Whether you need to share photographs, hyperlinks, information, and extra with others close by and even throughout your gadgets, there’s a strategy to do it. Apple has AirDrop, so of us can seamlessly ship virtually something to different close by Apple gadgets with just some faucets. Google’s Android equal is a function known as Nearby Share, and it really works throughout Android phones and tablets, Chromebooks, and even Windows computers.

Nearby Share searches for gadgets in shut proximity, then chooses a protocol to make use of relying on what you are sending and what your connectivity is like. For instance, it’s going to use peer-to-peer Wi-Fi in the event you’re utterly offline, however different sharing protocols embrace Bluetooth, scorching spot, WebRTC, and extra. Here’s methods to make use of it.

Updated October 2023: We refreshed this information to mirror adjustments in Android and added directions for utilizing Nearby Share with a Chromebook or Windows PC.

Does Your Phone Support Nearby Share?

Android used to have a sharing function known as Android Beam, which allow you to bump the again of two telephones collectively (if each gadgets had a near-field communication sensor) to ship photographs, information, and extra. It by no means turned as nicely generally known as AirDrop (which launched the identical 12 months). Google killed it in 2019 with the intention to switch it with Nearby Share.

Nearby Share solely works with telephones that help Android 6.0 or larger, which is a model of the working system launched in 2015. If you’ve a cellphone from 2015 or newer, there’s an excellent likelihood your cellphone will be capable of use it. To examine, head to your cellphone’s Settings menu, scroll right down to About Phone, and it’s best to be capable of see the Android model. If the quantity is 6 or larger, you are good to go.