Google and Samsung are merging Nearby Share and Quick Share into a singular cross-Android solution

Google announced today at CES that it has collaborated with Samsung to combine their sharing solutions into a singular cross-Android solution under the Quick Share name. The new offering grows the network of devices that users can share content with across the Android ecosystem, including Chromebooks.

Back in 2020, Google introduced Nearby Share to make it easy for users to share files across devices. Samsung also has its own similar capability called Quick Share.

The companies have integrated the two experiences to create “the best default, built-in-option for peer-to-peer content sharing” across all types of devices in the Android and Chromebook ecosystems. Google also announced that it is working with PC manufacturers like LG to expand Quick Share to Windows PCs as a pre-installed app.

“This means with a simple tap of the new Quick Share icon, you can see a list of available devices close by,” the company explained in the blog post. “You remain in control of your privacy, and can choose in your phone’s settings who can discover your device and send files, whether it’s everyone, only your contacts or just your own devices.”

Quick Share will start rolling out to current Nearby Share-enabled devices next month.

Google also announced that support for Fast Pair, a feature that quickly finds and connects your Bluetooth accessories to your devices, is expanding to Chromecast with Google TV and will be expanding to more Google devices later this year. In addition, the company revealed that you can now cast TikTok content from your phone to your Chromecast built-in devices, and that users will soon be able to cast Live videos from TikTok to their big screen.

Plus, Android Auto is getting a handful of new updates. In the coming months, electric vehicles compatible with Android Auto can share real-time battery information with Google Maps. The functionality is first rolling out to the Ford Mustang Mach-E and the F-150 Lightning. In addition, you can send trips that you’ve planned on your phone directly to Google Maps on your car display.