We’ve all had such an experience before, haven’t we? You shoot an amazing picture or perform any quick editing on your Android device, and then after a while, you think that it would be a good idea to save it to your computer. Then you start looking for a functional USB cable, or, as I do, send the file to yourself via e-mail and wait for it to appear there.
This shouldn’t be that difficult! And this is the reason why I wanted to share with you my favourite way to save the day. In this post, I will tell you how I use Google Quick Share to transfer files from Android to PC immediately and without using any cables.
What is Google Quick Share?
The best way to describe Quick Share would be the “missing link” connecting my Android phone and PC because it is something in between that simply does the trick. This tool has been created by Google and Samsung and allows me to share photographs, videos, and even big files without any wire or tangible connection whatsoever.
Moreover, Quick Share relies on the balanced combination of Bluetooth and Wi-Fi technologies, which makes it significantly faster compared to ordinary Bluetooth file transfers.
Step 1: Setting Up Quick Share on Your PC
My primary concern was getting my desktop sorted out. It’s extremely basic and something you will only have to do once, making it easy for everything to sync up perfectly. From that point onwards, it has become part of my routine and is always on, waiting to receive whatever files I send from my phone.
Download: I just went and searched for “Quick Share” on the official Android site. It’s a lightweight app, and it really installs in seconds, no drama.
Install: go ahead and install the program, then just follow the prompts that show up on screen.
After you’ve finished installing it, you will usually spot it in your system tray. Or, if that’s not immediate, you can open the Start menu and type “Quick Share” into the Search box.
Now that Quick Share is already installed, we need to set up its preferences and stuff.
Step 2: Preparing Your Android Phone
I bet most of you guys already have it on your phone but do not even realize.
Shortcut access: Feel free to swipe down to your notification panel, which is located at the exact place where you look for your messages or turn on/off the Wi-Fi. We are looking for the hidden set of buttons that help to control phone functions on the fly.
To be honest, this thing could hide quite easily. So if the Quick Share icon is not there, hit that little pencil (edit) button. It’s my personal tip to add it directly to the first row of my shortcuts, so I am just one swipe away.
Digging a little bit more into settings: Instead of just tapping the icon, give a long press to the Quick Share tile. It is an easy tip for me to get into more options without going through the whole menu in search of the necessary settings.
I’ve found that this quick double-check is kind of the secret to making sure the connection is rock-solid before you even hit the send button. Like, do it twice, I guess, just to be sure it’s all good and stable.
Making the device visible: At last, make sure your phone is ready to establish a connection with your PC. Set visibility level to “Visible to nearby devices.” When I want to share something from a phone that is logged in with a different Google account, I set the visibility level to “Everyone” for just a minute.
Step 3: How to Transfer Files
After connecting these two devices on the same Wi-Fi network, I would say the connection speed is quite amazing. It became an almost natural part of my daily activities, and thus here is what I usually do:
From Android to PC:
When I am done taking a video on the channel and need to have it on my desktop for editing, this is sort of how I do it.
Share and Select: Using my phone, I click the share button on the file (or a couple of files at once) and select the Quick Share icon.
Identify the Targeted Device: My PC pops up after about two seconds, so all I need to do is tap it.
Accept the File on the PC: I receive an alert message from my computer indicating that a file is coming through. All I have to do is accept the file, and there is a progress bar which comes up almost instantly.
From PC to Android:
So, if I have just finished my thumbnail/script work on my computer and I want to view it on my mobile as the final check, it is way easier than anything else.
Drag and Drop: From the Windows taskbar, I just open my Quick Share app, select the file and drop it directly inside the window of that app.
Select the Android phone: My phone gets detected in the nearby contact list(recipients), I select it, and that’s pretty much all.
Quick transfer: I tap on ‘accept’ on my mobile and get the file right into my download folder. Plus, if I am using the same Google account on both ends, I won’t even need to tap on ‘Accept’.
Final Thoughts
By bypassing the other unnecessary steps, it has made all the difference for my productivity each day. If you’d like to see what these menu options actually look like and see me perform the transfer live, then make sure to watch the video below. How to Use Google Quick Share on PC & Android / File Transfer
FAQ
Does my PC need Bluetooth for Quick Share to work?
Yes, absolutely. Actually, I would say that Bluetooth acts like a “scout” because it goes to search for your devices, and after they locate each other, Wi-Fi becomes the “heavy lifter” and starts transferring the data between the two devices; it is more or less like a relay race. Make sure that both Bluetooth and Wi-Fi are switched on for your PC and phone, in order for the process to work.
Can I use Quick Share if my PC and phone are on different Wi-Fi networks?
I have tried this before and discovered that in order to get the maximum speed, it is better to connect the devices to the same Wi-Fi network, but still, in case you find yourself without such an opportunity, your devices will create their own private channel where the data transfer will take place.
Is Quick Share available on Mac or iOS?
No, not at the moment. The thing is that Google Quick Share works exclusively in the environment of Android and Windows operating systems.
Why can’t I see my PC on my phone’s Quick Share menu?
I faced this problem too. I would recheck Device Visibility in the PC app. Usually, I set my Device Visibility to “Everyone” for a couple of minutes during sharing. Additionally, please make sure your PC isn’t in sleep mode. It has to be active to accept requests.
Is there a file size limit for transfers?
I haven’t come across any specific restrictions myself. I shared small PDF documents using it, as well as 4K videos. However, remember that the bigger the file is, the longer your devices have to stay in proximity to each other.
Is Quick Share secure?
Yes, it’s secure. The transfer uses end-to-end encryption. Moreover, you can decide yourself whom your device should be visible to: Everyone, Contacts, or Your Devices. Also, you need to manually accept all incoming files, except for those from your own Google account.
The advice that I give to everyone is to go for the “Everyone for 10 minutes” setting rather than the “Everyone” setting for, well, eternity. Thus, your “connection” will simply close itself when you are done.
What version of Windows do I need?
You need a 64-bit version of Windows 10 or an even newer one. One note, though, regarding the new ARM-based Windows laptops: they are not supported yet.
