Folder sharing could also be on the way
Google’s answer to Apple AirDrop, Nearby Share, does a decent enough job of sending files to nearby Android devices. However, it still lacks some features as well as the seamless experience of its competitor. It now looks like Nearby Share is trying to one-up AirDrop by adding an option that allows sending files to multiple recipients in one go.
A hidden feature unearthed by XDA’s Mishaal Rahman indicates that Nearby Share may soon let you choose up to four receiving devices at once. That should save you a lot of time and effort versus sending files to each friend and family member individually.
While surely a neat feature, it doesn’t work as expected right now. Transfers work only when you send them to a single recipient and fail when more than one device is connected.
Google's Nearby Share is preparing to add group transfer support. Right now, it seems you'll be able to connect to a maximum of 4 other devices but can only transfer to 1 at a time. I was able to get it to let me try connecting to two devices but it then fails immediately.
Google could also bring the ability to send entire folders to Nearby Share, which should save you from selecting multiple files like you currently do. Both of these additions will surely make the feature more practical, and we hope that they don’t take much long to show up for everyone.
