Category Archives: News

Acer Aspire Vero National Geographic Edition Available in Malaysia

April 26, 2022 Nur Jeevan Leave a comment

Acer’s Aspire Vero laptop was announced last year. The new laptop is the first in a line of products built on the company’s Earthion (Earth + Mission) platform. With their new platform, the company is looking to lessen and reverse the environmental impact of technology on the environment.

The Aspire Vero spearheads their new effort with the company using a substantial amount of recycled and repurposed materials. In fact, Acer was one of the first companies to openly share that they are using up to 50% post-consumer recycled (PCR) plastics in components like keycaps and the body of the Aspire Vero.

Of course, using these materials was only the beginning. Extending the reach of their Earthion, Acer has partnered with the National Geographic Society. In their partnership, the Acer Aspire Vero was given a special design with signature National Geographic accents. The Aspire Vero National Geographic Edition comes in a brighter white with the signature National Geographic yellow square. This new edition of the Aspire Vero is now available for pre-order in Malaysia. It will be priced at MYR4,299. Acer Malaysia will be channelling MYR100 from every purchase of the laptop to fund tree adoption. This comes in addition to the percentage being channelled to through the National Geographic Society to fund conservation efforts the world over.

In addition to this, Acer Malaysia is making available a trade-in programme in which you will be able to get up to MYR500 for your older devices. The programme is open to all working and non-functioning tablets, laptops, desktops and All-in-One desktops. Of course, like other programmes out there, the items will be evaluated and priced after which you will be entitled to up to an MYR500 cash rebate.

The Acer Aspire Vero National Geographic Edition isn’t an underpowered laptop pushing a premium cause of its conservation efforts. It actually comes with the specifications that allow it to be a productivity tool for everyone. It’s equipped with an 11th Generation Intel Core i7 with Intel Xe Graphics. It also jas 16GB of RAM and 1TB of PCIe NVMe SSD. The Aspire Vero is also equipped with a full array of ports including an HDMI, 2 USB-A, a USB-C, a 3.5mm combo audio jack and even an ethernet port. It’s relatively lightweight coming in at only 1.8kg and has a 2-year local warranty with an international traveller’s warranty for the first year.

In addition to the announcement of the National Geographic Edition, Acer Malaysia also announced new pricing for the regular Acer Aspire Vero. It is now available for MYR3,699 for the i7 version and MYR2,999 for the i5 version.

Business, Lifestyle, News, Social Media

Elon Musk is Acquiring Twitter for US$ 44 Billion -What is Happening?

April 26, 2022 Darwin Sucipto Leave a comment

Being rich has a lot of perks. One of them, as the richest man on earth, Elon Musk shows, is simply acquiring companies. His most prominent acquisition so far, that just went through anyway, is Twitter at US$ 44 Billion (MYR 191.333 billion*).

Of course, while this is our first report on Elon Musk’s bid to acquiring Twitter, it is not something that has gone quiet. Elon Musk bought over some Twitter shares a few weeks back and has been bidding to acquire the platform entirely ever since. Why? We do not know.

A few weeks back, with his acquisition of Twitter shares, he also promised that Twitter will soon have an ‘edit post’ button. The ‘edit’ button is something Twitter sorely lacks since its inception. While we would appreciate an ‘edit’ function, we have sort of lived with it. An ‘edit’ button will be nice though.

The acquisition that just went through not too long ago today has more questions surrounding it than answers too. One thing that has already been known with the acquisition is that the current CEO, Parag Agrawal will be leaving the company, though there are no mentions of when that will happen. We also know that Elon Musk is big on “free speech within the bounds of the law”, which is still rather vague but could mean less regulations from Twitter’s end. Elon also says that he wants to make Twitter better with new features and open sourcing the algorithms within Twitter.

What does this mean for Twitter?

Nobody knows, really. When the deal went through, there were plenty of speculations on organisational restructuring. Employees at Twitter are still nervous about their jobs or even compensations if they suddenly become unemployed. So far, there are no mentions on a major restructuring in Twitter yet.

