What you need to know
- Mishaal Rahman has shared some interesting details about developments coming to Android's popular Quick Share feature.
- Recent code from the app has indicated the possibility of the feature coming to iOS and macOS.
- Rahman notes that the code findings have surfaced as part of a bug fix.
Google's Quick Share is a widely popular tool for Android devices, Chromebooks, and Windows devices. While the latter received the functionality fairly recently, Mishaal Rahman says it might expand to Apple devices, too.
With Android Authority, Rahman has shared his latest findings, revealing the possibility of Google bringing its popular file-sharing tool to devices running on Apple devices.
For starters, Rahman explains that Quick Share is built on the search giant's popular Nearby Share API, the source code of which is generally available on GitHub under the Nearby repository.
It is believed that the repository is constantly updated to introduce backend features and occasionally fix bugs, which is usually done by engineers at Google. One such case has hinted at a bug fix involving iOS and macOS devices. The engineer rolled out the fix, and according to their comments, the bug fix apparently "benefits Quick Share on iOS and macOS," notes Rahman.
Although Google has yet to launch its file-sharing client on the said devices, the engineer's comment raises speculation about the possibility of Quick Share debuting on iOS and macOS handsets and computers. Rahman indicates that it could be the groundwork for bringing the feature soon or a random bug fix.
A launch on Apple devices wouldn't be as surprising as it sounds, and should only make shifting things between Android phones and Apple devices much more effortless, given the lack of AirDrop support on Android.
Quick Share has become a significant tool for file sharing between Android phones and across platforms. Google previously had a Nearby Share client for Android handsets, while Samsung Galaxy phones had Quick Share—an in-house developed by the Korean tech giant that used to work effectively only between Galaxy handsets.
However, as part of the collaboration, Samsung and Google chose to merge their efforts into one service, and thus, Quick Share has become the default sharing tool between devices.
On the contrary, Apple has AirDrop to share files across its devices. It will be interesting to see Android phones and Apple devices unite with the launch of the anticipated Quick Share, as it would become a more ubiquitous method for sharing files, just like how these devices now share the USB-C standard. That said, it's unclear, if Quick Share were to launch on Apple devices, how it would be implemented, and if iPhone/Mac owners would actually bother using it.
