Apple’s AirDrop, a key tool for Hong Kong protestors, is coming to Android

Chinese smartphone rivals Xiaomi, Oppo and Vivo team up to introduce peer-to-peer wireless file transfers

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Xiaomi, Vivo and Oppo make up nearly half of China's smartphone market, which could help a new AirDrop alternative succeed where others have failed. (Picture: Xiaomi)

Published: 11:03pm, 19 Aug 2019Updated: 9:11am, 20 Sep 2019

This article originally appeared on ABACUS

Since Apple introduced AirDrop in 2011, it’s become a key tool for iPhone users to send files of any size to each other without using an internet connection or cell service. Now it looks like three Chinese phone makers are bringing that to Android users as well.

Xiaomi said in a WeChat post that it’s partnering with Oppo and Vivo -- both owned by BBK Electronics -- to launch a wireless peer-to-peer file transfer protocol that will be compatible with devices from all three companies.

How Oppo became one of the biggest smartphone makers in China

Incidentally, it comes as AirDrop has emerged as a protest tool for young Hong Kong activists. On subways and in other public places, unwitting iPhone users are receiving unsolicited images via AirDrop, inviting them to join in the protests.

It’s an effective tool because it doesn’t need people to have a particular app. Anyone with an iPhone can receive things via AirDrop, which means that they’re even reaching tourists from mainland China. Normally blocked from reading uncensored news about the Hong Kong protests at home, Chinese tourists reportedly encountered these surprise AirDrops while visiting Hong Kong.

According to Xiaomi’s blog post, their new feature relies partly on Bluetooth and can achieve a transfer rate of 20MB per second. Similarly, Apple’s AirDrop uses Bluetooth to sense other Apple devices nearby and uses Wi-Fi to establish an encrypted connection between them. And just like AirDrop, Xiaomi indicates that the feature will support various file types, including images, music and videos.