Prologue

Let me start off by saying, I like Apple. They pioneered USB, which started off as keyboards and mice to their recently invented iMac. They also were first to produce a successful music player, the iPod. Likewise, there were “smart phones” on the market, such as Blackberries and Palm Pre, but they were not widely popular until the iPhone came along. While they have innovated major technologies and set the standard, I am no fan-boy. I like trying what the competition is offering, or how they do it, which is why I have a different car make every time I get a new car.

Goal

My old phone was an iPhone 4S, and I purchased a Samsung Galaxy 4S. My ultimate goal was to make the transition from the iOS operating system to the Android platform.

The major differences

As any iOS user knows, Apple uses their own service, called the iCloud. Obviously is this designed for their products. Google, likewise, uses “Google Play” for their store and other services. This really means that any purchases will not transfer generally, and products need to be re-ordered if necessary. I did not make any purchases on my iCloud account, so for me, the monetary impact is minimal. However, if you are heavily invested into iOS apps, this may or may not be a worthwhile investment for you, and it is a decision you have to make. Keep in mind, that as long as you have control over your iCloud or Google Play account, any purchases are good for the life of the service.

Since iOS uses the iCloud to store their data, we will need to get it converted into Google’s system. In the next post I will be covering the steps I took to migrate my information over.

I recently changed phones from an iPhone 4S to a Samsung Galaxy S4. I will be posting my impressions of the migration process, purely in terms of how I migrated from the iCloud to the new service. Please check back later for more!