You need to install your own OS that’s not iOS to support this argument, like people have done with wifi hotspots.
Now finding a compatible one is a different story.
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Will Apple Kill Google's Surprise Android to iPhone AirDrop Interoperability?
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Now finding a compatible one is a different story.
My biggest concern is people sending bad files, malware or other crud that may be valid on an Android device, but not on an iPhone. That’s a lot harder to do between Apple devices.
I’m all for the interoperability, with safeguards.
I’m all for the interoperability, with safeguards.
Comparing this to what Beeper did is strange. Google is not exploiting Apple’s servers to make their own messaging client.
Google just reverse engineered the AirDrop protocol and they claim they did it with the same level of security. There is no illegal co-opting here whereas Beeper was clearly co-opting Apple’s messaging backend to make their own messaging client and billing it as their own messaging service.
If Apple blocks this they will have some explaining to do.
Google just reverse engineered the AirDrop protocol and they claim they did it with the same level of security. There is no illegal co-opting here whereas Beeper was clearly co-opting Apple’s messaging backend to make their own messaging client and billing it as their own messaging service.
If Apple blocks this they will have some explaining to do.
There are pros and cons to both approaches.
The benefit of Apple's ecosystem to me as a user is that Apple makes all their devices play well with each other. I can answer calls on my iPad and my Mac, I can unlock both my Macbook and my iphone with my Apple Watch, I can easily set up my Apple TV with my iPhone, and Apple is able to ship all these features bundled on every apple device precise because they control the hardware and software.
It also means that if I see another person using an iPhone, I know with 100% certainty that they have access to airdrop, FaceTime, namedrop, even SharePlay.
The downside is that these features tend to be available on Apple devices, which makes sense. They cost money to design and implement, it's how Apple differentiates their products from the competition, and it's why Apple is even willing to invest in designing them in the first place (because there's money to be made from charging a premium).
On the flip side, you have more open devices like android phones and windows computers, but because they are all manufactured by different vendors and the software is maintained by different companies, there really isn't much incentive for them to come together and improve on the inter-operability of their products. Like sure, there's an app which lets you simulate Airdrop on your non-Apple devices, but it's also an app that you need to download and install on all your devices. And if you want to be able to use it with your friends and colleagues at work, you will then need to convince them to upload said app (good luck getting it onto work laptops which often prohibit the installation of third party software). This is also assuming that said app is even secure and reputable to begin with (we are really going by Google's word that there is nothing wrong with their implementation).
Anything you want, you can theoretically do with the right software, but it's also more work, and this just means that way fewer people will actually bother compared to if the feature simply came preinstalled. So it means that a small group of more tech-savvy users may be able to wring more functionality out of their computing devices, but a far larger group simply won't bother.
If you want the benefits of open ecosystems, then it also means that other people have to deal with the downsides of an open ecosystem. You may find the limitations of a more closed ecosystem too restrictive, but for many other people, they appreciate the security and ease of use and they don't really miss what they don't need (eg: ability to sideload apps). But Apple doesn't just cater to you and you alone, and I don't feel like one approach is any better or worse than the other.
Like you said, we are assuming that Google is being truthful when they claim that their airdrop implementation is secure and there are no bugs or security concerns whatsoever. It's not that difficult for Apple to patch it on grounds of securing their device, the same way they are withholding wifi-sync from Apple Watches in the EU because they don't want third parties snooping on your wifi history.
They also chose to announce this feature on a Friday? So let's see how Apple decides to respond over the weekend or next week. I shan't hold my breath.
Typical Google move... they will start telling everyone if Apple does not support their version of AirDrop, Apple is evil. lol. It is the only way that Google gets any meaningful progress done, as they always launch something that then gets shut down or not adopted. Apple is now their piggyback ride vehicle to launch into their own ecosystem, while they cannot establish their own protocol to be popular lol.
Another Google move to get people to move to Android at the expense of them not being able to build something unique.
Another Google move to get people to move to Android at the expense of them not being able to build something unique.
Then why did Google develop it if they know Apple was going to kill it anyways? Just for influence and power?