In terms of the Twitter platform itself, you could be seeing the return of multiple names that was banned by Twitter for political correctness and other reasons. We said ‘could’, not ‘will’, so even we are taking that with a pinch of salt for now. Still, in favour of Elon Musk’s “free speech” commitment, we are expecting looser regulations from Twitter and less intervention from the platform in plenty of topics, “fake news” included.

Of course, such high-profile acquisition will attract the attention of Wall Street. That led to a 5% spike of Twitter’s share prices before Wall Street had to stop the trade of Twitter’s stocks. Elon Musk is known to turn many things into gold, and we believe that Twitter’s stocks will continue to increase in value at least for the time being.

The current CEO of Twitter says that there are no planned changes at this time, at least before he leaves. He added though that he is unsure about changers in the future ones the deal closes later this year. The deal is expected to take another six months before Elon fully takes control of Twitter. At least for the next six months, there should not be much in terms of change within and on Twitter as a platform.

*Approximately based on exchange rate of US$ 1 = MYR 4.35 as of 26/04/2022 on xe.com

iOS, Lifestyle, Mobile, News

Apple is Cracking Down on Outdated Apps from App Store!

April 25, 2022 Darwin Sucipto Leave a comment

Quite recently Google has updated their Play Store policy and practices to start removing apps that has been sitting idle without updates. When they say remove though, it will still sit in the database, but will not appear to users while users who are already using the app will still get access to the apps. It is a good way, in our opinions, to clean up their app databases while giving users the flexibility to choose the apps they use on their devices.

It seems like Apple wants to also do the same, except they are making the implementation more immediate in nature. This was not an announcement from Apple really, just a social media posting captured by The Verge mentioning an email received from Apple. The email is for an independent developer for a free game sitting in the Apple App Store. The email pointed out that the app has not been updated for over two years and Apple will remove the app from the App Store if the app is not updated in the next 30 days.

That is not the only developer to receive a warning email from Apple though. From The Verge’s coverage, it seems like there are more than just a few developers that received an email just because they have not updated their app for two years or so. To be fair, there is a good reason why Apple wants to ensure that apps featured on their App Store is up to date. The way Apple has been implementing it though, is a little odd.

Apple and Google, both largest app ecosystem platforms in the world, work very hard to keep their marketplaces as safe as they can be. The update security features all the time, and within their updates, they would require developers to also comply to their newer guidelines set within their updates. Understandably, most of the updates would require developers to patch their apps to match the guidelines set by both Google and Apple, in the name of protecting their users too. In that case it can be understandable for both Google and Apple to start enforcing a stricter “outdated” regulation for their app stores.

This is not technically the first time that Apple removes apps from their App Store. They had a similar exercise back in 2016 where they removed apps that has been sitting without updates for over two years in the App Store giving developers only 30 days to submit an update for the App Store. While the practice seems to have gone on for a while, Apple has made no attempts in reporting or documenting their attempts so far other than the emails sent to developers. There are currently no clear guidelines as well on what Apple considers to be “outdated” in their App Store.

As we mentioned, Google is sort of doing the same thing; they are trying to ensure that their developers keep their apps up to date to meet the security requirements set by Google. Google is giving developers until the end of October 2022 to at least submit an update for their apps. Google will also grant six-month extension requests if developers cannot meet the deadline.

Lifestyle, News

New Touch ‘n Go Card Will Link to your eWallet with a Touch!

April 22, 2022 Nur Jeevan Leave a comment

The Touch ‘n Go eWallet has become one of the most ubiquitous eWallets in Malaysia right now. Nearly everyone has the app on their phone and an increasing number of merchants and outlets are accepting the eWallet as a means of payment. That said, even with its increasing number of functions, the eWallet has had a huge handicap when it comes to Touch ‘n Go’s cards. Today’s announcement makes that a thing of the past.

Yeah, you’ve probably already guessed it and let out an elated squeal. Touch N’ Go group has officially announced a new card that links up to the eWallet in every way! You’ll be able to top up and manage your credit on the card directly on the eWallet. No need to go top-up from a Touch N’ Go kiosk and no surcharges! Just take out your smartphone and top up via the eWallet. It can even be used for all existing Touch ‘N Go card functionality.

