Google's Switch to Android App Now Rolling Out in the Apple App Store
Google's Switch to Android App Now Rolling Out in the Apple App Store
In an effort to lure iPhone users away, Google is rolling out its Switch to Android app in the Apple App store.
The app helps users more easily migrate data -- think photos, videos and contacts -- from an iPhone to Google's Pixel phones, without the need for a cable when making the switch. Google will add support for other phone brands later.
The app, first spotted last week by TechCrunch, also lets users turn off iMessage so they can continue to get texts sent by iOS devices as standard text messages. For non-Pixel users making the switch, other ways to transfer iMessages to Android are available. (Note: Your message bubbles will change to green rather than iMessage's blue, which can elicit strong responses from some people.)
The Switch to Android website says you can use a cable for transfers, which adds support for DRM-free music, audio, wallpapers, alarms, call logs, device settings and free apps.
By the end of the day, 10% of App Store users should have access to the Move to Android app, according to TechCrunch, which cited Google. The search giant expects the app will be available to all Apple users over the next few weeks.
In an email to CNET, Google confirmed the numbers above and data transfer support for photos, videos, contacts and calendar events. It said that updates over the next several months would include more data types, although it didn't confirm what those were.
Screenshots of an iPhone running Google's Move to Android app.
Apple
The app comes more than six years after Apple released its Move to iOS app in the Google Play Store. In the past, people switching had to back up all content to the Google Drive iOS app. The Switch to Android app streamlines the process, according to Google.
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