Apple Business Essentials: Everything you Need to Know

Recently, Apple Inc. took a major step into the future and unveiled a new service called the Apple Business Essentials. You might be wondering what exactly is Apple Business Essentials and why it might be game-changing. So let’s dive straight into it and explore what cool new features Apple has in store for us.

This new service combines a host of new services that are targeted at small and midsize businesses and provides a user and Apple device-friendly smart management tool. Its target users are companies that have up to 500 employees.

Even though Apple Business Essentials is set to officially release in the spring of 2022 you can still access the Beta version. Some of the tools available within the suite are Apple Care, iCloud, 24/7 Apple support, application, and device management tools, and the option of creating Smart Groups.

Initially, Apple Business Essentials will only be available in the US and later the software will be rolled out to other countries. Regarding the Apple Business Essential costs, reports indicate that it would range from $2.99 a month/user to $12.99 a month per user. The cost would depend on the storage space required and the number of devices used.

The good news is that the Beta version of the Apple Business Essential can be downloaded for free from the official website. Once the Beta program is over, testing is complete, the Apple Business Essential cost will be $2.99 per user per month for a single device with 50GB storage. For three devices with 50GB of data storage, the cost will go up to $12.99 per user per month.

Please note that the Apple Business Essential cost mentioned above does not include Applecare and you will have to pay extra for the service.

Apple has also introduced a new Apple Business Essentials App that can be used by the users to request support and to assign tasks to team members. Apple has also promised an easy setup process, security, timely updates, and 24/7 on-call tech support.

As remote working has become the new normal, Apple has also included a feature that will help employees working remotely to get access to Apple Support. There is also the option of sending tech support to the location of a user/team member if they have run into a problem and will help SMB’s to outsource at least some of their tech support services.

Apart from being able to function as standalone software, Apple Business Essentials can also be integrated with existing MDM solutions that a company might be using. The idea is to give more flexibility to users about how they want to access their files and projects, be it through a computer or a mobile device.

Another great feature is that Apple has also launched the iCloud for enterprise which will provide a dedicated iCloud account for the suite and will work exactly like iCloud for other Apple devices. The data will be automatically stored and backed up and this will make switching between different devices fairly simple.

Employees will be given the option of opening multiple accounts which will make storing personal and work files separately fairly easy.

Businesses that choose to sign up for AppleCare+ for Business Essentials will get a host of additional features like 24/7 tech support, training of employees, etc. under the plan, two device repairs will also be covered for a period of one year.

Now that we have explained all the features and costs of Apple Business Essentials, let’s take a quick look at how it is to use the new offering from Apple.

The UI features clear lines, a clean design, and a column-based user interface with icons that disappear when not in use. Collections in the app are designed in such a way that makes it easy to create, distribute tasks between different team members.

The ‘settings’ section will also be very useful to users and can be used to tinker with settings password policy management, Energy saver settings, and device management.

As Apple Business Essentials has been designed to support up to a 500-member company, the energy-saving feature of the suite could become very handy and will help companies to save costs.

Even though there are a host of other services that might boast of the same features as Apple Business Essentials, this new development will especially help users and enterprises that are already heavily vested in the Apple Ecosystem.