How to use the Apple Devices app on your Windows PC
Learn how to use the Apple Devices app on your Windows computer to update, restore, back up, and sync media on your iPhone, iPad, and iPod.
The Apple Devices app is the successor to the infamous iTunes desktop app. It includes all the device management features of iTunes but with a cleaner, modern look.
What happened to iTunes on Windows PC?
Apple retired iTunes on Mac in 2019, with the launch of macOS Catalina. However, iTunes on Windows survived until Apple introduced separate apps for Apple Music, Apple TV, and Apple Devices in early 2024.
You can still download iTunes for Windows PC from the official Microsoft Store, but it’s limited to just Apple Podcasts and Audiobooks.
If you right-click an MP3 file in Windows File Explorer and choose to open it in iTunes, a popup message will appear, asking you to play the media in the Apple Music app or convert it to an audiobook to listen to it in iTunes.
In short, iTunes still holds importance on Windows PCs, but only until Apple launches separate apps for Podcasts and Books.
Now that you’re clear about this once-popular software which played a crucial role in making Apple the multi-trillion-dollar company it is today, let’s focus on the present: the Devices app.
Get the Apple Devices app on your computer
You can download the Apple Devices app on your Windows PC from the official Microsoft Store. Unlike iTunes, Apple doesn’t seem to provide a direct link to download the exe file for this app.
Important: If you want to sync music and movies to your iOS device, you must also install the Apple Music and Apple TV apps on your Windows PC, along with the Apple Devices app. In short, what one app (iTunes) could do now requires three separate apps.
Access your iPhone, iPad, or iPod in the Apple Devices app
1) Wake up your Windows computer and connect your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch to it using a suitable USB cable. Use a USB-C hub if needed.
2) Windows will notify you that it has detected an external device, which you can ignore. Next, open the Apple Devices app on your PC and wait for it to recognize your iPhone, iPad, or iPod. If it doesn’t, unplug and reconnect the cable or close and reopen the app.
3) Once the Apple Devices app recognizes your phone or tablet, click Trust on the screen. Then, tap Trust on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod and authenticate with your passcode, Face ID, or Touch ID.
4) After authentication, your iPhone, iPad, or iPod will appear inside the Apple Devices app. You’re ready to use it, and we’ve explained everything below.
Important: After making any changes in the Devices app, such as activating a setting, be sure to click the Apply or Sync button in the lower-right corner for the new changes to take effect.
Update iPhone or iPad
You can use the Check for Update or Update button here if you don’t have enough free space on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch or prefer not to rely on the on-device over-the-air update.
The Apple Devices app on your Windows computer will download the latest supported iOS version for the connected phone or tablet, prepare it, and install it. Be sure to leave your iPhone, iPad, or iPod connected to your PC during the process.
Restore to troubleshoot problems
If your iPhone, iPad, or iPod is experiencing major issues and restarting, updating, and resetting all settings hasn’t helped, you can use the Restore option. Just remember that Find My must be disabled for this to work.
Use Recovery Mode
If your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch is frozen, the screen isn’t turning on (even after charging for 30 minutes), or experiencing other serious issues, and a hard restart hasn’t worked, you’ll need to put the device in Recovery Mode. After that, use the Apple Devices app on your Windows computer to update the connected device. If updating doesn’t resolve the issue, you may need to reinstall the operating system.
Note: Updating won’t delete your current data, but restoring your iPhone, iPad, or iPod will erase everything.
Back up your iPhone or iPad to Windows PC
If you don’t want to back up your iPhone or iPad to iCloud, you can back it up to your PC using the Apple Devices app. You can also encrypt the local backup with a passcode.
Furthermore, clicking the Manage Backups button lets you find, delete, and archive a backup file so it’s not overwritten by future backups.
Set up an iPhone or iPad from an old backup file
Use the Restore Backup button to retrieve old files, apps, settings, and data on your new or wiped iPhone and iPad.
Other General Options
The “Options” section of the General tab has some self-explanatory settings. The two important ones are:
- Show this iPhone when on Wi-Fi: After you check this box and hit Apply, your iPhone or iPad will appear in the Apple Devices app when it’s on the same Wi-Fi network as your Windows PC. As a result, you won’t have to connect the phone with a cable to sync media. However, updating and restoring will still require a wired connection.
