Fast Share is Google's new successor to Android Beam
Android Q will dispense with the Android Beam data exchange technology. Instead of NFC, the new software relies on Bluetooth and Wi-Fi.
The Beam successor is called Fast Share and was discovered by 9to5Google. Thus, Fast Share appears in the sharing dialog of Android Q as well as in the settings, allowing you to share data and images with nearby devices without the need for an Internet connection. Copied text or URLs can also be sent in this way.
To use Fast Share, both Location Services and Bluetooth must be enabled. If you want to share a file, a device name must be specified. Android then displays a list of devices nearby, similar to Apple's Airdrop. A notification appears on the recipient's side, which can be used to accept or reject the transfer.
It is possible to set whether you want to be visible to everyone or whether only "frequent senders" can see you, even if Fast Share is not used. According to 9to5Google, the file exchange is, of course, possible with other Android devices, but also with Chromebooks, smartwatches with Wear OS and iPhones.
XDA Developers writes that only the pairing connection is established via Bluetooth, and that the actual file transfer takes place via a direct Wi-Fi connection. This is faster than transfers which used NFC to connect devices and also allows larger amounts of data to be sent.
Whether a special Android version is necessary, however, is unclear. XDA Developers speculates that it should be possible to send to almost all modern Android versions, because technically only direct Wi-Fi connections and Bluetooth are required.
At this year's Google developer conference I/O it was also announced that the data exchange feature Android Beam will not be part of Android Q. Now it looks as though it will get a successor. The finished version of Android Q is expected in the autumn.
What do you think of this function? Have you used Android Beam and are looking forward to a faster successor?
Source: 9to5Google, XDA Developers
