any phone · USB cable

How to transfer videos, photos and files from your phone to your PC with a USB cable

With a data cable, an Android phone shows up in Windows as a drive once you switch it to “File transfer”; an iPhone shows up after you tap “Trust This Computer”, and its photos come out through the Photos app or the DCIM folder. Both work for a handful of files. For a whole camera roll, the same cable brings three known problems, and the fix is often to put it down.

On the computer: Windows · MacOn the phone: App Store · Google Play

Android to Windows: switch the phone to “File transfer”

Plug the phone in and unlock it. Pull down the notification that says “Charging this device via USB” and choose File transfer (or “Transferring files”, “MTP”). In File Explorer the phone appears under This PC; photos and videos are in Internal storage → DCIM → Camera, screenshots in Pictures → Screenshots, WhatsApp media in Android → media. Copy the folders you want. If the phone only charges, the cable may be power-only or the USB mode is still “Charging”; the guide PC not recognizing the phone goes through every cause.

iPhone to Windows: trust, then import

Plug in, unlock the iPhone, tap Trust This Computer. Windows needs Apple’s driver: install the Apple Devices app from the Microsoft Store (or iTunes from Apple’s site). Then either open Windows Photos → Import → From a connected device, or browse Internal Storage → DCIM in Explorer. Before the first import, set the iPhone to Settings → Apps → Photos → Transfer to Mac or PC → Keep Originals, or HEIC and HEVC may be converted on the way. Big libraries show “This folder is empty” until the DCIM listing finishes; keep the phone unlocked and wait.

Android to Mac: the official tool is gone

Google no longer offers Android File Transfer for Mac, and macOS has no MTP browser of its own. ZiggSend’s Mac app has a cable mode for Android: its assistant turns on USB debugging once, then the Mac pulls the files over its own connection, with resume and a check on each one. We moved 22 GB in 184 files over a USB 2 cable with zero failures (about 28 MB/s). The Android File Transfer guide has the whole story.

iPhone to Mac: Photos, Image Capture or Finder

Plug in and trust the Mac. Photos imports the library; Image Capture (in Applications → Utilities) copies the originals to a folder you choose, which is the better pick for a backup; Finder shows the iPhone in the sidebar for files from apps. The same “Keep Originals” setting applies.

The three things that stall a cable copy

First, MTP on Android does one operation at a time, and users commonly report copies that stop or skip files in big folders, with no message. Second, on the iPhone side, “device unreachable” in Windows Photos when the connection drops mid-import, and HEIC/HEVC conversion when “Keep Originals” is off. Third, nothing on either side checks that the file on the PC equals the file on the phone. The cable is fine for ten files you can look at one by one.

When to put the cable down

For a camera roll or anything you need to be sure of, send over your Wi-Fi with ZiggSend: install on the computer, open the free app on the phone, tap Connect phone or computer and point the camera at the QR code on screen. Files arrive in a folder you choose, each one checked with SHA-256 and listed in History; a dropped transfer resumes. Measured: 806 MB in 46 s on home Wi-Fi. No driver, no USB mode, no “Trust This Computer”.

Measured, not promised. 22 GB in 184 files with 0 failures from an Android to a Mac over a USB 2 cable (about 28 MB/s); an 806 MB video over home Wi-Fi in 46 s; up to 49.7 MB/s over Wi-Fi from a Mac to an iPhone. Every file is checked against the original on arrival. How we measure.

What people ask before they trust a transfer app

“I don’t trust my private photos to a site I don’t know.”

Neither do we. ZiggSend has no site in the middle: the file goes from one device to the other over your home Wi-Fi (or, from Android to a Mac, a cable), and no file is stored anywhere else. The computer app only contacts ZiggSend to check for updates, to register a random install ID when it opens and, once you buy it, to activate the license and check its status once a day; the privacy policy lists exactly what goes out.

“Mine fails at 64% every time.”

A transfer that breaks resumes where it stopped. Every file is written as a temporary part and only gets its final name after the SHA-256 check passes — you never end up with a half file that looks whole.

“I’m out of space and need to empty the phone.”

Move everything to the computer first: only files that pass the SHA-256 check get their final name, and History shows each fingerprint. Then delete on the phone. Originals, no size limit.

Free forever, on your phone and on your computer.

No account, no ads, no limits. Want to help ZiggSend grow and keep improving? Become a Founder for $9.99, once.

Get ZiggSend

On the computer: Windows · MacOn the phone: App Store · Google Play

Questions people actually ask

Why does my phone only charge when I plug it into the PC?

Either the cable carries power but no data, or the phone is still in “Charging” USB mode. Try the cable that came with the phone, another USB port, and pull down the USB notification to pick File transfer. On an iPhone, also answer “Trust This Computer” on the phone screen.

Is a USB cable faster than Wi-Fi?

A USB 3 cable in a USB 3 port can be, in theory. In practice MTP on Android pauses between files and the Windows Photos import converts on the fly, while home Wi-Fi moved 806 MB in 46 s in our measurement. Over a USB 2 cable from Android to a Mac, ZiggSend measured about 28 MB/s.

Does a cable transfer keep the original quality?

On Android, yes: MTP copies the file as is. On an iPhone, only if “Keep Originals” is on; otherwise the import may convert HEIC to JPEG and HEVC to H.264. No cable path checks the result.

Can I copy files from the PC to the phone over the cable?

On Android, yes, by dragging into the phone’s folders in Explorer. On an iPhone, only into apps that accept files, through iTunes or the Apple Devices app. ZiggSend does both directions over Wi-Fi: drop the file on the computer window and it goes to the phone.

And with a USB cable?

ZiggSend’s cable mode exists on the Mac app, for Android: its assistant sets it up once (USB debugging on) and the Mac pulls the files over its own connection instead of MTP, which runs one operation at a time and does not check what arrived. Speed depends on the cable: with a USB 2 charging cable we measured about 28 MB/s (22 GB in about 13 minutes). On Windows, and with iPhone, ZiggSend goes over Wi-Fi; the cable path there is the system’s own import. If the PC does not even see the phone, start here: PC not recognizing the phone over USB.

Laptop or MacBook instead of a desktop — any difference?

None. A MacBook is a Mac and a laptop is a PC: same app, same steps. The only practical difference is that laptops are usually on Wi-Fi, which is exactly the path ZiggSend uses — no cable, no dock, no adapter.

Related guides

Videos from Android to a PC or laptop without compressionVideos from iPhone to a PC or laptop without compressionVideos from Android to a Mac or MacBook without compressioniPhone not showing up in WindowsPC not recognizing your phone over USBOpen HEIC files on Windows

Compared with

ZiggSend vs USB cableZiggSend vs Android File TransferZiggSend vs Phone Link