With an iCloud-to-Google migration tool, Motorola's making it a little easier for iPhone users to defect to the Moto X.


After purchasing Motorola's flagship phone through the Moto Maker Website, users will see a “Migrate” option for transferring iCloud contacts and calendars over to Google. As Motorola's support page points out, it's a fairly simple process of selecting entering your AppleID and password and then signing into your Google account.


During the transfer, which can take several minutes, Google Contacts creates a separate group called “iCloud” where your iPhone contacts will appear, while iPhone calendar entries appear in a separate “iCloud” section. Of course, these contacts and calendars are available not just on the Moto X, but on any device that supports Google services, including other Android phones and tablets, iPads, Windows devices and any Web browser.


(Click to enlarge.)

Motorola isn't the only Android device maker that's trying to ease the transition from an iPhone. The HTC One, for instance, has a transfer tool that can grab contacts and calendars from the iPhone via Bluetooth. Motorola has a similar tool built into the Moto X. The interesting thing about Moto Maker is that users can set up the transfer at the time of purchase, and have their contacts and calendars ready to go when the phone arrives.


Motorola may be planning other ways to make the switch even easier. “There is a long way to go, but it's a start,” Motorola's Punit Soni wrote on Google+ while announcing the new migration tool.


One could imagine a way to pre-load favorite apps before the phone arrives or a way to transfer iCloud photos to Google+ so they're ready to view and share on the Moto X. A guide to syncing your iTunes music library to Google Play Music might also be helpful.


iPhone users may be reluctant to switch to Android because of how locked in they are to Apple's ecosystem. Motorola could get an edge over other Android phone makers by advertising an easy way to switch. It sounds like contacts and calendars are just the beginning.








Subscribe to the Smartphone News Newsletter










Thank you for sharing this page.




Sorry! There was an error emailing this page