Last Updated on April 24, 2020 by Jay
If you have browsed and reached this Move to iOS not working troubleshooting guide, that means you are the proud new owner of iPhone, congratulations.
iOS and Android are two giants in the mobile industry and despite the numerous elements that make the two competitors shine, they are quite different. Always compared as formidable rivals, and if you hold allegiance to one, it is difficult to leave and move on to the other, since you will need time to adapt to the other. This is exactly what several users all across the world face, especially when it comes to moving the data from an Android device to an iOS device.
When you’re moving from team Android to iPhone, it is never a sweet and simple “Android to Android” transfer, which is fairly simple. However, when it comes to moving from Android to iOS, it is an entirely different ballgame. Some users worry that their Android data will be unsuited for the iPhone, and while this might sometimes be the case, you won’t have to give up all of your data when you switch teams. To encourage users to come onboard, Apple created the Move to iOS app, which, in theory, makes it easier for users to move all of their essential data across the cross-platform devices.
What is the Move to iOS App?
Move to iOS is Apple’s solution to help Android users to transfer data to a new iPhone, iPad. It is a data transfer app which can be downloaded through Google Play Store, allowing users to migrate their existing Android data into an iOS device with comfort. This includes data from your Contacts, Messages, Camera photos and videos, Web bookmarks, and Android Gallery, etc.
Despite a close observation on the media transfer app by Apple, we saw several instances where Move to iOS underperformed. Either the digit code wasn’t allowing the devices to pair or the app showed an error message ‘Cannot connect to device’. In this guide, we will go through all the Move to iOS app not working reasons, and what are the solutions you could apply:
Reasons Why Move to iOS App Not Working
Due to the nature of the Move to iOS app which intends to connect to rivalling operating systems with one another, there are some issues that users face. Despite Apple’s close attention to detail when it comes to creating the data transfer app, it is far from perfect and thousands of mediocre reviews online of the service are an ode to it.
- Compatibility issues could be one of the reasons why you cannot seem to get your important data from the old Android device transferred to the new one.
- There could be storage limitations which could be causing the unsuccessful transfer of content between the Android and iPhone.
- Apple has not been updating the Move to iOS app on the Google Play Store as often as it should, and this could reflect on the performance of the app.
- General connectivity issues could deter the communication between the two devices, which will directly result in a poor overall user experience.
Troubleshoot Move to iOS App
When someone complains that Move to iOS app is not working, it could mean that Move to iOS is stuck in transferring the Android data or the transfer is restricted by errors such as “could not communicate with device” or “unable to migrate” issue popping up on the screen. In this post, we’ll try to offer some solutions for all move to iOS not working situation to solve the problems and get your Android data successfully transferred to your new iPhone, or iPad.
In general, there are two major errors that users end up with when it comes to the Move to iOS not working problem, and we’ve addressed them below.
First Error: Could?not communicate with device
After entering the generated code from iPhone on the Move to iOS app for Android devices, the Android phone keeps showing “connecting to iPhone” and ends up with the error that states “could not communicate with device“. The error keeps popping up, making it impossible to connect the Android with the iPhone to begin transferring process.
Solution: Re-establishing connectivity
There could be a network error on your Android phone so that it could not communicate with the iPhone. Here are some methods you can try to repair the connection error.
Wi-Fi Connectivity issues: Move to iOS application transfers data using the same wireless connection in both the devices. If there is any interruption to the network, the transfer might stop or not happen at all. Android is known to temporarily halt using the Wireless network in which there is no connectivity and connect to mobile network. This could be the case for you.
Method#1: Enable the Airplane Mode
Airplane mode will hold the smartphone from switching to a mobile network or searching for other available networks where there is internet access. Enable Airplane mode while using Move to iOS application on both devices. You can always disable Airplane mode after the data is transferred successfully.
- On your Android device, swipe down to view the Notification Shade.
- Similarly, swipe up on your iPhone to view the Quick Settings menu.
- On both the devices, you will be able to see the Airplane Mode icon.
- You can then turn on the Wi-Fi switch while the phones are still in Airplane Mode to begin the content transfer process.
Method #2: Turn off Connections Optimizer
Connections Optimizer or the Smart Network Switch on your Android phone might hold the connection with iPhone. Simply follow these steps to turn off this feature:
- From the home screen of your Android device, go to the Settings menu.
- Head over to the Connections – More Networks – Mobile Networks menu.
- Disable the Connections Optimizer option using the toggle switch.
- Then head over to Wi-Fi settings and if there is the Smart Network Switch option, disable it.
- Now reconnect the Wi-Fi on Android device and try again.
If the “could?not?communicate with device” error continues, use the alternative option to transfer your data which we will discuss at the end of the article.