- Configure Accessibility: Use this to turn on or off some important accessibility features on your iPhone or iPad. This is particularly helpful if your iPhone or iPad is stuck in Zoom or VoiceOver modes.
Sync media
Like the old iTunes and Mac’s Finder, you can use the Apple Devices app to transfer songs, movies, TV shows, photos, files, podcasts, and audiobooks from your Windows PC to your iPhone, iPad, or iPod. However, there are some essential things to consider:
- You can only sync the media you downloaded to your Windows PC for offline consumption in Apple Music, Apple TV, and iTunes.
- You can’t sync songs and videos downloaded from Apple Music and Apple TV+ as these are DRM-protected. However, you can sync songs and videos that you have purchased from the iTunes Store inside these apps.
- You can only sync music and photos manually if you aren’t using iCloud Music (Sync Library) and iCloud Photos on that iPhone or iPad.
Sync music
We’ve explained this process in detail in our dedicated tutorial, but here’s a summary:
- Select Music and check the box for “Sync music onto iPhone.”
- An iOS device can only be synced from one Mac or PC at a time. So, if you’ve synced the iPhone or iPad in question with another computer, you’ll have to click Remove & Sync (and later Sync and Replace) to delete all previously synced items before you can sync new stuff from this PC.
- Now, choose to sync your entire library or just the selected ones.
- Hit the Apply or Sync button in the lower right corner.
Sync movies and TV shows
Like music, you can sync videos to your iPhone using the Apple Devices app. However, note that only the movies and TV shows you’ve downloaded to your PC through the Apple TV app can be synced.
Head to the Apple TV app on your Windows computer, click Library > Movies/TV Shows, and then download your purchased or rented media. Then, close and reopen the Apple Devices app to sync these movies and shows to your iPhone or iPad.
Sync podcasts
Download a podcast in iTunes on your Windows computer (screenshot below).
After that, you can sync it to your iPhone, iPad, or iPod using the Apple Devices app.
Sync audiobooks
You will see this option in the Apple Devices app if you have audiobooks in iTunes. Check the box for “Sync audiobooks onto iPhone” to add them to the Books app on your iPhone or iPad.
Sync photos
As mentioned earlier, you must turn off iCloud Photos on your iPhone or iPad to manually sync photos. Then, check the box for “Sync photos onto iPhone from” and choose media from your Pictures or other folders.
Note: You can’t delete these items in the Photos app on your iPhone or iPad. You’ll have to connect your phone to a computer to remove these synced photos.
Sync files
This feature of the Apple Devices app lets you add files to iOS apps on your iPhone or iPad. For instance, I can transfer my wedding videos from my Windows PC to the VLC or Infuse media player app on my iPhone.
- Start by downloading a supported app on your iPhone or iPad, such as VLC, Infuse, iMovie, or Documents. Then, open the app and finish its setup if necessary.
- Quit and reopen the Apple Devices app and click Files in its sidebar.
- Use the Add File button or drag an item (it can be any type of file) from a File Explore folder onto the Apple Devices screen to add it to that app on your iPhone or iPad. This file will also appear in that app’s folder inside the iOS Files app.
- You can also right-click on a file in the Devices app and delete it.
The above feature allows you to basically turn your iPhone, iPad, or iPod into a thumb drive for storing and transferring content.
See the iPhone Serial Number, IMEI, and other such details
In the Apple Devices app, click the area at the top under your iPhone or iPad name to view its Serial Number, Model Number, Product Type, UDID number, IMEI number, MEID number, phone number, capacity, and battery status.
What’s in the On My Device section of the Apple Devices app?
This section displays the music, movies, TV shows, podcasts, and audiobooks currently on the connected iPhone, iPad, or iPod.
Use several devices
You can connect more than one iPhone, iPad, or iPod to your Windows computer and manage them all simultaneously in the Apple Devices app.
Eject your iPhone or iPad from PC
Hit the small eject button next to the device name, and then you can safely unplug the connected iPhone, iPad, or iPod from your Windows PC.
What are your thoughts on using the Apple Devices app on PC?
Source link: https://www.idownloadblog.com/2025/01/03/how-to-use-apple-devices-app-on-windows-pc/
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