The new card comes in a minimalist, pastel pink and pastel blue gradient design and is available for RM10. You can get the new card at one of Touch ‘N Go’s selected retail partners across Malaysia or simply order one on the eWallet. Once you have your new card, you’ll just have to link it to your eWallet via NFC. – Yes, the NFC functionality works on both Android and iOS devices. – You’ll be able to have five Touch ‘n Go cards linked to your eWallet. Linking is as simple as touching the card to your phone’s NFC sensor and it’ll be automatically added to your eWallet.

Touch ‘N Go anticipates that there may be a shortage of the new cards as demand for them is high. This is exacerbated by the global chip shortage. However, you will still be able to register your interest for the card on the Touch ‘n Go eWallet. When you do, you will get a notification when the card is in stock again.

Users can transfer balances from their existing cards into the new card by requesting a refund on the Touch ‘N Go portal and selecting their eWallet as their preferred method.

Accessories, Computers, Gaming, Lifestyle, News

Razer’s Leviathan V2 PC Soundbar Takes Immersive Gaming to a Whole New Level for MYR 1,399

April 22, 2022 Darwin Sucipto Leave a comment

Yesterday we said it is a good time to build a gaming PC. Specifically, we pointed out that building a budget gaming PC at this time is quite perfect. Thing is, it is not just budget PC parts that are being launched left and right, there are some high-end ones too like the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 Ti, making it also the perfect time to build a high-end PC.

If you are looking to build a high-performance entertainment powerhouse though, you do not want to forget to kit it out with the best possible audio gear. While it is plenty overlooked, audio is an important component in not just gaming, but for general entertainment. It can enhance and even break your experience. Even in video calls, you tend to want to prioritise a clear and stable voice communication over video, because that is where a large portion of the communications happen.

Most of the time, when you build a high-end PC and decides on the audio solution, you do not want to stay with the built-in speakers your display comes with. Most users tend to buy a pair of headphones to work with in this case. But headphones tend to be a little restrictive, and uncomfortable in extended periods of gaming. What if you also want your audio gear to be your main listening tool for movies and music without being too restrictive?

You get a sound bar of course. Yes, just like the one you see for televisions (TV). Not just any sound bar though, you get a Razer gaming soundbar made specifically to fit your crowded gaming desk set up, look good on it, and sound stellar in gaming conditions.

Welcome to the Razer Leviathan V2, the follow-up to the highly acclaimed Razer Leviathan launched about seven years ago now. Like it predecessor, it also comes with a subwoofer box in the box. You might be fine without the subwoofer box though.

Compact, Powerful, Immersive

It packs two full range drivers to drive everything from the mid-range frequencies to the higher end ones. To give better clarity and detail on the higher-end frequencies though, Razer has also fitted two tweeters to accompany the full range drivers. To ensure that audio sounds full, especially in gaming, you must have big booms. For that, you get two down-firing subwoofers that brings some rumble to your desk when you need it.

You might think that having the speaker in front of you might take out some of its immersive feel. True, you do not have rear firing speakers to feed some spatial awareness into your ears. This soundbar comes with THX Spatial Audio technology though and is activated when you connect it to a PC. That also means that you get a virtual surround sound experience like no other on your gaming PC.

Visually Stunning and Versatile

To add to the visual drama, Razer fitted this soundbar with 18 lighting zones powered by Razer Chroma RGB. You can match the light works with your other Razer gear via Synapse, or even make your games for immersive by matching the lights to whatever you see on your screen.

It is also a rather versatile piece of kit to have on your desk. Like the older Leviathan, the V2 is also a wireless speaker when you want it to be. It is Bluetooth 5.2 enabled so that you can connect your smartphone to it for when you just want to listen to music without your PC. Bluetooth 5.2 also ensures that the connection between your smartphone and speakers stay stellar. Just to fine tune the speakers to your liking, Razer also made the feet on the speakers detachable and replaceable for differing angles.

