The Files app has been updated in iOS 13. Discover how you can get the best out of five of the Files app’s features.
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The Files in iOS 13 app has come a long way from the humble beginnings of a place to house a collection of files in services such as Dropbox, Box and iCloud Drive on your iPhone or iPad. The Files app now looks like the Finder in macOS by giving iOS devices extra power, such as support for external disks and tagging of files and folders with the same tag style as macOS.
Learn how five new features in the iOS 13 file app can add productivity shortcuts throughout the day, whether it’s downloading files from Safari, scanning documents, or opening documents and data on an external drive.
SEE: 10 dangerous vulnerabilities of apps to watch out for (TechRepublic download)
How to save files locally in iOS 13
Before iOS 13, you must save files to your iCloud Drive or other third-party service that has synchronized the files via the Files app. Now, however, you can save files locally on your iPhone or iPad, using your device’s built-in storage to store files instead of relying on a cloud service. This is especially great if you download a file for saving and temporary use and then delete.
If you want to use the local storage on your device, open the part sheet of a file that you want to save (or export from another app) and follow these steps.
- Tap Save to files from the available action items.
- Select On my (iPhone / iPad) from the available places to save.
- Tap Save (Figure A).
Figure A
When you save locally on your device, you don’t have to sync the file with iCloud Drive or a third-party service – it is saved on your device instead.
To open the file, you must open the Files and Browse | app All files stored on your local device appear on my iPhone / iPad.
Compress and decompress zip files in iOS 13
Zip files are great for reducing the transfer size required for a particular file, but up to iOS 13 you had to jump through many hoops to zip and extract files in iOS. With iOS 13, this feature is built into the Files app.
When you come across a zip file in the Files app, no matter which service you browse, all you have to do is tap the file and archive the zip and view the content and be ready to use.
Follow these steps if you want to create your own zip archive to send.
- Open the Files app.
- Browse for a file or set of files that you want to compress.
- Tap the Select button at the top and then tap to select the files that you want to include in the zip archive.
- Tap the three-dot icon on the toolbar.
- Select compress (Figure B).
Figure B
Compressing and decompressing zip archives is easy with the Files app in iOS 13.
The zip archive is created and available for you to send via AirDrop, iMessage or e-mail or to upload to a service.
Support for external drives in iOS 13
One of the biggest disadvantages of using iOS, especially on the iPad, was the inability to transfer files to a thumb drive or other external media for archiving or easy transfer to someone else. Fortunately, iOS 13 has resolved this important user complaint and you can connect powered devices to the iPad Pro, or powered devices on iPhone, older iPads, or iPod touch devices. You need the correct cable for this to work.
- For iPhone, iPad or iPod touch you need a Lightning to USB-A adapter.
- For the iPad-C compatible iPad Pro you need a USB-C to USB-A adapter, or a compatible USB-C hub that supports USB-A devices.
- If you have a USB-C drive that you connect, you only need a USB-C to USB-C cable for newer USB-C iPad Pro devices.
When you connect an external USB drive, it appears in the Files app as a searchable item in the list of services. You can copy items to or from the disk, or delete on the disk, and more (Figure C).
Figure C
Using the Files app to search external disks is now an option in iOS 13, creating a long-awaited feature.
Note: If your external media device needs power, you must connect the external drive to a hub or power supply to work on the iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch. If you have an iPad Pro, it can supply enough power to charge external disks that do not require power, but only power via USB.
Use document scanning in iOS 13 via the Files app
Document scanning apps have been around for iOS for a while and Apple has been playing with document scanning functions in the Notes app for a few years, but now the company has the same document scanning function directly in the app Files brought to make it easier to create a file from the scan instead of just adding a note.
Follow these steps to use this function.
- Open the Files app.
- Browse to the location or service where you want to add the scanned document.
- Tap and hold anywhere in the empty area of the document browser to get a contextual menu.
- Tap Scan Documents (Figure D).
- Scan a document in the same way as in the Notes app, and then tap Done.
Figure D
Scanning documents with the Files app is as simple as the Notes app, but it runs a PDF file that is easier to send or share via a third-party service, rather than just being added to a note.
When you do this, a file is output to the location where you called up the Scan Documents function, where the PDF can then be emailed, sent, shared with others or simply stored at that location.
View metadata and use tagging in iOS 13 via the Files app
Another new feature in the iOS 13 file app is the ability to view the metadata for documents and files and use the tagging function that was previously only available in the macOS Finder.
To view the metadata for a specific file, scroll to a file and tap and hold. In the context menu that appears, tap Info (Figure E).
Figure E
The information about a file is useful, especially when you need to make sure you have the correct version of a document without opening it.
The information panel appears and shows you the file name, file type, created and changed dates, the last open date and where the file / folder is located.
If you want to tag the file or folder so that you can use all specific files and folders with the same tag, tap Add tags (Figure F).
Figure F
The tag options are synchronized from all devices and make it easy to identify a specific set of files.
Tags can be made for work, home, vacation or whatever you want. Create a tag for all your files and folders that relate to a particular project for work, and they will be easier to find on both iOS and macOS.
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