Android phones are stealing this feature iPhones have had forever

One of Apple’s biggest selling points is Continuity, no not the consistent look of its devices (although that doesn’t hurt), but the feature that links the company’s devices allowing for easy sharing of your files and data. This includes features like Universal Clipboard, Sidecar, Handoff, and AirDrop. Sharing everything from videos to documents has been a seamless experience across Apple devices for nearly a decade now. 

Google’s Android devices have offered bits and pieces of this functionality, and some manufacturers have adopted their own versions, but there’s never been a single unifying app or feature to match Apple’s Continuity…until now. According to a report from ZDNet, although not officially announced, Google is working on a similar feature that allows users to operate seamlessly between all of their Android devices.

Rumored features and capabilities

Similar to Apple, Android’s new Continuity-like feature would link your different devices, allowing you to share images, videos, and files of all kinds. However, one rumored ability could one-up Apple. According to the rumor, Android users could move phone calls from device to device, regardless of manufacturer. So imagine taking a call on your Samsung phone and switching it to your Lenovo tablet, which would be very useful for those who don’t want to be tied down to one device maker.

The new feature would also allow for sharing of users’ internet connections. Users would presumably need to have a Google account and be signed in across their Android devices, but if you are using an Android device you have presumably made peace with using Google services. The new feature will connect devices via Bluetooth, which is pretty standard. There is speculation that it could handle a phone-to-phone handoff, which would be unique, but again the feature isn’t actually available yet so we’ll have to see if that comes to fruition.

Although no timetable has been set for when to expect this new feature’s launch, a few leaked images like the one above lend credence to the rumor and suggest it can’t be too far off. In the image users can access the new feature via the settings menu under “Link your devices.” As you can see, the “call switching” feature can be toggled on or off. 

As someone who owns multiple Android phones (admittedly a somewhat unusual position), being able to flip calls from one to the other could be very helpful and fun to do in front of iPhone users who can’t do the same. Here’s one in your eye Apple.