Google's guide to switch from iOS to Android

NEW DELHI: Soon after releasing the new iPhones, Apple had released a guide to help users shift from Android to iOS. Now, after announcing Android Lollipop, Google has released its own guide for users to move from iOS devices to Android.

Here are the steps you need to follow to make the switch from Apple devices to Android ones:

For photos:
1. On your iPhone, download the Google+ app from iTunes.
2. Open Google+ and sign in using your Google account.
3. Select "Auto Backup" for your photos by selecting the menu icon, followed by the gear icon at the top right. Now go to "Camera and Photos", touch "Auto Backup" and switch it on. Now all your photos are being saved to the cloud.
4. Open the Photos app on your new Android device to see all of your photos from your iPhone or iPad.

For music:
1. Make sure your iPhone or iPad is fully synced to iTunes on your computer. Your music should all be backed up on your computer when this is done. 2. Install Google Play Music Manager on your computer. Music Manager will upload your iTunes music to the cloud. You can download Music Manager here.
3. Finish setting up your Google Play account by creating a Google Wallet account.

For contacts:
1. On your iPhone/iPad, go to "Settings," then "Mail, Contacts, Calendars," then "Accounts" where you should see "iCloud" listed. Open iCloud and turn on the toggle for "Contacts" which will prompt you to "Merge" your device's contacts with iCloud.
2. In a web browser, go to apple.com/icloud, login with your Apple ID, and click on "Contacts". In the lower-left corner, click on the wheel, "Select All". Once selected, click the wheel again and choose "Export vCard".
3. In a web browser, go to gmail.com, click on the "Mail" button in the top left and select "Contacts". You should see a list of your Gmail contacts.
4. Now click the "More" button above the contacts list and select "Import". Select "Choose File" and select your saved vCard file. When importing is complete, Gmail will display the number of contacts imported.
5. Finally, delete any duplicates by using the "Find & merge duplicates" function under the "More" button above the contacts list.

If all your contacts are saved on your Google account, you only need to sign into Android with the same account and all your contacts will be synced automatically.

Setting up email accounts:
The Gmail app is preloaded on Android devices, so you just need to log into the app to set up the account. You can set up more than one Gmail accounts on the same Gmail app.

Email service providers like Yahoo have their apps on Play Store, so you can download the apps via the Android marketplace and log in. To get iCloud or official emails, you need to download an app that supports IMAP, POP3 or Exchange protocols.

iMessage users need to turn it off in order to receive SMSs or MMSs on their Android devices, otherwise the messages will be routed to the iPhone or iPad account and, thus, will not be delivered. In or order to turn it off, go to "Settings" on your iOS device, then select "Messages" and then toggle the button beside "iMessage" to "Off."