3 Ways to Backup Your iPhone or Android

I just bought my first iPhone, and I’m already enjoying the features associated with it. I’ve already moved a decent chunk of my life to the iPhone. As a result, I would be rather put out if my device were lost, stolen, or damaged.

Your iPhone or Android device likely has photos, apps, and other information that you don’t want to lose. Just as you (hopefully) backup your computer, you need to backup your phone. Here are some ways to backup your iPhone or Android device:

1. The Cloud

One way to ensure that your data is saved in another location is to use the cloud. With iPhone, your information can be automatically backed up to iCloud. You can enable backup on your phone by going to Settings, choosing iCloud, and then selecting Backup & Storage. You just need to make sure that your iPhone is connected via Wi-Fi to the Internet, with the screen locked, and connected to a power source. You have free unlimited backup for the movies, TV shows, apps, books, and music you purchase. Other items, such as your photos and videos, are free up to 5 GB of space.

G Cloud offers similar services to Android users. You need to set up an account and a password, and store up to 1 GB of data for free. You can also engage in social actions (Facebook mentions and invitations to friends) to increase your storage up to 8 GB. You can keep your messages, contacts, calendar, apps, and other items in an Amazon AWS cloud storage locker with the help of G Cloud, and then restore the information when it’s lost or put it on a new device.

There are numerous apps and websites out there, with various price tags, that allow you to back your data up to the cloud.

2. Your Computer

You can also backup your iPhone or Android device to your computer. With the help of a USB cable, you can get your Android phone to appear as an external drive. Then, you can drag the files you want to duplicate to your computer. If you are dragging from an Android to a Mac computer, you might need to get the Android File Transfer application to make it work.

For your iPhone, you can follow a simliar process. Your iPhone should automatically sync and backup to your computer when you plug it in. However, if you’re like me, you’re all about the manual sync. This works just as well. Open iTunes, and look under the Devices menu. Select your iPhone and then select Back Up from the drop down menu. It’s an easy way to back up your iPhone as needed.

3. Keep the Information Elsewhere

One way I started backing up my photos was to put them on Facebook. Others backup their data with the help of Flickr and other apps. You can also backup some of your other information (such as a contact list) by sending via email so at least you have it. Apps like SMS Backup + sends your threads to Gmail, storing them in the email program under the SMS label.

You can also pay for services that offer online backup. MyBackup Pro is just one of these services. There are numerous online backup services for your computer, and many of them work for your mobile devices as well.

Carefully consider how you can backup your phone for restoration in the event that it’s needed. You don’t want to be caught data-less when a problem arises with your iPhone or Android device.

How do you backup your phone? Leave a comment!

Miranda writes about personal finance almost every day. An experienced freelance writer, she's covered your money online and in print from every angle and is always looking for new ones.

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