Received a brand new cellphone? Here is methods to swap like a professional

Did you unwrap a new cellphone? It may possibly actually be thrilling, however switching telephones could be annoying, too. You need to again every little thing up and bear in mind your whole account logins. In case you’re having a tough time, we’re right here to assist. Our Android Authority reviewers have develop into execs at switching between units each few weeks with out a lot of a headache. Right here’s how we do it.

By the way in which. Are you seeking to get much more out of your cellphone? Don’t neglect to take a look at our roundup of the finest cellphone equipment you may get!

Editor’s observe: We used a Google Pixel 7 working Android 14 to develop directions on this information. Keep in mind that some menus and settings would possibly differ relying in your system and software program model.

Issues to do earlier than switching telephones

1. Earlier than switching telephones, you could make sure you’ve backed up your essential knowledge, contacts, images, and information. Subsequent, we’ll run by way of how you are able to do that quick to make sure you can switch cellphone knowledge rapidly. We’ve got a wholly separate information devoted to backing up your Android cellphone for safety, whereas this text focuses on backups and preparation for switching telephones and transferring knowledge.
2. You’ll additionally wish to guarantee your previous and new telephones are totally charged and able to go with out important interruptions. Some producers will embrace dongles or cables that will help you transition from the previous system to the brand new. If that’s the case, that’s nice, nevertheless it’s not all the time anticipated, and many individuals are switching to used telephones with out dongles and proprietary cables.
3. Do it on Wi-Fi. With a lot of downloads and uploads about to occur, you’ll wish to be on Wi-Fi, not your provider or community knowledge, if potential. Have your Wi-Fi password readily available to your new cellphone!
4. Are you switching from iPhone to Android? This information isn’t actually for you, however you may try our rundown of methods to swap from iPhone to Android.
5. Tip earlier than we begin: Don’t wipe for so long as you may: In case you can, don’t wipe your previous cellphone for so long as potential. You may by no means completely ensure if there’s some purpose you’ll want to hearth up the previous cellphone yet one more time. For instance, some banking apps like to permit single units and don’t let new units develop into licensed till the previous system has been manually unpaired. It’s an odd world in apps generally, and preserving your previous cellphone for every week or two no less than would possibly prevent some hassle, like ready on maintain to get customer support to assist. It’s a worst-case situation, nevertheless it’s occurred to us!

We extremely suggest utilizing some free Google apps to organize for a backup for those who haven’t already. Google additionally makes it extraordinarily simple to again up your photos, movies, and different information utilizing Pictures and Drive. Google One can be constructed into Android and might backup a lot of the stuff in your cellphone with a single faucet. In case you’re searching for different choices, we preserve an up to date record of the finest backup apps.

Google Drive is nice as a result of it permits you to add information out of your cellphone and entry them from nearly every other system. Utilizing the app, it can save you any essential paperwork to the cloud and pull them again right down to a brand new smartphone after you’ve signed in together with your Google account.

With Google Pictures, you may select to again up each picture and video discovered in your cellphone to the cloud. Simply remember Google Pictures isn’t actually free. All of your images and movies will depend towards your Google cloud space for storing. Everybody will get 15GB totally free. If this isn’t sufficient, you may join Google One and pay for extra space.

One useful function for extra complicated apps with important data is their very own backups. For instance, for those who ship messages by way of WhatsApp, you may go into its settings and have the app save your chat information to a Google Drive account, making certain you don’t lose a message. Sign affords the identical, whereas Telegram shops your chats within the cloud in order that it’s accessible when you log in in your new system.

You is perhaps stunned what number of apps supply a majority of these companies, however you’ll need to double-check each which may have your most essential information, particularly when you’ve got paperwork or a particular picture or vault app.

Android’s built-in backup choice

During the last couple of years, Google has perfected Android’s backup and restore function and made it simple to modify telephones. So long as the choice is enabled, your cellphone ought to deal with saving your app knowledge, name historical past, contacts, system settings, and even SMS textual content messages to your Google Drive account.

Methods to allow Backup by Google One:

1. Launch the Settings app.
2. Go into Google.
3. Choose Backup.
4. Toggle Backup by Google One on.
5. You can too select to Again up now.

By going this route, whenever you enter the setup course of on a brand new Android cellphone, Google ought to give you the choice to revive all this knowledge from the cloud. Simply choose the most recent backup, and the handset will deal with the work to repeat knowledge throughout.

One essential tip: You may’t restore a backup from a more moderen Android model onto a cellphone working an older Android model. The method assumes you’re always upgrading.

Switch issues manually

In fact, you may as well switch information manually for those who favor. Join each smartphones utilizing a cable.

Methods to switch information between two Android telephones:

1. Plug your previous cellphone into your laptop.
2. In your previous cellphone, slide down from the highest to drag out the notification space.
3. Choose the part that reads Charging this system through USB.
4. Faucet on File Switch/Android Auto.
5. In your laptop, go to This PC and discover your previous system. Go into it.
6. Now you can copy/paste any file you need. Copy them and paste them right into a folder in your laptop.
7. Unplug the previous cellphone and plug the brand new one into your PC.
8. In your new cellphone, slide down from the highest to drag out the notification space.
9. Choose the part that reads Charging this system through USB.
10. Faucet on File Switch/Android Auto.
11. Transfer to your laptop, copy the information, and paste them into your new system.

