Since last year it is possible to transfer WhatsApp chats from iPhone to Android smartphone. This should soon work in the other direction as well.
Unlike competing messenger services, WhatsApp chats cannot simply be transferred to another smartphone operating system. After all, users who switch from the iPhone to a smartphone with Android 12 or a Samsung device can now take their chat history with them. The transfer of messages, pictures and videos from Android to iOS, on the other hand, is simply not possible – users have to set up WhatsApp from scratch. However, the messenger service is working on a solution.
WhatsApp chat transfer from Android to iOS is in testing phase
In August 2021, WhatsApp boss Will Cathcart announced that the service working on a transfer function from Android to iOS. Just one month later, the first indications of this appeared in the WhatsApp beta for Android smartphones, as TECHBOOK reported. However, nothing has been said about iOS itself – until now.Insider blog “WABetaInfo” has found new details on chat transfer from Android to iOS in the current WhatsApp beta for iPhone.
WABetaInfo shows in screenshots how the import of chat histories in WhatsApp for iOS should look like. Accordingly, the messenger asks for permission to restore the chats. A warning also appears in the same window that the transfer is no longer possible afterwards if users want to skip this step. The screenshots also show what the transfer process should look like. A progress bar can be seen, as well as a note that the smartphone must be unlocked and the app must be open.
How exactly the WhatsApp chat transfer from Android to iOS works is still unclear.It is likely that the app “Transfer to iOS“ is required for this, which is available free of charge in the Google Play Store. The transfer will probably not take place via the cloud, but directly from the Android smartphone to the iPhone using a USB-C to Lightning cable.
The new function is currently still in the development phase and is not yet usable. An exact timetable for the official start is not yet known. When the time comes, you will find all the information on TECHBOOK.
Also interesting: Multi-device use with WhatsApp now unlocked for all users
Two-part system makes the transition difficult
The problem with moving WhatsApp chats across systems is the use of the cloud platform. While WhatsApp stores the backups in Google Drive on Android, Messenger on the iPhone uses Apple’s iCloud. Since these two systems cannot communicate with each other, the detour via a cable and a separate app is required.