Tag Archives: iTunes

Tip: How to download apps again after changing the region of your Apple ID (for free)

iOS Development, ,

Apple IDs are associated with a country, usually the one you’re living in. But many of us have changed an Apple ID’s region at some point, and there are a few things to be aware of when you do this.

First of all, an app bought when it was set to region 1 cannot be downloaded in region 2 by default. So if you have a UK Apple ID, purchase Angry Birds, then change your Apple ID to US and look under purchased items, Angry Birds will not show up.

That by itself isn’t a big problem, because the app can still be updated when new versions arrive, and it will also be backed up to iCloud. But should you try to restore your device, you’ll find that only purchases made in your current region will make it onto your device. And that IS a problem!

So the solution is to purchase all apps that are dear to you again AFTER the region change, so that restores can work flawlessly. The great news is that when I say “buy”, it looks more expensive than it is – because it won’t cost you a dime.

Here’s an example

Let me demonstrate. In this example I’ve changed my Apple ID from UK to US. I had previously purchased Pages for iOS in the UK, and I’m looking at it now on the App Store app. Apparently it’ll set me back $9.99.

Before the region change, the price button simply read “open”. Or, if the app is currently not installed on my device, that same button would have a little cloud icon, telling me that I could simply download it for free. But now that I’ve changed to a new region, it looks as though I have to pay again. Lucky for us that’s not the case!

Upgrade1

Go ahead and press the $9.99 button anyway, and the system is clever enough to detect that you’ve already bought that item – albeit in another region. It doesn’t exactly tell you this, but it will say that “this update is free because you own a previous version of this item”.

Upgrade2

Hit OK to proceed. Doing so will download and install the app and register it again on your current Apple ID’s new region.

That’s it: now you own this item in both regions, but you’ve only paid for it once. Even though it’s not obvious, it’s certainly nice to know that we don’t have to for over money multiple times – especially with pricier apps. Thank you App Store 🙂

Does this trick also work with In-App Purchases?

Pass I’m afraid – I haven’t encountered this scenario yet. I’ll let you know as soon as I do. If you find out before me, please leave a comment and share your findings.

How to enable iTunes File Sharing in your iOS App

iOS Development,

You can enable iTunes File Sharing in two ways, both resulting in the same outcome: the UIFileSharingEnabled key will be set to YES.

Either open your app’s Info.plist file (by default it’s inside the Supporting Files folder in Xcode, as something like YourApp-Info.plist). Then hover over any of the items under Information Property List until you see a small plus icon and click it to add a row. Type UIFileSharingEnabled, then set the left box to YES.

The key will turn into Application supports iTunes file sharing:

Screen Shot 2014-01-11 at 17.37.06

Alternatively, head to your app’s target and select the Info category. Under Custom iOS Target Properties you’ll find the same list populated with human readable keys. Again hover over any of the cells until a plus icon appears, then click it to add a new row. Now use the drop down arrows to pick the option Application supports iTunes file sharing, and set its value to YES.

Now when you connect your device to iTunes you’ll be able to see your app in the file sharing option (under Your Device – Apps):

Screen Shot 2014-01-11 at 17.34.48

Note that your entire app’s Documents folder will be shared when you do this, including all folders you create in it. If you have data that you do not want your users to see you need to store them outside the Documents folder using software like Xender for PC, or start those file names with a “full stop” (such as .testfile). This will hide the file and hence it won’t show up in iTunes.