Apple releases Move to iOS app for Android

Apple has made no secret of wanting to convert as many Android users as possible over to the iOS platform. Toward that end, the company has released an Android app called Move to iOS that is designed to make it easy for Android users to switch to iOS.

I have to give Apple credit for doing this, it’s a rather bold gesture. But it’s also a good thing for the Android users who really are considering a move over to iOS. Apple has gone out of its way to make it easy for Android users to switch to the iPhone, iPad or iPod touch.

How Apple’s Move to iOS Android app works

When a user wants to switch to a new platform, there’s a whole bunch of stuff that has to be moved over to the new platform. In the Move to iOS app for Android, Apple has made it easy to transfer the following things:

Contacts

Message history

Camera photos and videos

Web bookmarks

Mail accounts

Calendars

And here’s some additional information from the official Move to iOS description about how the app works:

When you choose to migrate your data, your new iPhone or iPad will create a private Wi-Fi network and find your nearby Android device running Move to iOS. After you enter a security code, it will begin transferring your content and put it in the right places. Just like that. Once your content has been transferred, you’re ready to get going. iOS will also set up your default mail account. That’s it — you can start using your new iPhone or iPad and experiencing its endless possibilities. Enjoy.

Move to iOS is supported on all phones and tablets running Android 4.0 and later.

More at Move to iOS in Google Play

Apple seems to have made it about as simple as possible for Android users to make the jump over to iOS. Pretty much everything that a user would need to transfer is done automatically by the Move to iOS app in Android. This will no doubt be a huge help for Android users who have decided to buy their first iPhone, iPad or iPod touch.

Android users react to the Move to iOS app

The release of the Move to iOS app for Android caught the attention of some Android redditors, and they weren’t shy about sharing their thoughts about it:

Doctor_McKay: ”And yet mentioning “Android” or “Google” in your Apple app store descriptions will get you a warning that your app might not be approved.”

Frost_biten: ”I like the one guy who gave a review saying “this app is not material design”, I will eat my shoe if Apple ever makes an app that’s material”

RouseHouse1013: ”Do all the people installing it and then rating a 1-star know they are still counting towards the downloads? I can just see Apple saying “Look at how many people downloaded this app and want to switch!””

Punti: ”I think I get it now…The deal was Apple lets Android Wear App in the Apple Appstore and Google will allow the move to iOS app on the playstore.”

Novapikmin: ”LMAO that it doesn’t use the native GUI.”

NewToBikes: ”Are you surprised? It follows Apple’s guidelines, just like Google’s apps on iOS follow Google’s Material Design guidelines.”

JacksonCoulter: ”Really disappointed in the reviews.

Everyone is just posting 1 star reviews who clearly aren’t using the app just because they don’t like iOS. The fact of the matter is both platforms have their pro’s and con’s and having an application that makes it easy to migrate from one to another is a great idea.”

Night_day_man: ”Pretty cool to see an Apple Inc. app in the play store.”

MaxDPS: ”Good app to have for those people switching over to iOS, that app icon is ugly though. ”

More at Reddit

Well it’s clear that Apple has…er…gotten the attention of many Android users if we go by the comments posted in the Reddit thread and those posted on the Move to iOS app page in the Google Play store. They certainly aren’t pulling any punches in making their feelings known. 

It’s not surprising that some Android users are taking a negative view, I’m sure there are some iOS users who have done the same thing with some of Google’s apps that are in the iOS app store. People do tend to get rather partisan in these kinds of situations.

Kudos to Apple for the Move to iOS app for Android

While some Android users might resent seeing the Move to iOS app in the Google Play store, I think it will certainly be welcome by the Android users who are curious about iOS and who might want to switch over to it. And I bet that Google will release a similar app for iOS users if it hasn’t already done so.

Personally, I don’t think it’s a bad thing for either company to assist users who want to switch platforms. Sometimes people change their minds, so it’s a good idea to make them feel welcome on the new platform by making it easy to switch by making data migration a piece of cake.

So kudos to Apple for the Move to iOS app for Android. It will no doubt be a big help for some of the Android folks out there who want to make the jump over to the iPhone, iPad or iPod touch.

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