BitTorrent has released the Shoot app, which the company said will make it easy for users to send files such as photos and videos to each other's devices, even those running on different operating systems.
Shoot is available for iOS, Android and Windows Phone users, and it looks to eliminate the hassle of sending files to other users. Current solutions such as email, messaging apps and cloud storage services usually have size limits for files being transferred, a limitation that BitTorrent's Shoot looks to overcome.
Shoot utilizes the BitTorrent Sync protocol to send the files in a private and secure manner without limits to file sizes. The app is, in fact, designed to send huge batches of pictures and videos between users, which would come in handy when sharing pictures and videos from certain events, for example. And because the files do not pass through a cloud service, the files are kept secure and private between the two users.
The only limit that Shoot would have would be the bandwidth of the user's carrier. If that would be a problem due to a data cap restriction, the app can be set up to operate only using a Wi-Fi connection.
However, the ability for users to securely send large batches of files will not come free. Upon firing up the app, users are given three trial runs to send a file to another user. After the first three times, users will be required to pay a one-time charge of $1.99 to continue using the app. Receiving data sent by Shoot, however, will always be free, so users that will only be sending files from their smartphone to their tablet will only need to pay the $1.99 fee for their smartphone.
Ever since Google discontinued the Bump service, there has been an absence of a good way to transfer files across devices on different platforms. There is no shortage of methods to transfer files across devices running on a single platform, but for multiple platforms, there has been no clear cut solution.
The Shoot app looks to be that solution, and its ease of use would help its cause. The Home screen of the app only has two options, namely Send and Receive. Tapping on Send will allow users to select all the files that they want to send, and upon finalizing the files, a QR code will be displayed by the app. The QR code will then be scanned by the device of the other user after pressing the Receive option, and the file transfer will initiate.
BitTorrent's Shoot app is now available on the App Store, Google Play and the Windows Store.
