All The Reasons People Are Ditching Android And Switching To IPhones

Apple's first-generation iPhone started a revolution 10 years ago today. It seems like just yesterday that late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs walked out on stage at the Macworld conference in January 2007 and put an end to years of rumors and speculation. More importantly, Apple put an end to overcomplicated smartphones like Symbian phones and BlackBerry handsets, shifting the industry toward a much more intuitive user experience. Smartphones were once a necessary evil that professionals had to endure. Today, smartphones are the center of our digital lives and most people can't imagine spending even a moment without one.

Of course Apple isn't the only company that enjoyed success as a result of the iPhone's introduction. Google, which had been developing Android as a BlackBerry clone, completely changed the direction of the platform ahead of launch thanks to the iPhone. Samsung grew to become the top handset maker in the world thanks in large part to copying Apple's iPhone. But there's still only one original, and Apple's iPhone continues to draw users away from rival platforms to this day.

With a combined global user base currently in the billions, Google's Android platform and Apple's iOS platform see plenty of switchers flow between platforms. Some people ditch Android and switch to iOS, others ditch iOS and switch to Android, and plenty of people move from one platform to the other and then switch back. Today, however, a big discussion over on Reddit draws focus to the flow of users in one particular direction: From Android to the iPhone.

Reddit user "Chondrule" received an iPhone 7 Plus as a gift during the holidays, but he had been an Android user since his first smartphone. As he tried to decide whether or not to dump his Android phone and make the leap to iOS, he took to the Apple subreddit and asked former Android users to explain what made them jump ship and switch to an iPhone.

Ironically, the user ultimately decided that he was going to stick with Android and not switch to the new iPhone 7 Plus he was gifted. But the Reddit thread he started had nearly 500 comments at the time of this writing, and it gives a terrific insight into the many reasons people have decided to switch from Android devices to the iPhone.

Not surprisingly, platform updates are a huge draw for iOS and the iPhone, and many people listed this as the main reason for leaving Android behind. Because Apple controls both the hardware and software experiences on the iPhone, and because the company used its early momentum to force carriers' hands, Apple is able to push out software updates to all of its smartphones at once. Meanwhile, Android users have to wait several months — at least — before new versions of Android are available for their handsets.

Many people also noted that Apple supports its older iPhone models for much longer than Android vendors, which means they continue to receive software updates even years after their initial release.

Another top reason listed in the thread is customer support; Apple is famous for industry leading customer service, offering post-sale support that no other company can match. Other popular reasons mentioned on Reddit include a general degradation of the Android user experience over time, battery life, and service lock-in thanks to features like iMessage and Continuity.

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You Can Finally Transfer Your WhatsApp Chats Between IPhone And Android [Updated]

In the past, switching from iPhone to Android (or vice versa) meant losing your in-app WhatsApp conversations. But now, both Android 12 devices as well as iPhones can transfer WhatsApp messages between operating systems. Whether you're looking to switch from iPhone to Android or Android to iPhone, your WhatsApp messages can make the switch, too.

Samsung Galaxy phones were the first to allow for this type of transfer: Soon after, WhatsApp opened up transfers to Google Pixels, then to devices running Android 12. While those of us switching to iPhone had to use workarounds rather than an official method, Mark Zuckerberg recently announced that the app supports moving chat histories from Android to iOS. Now, thankfully, it doesn't matter what type of phone you switch to: You won't need to lose your WhatsApp chats.

How to transfer WhatsApp messages from iPhone to Android

To start, you'll need a Lightning to USB-C cable. Make sure you're running the latest version of both your operating system and WhatsApp, then connect the two phones with the cable. As you go through the setup process, you'll get a prompt about transferring WhatsApp chats with a QR code.

Scan the QR code with your iPhone, and your devices will take care of the rest. All of your conversations and media will transfer over so you can access them from your new Android phone.

You can also try opening WhatsApp on your iPhone after connecting the two phones. Go into the app's settings, tap "Chats," then tap "Move Chats to Android." As with the other process, your phones will take care of it from there.

How to transfer WhatsApp messages from Android to iPhone

It's relatively easy to move messages from iPhone to Android. But, for some reason, it's a bit more complicated going the other way around. First of all, you'll need to be running at least Android 5 on your Android device, and iOS 15.5 on your iPhone to start. Your Android device will need the Move to iOS app, which you can download from this link, and your iPhone will need to be brand new or factory reset before the transfer. You'll need to be running WhatsApp version 2.22.7.74 on Android, and version 2.22.10.70 on iOS, with both devices plugged into power and connected to the same wifi network (or your iPhone's hotspot).

With all that squared away, open the Move to iOS app on your Android, and follow the instructions that appear. You'll see a code appear on your iPhone, which you should then enter on your Android. Tap Continue: On the Transfer Data page, choose "WhatsApp," then choose "START," then give WhatsApp time to prepare your chat history. Once it's done, WhatsApp will automatically log out of the Android app. Now, tap "NEXT" to head back to the Move to iOS app, then choose "CONTINUE" to move your data to your iPhone.

Now, make sure you have the latest version of WhatsApp installed on your iPhone: Open the app, then log in with the phone number tied to the account from your Android. Tap "Start." After the process wraps up, you should see all messages appear on your iPhone. Just know you can't transfer your call history or display name.

Before WhatsApp announced this change, we had to rely on unofficial methods to move chats from Android to iPhone. One of those ways is through the Dr.Fone tool. This is a free, third-party app for restoring chats and transferring data between devices. After downloading and installing it, plug both your iPhone and Android phones into your computer.

