Whether your old Android phone or tablet is no longer completely functional or you’re just planning to upgrade to a newer, better, and faster phone. The stored data on your previous phone doesn’t have to go in vain. You can have it transferred to your new phone or store everything on your desktop. There are many ways to do so and you can even transfer all the data from your phone to another Android without having to use a computer device as the middle person. As a matter of fact, most of the popular file manager apps for Android have a built-in file transferer app.
To protect your files, consider using a cloud service to have everything permanently stored. The most popular one for Android users is Google Drive and it provides you with 15GB of free storage. Google Drive does the job of storing your data very well. It also saves you from despair if your device gets broken or stolen, you won’t have hope in finding your lost phone to see photos from your last holidays, logging in with the same Google account you had on your former phone will bring everything back to its place. Also, make sure you are using an Android file manager that has a recycle bin feature, that can return any file you accidentally delete.
However, chances are that your files are at no risk and you just need some good apps to easily transfer files from your Android to another phone (that may not be an Android phone) or to a desktop computer. Here’s a listing of the best apps that will assist you with transferring those files.
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Xender
Xender is the app you need to install when you need to swap files. It supports an extremely fast file sharing speed, up to 200 times faster than Bluetooth sharing speed. Xender supports file swapping among Android devices, Android to iOS file sharing, and Android to PC file transfers. Through Xender, you can transfer photo, video, music, document file, and app content. About everything that’s on your phone’s storage can be transferred to another device.
Xender app functions by creating a virtual HotSpot where both devices can be linked to share and receive files (Xender app should be installed on both target handsets). One the app home screen you’ll see a send and receive widget, once tapped, Xender will activate the HotSpot and will start searching for paired devices. On the other device, you should go to WiFi settings and connect to the newly added network (usually is a mixture of letters and numbers). The same process is applied for receiving files.
Connecting your phone with PC is not only easy with Xender but also an exciting experience. It just shows you how technology simplifies everything. Tap the Receive option and go to “Connect to PC” widget. It will ask you to visit web.xender.com via your desktop browser where you will use your phone’s camera to scan the QR code. This process takes less than a second and once completed you can access all of your phone data from your desktop. Your phone data appears labeled, to add new files, click on the label and add a new file that falls under that category. It won’t mess up files on your phone.
Pushbullet
Pushbullet is the app you probably never thought you need. But once you get to know it, you will get fascinated by what it can do for you. Pushbullet allows you to take your phone conversations straight to your desktop. Pushbullet is the app you need to install if you’re having a busy day at the office and you cannot afford to pick up your phone and reply to text messages or other social media.
After installing the app on your Android, you’ll have to visit pushbullet.com via your desktop and either install the Pushbullet for PC application or choose one of the browser extensions (Pushbullet extension supports Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Opera, and Safari for Mac). Then you’ll have to login with the same email or Facebook account you used to sign up via your Phone.
Pushbullet takes your contact list, and your social media accounts all in one place. You can reply to conversations from your PC without having to leave what you’re doing to pick up the phone. One of the features of Pushbullet is its file sharing support. You can swap files from your Android to PC from your Pushbullet dashboard on your desktop or use the Remote Files feature from your phone to find your other device. Pushbullet app should be installed on both devices, and Remote Files should be enabled on them both.
Send Anywhere
Send Anywhere besides being one of best Android file transferer apps. Also, it won’t even force you to install it on multiple devices. This is an amazing feature, and although it comes at the cost of lower installations for its makers, it certainly helps in strengthening the bond with the users.
Send Anywhere app sports a similar design to Xender. This app lists all of your files in their respective categories. You can select particular files that you want to send and tap on the red arrow widget that appears at the bottom (it tells the number of selected files and their memory). The app will automatically generate a 6-digit key that expires in 10 minutes. To receive the file on another device (app should be installed and running), go to Receive section and paste the code on the Input Key section.
If you don’t want to install the same app on multiple devices (the chances are that you won’t be using both devices. Thus, the second download is unnecessary), tap the Link icon which will make the app store your selected files on the cloud and make them downloadable through a web link. This feature is fascinating, and you can literally transfer data to any device through a browser and Internet connectivity.
Samsung Smart Switch
Samsung Smart Switch mobile app is what you need when you’re upgrading your Samsung Galaxy phone. The app comes pre-installed on the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S8. Although it may seem like this is a Samsung-only app, it doesn’t happen to be the case. Smart Switch app supports all Android devices running Android 4.0 and later (any Android device that runs an earlier version than Android 4 cannot do much when it comes to installing apps from the Play Store anyway).
