XPost: misc.phone.mobile.iphone   
   From: marianjones@helpfulpeople.com   
      
   Tyrone wrote:   
   >> Plug an iPhone and an Android into Windows and tell me which is easier for   
   >> bidirectional file transfers.   
   >   
   > This AGAIN?   Are you drunk?   
   >   
   > This is the 21st century. You don't NEED to "plug an iPhone into Windows".   
   > You can do Wi-Fi networking file transfers using the Files app on iOS to   
   > connect to the standard Windows networking. Both directions. As you know, I   
   do   
   > this all the time.   
      
   Hi Tyrone,   
      
   Happy New Year!   
      
   The issue is not familiarity or knowing any particular sequence of steps.   
   It is that the two platforms behave very differently at the protocol level.   
      
   On Windows, an Android phone connects using industry-standard MTP.   
   The file system appears in Windows File Explorer every time you plug it in.   
   Using standard protocols, you can browse the entire internal storage, place   
   files anywhere you choose, and retrieve files from anywhere on the device.   
   Transfers work in both directions with no additional software or services.   
      
   Another difference is that Android USB transfers do not require any account   
   association at all. You plug it in and move files. With iOS, the official   
   USB workflow through iTunes or Finder requires the same Apple ID on both   
   the PC and the iPhone. Without matching accounts, the device will not   
   easily sync or easily allow file transfers through that method. This is   
   another example of iOS depending on Apple specific services instead of on   
   industry-standard USB behavior.   
      
   iOS does not provide anything like the Android/PC platform compatibility.   
   Almost none of that industry-standard USB functionality works with iOS.   
      
   Claiming that iOS is "easier" ignores the fact that iOS does not expose its   
   file system over industry-standard USB using industry-standard MTP or   
   industry-standard mass storage protocols. Plug in iOS and Windows can only   
   see the DCIM folder, and only for one-way photo transfer. Nothing else on   
   the iOS device is accessible. It is not possible to place files anywhere   
   you choose on the iOS device or to retrieve files from arbitrary locations   
   when connected over industry-standard USB. iOS does not expose its storage   
   over industry-standard USB in a way that allows full, bidirectional access.   
      
   Any other transfer method, whether through WiFi, iCloud, iTunes or Finder,   
   or third party tools, depends on Apple specific services rather than on   
   industry-standard USB file access.   
      
   That is the ease-of-use distinction I am pointing out:   
    a. Android supports industry-standard two-way USB file transfer protocols   
    b. iOS does not   
      
   Everything you are describing on iOS is a workaround required because Apple   
   refuses to fully support industry-standard USB protocols for full,   
   bidirectional file access when connecting a phone to a Windows PC.   
      
   Android adheres to industry standards when it comes to easy file transfer.   
   Apple does not.   
      
   These are simply the extremely well-known well-described technical   
   differences between the platforms, and they are not a matter of opinion.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)