Version 12.5 of iCloud for Windows is now out and features a small but important upgrade. The new version adds password access and management features. These allow users to manage passwords that have been saved in the iCloud from a Windows-based machine.
The management features you will find here are pretty bare-bones which makes it similar to Apple's Chrome extension which syncs iCloud passwords. Barebones or not the new feature is a godsend for users who live primarily in the Apple ecosystem but do occasionally have to do something in the Windows ecosystem.
Prior to the addition of this new feature, you had to pull out your Apple device to look up your password and type it manually on the Windows device. Apple users now no longer need to jump through those hoops. That is highly convenient.
Here's a snippet from Apple's release notes outlining the addition:
"What's new in this version:
View and manage your saved passwords on your Windows PC with the new iCloud Passwords app
Sync your passwords across devices and PC in Edge using the iCloud Passwords Extension"
Unfortunately, this is all the app does. So if you were hoping for or expecting a more robust cross-platform password management system, you will be decidedly underwhelmed by Apple's latest. Even so, the company did deliver and give their massive user base what they had been asking for.
Kudos to Apple for making it easier and more convenient to manage iCloud passwords in the Windows ecosystem. It should help streamline and simplify the lives of those who have to spend part of each day switching back and forth between the two ecosystems. That is great news indeed.
