Backing up your iPhone to your Mac or computer is really easy, just plug it in with a lightning cable and press the sync button on iTunes. However, iTunes can be restrictive and that’s where third-party software comes into the picture. iMobie reached out to us and wanted me to check out their, iTunes replacement, AnyTrans. Here is my full review of the software, let’s begin.
What is AnyTrans?
AnyTrans is an all-in-one application designed for bridging the gap between your iPhone and computer. You can backup your iPhone with a single click, manage your apps, convert HEIC images, and even mirror your screen. It is all packaged in an intuitive UI which allows you to use the software more efficiently. So how is it different from existing features found in iTunes and on Mac? Well, unlike iTunes and macOS, all the features are baked in a single tool and give you more granular control over the settings. Plus, you can use AnyTrans on Windows as well.
AnyTrans can be divided into three categories based on features. I’ll be reviewing AnyTrans on these three parameters and see how much value these features offer.
- Content Management
- Backups & Migration
- Utilities
1. Content Management
This section is more reminiscent of iTunes in terms of features as you can manage the content on your iPhone, iCloud and iTunes. You can backup your iPhone data to the computer with a single click, backup iMessages, and manage the apps on your iPhone.
AnyTrans also lets you back up and organize your iPhone photos to the computer and vice versa. You can check out this guide to know more.
I like the app management feature because I test a lot of apps on a regular basis and deleting those apps on the iPhone itself is exhausting. You can simply connect your iPhone via a lightning cable and you’d see a preview of your Home Screen on the application window, you can click an app icon to delete it. Convenient.
You can also organize your iCloud account from the software itself. AnyTrans allows you to download the iCloud backup to your computer, add files to iCloud and even sync two iCloud accounts.
2. Backups and Migrate
Phone Switcher
AnyTrans makes backing up your computer super convenient. For example, if you want to switch phones, then you can use the Phone Switcher to do that. You can switch between iPhone to iPhone and Android to iPhone but it doesn’t allow you to backup iPhone data to an Android.
WhatsApp Backup
One thing that I loved about AnyTrans is the WhatsApp backup. You can either back up your chats to your computer or another iPhone. While this feature may feel redundant if you’ve turned on iCloud backup in the WhatsApp but if you’ve ever backed up WhatsApp chats, you’d know that you can only do it in an ugly text form.
AnyTrans has the option to extract the chats in PDF and HTML format that allows you to easily make out what the conversation was about. The only limitation of the feature is that you can only backup chats of WhatsApp, Line, and Viber. Another limitation is that it doesn’t detect all the users in a group chat, every other user is replaced with the group’s name.
Smart Backups
AnyTrans has two modes for backing up your iPhone data; Full and incremental. You can either back up all your iPhone data at once or enable the incremental backup, this will ensure you don’t eat up storage on your computer as only the updated data will be backed up. Just like iTunes, it works wirelessly as well.
3. Utilities
AnyTrans throws in a couple of utilities in the mix such as a media downloader, ringtone maker, app downloader, and screen mirroring. While I don’t care much for media downloader and the ringtone maker, I can appreciate that it’s there.
However, I do like the screen mirroring feature a lot. It comes in handy especially on Windows, as there is no native way to mirror your iPhone to Windows. You can simply mirror the screen to your computer or you can use AnyTrans to record and take screenshots directly on the computer. It’s one of the best features.
Where does it shine?
AnyTrans manages to offer important features in a single package. Here are the key features that I think AnyTrans nails in execution.
- Data organization
- One-click switch from Android to iPhone
- Incremental Backups
- WhatsApp Backup
- Ability to delete apps on your iPhone from AnyTrans
- Screen Mirroring on Windows
Where does it lack?
While AnyTrans is a great tool if you want a professional backup manager for your iPhone. There are, however, a few things that this software lacks. For starters, I would like the option to backup other Messaging apps such as Telegram and Signal and while we are at it, AnyTrans should improve their group chat issue that I talked about in WhatsApp backup.
Other than that, AnyTrans lack an option to migrate your Android to an iPhone which can be a nice addition in future updates.
Should you Buy AnyTrans?
AnyTrans does offer a lot of bang but also happens to cost a few bucks. If your workflow demands frequent backups, data organization, iCloud transfers, and WhatsApp backups, AnyTrans offers all of that and much more in a single package. You can get a lifetime single device license for just $49.99. If you still have doubts, you can download the free trial and use the software yourself and then decide. Let me know if you’re going to use AnyTrans to backup your iPhone in the comments below.
Buy AnyTrans
This Post is sponsored by iMobie