Not now the market works. Apple found out many years ago after many botched product launches that people will not pay any amount just to get its tech. Nobody bought the OG HomePod because it was too expensive, nobody bought the Vision Pro for the same reason. And very few people bought iPhone air or AirPod max. Apple already is charging as much as it can, if they try to charge more they’ll just lose market shares, which they are already doing anyway.
Because they know that Apple can’t kill it without incurring in further governmental scrutiny and future fines.
As a user of a Mac, an iPad and an Android phone, this will be great for me.
I have a Oneplus 15 on order, and part of what motivated me to get that is that Oppo and Oneplus have an app to make communicating with macs and ios/ipad os devices easier. Hopefully this feature will also come to Oneplus.
It's frankly ridiculous that I can't Bluetooth or Wifi-Direct a file to or from my phone in this day and age.
I have a Oneplus 15 on order, and part of what motivated me to get that is that Oppo and Oneplus have an app to make communicating with macs and ios/ipad os devices easier. Hopefully this feature will also come to Oneplus.
It's frankly ridiculous that I can't Bluetooth or Wifi-Direct a file to or from my phone in this day and age.
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This is interesting as Huawei announced similar file transfer functionality 3-4 weeks ago with the release of HarmonyOS 6.0. It’s not clear what framework Huawei’s implementation is based on, with people suggesting the need to run an app. Logically could also be AirDrop based. Interesting time ahead.
And you trust Apple? The same company that said upgraded Siri was around the corner. Lmao. Ok
“Hacked” because Apple did not want to share its airdrop API. So Google said f it. This is great! I don’t see how you can view this as a negative as a consumer. This forces Apple to implement it properly.
My goodness, Google's flat design is even uglier than Apple's! In that screenshot, Google's flat design looks like an MS-DOS command prompt screen.
Please, Google, don't give Tim Cook any ideas! After all, in 2013 with the release of iOS 7, Cook allowed Apple to copy Google's flat design, which Google copied from Microsoft.
I think we all like interoperability…it is just that many of us don’t trust Meta and Google to keep our information safe. I mean how many times has Google been caught secretly key-logging everything you type on Gboard? How many times has Meta been caught secretly copying everything you ever copy to the system clipboard?
These two companies have shown time and time again that they do not respect people’s privacy and they are willing to cheat and lie (breaking the terms of service and in some cases the law) to collect as much information as they can.
So while we all want more interoperability, it is reasonable to approach this with a bit if skepticism. What data will Google be collecting when I AirDrop files to a friend with an Android device? And how can I be reasonably assured of that answer, when Google is a company that cannot be trusted (despite their motto).
Of course in the end, this comes back to Apple who refuses to actively build interoperability into AirDrop themselves.
Details of AWDL and AirDrop implementations have been known for years. Most of the reverse engineering has been done by researchers years ago.
GitHub - seemoo-lab/owl: An open Apple Wireless Direct Link (AWDL) implementation written in C
An open Apple Wireless Direct Link (AWDL) implementation written in C - seemoo-lab/owl
github.com
Open Wireless Link
Opening up Apple’s wireless ecosystem around the Apple Wireless Direct Link (AWDL) protocol.
owlink.org
Every data packet you receive from outside is a potential security risk (including E-Mail, iMessage, Websites). If you want 100% safety, you have to put your phone in Airplane Mode and disable Bluetooth.
Nobody is forcing you to use AirDrop with an Android. You have to explicitly enable AirDrop in Settings and also turn on the "Everyone for 10 Minutes" option.
Also, Apple is legally required to provide developers "official" access to features that enable such functionality:
"Close-range wireless file transfers: App developers need certain features to offer feature-rich close-range wireless file sharing solutions on iOS. This requires access to features such as the ability to discover nearby devices, the ability to transfer files via high-bandwidth protocols in the background, and the ability for received files to appear in the relevant applications (such as the photos app). On iPhone, currently only AirDrop has full access to those features. The Decision specifies that Apple will have to provide third parties with access to all features needed to offer a feature rich close-range wireless file transfer solution similar to AirDrop."
Apple of course wouldn't be the greedy bunch they are if they weren't fighting this in court already.