Data lock-in: Difference between revisions

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On Android, the third-party app "SMS Backup+" can create exports, but they can not be directly stored locally, only uploaded to the middleman GMail, which requires Internet connection and a Google account, and can cease to function at any time due to Google API changes.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20250314125929/https://github.com/jberkel/sms-backup-plus/issues/974 Feature request: save to local file · Issue #974 · jberkel/sms-backup-plus · GitHub]</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20250313124817/https://github.com/jberkel/sms-backup-plus/issues/1110 SMS -Backup+ unable to log into my email to backup SMS messages · Issue #1110 · jberkel/sms-backup-plus · GitHub]</ref>

On iOS, exporting apps require payment, an external computer, and save as PDF, resulting in much larger files than plain text.<ref>[https://archive.~~today~~/~~2025.10.16-053829~~/https://discussions.apple.com/thread/255416051?sortBy=rank Export iMessage conversation - Apple Community]</ref><ref>[https://archive.today/2025.10.16-053940/https://discussions.apple.com/thread/255674743?sortBy=rank I want to download my messages to an external drive (flash drive) - Apple Community]</ref>

On iOS, exporting apps require payment, an external computer, and save as PDF, resulting in much larger files than plain text.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20251111204709/https://discussions.apple.com/thread/255416051?sortBy=rank Export iMessage conversation - Apple Community]</ref><ref>[https://archive.today/2025.10.16-053940/https://discussions.apple.com/thread/255674743?sortBy=rank I want to download my messages to an external drive (flash drive) - Apple Community]</ref>

Chat messages can be archived manually with screenshots and screen recordings, but this takes lots of time and manual work, and the resulting files can not be searched for text and will be much larger in size than a plain text-based export would be.

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 On Android, the third-party app "SMS Backup+" can create exports, but they can not be directly stored locally, only uploaded to the middleman GMail, which requires Internet connection and a Google account, and can cease to function at any time due to Google API changes.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20250314125929/https://github.com/jberkel/sms-backup-plus/issues/974 Feature request: save to local file · Issue #974 · jberkel/sms-backup-plus · GitHub]</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20250313124817/https://github.com/jberkel/sms-backup-plus/issues/1110 SMS -Backup+ unable to log into my email to backup SMS messages · Issue #1110 · jberkel/sms-backup-plus · GitHub]</ref>
-On iOS, exporting apps require payment, an external computer, and save as PDF, resulting in much larger files than plain text.<ref>[https://archive.today/2025.10.16-053829/https://discussions.apple.com/thread/255416051?sortBy=rank Export iMessage conversation - Apple Community]</ref><ref>[https://archive.today/2025.10.16-053940/https://discussions.apple.com/thread/255674743?sortBy=rank I want to download my messages to an external drive (flash drive) - Apple Community]</ref>
+On iOS, exporting apps require payment, an external computer, and save as PDF, resulting in much larger files than plain text.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20251111204709/https://discussions.apple.com/thread/255416051?sortBy=rank Export iMessage conversation - Apple Community]</ref><ref>[https://archive.today/2025.10.16-053940/https://discussions.apple.com/thread/255674743?sortBy=rank I want to download my messages to an external drive (flash drive) - Apple Community]</ref>
 Chat messages can be archived manually with screenshots and screen recordings, but this takes lots of time and manual work, and the resulting files can not be searched for text and will be much larger in size than a plain text-based export would be.