When we reviewed the Galaxy Nexus, one of our concerns was that it did not support USB mass storage mode. You know, the lovely ability to connect a phone to your computer and effortlessly transfer files to and from the internal storage. Well, because the Galaxy Nexus combines its internal storage with app storage, for security reasons those individual files are not accessible. Instead, Google implemented the widely-used MTP protocol which detects and support media files on a mobile device, for transfer to and from a PC.
Older devices — ones that were released with earlier versions of Android — will still have USB mass storage support in Ice Cream Sandwich since their partitions are completely separate. And, presumably, any device that has a separate microSD card slot will have access to those files. We can’t say we’re surprised at the change, overall: one of Android’s biggest security detriments, and what kept apps like Netflix out of the market for so long, was its open file system. Ice Cream Sandwich hopes to rectify that and keep the big brands happy as a result.
MobileSyrup may earn a commission from purchases made via our links, which helps fund the journalism we provide free on our website. These links do not influence our editorial content. Support us here.
