Hands on with Apple's 'Move to iOS' Android app

Apple's first Android app makes it relatively painless to transfer you data to an iPhone or iPad.
Derek Walter

So you’ve finally decided to ditch the wild and unruly land of Android for the polished and proper iOS.

There’s now an app for that. An Android app, from Apple. Move to iOS will transfer your Android device’s contacts, Gmail, photos, and other data in a few relatively simple steps. It works on any Android device running 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) or higher, and will move the data to any iPhone or iPad.

I tried it out on a Galaxy Note 5 and iPhone 5S. The process was rather easy, just as Apple promised. But there are a few details about exactly what and where Apple moves everything that you should know about.
Start fresh

Google Fiber's Next City Is Its Biggest Yet: San Antonio, Texas

Google Fiber is coming to San Antonio, a move that will make the company’s speedy 1Gbps internet available to the city’s 1.4 million residents. So far this is the largest market that Google is launching Fiber in, though not the first in Texas — service in Austin started up last December. San Antonio’s people are in for a tough wait; Google is only now nearing the design phase of a daunting project that calls for over 4,000 miles of fiber-optic cable. With San Antonio’s addition, here’s what the current Fiber map looks like — now and for the near future. In March, San Antonio city officials worked to clear the way for Google to enter town.

So San Antonio has graduated from “potential Fiber city” into the real thing. But as Google freely admits, it’s going to be some time before residents can get the company’s TV and internet offerings and ditch whoever they’re paying now. AT&T is also planning to bring its own gigabit internet service, “U-Verse with AT&T GigaPower,” to San Antonio, so Google won’t be without competition. AT&T and Comcast have been expanding their own ultra-fast connections — in some cases faster than Fiber — to push back against Fiber’s buildout. By and large though, most of us are still limited to the fastest tier offered by cable internet providers.

Google's Project Fi a new option for cheap phone plans

There are plenty of low-cost mobile phone plans out there, but most require so many compromises they're not worth the savings.

But Google 's (GOOGL) new Project Fi service is a little different.

I've been trying Google Fi for the past few weeks, pitting it against my reigning favorite cheap cell phone plan, one of T-Mobile's (TMUS) $30 a month prepaid options.

I can tell you how it stacks up, but you'll have to wait to try it yourself. Fi isn't yet generally available. You can sign up now, but it may take a month or more for Google to call your number.

Broader coverage, better billing
Google offers broader coverage than T-Mobile's plan, a big improvement, and the billing approach is so great hopefully it will become the new industry standard.

Windows 10 May Share Your Wi-Fi Password with Facebook

If you're taking up Microsoft on its offer of a free upgrade to Windows 10, you should know that the new operating system has a feature, called Wi-Fi Sense, that automatically shares your Wi-Fi passwords with others.

When Wi-Fi Sense is enabled, anyone you have in your Skype, Outlook or Hotmail contacts lists — and any of your Facebook friends — can be granted access to your Wi-Fi network as long as they're within range. Microsoft added this feature to save users' time and hassle, but as independent security blogger Brian Krebs put it, some security experts see it as "a disaster waiting to happen."

Krebs and others worry about the potential for strangers or untrustworthy friends being given access to users' home Wi-Fi networks. Microsoft has tried to reassure them by pointing out that you have to agree to enable Wi-Fi Sense every time you join a new network, that those people to whom you grant network access can't pass along that access to yet more people, and that the feature doesn't share an actual password, but rather an encrypted version of it.

The 10 Best Mobile Games of July 2015

 

Overwhelmed by the App Store? Think Google Play’s too clunky? With so many mobile games being released every month, finding the ones that are worth downloading can be daunting. Sure, you could just stick to the top-grossing charts, but you’d miss out on some great stuff if you didn’t dig deeper.

Rather than have you do the digging, though, we’re more than happy to handle the shovel. Here are the 10 best mobile games released in July 2015 — and be sure to check out last month’s picks, in case you missed them.

Alphabear

The minds behind the adorable puzzler Triple Town pick up where they left off with this equally awesome word game. Use Scrabble-like tiles to spell words, score points, and collect an assortment of ability-boosting bears. Alphabear is mellow with the in-app purchases, too. Wildly addictive and totally cute, it’s a beast. (Free | iOS, Android)


Prune

Released with little advance notice at the end of July, Prune turns the zen-like act of tree trimming into a gorgeous puzzle game. This isn’t a boring bonsai, however: You’ll need to selectively slice off branches to help your quickly growing tree negotiate high winds, dangerous suns, and more. Prune’s understated visuals and simple but challenging gameplay make it a natural fit for both iPhone and iPad. ($3.99 | iOS)

Angry Birds 2

If you can get past the fact that it should probably be called Angry Birds 16, you’ll find a really pretty update on Rovio’s piggy-smashing blockbuster. There are plenty of new features here, such as multistaged levels, powerful spells, and the ability to choose which bird you want to toss. And this time it’s free — though you should be prepared for a flock of in-app purchase requests. Rovio wants to wet its beak. (Free | iOS, Android)