An Unpopular but Effective iPhone Motion Serves as a Potential Swap for AirDrop
Here's an alternative approach to share photos and videos like a pro across your Apple devices:
Knowing your Apple devices inside and out might seem like a piece of cake, but there's a plethora of hidden tricks up Apple's sleeve that you might've missed. MacRumors recently shed some light on one such feature that's particularly handy for photographers, video content creators, and avid Apple users.
This overlooked gem is a nifty gesture that saves time and effort when sharing media across devices. The cool factor? It's faster than AirDrop in some cases!
The simple three-finger pinch – yep, that's it. Open any photo or video, then pinch in with three fingers (the thumb, index, and middle finger) on the image. You'll see a "Copy" pop-up at the top of the screen. If you accidentally dismiss the image while doing the gesture, don't worry! As long as you've copied it, you're good to go.
You can copy text or images the traditional way too, by highlighting text and copying it, or by long-pressing on an image and tapping "Copy."
Next, you can paste the photo or video effortlessly wherever it needs to go. You can either tap a text field and choose "Paste" or pinch out with three fingers to paste it instead. But the real magic happens when you leverage Apple's Universal Clipboard feature. This allows you to copy and paste items across devices – so you can copy a photo on your iPhone and instantly paste it on your Mac, or copy a video from your iPad and paste it to your iPhone.
To make this work, ensure that your devices share the same iCloud account, are connected to the same wifi network with Bluetooth enabled, and that Handoff is enabled on all devices. You can find it under Settings (System Settings on Mac) > General > Airplay & Continuity > Handoff.
Once Handoff is enabled on every device, you're all set to have some fun. Simply try a three-finger pinch on any photo or video on your iPhone or iPad, then paste it to another open device.
Next time you've got a photo or video on one device and need it on another, give this trick a shot instead of using AirDrop or sending it through texts. Not only is it quicker, but you'll have the media right where it needs to be, without the extra steps!
This hidden iPhone gesture, known as the 'three-finger pinch,' is a valuable tech gem that simplifies sharing photos and videos across Apple devices, even outperforming AirDrop in certain cases. By pinching in with three fingers on an image, you can quickly copy it and then paste it to another device using Apple's Universal Clipboard, making tech gadgets like smartphones and smart devices seamlessly interconnected.
