Highlights –

  • The app comes with instructions on how users can turn off Apple’s iMessage to get text messages on their new devices.
  • The tech giant has quietly launched the app on the App Store in some countries, including the US.

Last year, Google was in the news for developing a ‘Switch to Android’ app for iOS users. The tech giant wanted to ease the process of migrating from an iPhone to a smartphone running Google’s Android OS.

This Monday, Google unveiled the most-awaited ‘Switch to Android’ app on the App Store in some countries, including the US.

On expected lines, the app aims to make the transition between mobile platforms easier to manage by helping users import their contacts, calendar, photos, and videos to their new Android phone.

The app comes with instructions on how users can turn off Apple’s iMessage to get text messages on their new devices. The app can also help users connect with iCloud to migrate their photo and video library to Android.

The company is yet to announce the launch of the app officially. Also, Google’s ‘Switch to Android’ website, too, is yet to be updated to indicate that the new app is available.

The app is also not visible on Google’s developer page on the App Store or in App Store search results. Users can only be found after clicking the direct link.

The Switch to Android website includes all standard instructions for users to move to Android, involving users backing up their photos, video, contacts, and calendar via the Google Drive iOS app before changing devices.

Google recently made updates to its Photos app, building a way for mobile device owners to copy their photos from other cloud storage services, including Facebook, iCloud, etc. Earlier, transfers needed to be originally performed from Facebook or iCloud and not from Google’s app itself.

One drawback of Google’s new Switch to Android iOS app is that it doesn’t support migrating a users’ applications. This is because there are limitations on what the third-party apps can access on the user’s device. Apps cannot scan the user’s iPhone to extract a list of all other apps a user has installed.

The App Store description states how the new app has the ability to handle moving users’ content between devices without the use of fussy cables, meaning the two phones don’t have to be physically linked together to complete the process, as an added perk.

Google’s app has come many years after Apple’s app, which helped Android users transition to iPhone. Apple released its Move to iOS app for Android users in September 2015, making it the company’s first app on Google Play (besides those from its acquisition Beats). Similarly, the app assisted users in migrating data like Camera Roll, Messages, Google accounts, Contacts, and Bookmarks.