How to SWITCH from iPhone to Android – the easy guide for new models

MOVING from iPhone to Android is a big step that requires a bit of work to keep all the things you love.

It’s less hassle than you might think.

It’ll take a little while to get your head around Android if you’ve been with iOS for a while

Whether you’re jumping ship to a Samsung, Pixel, OnePlus or one of the many other Android makers, the process is pretty much the same to shift contacts, calendars and photos across.

Some phones offer a cabled approach to connect your iPhone to your new Android device, which will probably be quicker and better for apps.

With or without this, it’s still worth following these steps to make sure you don’t lose anything precious.

Back up on Google Drive

The most important step to get started is to download the Google Drive app on your iOS device.

Sign into your Google account and go to Settings, then Backup.

Here you can back up contacts, calendar events, as well as photos and videos.

Google Drive

Bear in mind it can take several hours if you have loads of stuff on your phone, so it might be a good idea to have a clear out of useless pictures and videos first.

It’s best to be connected to the internet and keep your iPhone on charge, so you can leave it to get on with the back up without any interuptions.

Also watch out with the photos – if they’re set to original full resolution quality it’ll eat into the limited free Google data quota.

To have an unlimited amount of free high-quality photos backed up instead, select the Photos & videos option and make sure High-quality (free unlimited storage) is ticked.

When you’re ready to go, tap the START BACKUP button.

Once it’s done, you should be able to download it all onto your new Android phone using the same Google account details.

Transferring apps from iPhone to Android

Pretty much all of the major apps are on both iOS and Android, so you shouldn’t have to miss out.

The bad news is, if you paid for an app on iOS you’ll probably have to pay again for it on Android.

Now, some newer smartphones offer an option to transfer apps the easiest and quickest way, which is via a cable.

For example, Samsung has a Smart Switch service which works as soon as you plug the two devices in.

Not only will it transfer all your other data, it’ll also take the hassle out of manually downloading the apps again.

Others allow you to do this through your Wi-Fi connection, so if you see the option when setting up it’s well worth going for it.

If not, you’ll have to download each app again yourself via the Google Play Store.

Transferring music from iPhone to Android

If you’re into music, the chances are you use a streaming service such as Spotify, Amazon Music or Apple Music.

Luckily this makes the jump from iPhone to Android relatively painless, as all you need to do is download and sign into whatever streaming brand you use.

All your favourites and playlists will be there ready to stream and download for offline play.

Luckily Apple Music is also available on Android, so no need to worry about having to change service provider too.

Turn off iMessage

Messages settings

One other important thing you’ll need to do before completing your move to Android is switching off iMessage on your iPhone.

This is basically to tell Apple you can no longer receive iMessages – otherwise you might miss out on something.

So on your iPhone, open Settings, go to Message and turn the toggle for iMessages off.

You should also do the same for FaceTime, so go back to Settings, find FaceTime and also switch it off.

In other news, scientists have figured out how fast a type of dinosaur could run – and it would have given Usain Bolt a run for his money.

Google has confirmed that some of its smartphones are unable to call emergency services due to a software bug.

And an iPhone update could reveal if you were scammed when getting a repair done.

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