The Android version of Apple’s AirDrop feature is finally starting to roll out to Pixel devices after its announcement at CES 2024 earlier this year.
Google’s Nearby Share and Samsung’s Quick Share have always behaved much like AirDrop. These features let you quickly exchange files and photos with nearby devices, but annoyingly only work with devices that use the same sharing system – so if you were using a Samsung Galaxy phone and your buddy had a Google Pixel, you’d have to transfer files a other way.
At CES 2024, Google and Samsung revealed that Google’s Nearby Share will be rebranded as Quick Share (after an accidental tease of this renaming in late 2023), and that Samsung and Google devices will be able to share files with each other – as well as with other Nearby Share users. compatible devices like Chromebooks and other Android phones – finally making Near Share/Quick Share a true Android version of AirDrop.
Eventually, this new Quick Share system will also be extended to Windows machines, with a Quick Share platform manager at Samsung saying (translated from Korean) that this support will arrive in the third quarter of 2024 (July to September).
Google may have started rolling out Quick Share to some Android users. One user reports seeing the new Quick Share (formerly called Nearby Share) on his Pixel phone. Let me know if you see Quick Share on your Android device! Thanks to @android_setting for the tip! pic.twitter.com/hqfVk4XvaTJanuary 31, 2024
As reported by Mishaal Rahman, several Pixel users are seeing Quick Share rolled out to their devices. Non-pixel users also responded to Rahman’s post with screenshots showing the new Quick Share on their Samsung and OnePlus devices.
We haven’t seen the change on any of our Pixel phones yet – this writer’s Pixel 6 still shows Nearby sharing – but we’ll be on the lookout for the small but important update to Android’s sharing system. According to a Samsung executive’s post on the community message board (translated from Korean), Galaxy phones should receive the update tomorrow.
Google should apparently roll out the update to other Android devices between February 2 and 16 (according to a new Mishaal Rahman post).
In addition to this Quick Share change, Samsung phones can expect a few other updates soon with the rollout of the One UI 6.1 update.
Lock screen widgets, improved battery protection settings and some impressive AI photo editing are launching on the new Samsung Galaxy S24 phones, as well as the Galaxy S23, Galaxy S23 FE, Galaxy Z Flip 5 and the Galaxy Z Fold 5.
Galaxy S21 and Galaxy S22 devices will also get some updates, but will miss out on the AI features.
Updated on January 31, 5:15 PM: New information has been added from another Mishaal Rahman tweet with dates when the update should arrive on PC and Android devices.