Open Dr.Fone and click "Restore social app." Click "WhatsApp," then "Transfer WhatsApp messages," and the app should show both your phones on the screen. When you click "Transfer," the app will start moving the data, and you can track the progress on your screen.

Once the transfer process is done, click "OK" and disconnect your phones. You should now have your WhatsApp messages up and running on your iPhone.

How to sync WhatsApp chats between phones

If you want to keep using both phones, there's an answer for that, too. The WhatsApp web app syncs between your phone and computer, which you can use to your advantage. Keep in mind this is a workaround, not an official method, so it may not work perfectly.

Start by opening the WhatsApp web client in Safari on an iPhone that doesn't have WhatsApp installed. Tap the "Aa" button, then "Request Desktop Website," and a QR code will pop up.

On your Android phone, open your WhatsApp settings and go to "Linked Devices." Tap "Multi-Device Beta," then "Join Beta." After that, go back to the Devices page and tap "Link a Device." This will open a QR scanner, which you can use to scan the code on your other phone.

After, you can use WhatsApp on both phones simultaneously. Since you're using the desktop version of the web client on one phone, the experience won't be perfect, but it'll be functional.

This post was originally published in November 2021 and updated on June 14, 2022 with more up-to-ate information about transferring messages between devices.

How To Use Your Android Phone Or IPhone As A Webcam

Smartphones can take on the roles of many other gadgets—cameras, calculators, e-readers, dictaphones, and all the rest—and they can also do double duty as webcams. In fact, this functionality is now built into both Android and iOS, so it's easier than ever to use a phone as a webcam when it's connected to your computer.

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You might want to do this for a few reasons, not least because you might not already have a webcam hooked up to your computer. Or perhaps you do, but the quality isn't very good—certainly not up to the quality that the rear cameras on your smartphone of choice can offer.

Here, we'll cover what you can do out of the box with the latest versions of Android and iOS and what else you can do with the help of a third-party app or two.

Using an Android phone as a webcam

If you want to use the functionality built into Android to turn your phone into a webcam, you need to run Android 14 or later. If that's what you've got, and you have a spare USB cable handy, all you need to do is connect your phone to a computer running Windows or macOS, and you're almost ready to go.

Swipe down from the top of the screen on your phone, and you'll see a notification saying that it's charging over USB. Tap on the notification to get a selection of connection options (for tethering, file transfer, and so on). One of those should be Webcam, so select that to turn your phone into a camera your computer can use.

Android 14 offers a webcam connection option.Screenshot: Android

Yet another notification will then pop up—tap on this to configure your phone in webcam mode. You're able to choose whether you use the rear or forward-facing cameras, for example, and switch between different camera modes (such as ultrawide) if they're available on your handset. You can also see a preview of the webcam output.

All being well, every application on Windows or macOS that can utilize a webcam will now recognize your Android phone as one. If you want to test this out, launch the Camera app on Windows or the FaceTime app on macOS to make sure everything is working—note that your phone will show that the camera is being accessed when the webcam is live.

Using an iPhone as a webcam

If you're using an iPhone, you might not be shocked to find out that you can only use it as a webcam with macOS without resorting to third-party apps. It's a feature called Continuity Camera, and you need to be running iOS 16 or later on your phone and macOS 13 Ventura or later on your Mac.

Make sure both phone and computer are logged into the same Apple ID and that both have Wi-Fi and Bluetooth enabled. Apple recommends that you attach your iPhone to a mount to keep it stable, but it's not essential. The feature will work wirelessly, but you can attach your iPhone to your Mac with a cable if you prefer.

The on-screen message when an iPhone is connected to a webcam.Screenshot: iOS

Get everything set up as we've explained above, and Continuity Camera is enabled automatically—you don't need to do anything else for your iPhone to appear as a webcam option in your macOS applications. With FaceTime, for example, open the Video menu, and your iPhone should show up on the list.

While your iPhone is being used as a webcam, you'll see a message on its display to this effect, together with options to Pause or Disconnect the link. You'll also have the option to pause the webcam feed from your Mac if a call comes in on your iPhone. Note that Wi-Fi is disabled on your iPhone if you're using it wirelessly as a webcam—use a cable if you'd like to keep Wi-Fi enabled on the handset.

Using third-party tools instead

If the built-in webcam options don't meet your needs—or you don't have Android 14—then several third-party tools are around to do the job for you. One of the best for Android is Camo, which works with both Windows and macOS, comes with a bunch of options and filters and is controlled via an intuitive dashboard on your computer desktop.

Then there's DroidCam, which has been around for years—so you know you can rely on it. Again, you've got wired and wireless options for connecting and plenty of settings to play around with, though it'll only work on Windows (so it's not an option for Macs). One of the extras you get with this app is the ability to access the webcam feed over the web. You can also get DroidCam for iOS.

DroidCam gives you the option of connecting via an IP address.Screenshot: DroidCam

If you're using an iPhone, one of the best third-party apps we've come across is EpocCam. It's really simple to use, it'll work wirelessly or over a USB cable, and it works with Windows and macOS too. The app also brings with it a number of useful features and filters it, including a background blur option if you'd rather your untidy home didn't appear on your video feed.

Another option is iVCam, though it can only connect your iPhone up to Windows computers, so it doesn't cover Macs. The options here cover video feeds and still image capture, and you can adjust the webcam video in various ways. You can also run multiple feeds (utilizing different cameras, for example) from the same phone.

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