iTunes Account brawl among family...Help!

[FullMetalx117]

So my family of 4 have decided to all buy iphones, mostly for the readily available apps we already own. My brother already owns an ipod touch, ipad, etc. so he has downloaded quite a bit of apps already. Us new iPhone users are pretty happy that we will all be able to download the apps he already has. However, my brother is being a little stubborn about it. I am suggesting that we should all share the same iTunes account so whenever one of us decides to buy something, we can all download it wherever we are. However, he wants me to make a new itunes account and just home share. I keep telling him that since I will be moving to a new college soon, his method may become a hassle since i won't be able to download all the new apps he buys or he wont be able to download all of the apps i buy. He thinks that us sharing one account can lead to privacy issues since the new icloud apparently sends all pictures we take to every device on the account. There must be come settings to not allow icloud to do that though, right?

Can anyone bring light to this issue? What method do all of you use?

 

[MaxBurn]

Each person is supposed to have their own identity and it is a nice thing they do to allow a household to share apps, of course you have to have that home share.

That's the way it is supposed to work, as I understand it.

What you are asking from us is permission to cheat the system.

 

[Awjvail]

Yup.. iCloud is definitely a problem.

What if your brother wanted to take a picture of his junk or his girlfriend's boobs? It would automatically upload to the cloud and appear in everybody else's photo streams!! HOW EMBARRASSING!

 

[FullMetalx117]

ohh i didnt know everyone in a household was suppose to have their own account. I thought we could have a family account or something like that. Oh well i guess we'll just home share then.

 

[MaxBurn]

I think the family stuff comes in with the homeshare option, separate accounts but you share media, apps etc through that homeshare computer.

Thinking on this a little more with ios5 comes wifi sync on the same network when the phone is plugged into power.

What if you created a VPN from your wifi router wherever you are to home? Then technically you are on your home network and could wifi sync / homeshare.

Could be worth checking into. You'd need a VPN connector at home and a wifi router with a VPN built in for where you are. Technically I can't see a reason why this won't work.

 

[FullMetalx117]

I think the family stuff comes in with the homeshare option, separate accounts but you share media, apps etc through that homeshare computer.

Thinking on this a little more with ios5 comes wifi sync on the same network when the phone is plugged into power.

What if you created a VPN from your wifi router wherever you are to home? Then technically you are on your home network and could wifi sync / homeshare.

Could be worth checking into. You'd need a VPN connector at home and a wifi router with a VPN built in for where you are. Technically I can't see a reason why this won't work.

great idea. Its worth looking into

 

[mikepro]

Your itunes account for purchasing apps can be different that your icloud account.

Share the same itunes accounts for purchasing.
Each set up your own icould account for backup/sync.

 

[Justim]

Yup.. iCloud is definitely a problem.

What if your brother wanted to take a picture of his junk or his girlfriend's boobs? It would automatically upload to the cloud and appear in everybody else's photo streams!! HOW EMBARRASSING!

I was thinking the exact same thing! I actually had to hide my camera app from people using my phone or ipad because a picture was in my photo stream that I didn't want other people to see. And it stays there for an entire month! I have yet found a way to delete pictures off my photo stream.

But yes, there is a way to turn off the PhotoStream function.

Your itunes account for purchasing apps can be different that your icloud account.

Share the same itunes accounts for purchasing.
Each set up your own icould account for backup/sync.

But you would still know the password of that account. Plus that takes away some of the benefits of iCloud like automatic music/app/document downloading.

There's also the conflict of payment. Whose credit card would be on the account? Probably not the one going through college.

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My suggestion is quit being cheap and stingy. Your brother is trying nicely to tell you he wants his privacy.

I've always encouraged even married people to create separate accounts. What if they divorced? What if one was planning a surprise? What if one was planning a surprise divorce? It's just not a good idea.

It's not like sharing a physical home address. It's sharing an electronic lifestyle. No one wants to be a Siamese twin, and electronically, that's what you're asking him to do. (With 4 other people!)

If you find someone else in your family that wants to do this, then the decision is up to you. But just know there's no turning back once you do(no way to split the account in two if for some reason you want your own personal account)