Joe Maring / Android Authority
There are lots of perks to sticking to a single ecosystem. You get cross-platform sharing and connected features that are so convenient you don’t even want to break out of that bubble. A big reason for that is simple: removing even one piece from the equation feels so jarring that you instantly want to jump back into the ecosystem’s cozy arms. And that’s exactly what companies bank on to keep you buying more of their products.
But sticking to one ecosystem isn’t practical for everyone — it certainly isn’t for me. Covering tech means I have to stay in touch with everything on the market, from Android and Windows to iPhone and Fire TV. And I live by it, too. My main computer is a MacBook, I shuffle between an iPhone and a Pixel 10, and my smart home setup runs on Google Home speakers along with Google TV sticks and TVs. And that’s just me. Some of my family members use an iPhone with a Windows laptop, while others have an Android phone.
Sure, I can build an ecosystem for myself to a certain degree, but it falls apart as soon as I go beyond my primary laptop and phone. When I’m using the Pixel, I’m always scratching my head about how to send a file or link from my laptop to the phone or vice versa, because Bluetooth not only feels primitive but also painfully slow.
What’s the biggest pain point when using mixed devices? 11 votes File sharing 82 % Messaging 9 % Photos and media syncing 0 % App/feature compatibility 9 %
My current workarounds
Joe Maring / Android Authority
No workday goes by without me having to move files between my laptop and the Pixel 10, and I always have to take a moment to count my options and pick whatever’s convenient and works best for the file type. On the iPhone, the same task is instinctive because AirDrop is the default for anything nearby.
As a makeshift solution, I’ve been using NearDrop on my Mac. It is my app of choice when I’m sending stuff from my Android phones, and it works just as reliably as AirDrop. I can leave it open in the background permanently, though it takes just a tap to open the app when I need to transfer something. The only problem is that it worked in just one direction and didn’t allow transfers from the Mac to the Pixel, though a QR-based patchwork did try to solve that hindrance.
But ever since Google made AirDrop interoperable, things have been so seamless it almost feels dreamlike. If you see me teary-eyed at my desk, know that I just AirDropped something from my Mac to my Pixel 10.
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