A brand-new hands-on video from XDA Developers has provided us our finest appearance yet at Android’s upcoming AirDrop-style sharing function called Close-by Sharing. The video of the unannounced function reveals a variety of photos and a video file being sent out between a Pixel 2 XL and a Pixel 4, although XDA keeps in mind that the feature has likewise been seen working on a OnePlus device.
Its NFC-based take on the function was terminated in Android 10, and although Google’s Files app consists of comparable functionality, it’s not rather the exact same as having it baked it at the OS level. There have actually been reports that Google is working on an AirDrop rival for Android for a little while, but this is the very first time we have actually had the opportunity to see it in action.
In the video, Nearby Sharing is revealed developed right into Android’s quick settings menu. It doesn’t appear to be in a completed state just yet– the video shows it failing at least once when trying to send out a video file– however once the transfer begins, it’s a relatively fast transfer over Wi-Fi.
Google isn’t the only gamer in the Android ecosystem that’s believed to be working on an AirDrop competitor. Just today XDA-Developers reported that Samsung has a file-sharing requirement of its own called Quick Share, and in 2015, a trio of China’s biggest smart device makers– Xiaomi, Oppo, and Vivo– revealed that they were working on their own protocol.
The advantage Close-by Sharing has is that it must become offered on phones from every Android maker, rather than being limited to just a small group of them, or even simply one in the case of Samsung. There’s no word on when the feature might be officially released (and even announced), but offered it’s currently in a working state, it can’t be too far.
