Finally Android users can restore all your apps and data when you get a new phone

[Lloydbm41]

Of course you need Android 5.0 first to be able to use this feature. But any saved backup from the Google servers or if you have another Android device with NFC, all it takes is a tap and your new phone is set up like your old one. It was a so simple and easier than having to deal with iTunes.

Full read: http://www.androidpolice.com/2014/1...y-lets-users-copy-data-from-specific-devices/

 

[jamezr]

Of course you need Android 5.0 first to be able to use this feature. But any saved backup from the Google servers or if you have another Android device with NFC, all it takes is a tap and your new phone is set up like your old one. It was a so simple and easier than having to deal with iTunes.

Full read: http://www.androidpolice.com/2014/1...y-lets-users-copy-data-from-specific-devices/

Finally can't wait to get it....

 

[MRU]

Bout time..... And glad it's here.

 

[tbayrgs]

Great news for certain. Two questions though:

1). If restoring using Android beam and Bluetooth, do both devices have to be in proximity during the entire restoration process? Would be kind of a pain to lose a second device during his process which can take a while. And if not...

2). Does that mean that it's using the NFC link to identify the device and then pulling the backup from Google's servers? This specificity is great--better than possibly getting all of my Android apps, regardless of whether or not they were on my current phone but I always found app data restoration hit and miss due to the requirement that developers have to enable this functionality. Doesn't sound like this aspect has changed.

Regardless, short of the data restoration, this sounds infinitely better than the current process

 

[Brittany246]

Finally... That's one thing I hated about my Nexus 7.

 

[Ddyracer]

If i wipe my device and restore it can i get my stuff back like my app data now? or is it still the same?

 

[Stuntman06]

I probably won't be able to take advantage of this feature for probably a few years. My phone, Galaxy S3, isn't on the list to get Lollipop. I plan to get a new phone next year some time. I'm expecting it will be able to run Lollipop. Then, it will probably be years later when I upgrade to another phone. At that time, I'll be able to easily transfer everything from my next phone over to my next next phone if in fact those phones will be Android phones.

 

[JaySoul]

Good news in theory but if you read the comments, it seems to indicate that app developers need to opt in if you actually wanted to move the app data across too.

 

[Lloydbm41]

I probably won't be able to take advantage of this feature for probably a few years. My phone, Galaxy S3, isn't on the list to get Lollipop. I plan to get a new phone next year some time. I'm expecting it will be able to run Lollipop. Then, it will probably be years later when I upgrade to another phone. At that time, I'll be able to easily transfer everything from my next phone over to my next next phone if in fact those phones will be Android phones.

Your new phone initiates the file transfer. An old phone does not need to be on 5.0 to send the data. It just needs NFC.

 

[Dontazemebro]

So if you no longer have your old phone, will it setup and update your phone from the clouds like you want it?

 

[Stooby Mcdoobie]

So if you no longer have your old phone, will it setup and update your phone from the clouds like you want it?

It should. I just went from SlimKat 4.4.4 to the 5.0 preview and all of my stuff transferred just fine. Only thing I had to manually restore/import was my Nova launcher settings.

 

[Moto G]

Lol... Google, what took you so long?

How is this a "feature"? It should have always been a given, if any rational sense was employed. Duh.

 

[mercuryjones]

This is one of the main selling points of Apple. Glad that Android users can finally get this option.

 

[Moto G]

Oh Google, you're so funny... in a face-in-palm kinda way. Glad you finally got around to creating a rather critical part of any modern OS - welcome to 2014. Now, if you'd just shed Java...

 

[mercuryjones]

Oh Google, you're so funny... in a face-in-palm kinda way. Glad you finally got around to creating a rather critical part of any modern OS - welcome to 2014. Now, if you'd just shed Java...

They did. ART is standard with Lollipop. No more Java.

 

[Lloydbm41]

Lol... Google, what took you so long?

How is this a "feature"? It should have always been a given, if any rational sense was employed. Duh.

Kind of like 2 step authentication and a notification center? Sometimes it takes an OEM a lot longer than another to put out 'basic' features.

 

[Moto G]

They did. ART is standard with Lollipop. No more Java.

ART is merely the runtime - the underlying framework will still be Java (I may be wrong - citations needed, sorry it's late here - concentration level is low).

