Apple is infamous for not properly supporting the devices it doesn't build. One prominent example is Bluetooth file sharing. Over a decade ago, as an Android phone user at the time, there was no easy way for me to exchange files with an iPhone owner. Back then, many of us depended on this technology to transfer photos and audio tracks, as data plans weren't as fast, convenient, or affordable. Eventually, we started resorting to Wi-Fi Direct — which offered significantly faster transfer speeds to those within close proximity. Apple could've easily implemented the same Bluetooth and Wi-Fi Direct compatibility on iPhones. However, it built its own propriety standard that only works across its products — AirDrop.

Apple AirDrop is available across iPhones, iPads, and Macs. The company offers users three visibility options to pick from — Receiving Off, Contacts Only, and Everyone. Their labels are pretty self-explanatory, and users get to decide who gets to send them content. Of course, the sender and receiver should be within proximity. Additionally, the latter user has to agree to the pop-up prompt when someone attempts to share a file with them.

Despite receivers having the option to reject incoming AirDrops, this technology has been abused to send unsolicited nudes, memes, and even threats. Meanwhile, some protesters in China have depended on it to exchange anti-government data. iOS 16.1.1 limits the Everyone AirDrop visibility to just 10 minutes in China. After the 10 minutes pass, iOS automatically reverts to the Contacts Only visibility.

According to Bloomberg, Apple could be rolling out this change globally in the coming year. In this case, it will be harder to AirDrop files to random strangers in public. Unless someone manually enables the Everyone visibility every 10 minutes, they will be invisible to strangers within a short period of time.

Personally, I dislike this change. Those who often receive disturbing or unwanted content from strangers can always restrict the feature to Contacts Only. Just one week ago, I randomly received a cat photo in a crowded square through AirDrop. When I checked its metadata, it was revealed that the image was even taken in another city. I just find it fascinating how this photo has hopped from one place to another until it eventually reached me. While I don't randomly AirDrop photos to strangers, it's been fun receiving random content from people I can't even identify.

Would you accept an AirDrop from a random stranger? Why or why not? Let us know in the comments section below.

Source: Bloomberg