Availability and Price

The Razer Leviathan V2 is now available on Razer.com and its authorised retailers across the nation. It will set you back MYR 1,399, which is about the same price as most decent all-in-one soundbar these days. More information on the Razer Leviathan V2 can be found on their website.

Computers, Gaming, Lifestyle, News

ASUS AMD Radeon RX 6400 GPUs are the Next Best Thing for 1080p Gaming

April 21, 2022 Darwin Sucipto Leave a comment

Last year, if our friends asked us about building a PC or a gaming rig for themselves, we would have said that it is not a good time. We would have also told them to maybe get a gaming laptop instead, especially with prices of parts soaring out of control,

Fast forward to 2022 though and the PC component market has shown signs of recovery. Prices of GPUs and CPUs have dropped by 20-25%. While components are still sold above recommended retail prices, situations are not as bad as before and stocks are slowly becoming more available.

In terms of current component prices, it is a better time now to build your own PC. In the current market climate, there has never been a better time to build a PC because new components are launching left and right. It is an especially good time to build budget gaming rigs thanks to ASUS releasing the latest AMD Radeon GPU.

It is called the AMD Radeon RX 6400, and just as its numbers suggest, it is an entry-level GPU. It is still a modern AMD GPU though, and they say that it will do 1080p gaming rather well. We trust them on this and recommend that you stick to a 1080p gaming build on this.

It is meant for a budget rig, so you cannot expect miracles out of it. Still, you get 4GB of GDDR6 memory out of the card. You also get HDMI 2.1 and DisplayPort 1.4a outputs, which should allow you to have two monitors working simultaneously. It is also a PCIe 4.0 card, which also means that it should perform better than some of the AMD Radeon RX 5000 series GPUs.

Of course, the GPU comes with AMD’s latest RDNA 2 architecture on the 2039 MHz clocked chip. The GPU can be boosted up to 2321 MHz when you need maximum power for your games. When the GPU consumes little to no power, its fans turn off for silent operation. The Radeon RX 6400 also comes with support for DirectX 12 Ultimate, AMD Fidelity FX technology, AMD Radeon Super Resolution, and AMD’s Smart Access Memory technology for even better gaming experiences.

ASUS’ AMD Radeon RX 6400 comes in two flavours – ASUS Dual Radeon RX 6400 and ASUS Phoenix Radeon RX 6400. The Dual variant comes with two fans for maximum cooling performance while the Phoenix comes with a single fan design. Currently only the ASUS Dual Radeon RX 6400 will be available in Malaysia for MYR 960. There are no confirmations on when the more affordable single-fan Phoenix Radeon RX 6400 will be available in Malaysia. More information on the AMD Radeon RX 6400 can be found on AMD’s website.

Business, Lifestyle, News

Netflix Loses a Chunk of Subscribers, says it is the Fault of Account Sharers – Offenders Will Be Dealt with Swiftly

April 20, 2022 Darwin Sucipto Leave a comment

Netflix is a household name by now. In the pandemic period, it is one of the things that has kept plenty sane and pass their time while they are completely cut off from the outside world. It is, after all, one of the largest, if not the largest entertainment platform currently known to man. During the pandemic period, they really thrived.

Fast forward to today, the world is in a stark contrast compared to when the COVID-19 pandemic started. We are better at dealing with it now, we have vaccines, people are allowed out of their homes, things are returning to normal. That also means that you now have less time to enjoy Netflix and to catch up on your movies and TV shows.

No matter, Netflix still predicted that they are going to increase their membership base in 2022. For the first quarter of 2022, Netflix has just released their earnings report. The numbers do not look good, nor reflected Netflix’s 2022 projections.

The report from Netflix shows that they have lost a significant number of subscribers for the first time in 10 years. If we read their reports correctly, Netflix has reported a loss of 200,000 subscribers in the first quarter of 2022 alone. In contrast, the first quarter of 2021 saw nearly 4 million new subscribers. While 200,000 subscribers may sound significant, the entire of 2021 saw Netflix gain nearly 20 million new users. There is more concerning news for Netflix shareholders in the reports though. Netflix is expecting to lose about 2 million subscribers in the coming quarter of 2022, a significant dent in their dominance over their market segment.

