Health Data Importer Successfully Navigates Malformed Apple Health Data, Developer Files Bug Report FB19590500

Dan Loewenherz, the developer behind the utility application Health Data Importer, announced a significant achievement: his app successfully processes and imports "obviously malformed data" found within Apple's Health app XML exports. This development addresses a notable challenge for users migrating health data between iPhones, particularly when setting up a new device without restoring from a full backup. Loewenherz confirmed he has filed a bug report with Apple regarding the issue, identified as FB19590500.

Health Data Importer, a product of Lionheart Software, was developed to streamline the often-cumbersome process of transferring health and fitness data from an old iPhone to a new one. While Apple's Health app allows users to export their data as an XML file, it does not provide a native function for importing that same file back into a new device. This gap has historically forced users to rely on complex workarounds or risk losing their comprehensive health history when opting for a fresh device setup.

The ability of Health Data Importer to correctly handle "maldformed data" within these XML exports highlights a previously undocumented technical hurdle in Apple's HealthKit framework. According to Loewenherz's tweet, "One thing that Health Data Importer does nicely is that it imports obviously malformed data like this in your Health app XML exports correctly. 😉 HealthKit bug filed: FB19590500." This suggests an underlying issue with the structure or integrity of the exported data that third-party developers must contend with.

Dan Loewenherz is a seasoned software engineer and co-founder of several ventures, including Crate and Gradifi, and currently serves as a Senior Software Engineer at Heap. His company, Lionheart Software, focuses on creating practical utilities. The Health Data Importer app has garnered positive reviews from technology publications and users for its reliability and ease of use in a process that Apple has yet to fully simplify.

The filing of Bug Report FB19590500 with Apple's HealthKit team underscores the importance of this discovery, potentially prompting Apple to address the malformed data issue in future iOS updates. This would benefit not only third-party developers like Loewenherz but also the broader user base seeking seamless control and migration of their personal health information within the Apple ecosystem.