What Is Mail Drop? How to Use Mail Drop on iPhone and Mac – MUO – MakeUseOf

Need to send an email attachment that exceeds the email size limit? Whether you're using an iPhone, iPad, or Mac, the Mail Drop feature can assist you in bypassing those limits and making it possible to send large files, up to 5GB at a time.

In this article, you'll learn what Mail Drop is and how to use it on your iPhone and Mac.

Mail Drop is an Apple feature that allows people to send large files such as videos, presentations, and images directly from the Mail app. This feature is available on the following devices:

If you choose to send that extra-large email from your Apple device, you need to make sure that it's running iOS 9.2 or later or OS X Yosemite or later.

You can also access Mail Drop from any computer through the iCloud website.

To use Mail Drop on your Apple device, you need to have an iCloud account. Mail Drop works by uploading your file to iCloud rather than sending it directly to people over email.

Keep in mind, once you send an email with an attachment using this feature, the recipient will have 30 days to open it. After this period, it will expire, and the recipient will no longer be able to view the sent file.

Since it's possible to send files as huge as 5GB, you'll be able to send almost anything once you get set up. However, you should be aware that there is a 1TB storage limit. If you've sent many files and they've exceeded this limit, you'll need to wait a bit until some of the files expires and therefore free up the storage.

There's no special button that allows you to access the Mail Drop feature immediately. When your iPhone detects that the file that you've chosen is too big to be sent normally through the Mail app, it will ask you whether you wish to deliver those attachments using Mail Drop instead.

Here are step-by-step instructions on how to send a large file from your iPhone:

That's all. Your email will be sent using iCloud and will be available for the recipient to view for the next 30 days. The email will look like an ordinary one sent as usual.

Sending an email with a large attachment on a Mac is simple thanks to the Mail Drop feature. Here's what you should do:

The recipient will see that email as a usual one. To open the files, they will have just to click on them.

If you have issues with sending a large file via Mail Drop on your Mac, check whether this feature is actually enabled.

To do this, head to Mail > Preferences > Accounts from the menu bar. Select your preferred email account on the left side of the screen and place a checkmark near Send large attachments with Mail Drop.

You can actually send email attachments using the Mail Drop feature on any computer. All you need for this is an internet connection, an updated browser, an iCloud account, and an iCloud email.

Here's how to do it:

Just as simple as that, you can send an email with large attachments from any computer. If something went wrong, make sure that you have the Mail Drop feature turned on for large attachments.

To do this, click on the Show Actions Menu button, head to Preferences > Composing, place a checkmark near Use Mail Drop when sending large attachments, and click Done.

If this method doesn't work for some reason, there are a few great alternative file transfer apps that you can use for free to quickly and painlessly send large files to anyone. Of course, you can always use storage services such as Dropbox or Google Drive to share files. But sometimes, they may seem too restrictive.

Related: Better Than Dropbox: The Quickest Ways to Share Any File With Anyone

When sending files via email, it's essential to choose a secure and reliable transfer tool. Since the Mail app and iCloud are considered reliable options, you can use the Mail Drop feature to send attachments of almost any size and be sure that nothing bad will happen.

However, sometimes there may be issues with sending and receiving attachments through the Mail app. Be sure to learn how to fix the common attachment issues that arise when sending files using this email service.

If you use the Mac Mail app in a professional environment, check out these tips to work more productivity in Mail every day.

Read Next

Romana is a freelance writer with a strong interest in everything tech. She specializes in creating how-to guides, tips, and deep-dive explainers about all things iOS. Her main focus is on iPhone, but she also knows a thing or two about MacBook, Apple Watch, and AirPods.

Join our newsletter for tech tips, reviews, free ebooks, and exclusive deals!

Please confirm your email address in the email we just sent you.

View post:

What Is Mail Drop? How to Use Mail Drop on iPhone and Mac - MUO - MakeUseOf