LocalSend
AirDrop is the gold standard for sharing files or media between your own devices or Apple users on your local network, Snapdrop filled the void between Apple and Windows / Android devices but its become a little flakey recently which lead me to use Pairdrop.
Pairdrop between non apple to apple of devices it does a lot of stuff right but just like Snapdrop its relying on the browser to do the heavy lifting. But then there is LocalSend.
LocalSend Receive mode, each device gets a local unique identifier
On a quest to bring my now Ubuntu powered MacBook Pro, back in to the ecosystem somewhat I discovered LocalSend its an opensource (which you know I love) application that does the same job as AirDrop on an Apple device.
Its available on
I can be installed via Homebrew, local DMG binaries or via the App Store on Mac. Every base is covered for you.. Linux you have the same choice of binaries options, a snap installer or via FlatHub. The user interface is simple clean and consistent across operating systems, allowing you to support new users and adopters of this program.
Items you want to send are loaded in to App, and when the nearby device comes available you select it and it sends. I find the text function great for sending code or links between devices on different operating systems. The transfers are snappy due to the nature of app to app communication with both acting like server to send and receive, staying away from the bottleneck of modern browsers.
You can build a list of favourites, and give them a more recognisable name for easy identification. There’s also numerous ways of sending the either single send, multiple recipients or via link.
If you like to tweak settings, the settings window has you covered - allowing you to choose a theme, changing the default device name, display language, saving actions on received files, its pretty much covers all you need.
Great app, in constant use at home and work.