ADB backup

One of many lesser-known backup strategies is really useful just for energy customers and builders utilizing Google’s Android debug bridge (ADB) instrument. You may again up a lot of the knowledge in your cellphone and your put in purposes. The backup file is even saved to your laptop to be accessed at any time or restored onto any Android system. That offers you extra management over your backup choices and allows you to set up the identical file on a number of telephones directly.

As this course of includes utilizing Google’s developer instruments, we warning you solely to make use of this selection when you’ve got prior ADB expertise or are okay going slowly and cautiously in your journey.

You’ll have to obtain and arrange the Android SDK in your laptop to get began. First, allow developer choices and USB debugging in your smartphone. Then, join it to your laptop and ensure ADB works appropriately.

There, kind in and run adb backup -apk -shared -all -f <filepath>/backup.ab within the Terminal or Command Immediate. From there, a window ought to seem in your Android system. Right here, you may password-protect the backup file and provoke the method.

Guarantee your smartphone’s show doesn’t sleep throughout the backup course of. It’ll cease working and received’t save your system’s knowledge.

When your new system is ready up and plugged into your laptop, run the adb restore <filepath>/backup.ab command. An identical window will pop up in your cellphone, asking if you wish to restore the backed-up knowledge. After a number of minutes, it is best to see a tough copy of your previous system in your new one.

Sadly, ADB backups aren’t excellent. Some take a path to have a backup file sitting on an area laptop as an alternative of the cloud. Sadly, it doesn’t essentially seize every little thing.

Shifting apps is fairly simple, with a number of choices out there.

Restoring from earlier backups

In case you’ve efficiently backed up your system, step one is to let Android entry your backups. This contains the record of apps you had put in in your final cellphone. Your new Android cellphone will mechanically set up all out there apps from the Google Play Retailer once more. Sadly, some apps will bear in mind you, however some will want you to log in once more. That’s right down to developer decisions; it’s not your fault!

Go to your Google Play Retailer library

Chances are you’ll not wish to replicate all of your apps when switching telephones. It’s usually a good suggestion to skip that choice and begin with a clear cellphone. You could possibly rapidly entry your beforehand put in apps, although.

Methods to set up beforehand downloaded apps from the Google Play Retailer:

1. Launch the Google Play Retailer.
2. Faucet in your Profile icon.
3. Hit Handle apps & system.
4. Choose the Handle tab.
5. Faucet on the drop-down menu that reads Put in.
6. Decide Not put in.
7. You will note all of your beforehand downloaded apps. Choose those you wish to set up.
8. Hit the Obtain button.

This can record each app you’ve put in on any system related together with your account. This can be a protracted record of forgotten purposes with a lot of choices to make as you go. It could be quicker to do the identical factor simply from a PC on the net, or slower relying on what number of clicks are concerned.

Probably the most outstanding ache factors when switching between units is logging again into every app. Some builders have carried out the flexibility to log in utilizing your Google account (or different social media accounts). Nevertheless, many require usernames and passwords that you simply’ll have to recollect.

The simplest and most safe method to breeze by way of this course of is to make use of a password supervisor like LastPass or 1Password. Not solely do these companies can help you generate extremely complicated passwords and preserve them safe, however these apps can even rapidly paste in your credentials, so that you don’t want to recollect them. Sadly, not each app implements the auto-fill API. So that you’ll finally have to repeat your password immediately from the password supervisor.

In case you’re searching for probably the most simple method to save your passwords, Google Password Supervisor works amazingly, too. It’s deeply built-in into Android and works like a appeal for creating and storing credentials.

On prime of this, varied apps can authenticate Two-factor Authentication (2FA) logins. We strongly suggest securing each potential account with some type of 2FA. Nevertheless, it’s a must to be additional cautious when switching telephones. Being locked out of even only one 2FA safe login goes to be painful, as a minimum.

The excellent news is, lastly, well-liked 2FA apps like Google Authenticator lastly do provide the choice of backing up 2FA to switch to a different system. The likes of Authy and LastPass have performed this for some time, too.

In case your Android cellphone is rooted, the incredible Titanium Backup instrument could make an nearly excellent copy of your whole smartphone. In fact, it helps you to reinstall each app you had in your previous handset. It additionally makes an attempt to recollect your in-app preferences and might generally even preserve you logged in.

In fact, not many individuals root their units. Fortunately, all the above options make for an nearly seamless backup and restore expertise. So that you shouldn’t have to fret about leaping by way of hoops to make Titanium backup work.

You may obtain Titanium Backup straight from the Google Play Retailer.

How do you backup and restore your cellphone? Tell us for those who’ve noticed any helpful new apps or methods as Android matures and evolves.