Quickly Transfer Files Using Wi-Fi Direct Via NFC [How-To]

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Android Beam can be used to share content between NFC equipped Android devices with just a simple tap. At present, Android Beam allows for sharing of YouTube videos, Google Maps locations, sharing of images and videos and more.

The problem with Android Beam is that it uses Bluetooth, and not Wi-Fi Direct to transfer files, which is comparatively much slower. Worse, Android Beam only supports for sharing of pictures and videos, thus limiting the use of the feature. SuperBeam fixes all the gripes with Android Beam, and allows for sharing of any kind of files over Wi-Fi Direct via NFC.

Here’s how to use it.

1. Head over to the Play Store and download SuperBeam on both Android devices — the one you want to share from and the one you want to share to. You can use SuperBeam to transfer files between using Wi-Fi direct even if your Android device lacks NFC.

2. Once the app has been installed, select the file(s) that you want to send using your preferred File manager. Tap the Share menu option, and select SuperBeam from the list.

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3. SuperBeam will now open up, activate Wi-Fi Hotspot and display a QR code on your (transferor) device screen. If the transferee Android device lacks NFC, you can scan this QR code using any Barcode scanner app available on the Play Store to initiate the file transfer.

If NFC is present on both the devices, you can simply bump the back of the two Android devices together, and tap on the screen of the transferor device once you hear the Android Beam notification sound.

4. SuperBeam will now establish a Wi-Fi Direct connection between the two devices, and start the file transfer. Since the transfer happens using Wi-Fi Direct, even transferring large files should take mere seconds.

If for some reason SuperBeam does not work for you, don’t forget to send a message to the developer. SuperBeam can be downloaded for free from the Play Store, but if you like the app, you can use the Donate option from within the app to appreciate the hard work of the developer.