Free, but by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    wants MacOS 10.12 (or higher).

  16. Re:New GarageBand ToS by 605dave · · Score: 1

    Not necessarily, it could have been a gift. From a horse.

    --
    Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a difficult battle. - Plato
  17. Re:New GarageBand ToS by TheFakeTimCook · · Score: 1

    Not necessarily, it could have been a gift. From a horse.

    True.

    Then you get TWO gifts: The Mac/iDevice from the horse, AND the (former) iLife and iWork Applications from Apple.

    What's not to like?

  18. Re:New GarageBand ToS by TheFakeTimCook · · Score: 1

    Like the dead one apple keeps beating with their products?

    You mean like the dead one that the Apple Haters keep beating with their (tired and incorrect) memes.