How To Transfer Your iCloud Data To A New Samsung Galaxy

Making the change to jump platforms can be pretty tricky. Since Android and iOS are much different, and not quite the same as jumping from an OnePlus smartphone to a Samsung Galaxy device. But, Apple and Samsung surprisingly make it somewhat simple to jump from your iPhone to a new Galaxy smartphone, like the Galaxy Z Fold 3.

Turn off iMessage

You’ve probably heard of the many horror stories about switching from iPhone to Android and missing out on your text messages that were iMessages. Since iMessage doesn’t work on Android, you’re not getting those messages. So you’re going to want to turn off iMessage first. And here’s how you can do that.

On your iPhone, make sure to go into Settings.

Next, scroll down and find “Messages”.

At the top of this screen there is a toggle for iMessage. Turn that toggle off.

Now you’ll be able to move your SIM card to another smartphone and continue getting text messages. You’ll just be the dreaded green bubble for your friends.

You can also deregister iMessage online

If something happened and you don’t have your iPhone anymore, or its not turning on, you can still turn off iMessage without it in your possession.

Firstly, head to this Apple support site.

Next, enter the phone number that you are looking to deregister from iMessage and then click “Send Code”.

Enter the six-digit confirmation code on this page and then tap on Submit.

Now your phone will be removed from iMessage. But Apple warns that it might take some time for this change to take affect. So you may not begin receiving text messages right away.

Back up your iPhone data to iCloud

Before you get started with transferring your data to a new Samsung phone, you’re going to want to make sure your data is backed up to iCloud. Here’s how you can do that.

First, make sure that your device is on the latest version of iOS or iPadOS.

Next jump into Settings.

Sign into your Apple account if you aren’t already signed in.

Next, you will want to tap your name at the top of the screen.

Now, tap on iCloud.

Here, you will see a summary of things that can be backed up to your iCloud account. That includes things like Photos, Mail, Contacts, Calendars, Messages and more.

Make sure to toggle everything that you want to back up. Be careful here, as iCloud only offers about 5GB of storage for everyone, for free. You can upgrade to 200GB of storage for $0.99/month.

It’ll take a minute or two to backup, depending on what was already backed up and what needs to back up now.

How to transfer your iCloud data to a Samsung Galaxy smartphone

Samsung has a really useful new app that is available for those switching to a new Samsung smartphone. It’s called “Smart Switch”. It works really well, and that’s what you’ll want to use.

During the setup of your new Samsung smartphone, it’ll ask if you want to move your data over using Smart Switch. You can also do this later on by opening the Smart Switch app.

Open the app, agree to the terms, and then provide it with the necessary permissions.

Next tap on “Receive Data”.

Then choose “iPhone/iPad”.

The app will then prompt you to connect your iPhone or iPad with a cable. You can also opt to tap “Connect Wirelessly to iCloud” at the bottom of the screen. This will be the easier option.

Next, you’ll sign into your iCloud account. If you have 2FA enabled, you’ll need to approve the login from your iPhone or other Apple device.

In this next step, you will select which data you want to transfer. Not everything can be brought over, though most of it can.

Then tap on Import.

This will take a few minutes, depending on what data you are bringing over.

After this completes, all of your data will now be available on your new Samsung smartphone. And you’re all set. Keep in mind that iCloud won’t transfer everything over to your Samsung smartphone, just because of the differences in the operating systems.