Apple device activation problems cause holiday disappointment
Since early Christmas morning, users report difficulties activating new devices through iCloud
Our mission to make business better is fueled by readers like you. To enjoy unlimited access to our journalism, subscribe today.
If you received an Apple device for Christmas, you may have to wait a bit longer to enjoy it. Apple says its iCloud sign-in servers have been having issues since early Christmas morning, preventing some users from activating new Apple Watch, iPhone, HomePod, and other devices.
The issue, according to Apple’s services status page, began just before 5 a.m. on Christmas and is still impacting some users. A tweet from Apple’s support team on Friday suggested that the issue, which is ongoing as of Saturday afternoon, was related to increased holiday demand for the disrupted service.
Fortune has contacted Apple for comment and will update this article with any additional information.
Christmas-related demand might be particularly high because of an unusually late-in-the-year release of the iPhone 12 caused by pandemic manufacturing delays, according to AppleInsider, which first reported the activation problem.
Dozens of users at the MacRumors forums report difficulties activating devices. Many of the issues appear to involve activating devices using Apple’s Family Sharing system, which provides parental controls. Some users did report success after repeated attempts.
More must-read tech coverage from Fortune:
- Intuit’s CEO on the $7.1 billion Credit Karma acquisition, reorienting toward A.I., and reskilling workers
- Commentary: The broken business model of Uber and Lyft is taking a heavy toll on society
- WarnerMedia Studios chief on the controversial decision to release new movies on HBO Max
- Air Force A.I. test raises concerns over killer robots
- Commentary: The web must change its business model if it wants to become truly global and multilingual