Your smartphone is a strong pc in your pocket — and with Android, a part of that PC-like muscle means having the ability to plug your cellphone into any Windows, Mac, or ChromeOS system after which drag and drop recordsdata both method.Unlike iPhones, Android gadgets permit you to entry their file methods immediately from a desktop, with out the necessity for any cumbersome interfaces or sophisticated procedures. In truth, transferring recordsdata to or from an Android machine is principally no totally different than plugging an exterior onerous drive into your pc and transferring information to or from it.All you want is your cellphone, your pc, and a cable to attach ’em — with micro-USB or USB-C on the cellphone aspect and USB-A or USB-C on the pc aspect, relying on the specifics of your gadgets. (Most present Android telephones use USB-C, whereas most pre-2016 gadgets have the older micro-USB commonplace. USB-A, in the meantime, is the standard connector port you are used to seeing on computer systems, although an increasing number of fashions now additionally provide USB-C.) There’s an honest likelihood that the identical cable that connects your cellphone to its wall charger will work.Got it? Good. Here’s what you should do subsequent, relying on whether or not you’ve gotten a Windows, macOS, or ChromeOS system:Android file transfers for Windows computersWith Windows, issues are so simple as will be. Just plug your cellphone into any open USB port on the pc, then flip in your cellphone’s display screen and unlock the machine.Swipe your finger down from the highest of the display screen, and it is best to see a notification concerning the present USB connection. At this level, it will most likely let you know your cellphone is related just for charging. JR Raphael/IDG
After you join your cellphone to your pc, a notification will allow you to put together it for transferring recordsdata.
Tap the notification and choose “Transfer files” or “File transfer” within the menu that seems. If media recordsdata are all you are planning to maneuver, you could possibly additionally use the “Transfer photos” (typically listed as “PTP”) possibility, which’ll deal with your cellphone like a digital digicam. Once you have made your choice, go to your desktop and open up a File Explorer window utilizing the tactic that makes essentially the most sense in your Windows configuration:
Click the File Explorer icon in your taskbar
Open the Start menu and click on This PC or Computer
Click the This PC, Computer, or My Computer icon in your desktop
Then search for an icon representing your cellphone alongside different moveable gadgets and drives. Click or double-click that icon, and ta-da! You’re watching your Android cellphone’s inside storage. You can now click on round and browse folders, drag and drop recordsdata between your cellphone and PC, or manipulate the info in any method you need. JR Raphael/IDG
Your Android cellphone’s storage appears to be like like every common onerous drive when considered from a pc. (Click picture to enlarge it.)
Android file transfers for Mac computer systemsGot a Mac? The Android file switch course of is a little more sophisticated for you — however concern not, for it is nonetheless fairly darn simple.The essential distinction is that earlier than issues will work, you may must obtain and set up an official Google program referred to as Android File Transfer. To use this system, your Mac should be working macOS 10.7 or later, and your Android machine should have Android 3.0 or later — one thing that ought to hopefully be a given on each fronts at this level.Once this system’s in place in your Mac, simply plug your cellphone into your pc, flip in your cellphone’s display screen and unlock the machine, after which look for a similar USB standing notification described above.Tap the notification and choose “Transfer files” or “File transfer.” The Android File Transfer program ought to then robotically open in your Mac, and it is best to have the ability to browse your cellphone’s storage and switch recordsdata to your coronary heart’s content material. If the official Android File Transfer program would not work effectively for you — a vexingly frequent criticism amongst Mac customers lately — take into account the favorably reviewed third-party Commander One Pro instead. It prices $30 for a single license or $100 for a five-user staff license.Or — effectively, skip right down to the ultimate part of this story for one different possibility.Android file transfers for ChromeOS computer systemsYou’d anticipate file transfers between Android telephones and Chromebooks to be so simple as will be, contemplating that Google’s the driving drive behind each of these working methods — and by golly, you would be completely proper.Just like on a Windows system, all you have gotta do to attach your Android cellphone to a Chromebook is plug it into any open USB port, then faucet the USB charging notification on the cellphone and choose both “Transfer files” or “File transfer” from the immediate that seems — or choose “Transfer photos” or “PTP” if you’d like your cellphone to be handled like a digicam, with a spotlight solely on multimedia recordsdata. Once you try this, the ChromeOS Files app ought to robotically seem in your Chromebook along with your cellphone loaded because the energetic storage focus. You’ll discover an possibility inside the app’s menu (within the upper-right nook of the display screen) to again up your entire cellphone’s media recordsdata to Google Drive, if you wish to go down that highway — or you possibly can merely drag and drop recordsdata in both path as wanted. JR Raphael/IDG
Pulling up your Android cellphone’s storage on a Chromebook is straightforward as will be. (Click picture to enlarge it.)
There’s actually not a lot to it — nor ought to there be.And if you’d like an excellent easier solution to maintain enterprise…Don’t like cables?Hey, wait a minute — aren’t there apps and cloud providers for this form of factor? Sure there are, and we have you coated there, too. Check out “Transferring files wirelessly between devices” in our in-depth information to file administration on Android for the whole lot there may be to know.
This article was initially revealed in August 2017 and most just lately up to date in October 2022.Read this subsequent: The greatest Android apps for organizing your life
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