What it does
AirDrop shares photos, documents and other items between nearby iPhones, iPads and Macs through the operating system's share controls.
Turn on Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and the receiving device’s AirDrop visibility, then choose the nearby person from Share or drag the item to them in Finder. Start within about ten meters. On iOS, iPadOS and macOS 26.2 or later, a sender outside the recipient’s contacts must enter the code shown by that recipient. Matching Apple Accounts accept transfers between your own devices automatically. Received items usually go to the relevant app; Mac files may appear in Downloads or offer a save/open choice. Apple’s guide also says an initiated transfer can continue over the Internet after the devices leave radio range.
Strengths
- Built into the device share controls
- Finder supports dragging files to a recipient
Watch out for
- Both devices need supported Apple hardware and receiving settings