How to use an external hard drive with iPhone and iPad – Easy Steps

Between our ever-expanding movie, storage-intensive apps and games, messages, files, health data, and more, our device’s storage is doomed to run out at times. Therefore, Apple’s wise decision to provide HDD and SD card support for iOS device is very beneficial. Thanks to it, you can use an external hard drive with iPhone and iPad and back up your valuable data without any hassle.

In particular, to support this feature, your iOS device must be running iOS 13 or later. Also, you must have the correct Lightning / USB C connector or card reader.

How to connect an external hard drive to an iPhone or iPad

1. Connect your external hard drive to your iPhone / iPad.
2. Open theapplication Records and press Browse bottom of the screen.
3. Look for the last name from reader in the list of locations and tap it to connect your hard drive.

How to move files from iPhone to external hard drive

1. Open the app Records and hold down the folder / file you want to move.
2. Go ahead To move and select the external disk on the menu.
3. Select the folder if applicable, then press Copy to confirm the move.

Remember that this action simply copied the file or folder to the drive. You will need to manually delete it from your iPhone / iPad to free up space.

Move files from external hard drive to iPhone

1. Launch the app Records, open it external disk and find your file or folder.
2. Hold down the folder / file and press To move.
3. Then select the location where you want to save and press Copy.

In particular, you can also copy the files directly to your iCloud, Dropbox, etc., selecting these options accordingly.

While iCloud storage is a viable backup option, it could be expensive in comparison. Also, if you have an external SSD for Mac, all your data can be accumulated in one place. And all you need is the right data transfer cable!

conclusion

In this guide, you have learned how to use an external hard drive with iPhone and iPad. If you have any questions or suggestions, let us know in the comments. Also refer to this guide if you want to learn how to transfer photos from iPhone to Windows 11.