The next time you need to copy files to or from your BlackBerry 10 smartphone, instead of grabbing a USB cable you can use Wi-Fi sharing instead. Once you have set up your smartphone for Wi-Fi access you’ll be able to transfer files between a Windows or Mac OS computer and your BlackBerry 10 device.
For example, every time I visit my parents and show them pictures I’ve taken recently, I’ll hop on their laptop, access my smartphone and copy their favourites so they always have a copy.
This is just one of many useful applications for this feature so without further ado, here’s how to do it!
Step 1 – Turn on Wi-Fi Access
Complete the following steps to turn on Wi-Fi access as well as set up a password to restrict access to your smartphone over Wi-Fi.
- While viewing the home screen, swipe down from the top of the screen
- Tap Settings followed by Storage and Access
- Set the Access using Wi-Fi switch to On
- When prompted, enter a storage access password
- Tap Identification on Network and make note of the Username
Tip: If you haven’t already, give your BlackBerry 10 smartphone a nickname so it’s easy to identify on your network. To do this, tap Settings on your home screen followed by About. Within this screen, set your desired nickname in the
Device Name field.Step 2 – Identifying your smartphone’s IP addressOnce you have enabled Wi-Fi access to your smartphone, the next step is to identify your smartphone’s IP address so you can connect to it using your computer.
1. While viewing the home screen, swipe down from the top of the screen
2. Tap
Settings followed by
About 3. Tap the
Category bar and select
Network 4. Under
Wi-Fi, record your IPv4 address
When recording your IP address, you only need to record the first 4 quadrants, i.e. 12.34.56.78. You do not need to record the trailing number, you only need the first four quadrants (the bolded numbers), i.e. 12.34.56.78/22
Step 3 – Accessing your smartphone over Wi-Fi using a PC or Mac OSSince we have enabled Wi-Fi access to your smartphone and obtained the IP address, all that’s left to do is connect your computer to your smartphone.
How to access a BlackBerry 10 smartphone over Wi-Fi using Microsoft Windows
On your Microsoft Windows computer, select Start followed by Run
If you are using Microsoft Windows Vista, Windows 7 or Windows 8, you may need to search for the Run option first. If you cannot find the Run option, open My Computer on your computer’s desktop and type the address mentioned in the next step in the My Computer address bar instead.
Enter the following “\\1.1.1.1\” and replace 1.1.1.1 with the IP address you identified earlier in step 2
1. When prompted, enter BlackBerry for the username and type the Wi-Fi access password you set earlier in step 1
2. Your smartphone file system will appear on your desktop. Select Media to access your smartphone memory or select Removable_SDCARD to access the MicroSD card