Samsung Smart Switch supports wireless file sharing among mobile devices and USB file sharing for computers. It supports non-Android devices such as iPhone, Mac, Windows, and BlackBerry. It can even extract data from cloud-based services such as iCloud.
Via Smart Switch you can transfer contacts, messages, photos, music, videos, videos, call logs, apps, and document files. This app can transfer files from storage and SD card of your device.
AirDroid
AirDroid is one of the best software to transfer files from Android to PC. AirDroid supports file sharing from mobile to mobile and from mobile to pc. For PC file swapping, you can either download AirDroid for PC or use the web tool to transfer files.
AirDroid has a variety of features to assist you in wirelessly controlling your phone. Through Airdroid PC app or web app, you can access your contact list and respond to text messages, view call logs, and see and manage the entire data on your phone. Regarding transferring files from your phone to other devices, you can add devices on the same AirDroid account for linking them together from My Devices section or install the app on another device that’s using the same network.
AirDroid for Android allows you to create backups of your phone and have them available on your account. Text your friends using your keyboard without having to use the phone physically, and an additional service this app has for you is to help you locate your phone if you lose it.
SHAREit
SHAREit is not just another app to share files, and it is more than that, it is a community dedicated to cross-platform file sharing. The app supports all types of mobile and computer devices. It enables file sharing at high-speed without the need of an active Internet connection.
SHAREit, as its name suggests, is dedicated to content sharing. From your homescreen, you see the Share ZOne where you can list everything from your phone that you want to be shared. Unlike other apps, the Shareit app supports group sharing and allows you to create a community of friends that can see everything on your share zone. You can even follow each another and like each other’s shares.
File sharing and file receiving are done wirelessly across mobile devices by creating a new accessible network and by QR code scanning for the PC app or the web-based app. To send files, select the image, video, song, or document and tap on Send. The app will automatically begin searching for receivers, and the receiver should have the app installed and perform a sender search by clicking Receiving button.
SHAREit app comes with a built-in file manager and other pre-loaded tools. You can analyze the storage and delete junk files to free more space, and you can install additional apps such as music player, security, and an app to clone data from one phone to another.
Superbeam
Superbeam is one of the most recommended apps for sharing documents between devices. This app has a simple design that won’t distract you with anything that’s not about swapping documents. Just like other apps, Superbeam creates a server for sharing files that are protected via a passcode or a scannable QR code for the receiving device.
Superbeam makes a good option for transferring data when you’re upgrading your phone. It supports sharing across devices images, videos, songs, apps, and other types of files. In addition, you can also send your whole contact list and call logs from your Android to another device by installing a downloadable plugin.
Superbeam app won’t let you manage your phone conversations from your desktop, but it will upload files on a server to install them on other devices without having to download the Superbeam app.
Portal
While Pushbullet may come with plenty of functions, its subsidiary app called Portal is dedicated to only one thing. Fast file sharing. This file swapping functions only to add files from your computer or another device to the target phone. Instead of an app that sends and receives files, Portal by Pushbullet only accepts receiving files.
To exchange files, open Portal app on your phone and visit portal.pushbullet.com via a browser on your computer. Scan the QR code appearing on the website by tapping the Scan button, and you’ll instantly see your phone and computer are connected. If you want to use portal to exchange files between two Android devices, open the Portal app only on the receiving phone and visit the website link on the sending device. It will work just fine.
Resilio Sync
Resilio Sync also makes a great alternative app for swapping data across devices that run the same or different operating systems. Resilio Sync app has a simple and practical design. It allows the creation of a network of connected mobile devices that can be used for sharing data. Resilio Sync comes with individual and business plans. The business plans support a larger variety of file syncing and file management, while the standard plan is helpful for individuals that need transferring data from old phone to a new one when upgrading.
Something really useful this app supports is its feature to upload files on the cloud. That allows you to permanently have a backup of everything that you have on your device for future use.
WiFi File Transfer
The WiFi File Transfer is a bit different from other Android file transfer apps. It accesses your phone’s storage and creates an online portfolio of everything that’s installed on the device. You can then use a generated IP link to access all of your phone data.
The app says access this URL from your computer’s browser, but you can also do it on another mobile device. On the WiFi File Transfer dashboard, you can edit, rename, copy, or zip files and folders, and also store them on your other device. At the moment you uninstall the app, the generated URL is no longer functional, your data and privacy will be safe.