----------

Kind of like 2 step authentication and a notification center? Sometimes it takes an OEM a lot longer than another to put out 'basic' features.

OK look, never mind Apple, let's focus here - this is a crucial part of an OS and end user experience. To not have it for years and then release it as a "feature" is laughable... and smacks of sheer incompetence at Google (as ever).

 

[Abazigal]

So how well does it work in real life? Promising the moon and the stars is one thing, this looks like it is as much hardware-dependent as it is software. How long does it take, and how reliable and seamless is it?

 

[Moto G]

So, basically just a user-friendly version of "adb backup" then? The tools that have existed for YEARS?


--> http://androidbqbq.blogspot.com/2014/01/how-to-backup-your-phone-using-adb.html

 

[Fanaticalism]

Lol... Google, what took you so long?

How is this a "feature"? It should have always been a given, if any rational sense was employed. Duh.

Oh Google, you're so funny... in a face-in-palm kinda way. Glad you finally got around to creating a rather critical part of any modern OS - welcome to 2014. Now, if you'd just shed Java...

So, basically just a user-friendly version of "adb backup" then? The tools that have existed for YEARS?


--> http://androidbqbq.blogspot.com/2014/01/how-to-backup-your-phone-using-adb.html

Why three posts basically saying the same thing? In a thread that is still on the first page nonetheless. I'll assume you're not a fan of Google.

 

[Lloydbm41]

Why three posts basically saying the same thing? In a thread that is still on the first page nonetheless. I'll assume you're not a fan of Google.

Obvious? Maybe.

But, if he is such a fan of 'obvious' features being missing in an OS, I seem to recall copy and paste being missing the first year of iOS. When it came out, they announced it as a new feature. And why did it take Apple 6 years to get an 'obvious' security feature like 2 step authentication? And even when they got it out, it took several more months to get it working properly.
It took Apple 4 years to announce a Notification Center and listed it as a 'feature's of ios5. They did the same with rich notifications. And it only took them another year to add those. I would argue that all these are staple feature for any OS. (Probably why you find them in WP, iOS, OSX, windows and Android. )
And then there are simple things that Apple still doesn't have with iOS that are clearly 'obvious' oversights: let me add a video, song or ringtone from my pc to my iPhone without having to use iTunes!

All said, I do agree that 'finally' Android is getting this added. Probably why I put the word 'finally' in the thread title. Haters gonna hate though. Not much we can do about it.

 

[Moto G]

Obvious? Maybe.

But, if he is such a fan of 'obvious' features being missing in an OS, I seem to recall copy and paste being missing the first year of iOS. When it came out, they announced it as a new feature. And why did it take Apple 6 years to get an 'obvious' security feature like 2 step authentication? And even when they got it out, it took several more months to get it working properly.
It took Apple 4 years to announce a Notification Center and listed it as a 'feature's of ios5. They did the same with rich notifications. And it only took them another year to add those. I would argue that all these are staple feature for any OS. (Probably why you find them in WP, iOS, OSX, windows and Android. )
And then there are simple things that Apple still doesn't have with iOS that are clearly 'obvious' oversights: let me add a video, song or ringtone from my pc to my iPhone without having to use iTunes!

All said, I do agree that 'finally' Android is getting this added. Probably why I put the word 'finally' in the thread title. Haters gonna hate though. Not much we can do about it.

Sorry, please quote me where I ever mentioned iOS or iPhone (I didn't). Thanks.

 

[mrex]

so basicly this do the same that was possible already but much easier? =D

oh, wow! homescreens backup is now possible!!

from the article:
I've dreamed of a day when Google would let me select app bundles to install. Stuff I use and want, and leave the crap I no longer use where it belongs: not on my device.

this is odd. you have been able to do that and even delete apps from the app history list.

 

[ecrispy]

This has been working for a long time, the difference is a nicer UI and the ability to choose which backup set and which apps you want.

Google backup/restore isn't advertised but works great for 90% of apps, the ones that don't work are because the devs haven't taken advantage of the Google services.

 

[JunBringer]

When i got my Nexus 4 it automatically installed all of my apps for me, though of course it didn't send the app data over for the most part. They're just refining the whole thing now whereas you've had most of your stuff in the cloud via your google account.