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> Still hoping for some alternatives that can do ad-hoc communication, without any network infrastructure. That’s the real benefit of Airdrop. It’s so nice whe
by pimlottc 3y ago
> Still hoping for some alternatives that can do ad-hoc communication, without any network infrastructure.
That’s the real benefit of Airdrop. It’s so nice when you’re traveling to be able to share photos with someone you just met without worrying about WiFi hotspots, mobile data plans or any of that. You can be out in the middle of the ocean and it just works.
- silisili 3y agoWe used plain ol bluetooth for this 20 or so years ago. I haven't used AirDrop but assume it's got better UX, but otherwise, what makes it special?
- goenning 3y agoBetter UX that makes it actually usable
- jmercouris 3y agoliterally nothing, they just disabled blue tooth transfers on iOS and came up with airdrop as if it was something novel
- isodev 3y agoThere is nothing disabled, AirDrop just works so well. And AirDrop is novel, because still, there is nothing like it.
- dzikimarian 3y agoExcept android nearby share. Still closed standard sadly, but at least works on Windows.
- thombles 3y agoSpeed, mostly. Ad-hoc wifi can push tens of MB/s, which matters when sharing photos and videos at today's sizes.
- kr0bat 3y agoYup, I use fsquirt.exe to transfer small files between my phone and laptop. But I have to grab a usb cable for anything bigger than a low-res picture.
- isodev 3y agoYou’re free to swap files via regular Bluetooth with an app that supports it. AirDrop is fast (actual transfer happens over WiFi) and easy - makes it so you don’t need to know anything about Bluetooth to use it. It’s a challenge to find an alternative app with the same level of functionality.
- baq 3y ago4k video isn’t exactly quick to transfer over Bluetooth
- gilgoomesh 3y agoAirDrop uses Bluetooth for local device discovery and then attempts a send over the following protocols: 1. local IP network, if available 2. ad hoc WiFi, if possible 3. the Bluetooth connection 4. fallback via Apple's servers (newest iOS only) It's primary advantage is its ability to negotiate over a number of different interfaces and protocols, as needed.
- WhyNotHugo 3y agoI'm not sure that the benefit really pays off. AirDrop doesn't need network infrastructure but it does need a wi-fi adapter needs to support active monitor mode (it's extremely common for hardware to lack support for this). The requirement for network infrastructure can be worked around by creating an ad-hoc wifi network.
- pimlottc 3y ago> The requirement for network infrastructure can be worked around by creating an ad-hoc wifi network. Unfortunately for 95% of people that you want want to share files with, that’s a total dealbreaker.