How To Transfer Files Wirelessly Over WiFi Or 3G To Your Android

How cool would it be to cut the cord and enable wireless file transfer on your Android? One of the longest standing problem with most smartphones has got to do with the dependancy on a cable. File transfers have always involved fishing out a data cable, connecting the phone to the PC (or Mac, if you wish) via the cable, installing the required drivers (painfully!) and only then can file transfer even begin to take place. The alternative involved pulling out the memory card but how often would you like to do that?

The same is true for Android, but a developer intends to change all of the pain involved into bliss with the revolutionary Awesome Drop!

Awesome Drop enables you to transfer files wirelessly to your Android by pairing your phone with your browser with a randomly generated PIN. How is this different from Bluetooth transfers, you ask? Well, for one, all of this happens without Bluetooth. Secondly, you can choose to transfer files over WiFi or 3G (or LTE), thereby ensuring quicker transfer times. Here’s how you go about setting up wireless file transfer on your Android.

Android wireless file transfer

As always, first install the (free) Awesome Drop app from the Android Market. Note that this app accesses memory card data (for downloads), and also has access to your network so that it can get online in the first place.

There’s no signup involved. To start transferring files wirelessly to your Android, launch Awesome Drop. You will be prompted to enter a PIN.

If you don’t yet have a PIN, visit the Awesome Drop website to generate one before you can start transferring files wirelessly on your Android.

Once you enter your unique PIN, your phone instantly pairs up with the Awesome Drop app and you will see the following screen.

Initiating Android wireless file transfers

Now to start transferring files wirelessly to your Android, it’s a simple matter of dragging and dropping files into the Awesome Drop website on your computer browser. These files are uploaded and is simultaneously downloaded to your Android device. You can keep track of the progress using the simple status bar in the app. Each file shows up as a separate entry in the list.

Once the files have finished downloading, you have the option of exiting the app, or clicking on the file names. In case your Android device has an associated app, the file will open up instantly and you’ll have it ready for use.

In the event that the communication between your phone and Awesome Drop’s servers fails, you have the option of going into the menu and resetting the connection. In this case, you’ll need to generate a fresh PIN from the website and connect again.

In the time I’ve been using Awesome Drop for wireless file transfers between my computer and my Android, I’ve more or less forgotten the need to drag along my USB cable with me all the time. The concept is so simple in its idea and so clean in its implementation that you cannot help but feel that the developer has come up with a great Android wireless file transfer solution.

Tell us how Awesome Drop simplified data transfers for you in the comments. In case you are looking for alternatives, you can also check out our guide to syncing files to your Android using Dropbox.