More on my move to iOS - The nightmare that is File Management!

In my previous blog post I spoke about my move to iPhone after years of being a very committed Android user.  About another month has since passed, with an iOS update and long days in lockdown to go with it.  That means some more playing around with my "new girlfriend" (see the previous post if that doesn't make sense - Don't judge me if you haven't read it yet!!)

One of the things that still frustrated me quite a lot on my iPhone is the lack of control I have over my file system.  On the iPhone you have your photo gallery (like with any smartphone) and the Files app (again, like any smartphone).  The things that frustrate me, as someone who's used to Android, are the following:

1. There's no link between the Photo Gallery and the Files app.  You can't access your photos from your File Manager - it simply isn't linked.

2. You can only access selected files on your iPhone using the Files app.  The options are:

• iCloud Drive
• On My iPhone
• Recently Deleted

You would think that "On My iPhone" would be the place to go, right?  You would be WRONG!

The only things that "On My iPhone" gives you access to are the apps that allow File Transfer using iTunes.  Anything that you transfer using iTunes File Transfer can be accessed, copied, moved (only between these same folders!), or deleted.  Nothing else.

A notable thing is that Outlook, for example, isn't listed here.  Neither is Microsoft Office.  Two apps that I use CONSTANTLY for work.  If I download an attachment from Outlook and then want to open it in Excel or Word, or anything else, for example...  That file can't be found.  It is MIA.  At least, I couldn't find a way to get to it yet, not even after weeks of working exclusively on iPhone.

Now I know this is for security reasons...  I get it.  But really?  I need my stuff to work!  

A week ago I had to send a scan of my lease agreement by email for FICA purposes.  So as I always did on Android, I scanned the document using the Tiny Scanner app.  If I want to email the resulting PDF I have to buy the premium version.  On Android I would only have to save the PDF somewhere on my phone, then open Outlook and choose "attach".  Now, on iPhone I did the same.  First challenge: Where do I save the file?  TinyScanner is NOT one of the options available in "On My iPhone".  So I thought the logical choice would be the Adobe Reader folder.  It saved, no problem.  I could open the PDF and everything.

Next challenge: Getting that stupid file into Outlook.  It ended up with me connecting to my PC and using iTunes File Transfer to copy the file to Windows so that I could send it via Outlook.

This might be an Outlook issue, but there are many other similar examples NOT involving Outlook so there seems to be a real limitation there (PLEASE HELP, APPLE!).  

However, I have since found a workaround.  Not one that I'm crazy about, though...  I like to use stuff that simply comes with my phone.  I prefer to install the absolute minimum of additional software on any device.  But in this case, the app "Documents by Readdle" was an absolute blessing.  It is really a combination of a few different things:

• The Photo Gallery, but with the option to copy photos to other folders
• The Files App, but with the option to copy files between different folders
• Safari web browser, but with the added ability to download files that you wouldn't normally be able to download, and save them to the file system in an EASILY ACCESSIBLE place
• It is linked with iTunes File Sharing, so there's easy file transfers between different apps and the computer
• There is a Share to Documents option when you want to share files, so you can easily get files into Documents (for further file management) even from apps like Outlook

There are other features but those are the ones that I appreciate the most.  Go and have a look at the link I posted above to see more of what this app is capable of.

As a final thought I just want to mention, for those of you that are wondering or maybe obnoxious enough to be criticizing me right now:  YES, I know that iCould and the iCloud Drive is there specifically for that purpose.  But South Africa's internet sucks at the best of times when compared to the rest of the world, and right now during lockdown more often than not my internet is almost non-existent.  I was stuck with a 24kbps download speed the other day.  Go back and read that again...  It wasn't a typo.  Yes, my "broadband" internet connection was slower than my first dial-up connection that I had in the 90's.  So, no, iCloud (as awesome as it is) is NOT always the solution.

So, now that I have that off my chest, let me close by saying that I still absolutely LOVE my iPhone and I still have no interest to go back to Android.  This is one of those quirks that you discover about the new girlfriend as you get to know her and the "infatuation phase" is over, leaving you with nothing but raw, but true, love.