Ask Dave Taylor
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Home
  • Videos
  • Most Popular
  • Top Categories
  • Books
  • About Dave
  • Ask Me
  • > Donate <
  • Home
  • Android Help
  • How Can I Browse my Android Phone Files from a Mac?

How Can I Browse my Android Phone Files from a Mac?

February 28, 2020 / Dave Taylor / Android Help, Mac & MacOS Help / No Comments

I love my Mac system, but when I plug in my Android phone, they just don’t seem even remotely compatible. How can I access and work with my Android file system and data from my MacOS X system?

Apple users are pretty familiar with having everything masked, hidden and managed so an iPhone owner asking about navigating the iOS 13 file system would be downright weird. But Android is a very different beast and its files, folders, music, photos and movies are all far more accessible. If you have the right software that is. Google promotes using Android File Transfer, a free download, but my experience has been pretty poor with this particular app and much of the time it just doesn’t see my Android phone at all.

Fortunately there’s a new option in town, a new Mac app designed specifically to help you easily work with your Android phone called MacDroid. It’s a bit on the spendy side with a $19.99 annual subscription, but you can grab it and use it for a week free to see if it does the trick for you before you have to decide about purchasing the app. In essence what it does is make that Android phone look like just another remote drive on  your Mac, even to the point of showing up with a drive icon on the Desktop!

Let’s have a look at some basic functionality, but let’s start with Android File Transfer:

android file transfer - no phone found

Oops, not working. As usual, sorry to report.

Instead, I’m going to switch over to MacDroid. To do that, there’s a tiny bit of prep work required on the Android device; you have to put it in “developer” mode, then enable USB debugging. The MacDroid info is pretty scant on this, but basically in Settings on your Android device swipe down to About and find the line that specifies your build number. Then just keep tapping on it. After about a half-dozen taps it’ll enable that required developer mode. Then you can go into Settings > Developer options and enable USB debugging:

android enable developer - usb debugging

That’s all the work required. Once you’ve done that first launch of MacDroid, it’ll prompt you for what you are going to mount and some basic status on the new Android device:

macdroid android file access setup

Note: It prompts you to change the device name, but I found that changing it here was ignored in later use. A bug that I’m sure they’ll fix.

Now your Android device immediately shows up as an external drive whenever it’s plugged in:

android device as mac external drive

You have to admit, that’s pretty slick! And it’s an external drive so you can browse the entire Android file system as if it’s just another Finder folder:

android file system in mac macos x finder - macdroid

Of course, trying to figure out what’s where can be a bit tricky, but remember this is a read/write external drive, so you can easily pull anything you want – even entire folders worth of content – off your Android phone with ease and you can add to your phone or tablet by simply dropping content into the appropriate folder too!

For example, Pictures > Screenshots:

android screenshots captures - file system mac macos x - macdroid

I can also drag and drop photos from my Mac computer directly into that same Pictures folder, as shown:

add picture to android phone - drag and drop - macdroid

Then on the phone, ta daaa, that picture shows up in the photo gallery:

graduate dog - photo on android phone

It’s really quite simple to work with and fast on transfers too. MacDroid is what Android File Transfer should always have been, a smooth, elegant and simple interface to make those Android devices full participants in the Mac user experience. Recommended, with the caveat that I believe it’s overpriced at $9.99/year. As a one time purchase, that’s a smart investment. But annually? Ah well, perhaps that’ll change too.

MacDroid for MacOS X, from Electronic Team, Inc. Free for 7 days, $9.99/annually afterwards. Learn more at electronic.us

Disclosure: Electronic Team sent me a license key for MacDroid for the purposes of this review. Thanks!

Let’s Stay In Touch!

Never miss a single article, review or tutorial here on AskDaveTaylor, sign up for my fun weekly newsletter!
Name: 
Your email address:*
Please enter all required fields
Correct invalid entries
No spam, ever. Promise. Powered by FeedBlitz
Please choose a color:
Starbucks coffee cup I do have a lot to say, and questions of my own for that matter, but first I'd like to say thank you, Dave, for all your helpful information by buying you a cup of coffee!
android file transfer, android macos x, android on mac, connect android mac, mac android, macdroid android file transfer

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Search

Recent Posts

  • How Can I Prevent Remote Access to my Windows PC?
  • The Easy Way to Add Contacts to my New Android Phone?
  • How Can I Hide or Report An Offensive Advert on Facebook?
  • Switch “Paste” & “Paste and Match Style” Keyboard Shortcuts on MacOS?
  • How Can I Easily Create a QR Code For My Web Page?

On Our YouTube Channel

AUKEY Omnia 100W + Minima 20W Power Chargers -- DEMO & REVIEW

Roborock S6 MaxV Robot Vacuum Cleaner -- DEMO & REVIEW

Categories

  • AdSense, AdWords, and PPC Help (106)
  • Amazon Echo & Kindle Help (79)
  • Amazon, eBay, and Online Shopping Help, (157)
  • Android Help (160)
  • Apple Watch Help (49)
  • Articles, Tutorials, and Reviews (327)
  • Business Advice (192)
  • Computer & Internet Basics (720)
  • d) None of the Above (160)
  • Facebook Help (365)
  • Google, Chrome & Gmail Help (157)
  • HTML & Web Page Design (244)
  • Instagram Help (44)
  • iPad Help (137)
  • iPhone & iOS Help (571)
  • iPod & MP3 Player Help (173)
  • LinkedIn Help (79)
  • Linux Help (149)
  • Linux Shell Script Programming (86)
  • Mac & MacOS Help (833)
  • Most Popular (10)
  • Outlook & Office 365 Help (10)
  • PayPal Help (68)
  • Pinterest Help (53)
  • Reddit Help (12)
  • SEO & Marketing (80)
  • Spam, Scams & Security (84)
  • Trade Show News & Updates (23)
  • Twitter Help (212)
  • Video Game Tips (66)
  • Web Site Traffic Tips (62)
  • Windows 10 Help (831)
  • Wordpress Help (201)
  • Writing and Publishing (72)
  • YouTube Help (43)
  • YouTube Video Reviews (159)
  • Zoom, Skype & Video Chat Help (42)

Archives

Social Connections:

Ask Dave Taylor


Follow Me on Pinterest
Follow me on Twitter
Follow me on LinkedIn
Follow me on Instagram


AskDaveTaylor on Facebook



microsoft insider mvp


This web site is for the purpose of disseminating information for educational purposes, free of charge, for the benefit of all visitors. We take great care to provide quality information. However, we do not guarantee, and accept no legal liability whatsoever arising from or connected to, the accuracy, reliability, currency or completeness of any material contained on this site or on any linked site. Further, please note that by submitting a question or comment you're agreeing to our terms of service, which are: you relinquish any subsequent rights of ownership to your material by submitting it on this site. Our lawyer says "Thanks for your cooperation."
© 2020 by Dave Taylor. "Ask Dave Taylor®" is a registered trademark of Intuitive Systems, LLC.
Privacy Policy - Terms and Conditions - Accessibility Policy