Transfer files from Android to PC
The cable is missing, the phone has no SD slot, and you would rather not send your photos through somebody else's server.
Get PhoneBridge from the Microsoft StoreThree ways to do it, and what each one costs you
| Method | Needs | Where your files go |
|---|---|---|
| USB cable + MTP | A cable; MTP driver sometimes refuses to work | Straight across the cable |
| Cloud (Drive, OneDrive, WeTransfer) | An account, upload bandwidth, size limits | Through a data centre, however briefly |
| Local Wi-Fi transfer | Phone and PC on the same network | Phone to PC, directly |
The third one is what PhoneBridge does. It uses Android's own wireless debugging channel, so nothing has to be installed on the phone and no account is involved.
Step by step
- On the phone: Settings → About phone → tap Build number seven times to unlock Developer options, then turn on Wireless debugging.
- Start PhoneBridge on the PC. It shows a QR code.
- Scan the code from the wireless debugging screen. The phone pairs with the PC.
- Drag files onto the PhoneBridge window to send them to the phone, or pick files from the phone's storage to pull them across.
- Keep the phone on the same Wi-Fi. When it changes networks, pair again - it takes one scan.
What else the same connection gives you
- Device information: model, Android version, battery, storage.
- Screenshots taken from the PC, saved straight to a folder.
- Installing an APK you already have on disk, without emailing it to yourself.
Limits worth knowing
Speed is your Wi-Fi's speed - a 2.4 GHz network crawls on a 4 GB video. Some manufacturers hide wireless debugging behind an extra confirmation step; if the QR pairing times out, toggle the setting off and on again. iOS is not supported: Apple does not expose an equivalent channel.
Questions
Do I need to install anything on the phone?
No. PhoneBridge uses Android's built-in wireless debugging, so pairing happens with a QR code and nothing is installed on the phone.
Does it work over the internet?
No, by design. Phone and PC must be on the same network. Nothing is uploaded to a server.
Will it transfer a whole folder?
Yes, folders are transferred recursively. Very large single files are limited by free storage on the phone.