Second Error: Unable?to?migrate
It is very frustrating when transfer is started and reaches half the way then an error pops up: ‘Unable to migrate, try again later’. If you also get this error when using Move to iOS app, recheck the methods discussed above. However, if none of them seem to work for you, try to check out the solutions that are mentioned below.
Method #1: Check the system compatibility.
Just like most apps on the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store, your mobile devices need to be compatible with the app version. When speaking of the Move to iOS, you need to make sure that your iPhone is on iOS 9 or later and the Android device runs on Android version 4.0 or later. Here’s what you need to do to confirm the same:
- On the Android device and the iPhone as well, head to the Settings app.
- Using the Settings – General – About on iOS, and System – About on Android, find the software version.
- Confirm that the software versions of your devices is compatible with the Move to iOS app.
Method #2: Restart the Android and iPhone
While it might seem like the oldest trick in the book when it comes to troubleshooting issues, you might be able to fix Move to iOS not working issue with something as simple as turning off the two devices and then turning them on again. Just like most electronic devices, usually, a simple reboot can let go of the cache build-up and background process, which could be causing issues with the data transfer app.
- On the Android as well as the iPhone, press and hold the Power button.
- Once the Power menu appears, select the Power Off option.
- Now press the Power button on the two devices and hold it until the screen boots up again.
Method #3: Turn off all apps and notifications
You might want to keep the background apps and notifications at bay since they might disrupt the data that is transferring from your Android phone to the iPhone. For instance, you can disable auto-update in the Google Play Store, close all the background app services from WhatsApp, Facebook, etc. There is a chance that the data transfer to the iPhone will be stopped if you use other apps or get a phone call on the Android device during the process.
Method #4: Space Requirements
You should make sure that your iOS device has sufficient free space to store all the new data you are moving from your Android. If the content that you have picked from your Android device takes up more space than the available limit on your iOS device, you’re obviously going to run into an issue with Move to iOS not working the way you want it to. The ideal way to get around this issue by transferring only the bare essential content from your Android device to the iPhone, especially when you have gigabytes worth of content to move.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a Move to iOS app alternative?
Dare we say, if the above methods didn’t work and you are back to square one — just move on without the Move to iOS app. You can still transfer the data post the initial setup, and here are a couple of alternatives that you can try out.
Alternative #1: transfer files via USB
If none of the methods above make Move to iOS work for you, forget about the app and find other ways to migrate data to iOS devices. There are still some ways to move files between iOS and Android systems. Moving data via USB connection with FonePaw DoTrans is the simple, easy way for you.
Just connect both your Android devices and iPhone to your computer. DoTrans will show all contents on both devices and let you select the data to transfer.
- Select all the needed data from your android device
- Then click Export to Device and select the target iPhone to get the Android data transferred to the iPhone.
It’s simple and you won’t have to erase contents on your iPhone. More importantly, network connection issues won’t bother you, which made life difficult with Move to iOS app.
Photos, videos, music, ringtones, messages, contacts, etc. can all be transferred from the android to the new iPhone. Moreover, DoTrans can be used to transfer data between mobile devices to PC, Android to Android, iPhone to iPhone/iPad and more.
Alternate #2
You can easily search for the related keyword in Google Play and use any one of many transfer applications available. Such as;
- Smart Transfer: File sharing app,
- SmartiO- fast music file transfer app
- Copy Data & Move to iOS
How long does “Move to iOS” take to complete data transfer?
It depends on the size of Android data you need to transfer and the network speed, it could take several minutes to more than hours for Move to iOS to finish the data migration.
Therefore, when Move to iOS app is transferring data or moving items into place, you may just leave the devices to themselves until the transfer is done. During the process, you should plugin both Android and iPhone into power and make sure the two devices are right next to each other.
Can I move Apps from Android to iOS?
You can Move your photos, contacts, calendars, and accounts from your old Android phone or tablet to your new iPhone or iPad. Apple’s first Android app, it hooks your old Android and new Apple device together over a direct Wi-Fi connection and transfers over all your data. While it is easier than ever with Apple’s Move to iOS app, the service does not allow you to transfer apps from your Android device to the iPhone.
Since the iPhone apps are in .IPA format and Android apps are in .APK format, these two devices don’t have apps that are cross-compatible. Unfortunately, the only way to move your apps from Android to iOS is by manually installing each of them on the iPhone using the App Store. As rudimentary as this may seem, it is the price you pay for switching from team Android to team iPhone.
Final Words
Were you able to get transfer your Contacts directory, Messages, Camera photos and videos, web bookmarks, and camera photos and videos from your android device to your new iPhone? Or is there any other unique trick or solution you used to process your data? Share it with us in the comments section right down below, we‘d love a response from you and able to help you better.
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