Despite the rather crowded space that is the over-the-top (OTT) on-demand streaming industry, Netflix is not blaming its competition for the lost of subscribers. They are rather blaming users for their loss in market share. They specifically mentioned that the 200,000 lost subscribers are lost to users who are sharing their accounts. In their reports, Netflix estimates that among their 222 million users, 100m of them are sharing their accounts. Of course, they cited that the current development in Russia and Ukraine is not helping the situation.

Taking on Shared Accounts

Netflix has been citing shared accounts to be an issue for a while now. In their ideal world, every user with a Netflix account is individual users with their unique accounts. Inevitably, there will be people who shares single accounts to enjoy their shows at different times. In Malaysia at least, we have specific accounts that is made specifically for sharing with up to five users anyway.

Still, we are not referring to that though. Netflix refers to users who are using accounts made for a single individual and sharing the same account with the household, or friends. According to Netflix, the more than 100 million households that are using accounts owned by another household are opportunities for increased revenue. In that sense, Netflix is looking into ways to monetise account sharing soon.

To be fair, Netflix has been toying with the idea of charging customers more for accounts that are being used in households other than your own. The idea is to have a sub-account to the main account where users have their own unique login and password. That way, all watch history, lists, recommendations can be tailored to that single user. It also allows Netflix to identify that sub-account to be a unique user, obviously. The solution was first tested in Chile, Costa Rica, and Peru. There are no reports on the success of the program. We must assume that Netflix achieved some success in the tests though because they are planning to bring the solution to the global market. How much more it will cost users will be the only big question mark currently.

Low-Cost Netflix, but with Ads

Amidst the tough competition that Netflix is now facing, they are also leaving no stone unturned to gain more market and mindshare. Reed Hastings, co-founder and CEO of Netflix has mentioned that they are now quite open to offering plans at lower costs with ads infused into the plan as an option. He says that the company is working on a solution and plan option to be introduced within a year or two.

Hastings was strongly against putting ads into Netflix and its subscription plans. He cited before that adding advertising into Netflix adds a tonne of complexity that users might not enjoy. He added that he favours the rather simple subscription model that Netflix has been offering thus far.

The move into having advertisements in Netflix is not just to fatten up the entertainment company’s pockets though. In effect, it is supposed to also bring subscription costs down while allowing Netflix to maintain their margins. At the same time also, it could be a viable path for Netflix to finally bring Live Sports as a part of their offerings. We are imagining watching F1 on Netflix without having to make any work arounds here.

Android, Mobile, News

OPPO A96 with 256GB Launches in Malaysia for MYR 1,299! Hands-On the OPPO A96

April 18, 2022 Darwin Sucipto Leave a comment

The entry-level smartphone market, in Malaysia at least, is a rather crowded space. The offerings can also be compared directly to mid-range smartphones, which just complicates things when you are looking for a new smartphone at under MYR 2,500 range. There is still a distinction though. In the mid-range segment, you want the best bang-for-buck you can get in terms of high-level performance, and innovations. In the entry-level segment, you want the best bang-for-buck and reliability; something that just works.

While there are plenty of players in the entry-level segment at below MYR 1,500, we can safely say not many can do better than OPPO and their A-series smartphones. Do not get it confused with Samsung’s A-series though, Samsung’s offerings are in the premium mid-range segment. When you take up OPPO’s A-series smartphones, you start to wonder what the extra money do for you in the mid-range segment.

OPPO A96 Unboxing and Hands On || techENT

Take this latest OPPO A96 for example. On paper at least, it is comparable to any mid-range devices you can pit it up against. It might as well be a mid-range device on paper.

