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Samsung's Galaxy S26 will get Apple AirDrop support starting today
(www.engadget.com)
Why?
Why not?
It's something that benefits both Android and Apple users by removing unnecessary restrictions.
Because Airdrop is miles more reliable and easier to use than anything Android came up with (yes I am aware of QuickShare, it sucks)?
Because having two walled gardens where people need the same third party app to move data between them is silly?
Because Apple needs some "see regulators! we are not a monopoly, we are cooperating with Google :D" wins.
How is it more reliable? File sending has been reliable for the past 20 years. Even rawdog Bluetooth has been fine for nearly a decade.
I send files through email or usb and have dohe so for years and i'm fine.
I can't email 20 pictures that are 5MBs each. Gmail caps at 20MB and other providers have random other caps. No one in my life with an iPhone knows what to do with a USB stick. Nor do I want to use a computer as an intermediary to get something I wanted on my phone.
I'm not saying there weren't always ways to transfer files. There always have been and I've used many of those ways. But god Airdrop is simpler and more reliable than most of them for small every-day things from phone to phone especially for tech illiterate.
I use magic-wormhole often but I'm not asking my tech illiterate grandma to use that just to get some photos from me. I'm also not going to get an iPhone myself to iCloud the photos to her or whatever Apple people do.
If email works fine for you, great. But that doesn't make it a good solution for everyone. I hate emailing files around.
Because with all the upcoming restrictions to Android, many are saying they might as well move to the nicer of walled gardens. They're trying to reduce reasons for people to think those thoughts.
this post was submitted on 23 Mar 2026
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