If you’d like to use AirDrop to share files, first, launch the app in which the file you want to share is located. When someone nearby attempts to send you a file using AirDrop, you see their request as a notification, or as a message in the AirDrop window. Click Accept to save the file to your Downloads folder. With AirDrop, you can wirelessly send documents, photos, videos, websites, map locations, and more to a nearby Mac, iPhone, iPad, or Apple Vision Pro. This feature ensures you won’t just appear in other people’s AirDrop panels as you walk around.
Many of the preinstalled apps that come with the iOS work with AirDrop, including Photos, Notes, Safari, Contacts, and Maps. You can share photos, videos, websites, address book entries, text files, and more. Alternatively, if Bluetooth or Wi-Fi aren’t in your menu bar, you can head into System Preferences and select Networks or Bluetooth to enable your connectivity settings. To receive files on your iPhone via AirDrop, simply ask the sender to select your iPhone on their AirDrop device list. In the share menu, at the top, select an AirDrop-enabled device to send your file.
Assuming AirDrop is turned on, you’ll be prompted to accept or decline a file whenever someone shares it with you. When you accept the transfer, your Mac will download the file and save it to your Downloads folder. With AirDrop selected, the Finder window will show all nearby AirDrop users. To send a file to one of those users, drag the file onto their icon and iOS will initiate the transfer once they accept it. Tap Contacts Only to ensure your device is only visible to contacts.
However, it all works wirelessly over Bluetooth with no NFC contact required. This option may make the most sense when you have a file open and want to share it with someone immediately. Open the file in question, click the “Share” icon in that app, and then click the “AirDrop” command. Fire up the app and then open the file you want to share. In our example, we’re sharing a photo from the Photos app, but this could be almost anything. When it comes to instantly sharing files between iPhones and iPads, AirDrop is the easiest and quickest way to get things moving.
The Contacts Only option is available on devices that support iOS 10 and later, iPadOS, or macOS Sierra 10.12 and later. If AirDrop is set to Contacts Only on your device with an earlier software version, you’ll need to adjust AirDrop settings to the Everyone option in Settings or from Control Center. You can select the Everyone option while using AirDrop and disable it when not in use. You can share almost any type of file using AirDrop. You can also share items from apps, such as sharing links from Safari. No matter which app you are using, the method of starting the sharing process is the same.
How to Accept or Decline an AirDrop Transfer
Your recipient will get a prompt to accept or reject your file transfer request. While the convenience of AirDrop is nice, AirDrop has become a favorite tool of sickos like harassers. It’s popular with them because AirDrop does not tell you the actual name of the person sending you the file–only the name of their device–which they can change to anything.
How to Turn On AirDrop on iPhone
- If you’re not signed in with your Apple ID on your device, this setting reverts to Receiving Off after 10 minutes.
- But before you use it, you’ll need to turn the feature on.
- While AirDrop can be used to download photos from your iPhone to your Mac, there are better ways to do it.
- When they do that, you’ll see a prompt on your iPhone.
- For example, you could drag-and-drop a file onto a person’s name and it’d send it to their Mac.
Now, by default, Apple makes sure AirDrop is only set to receive file transfer requests from people in your contacts–so by default, you’ll know who an AirDrop transfer is coming from. AirDrop is one of the coolest features you get from being in Apple’s ecosystem. At its most basic, it allows you to send files between your devices–or to your friends, without needing an internet connection.
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At the top of the Share Sheet that opens, select the person or device with which you want to share the file. Once the recipient accepts the transfer, the process will complete automatically with no further input required. The AirDrop feature is often the quickest way to transfer content between iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, and Mac. And beyond sharing images and documents, users can also AirDrop website links, passes from Wallet, Apple Maps locations, and pretty much anything else that can be shared via Share sheet.
If you’re not signed in with your Apple ID on your device, this setting reverts to Receiving Off after 10 minutes. If you AirDrop how to earn bitcoin something to yourself, like a photo from your iPhone to your Mac, you won’t see an option to Accept or Decline—it’ll automatically get sent to your device. Just make sure that both devices are signed in with the same Apple ID. One person found an annoying catch with AppleCare device replacements. If you’re expecting to receive a file, you’ll first need to turn AirDrop on.
It may not be necessary to get an iPhone 16 to get an Action Button, as Apple appears to be working on a case with buttons built in that can control the enclosed iPhone. On older versions of macOS that don’t feature the Control Center, the easiest way to enable AirDrop is in Finder. Turning on AirDrop on a Mac is equally as simple, but you’ll need to make sure that both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth are enabled on your system. The “Everyone” setting, on the other hand, doesn’t have any prerequisites.
Apple seems unable to stop influx of so-called “dual use” apps that look innocent on the surface but help users create deepfake porn — at a steep price. You can enable Bluetooth and Wi-Fi from the Mac’s top menu bar. Just click on the respective icon and make sure the toggle is switched on. You may not be able to send or receive content via AirDrop right away, depending on whether you selected “Contacts Only” or “Everyone.”
Because of that, it’s a good idea to leave that off in most cases. Want to know if AirDrop works on Windows or Android devices? Make sure that both devices are within 30 feet (9 meters) of each other and have Wi-Fi and Bluetooth turned on. Since incidents like these several years ago Apple has now removed the “everyone” setting and replaced it with “everyone for 10 minutes”. This means that after 10 minutes have expired, not just anyone can send you an AirDrop.
How to turn on AirDrop
Use AirDrop to share and receive photos, documents, and more with other Apple devices that are nearby. If you share a file with a device that’s logged in with the same Apple ID you’re logged in with, that device is not shown the Accept or Decline message. Since both devices are assumed to be yours, the transfer is accepted automatically. This article explains how to use AirDrop on your iPhone including how enable it, send a file, and accept or decline a file AirDropped to you on iPhones with iOS 14 through iOS 11. An alternate method is supplied for older iPhones with at least iOS 7.
When they do that, you’ll see a prompt on your iPhone. Accept this prompt and you’ll receive the sender’s file. Save time by starting your support request online and we’ll connect you to an expert. If the person you’re sharing content with is in your Contacts, you’ll see an image with their name. If they’re not in your Contacts, you’ll see just their name without an image.
Here, we explain how to get started with AirDrop and become a file-sharing pro. To share a file, open the image or file you want to send. But as NBC showed, this setting can be abused by perverts. As a writer, he covers topics including tech, photography, gaming, hardware, motoring and food & drink. Outside of work, he’s an avid photographer, specialising in architectural and portrait photography. This guide will show you how to use AirDrop on iPhone and iPad, so you can get sharing as quickly as possible.