Big Memory

It packs 8GB of RAM and 256GB in storage. With OPPO’s clever memory technology, the 8GB RAM can be expanded to up to 13GB temporarily for when you need the extra horsepower. This should mean much better multitasking experience comparable to even flagships of today. The only limiting factor should be its System on a Chip (SoC) that is the Qualcomm Snapdragon 680 platform. It does not pack 5G too, unlike most mid-range devices today.

Flagship Level Display

The SoC is the only thing that puts it squarely in the entry-level segment though. The main display is still a Full HD+ display with 90Hz refresh rate with up to 96% NTSC or 100% DCI-P3 colour gamut coverage. At 6.59-inch, it is not what you want to call a small display too.

Powerful Camera

In terms of camera, the front-facing camera lodged in a punch hole on the display packs 16-Megapixel, rather powerful for an entry-level device. Out the back is a high-resolution 50-Megapixel shooter that works together with a 2-Megapixel depth sensor to produce beautiful portraits with those essential ‘bokeh’. Sure, it does not come with additional lenses to get telephoto or ultra-wide photos, but a high-resolution camera is the one that is being used often.

Premium Glass Backing

The OPPO A96’s back plate is also a glass panel, not plastic like most entry-level devices at its price range. It has a unique texture and design that OPPO calls the Glow Design made with diamond-cut glass panel placed in a vacuum to bring out the crystal patterns you see on the Pearl Pink colour option. The unique texture produced by the process is also resistant to fingerprint stains, which is a bonus to keep your device looking fresh and pretty.

Beefy Battery

To top all of that is an all-day battery sandwiched by two glass panels. It is 5,000 mAh battery that should last you at least an entire day with heavy usage. Use it sparingly and you might get two or even three days of charge with it. When it runs out, 33W charging speeds should bring it to a full charge within an hour for you to get going the entire day again. The device is also clever enough protect its own battery shelf-life by limiting its charge speeds when you charge it overnight to keep the battery optimised for you.

Price and Availability

As mentioned, the OPPO A96 will be available in two colour options – Starry Black and Pearl Pink. The device will be available for pre-order today onward all the way to the 22^nd of April 2022. It will set you back MYR 1,299 and you can get your hands on one from OPPO’s authorised retailers and official showrooms when it is available. More on the OPPO A96 on their website.

Business, Lifestyle, Mobile, News

WhatsApp Announces Communities! It is Like Groups, but Much Bigger.

April 15, 2022 Darwin Sucipto Leave a comment

WhatsApp is an integral part of our lives today. In most parts of Asia, WhatsApp has become an essential communication tool which has replaced the traditional messaging apps. iMessage in this part of the world has nothing against the likes of WhatsApp and the likes of the messaging app.

We rely on WhatsApp not just for communicating and chatting with our friends. We rely on the platform at work as well. The amount of group chats we have just for work can be quite unreal.

WhatsApp recognises the need for their platform, especially in the world we live in today. They also recognise the need for their platform to become something even more than just a way to text your other half that you are buying dinner. So, they introduced Communities.

What is Communities? It is very much like WhatsApp groups really, except that it is also not. It is a platform for organisations to organise on. It is a platform for managing groups from a single place on WhatsApp.

278344019 2101086136707982 3915804386405476625 n — Source: WhatsApp

You can think of Communities as a sort of Forum for any organisation that you are a part of. There can be different conversations that happen in that forum (chat groups). You can also address the entire forum with a single message when you need to. It is like being a part of a larger conversation and have smaller side discussions without interrupting the larger group.

For the Admin of their communities, they get even more powerful tools to work with. You can make announcements to the entire community and address everyone from every smaller group whenever you want. If you only need the message to be spread across several select groups, you can do that too. Admins can even control the things that are being shared in each group if they find it inappropriate, much like forum moderators.

The example that WhatsApp gave in their announcement is of that of a school and the principal running the show. Communities can be much more than that though. It could be a collective of multiple charity efforts, an enthusiast community organising several events, even a company having separate departments as chat groups and project work groups.

277743565 1146893889477410 4256662175003331358 n — Source: WhatsApp

With Communities, there are also several updates that is brought about the make WhatsApp even more powerful. Audio calls can now include up to 32 people. You can react to messages from your friends in groups too. At the same time, file sharing has been upped to 2 GB at a time, which is a blessing in the creative industry, or when you are trying to share full resolution images. Admin delete will also be introduced in regular group chats.

