What you want to know
- Google beforehand teased that Nearby Share was coming to Windows PCs.
- A beta of the app is offered to obtain on Windows gadgets.
- The app helps sending and receiving information between a PC and Android smartphone.
Android and Windows have a fairly good relationship, which in some methods, is best than Android and ChromeOS. Now, that relationship has simply gotten a bit deeper now that one other Android device is offered for Windows customers.
Google has launched a brand new Nearby Share app for Windows, greater than a yr after it was first teased at CES 2022, as identified by 9to5Google. The app is presently in beta, and you may obtain it from android.com from a supported gadget.
Once downloaded, you will be prompted to signal into your Google Account out of your PC browser, though you possibly can decide to make use of it with out an account. Ideally, you will need to signal into the identical account you utilize in your Android phone for those who do register. Once signed in, you possibly can select how your PC will seem to different gadgets and alter the visibility of your gadget.
Just like Nearby Share on Android, you possibly can select on your PC to be seen to everybody, solely contacts, your gadgets, or nobody. Finally, when Nearby Share is about up, you will be taken to a window the place you can begin dropping information to ship to different gadgets or obtain them.
I’ve performed with the app a bit of bit, and I’ve to say, it really works simply in addition to I might’ve hoped. After I drop information into the window, the app is fast to acknowledge my cellphone and vice versa. Sending information is fairly quick, and receiving them works simply as properly. You additionally do not have to go away the Nearby Share app open in your PC on your cellphone to acknowledge it, which is fairly helpful.
There are some necessities to make it work, nonetheless. While the app is meant for gadgets working 64-bit Windows 10 or Windows 11, it appears ARM-based gadgets are usually not supported, which is a bummer for these utilizing Windows-based laptops powered by Snapdragon processors. You additionally will need to have Bluetooth and Wi-Fi enabled in your gadget, which is the usual prerequisite for Nearby Share to work.
Google says the gadgets ought to be inside 16 toes (5m) so as to use Nearby Share. Files despatched by way of Nearby Share are additionally protected with end-to-end encryption.