According to 9to5Mac, Apple is internally testing versions of iOS 7 that include AirDrop drag-and-drop file sharing capabilities.
First introduced with OS X Lion, AirDrop is a Finder function that allows Mac users to share files with other Mac users without the need for a Wi-Fi network or storage device. AirDrop for iOS is said to work in the same way, allowing files to be quickly shared between two different users.
Sources say that the AirDrop functionality is currently integrated into the standard iOS share menu. AirDrop will work between two iOS devices and potentially between an iOS device and a Mac. The feature will make it easier than ever to transfer, for example, a photograph or document from one person's iPhone to another person's iPad.
While iCloud synchronization works well for sharing photos and documents between two iOS devices owned by the same person, the AirDrop feature will allow seamless individual file exchanges between iOS devices belonging to different people.
Along with AirDrop file sharing, iOS 7 is also expected to feature a major redesign and enhanced social network integration, which includes support for both Flickr and Vimeo. As noted by 9to5Mac, beta features that are in testing, like AirDrop, may or may not make it into the final version of the operating system.
iOS 7 will debut at the keynote of Apple's annual Worldwide Developers Conference, which is scheduled to take place on June 10.
Top Rated Comments
- Samsung
No, AirDrop doesn't require you to be on the same WiFi network.
It also doesn't require you to touch devices or anything. The other person could be in the next room, upstairs, etc.
The way it works in the Mac, you don't even need to be on the same Wi-Fi network - in fact you don't need a WiFi network at all to send files.
It works if you're both on different WiFi networks, or if one or both of you has no WiFi at all. It's perfect for the iPhone.
It works by having the WiFi card switch rapidly between the two states; which means you get a real proximity-based 'who is near me' list (...of people also in the AirDrop window; for privacy reasons the Mac doesn't keep broadcasting).
I'm quite intrigued. How do you know the S-Beam feature is "much better implemented" when you don't know anything about AirDrop and none of us knows exactly how the feature will be implemented on iOS? Are you a clairvoyant?