WhatsApp Communities is not available just yet. It is coming soon, according to WhatsApp. The feature updates that will be attached to Communities will be introduced to WhatsApp before the Communities update though. That also means you might get to try out some of the new features soon to get yourself ready for the Communities update. You can find out more about WhatsApp Communities from their announcement.

iOS, Lifestyle, Mobile, News

Switching From iOS to Android Made Easier with Google’s Switch to Android App on Apple App Store

April 14, 2022 Darwin Sucipto Leave a comment

Smartphones are great. Since the introduction of the first Apple iPhone and its App Store, the growth of this tiny handheld device has been quite exponential. We now live in a world where having a smartphone is not just a luxury, it is a requirement to getting most things done. We also live in a world where this piece of handheld electronics has become the most important personal equipment of ours.

Apple may be the first to introduce a smartphone ecosystem the world has never seen before. Their early dominance in the space inspired some lookalike products that were quite unsuccessful. But it also brought competition from some of the biggest players in the industry. It brought Android to the world as well and the battle for smartphone supremacy ensued to this day.

Being the two biggest players in the industry currently gives you two choices when you want to upgrade your smartphone. You can choose between an iPhone or pick from the sea of Android smartphones available to you. It sounds simpler than it is though.

If you are an Android user looking to upgrade your device, you are given plenty of choices. Swapping between one brand to another, while not without a small learning curve, is entirely possible and made very simple. It goes without saying, swapping from an Android system into the iOS ecosystem is also not very difficult. In fact, Apple introduced a “Switch to iOS” app into the Google Play Store back in 2015 to make their transition much easier.

The reverse is hardly true though. While swapping between one iOS device to the next can be made seamless with iTunes, there is still a small level of complexity involved. Everything is proprietary as well; you need to have an Apple account to backup and restore everything. In concept, it is very similar to what you already have in Android’s Google account requirements. It locks you into the system, making it difficult for you to port out of iOS and into Android.

There are plenty of apps and service providers that have attempted to make switching out of iOS much simpler than before. You have developers who specifically developed apps to help you transfer WhatsApp data from an iOS device to an Android device. Samsung themselves also developed the Smart Switch that can recover most of the data from your old iPhone when you switch to a Samsung device specifically. Now Google is also in that fight to bring more iOS users out of Apple’s ecosystem and into Google’s Android world.

The app is called ‘Switch to Android’, and it is available in Apple’s App Store in certain regions currently. Of course, the app will be made available globally as time passes, but for now a few regions is what we get. It also seems like the app is not a complete app just yet with limited access, something Google will be rectifying as well in future iterations, we assume.

Screenshot 2022 04 14 at 12 26 17 Switch To Android — Source: Apple App Store

Screenshot 2022 04 14 at 12 26 31 Switch To Android — Source: Apple App Store

It is a relatively straightforward app to work with. It is essentially a porting tool on an iOS device meant to transfer as much data as possible from the iOS device to any Android device of the user’s choice. How the app ports the data off to an Android device is by first establishing a connection between the iOS device and the Android device of choice. After the network is made, the app is supposed to allow you to transfer things like contacts, messages, photos, and even videos from your iOS device. Some early preview also shows that the app will prompt you to turn off iMessage to ensure you get text messages on your Android device since it is one of the most common issues plaguing users switching out of Apple’s platform. Of course, all the data that is to be copied must be stored on the device itself. Anything within Apple Cloud will not be copied over.

While the app is now available for iOS device on the Apple App Store, you want to keep in mind that there are still plenty of missing features. The app is also sitting as an unlisted app in the App Store currently, which might also mean that you might not be able to simply find the app via search. Google will be sure to update the app with more complete features in the coming iterations. For now though, if you are planning to switch from an iOS device to an Android device, the Samsung Galaxy devices with Smart Switch are still your best bet of retaining most of your data.