Google and Samsung are each readying their own AirDrop-like features
A new video from XDA Developers reveals Android’s upcoming AirDrop-like sharing feature. Called Nearby Sharing, it can transfer photos and a video between devices. It's shown working on a Pixel 2 XL and a Pixel 4. Meanwhile, XDA also says Samsung plans to launch an AirDrop rival, too.
Nearby Sharing appears to be baked into Android’s quick settings menu, and it looks like it works when two devices are within a foot of each other. The newly surfaced video of the feature shows an unfinished product that seems to work well, though it did fail once in the demo. There also doesn't seem to be a way to limit a device’s visibility, meaning someone nearby could send you files, perhaps malicious, using the feature.
Google has been toying with the idea of an AirDrop-style feature for some time. For instance, Nearby Sharing was first spotted last summer with the brand name Fast Share. There was also the NFC-based Android Beam, but that was discontinued. Plus, the Google Files app does offer file sharing, but it isn't a built-in feature in Android. Google isn’t the only company developing an AirDrop rival at the moment, either.
XDA Developers reported Samsung is working on a file-sharing standard called Quick Share. Samsung's version will reportedly launch with the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S20 phone. Screenshots of the unannounced feature show you can “share instantly with people nearby” - as long as they have a SmartThings device with Quick Share enabled. Unlike Nearby Sharing, you'll be able to limit who sends you files to contacts.
Quick Share, which uploads your file to Samsung Cloud, before downloading it on a device, will have a data cap of up to 2GB a day.
Samsung’s QuickShare, if it comes with the Galaxy S20, will debut 11 February. There's no word yet when Google's Nearby Sharing will arrive.
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