A method for connecting a flash drive to a tablet via bluetooth. How to connect a USB flash drive to an Android device using a special OTG cable: solving reading and recognition problems

Do you want to watch a video on your tablet or smartphone without wasting space on the storage device built into the gadget? Or perhaps you just need to look through the document files that a friend gave you on a flash drive? I hasten to please you that most modern Android devices support working with standard USB drives. You can connect a USB flash drive to an Android smartphone just like a regular computer. How to do this will be discussed further. And you don't need to use the corresponding email application to transfer data to your smartphone. How to do this will be discussed further.

The latest generation of Android devices has significantly improved support for external storage and display devices, but in some older devices this support requires additional intervention, such as rooting. By the way, using a cable can be done much easier, without this risky procedure. In this article, I will offer you two options on how to connect a flash drive to Android. And I’ll start with the simplest thing - without the need for complex and risky ROOT operations.

First option: connect the flash drive to Android via a USB OTG cable

I hope you are aware that the smartphone does not have a standard full-size USB port. Therefore, in order to connect a flash drive to a smartphone or tablet, you will need a USB on-the-go adapter cable, or USB OTG for short. The cost of such an average quality cable does not exceed $5 in a regular online store. It looks like a standard data cable and has a miniature MicroUSB connector on one side, and a large USB port on the other, suitable for connecting standard USB drive connectors. Unfortunately, this connection option may not work on all devices! Your Android gadget must support a feature such as OTG. Some devices do not support this, so I recommend that you search the Internet to ensure that your smartphone is compatible with OTG. This will save you money on cable purchases.

Once you have purchased the cable, simply use it to connect a flash drive or other USB storage device to your Android smartphone. By the way, this cable is also well suited for connecting various USB devices, such as a USB keyboard, mouse or gamepad.

USB storage file system support

Ideally, the flash drive connected to Android will be formatted in the FAT32 file system format. This will ensure maximum compatibility. In addition, some Android devices support the exFAT file system. And now I will disappoint and surprise you - unfortunately, not a single Android gadget supports the NTFS file system. But there is good news - for Android it does not matter what style of partitioning of the external drive was used.

If your drive was not formatted correctly before connecting, you can do this afterwards. But keep in mind that formatting a disk destroys all content on it. So it will be great if you format the disk in advance before copying files from the gadget to it.

Second option: no rooting, works only on new smartphones

On modern Android devices, when you connect an external drive, you will most likely see a message that it is suitable for transferring photos and media data. Then the “Explore” button will appear, by clicking on which you will see a window for viewing files on the drive. In addition, the “Eject” button will be available to safely disconnect the USB drive.

If you use older versions of Android, I recommend using the additional StickMount application to connect a flash drive to your smartphone. I warn you right away - for it to function, you need to perform a rooting procedure.

1. Tap on the “Explore” button. The new Android file manager will open and show the content recorded on the external drive. You can view and manage files as you would on a computer. Use long press on one or more files or directories to select them.
2. If the USB drive contains music or videos, you can tap on them. As a result, the file will open in one of the media players installed by default in the gadget. This will be very convenient on a long trip. Of course, you can install any other file manager from third-party developers and use it instead of the standard utility.
3. I'll give you one hint. Open the Android settings window and tap on “Storage & USB” to see a complete list of internal drives, as well as connected external drives. Tap on the internal drive and you will see all the files stored in it in the file manager. Here you can copy and move files to the USB drive. Some apps also allow you to save files to any drive or open files directly on it. These applications will handle any file transfer between internal and external USB storage. Once you're done with your external drive, you can connect it to your computer or other Android device to transfer your data.
4. If you want to access additional features, tap the file manager menu button while viewing content on a USB drive, and then select “Settings.” Here you will see a “Format” option, which will allow you to format your external drive without using a computer.

Third option: rooting the smartphone when it does not see the USB drive

Some devices, despite possible support for USB OTG technology, for unknown reasons refuse to mount a flash drive or USB disk (usually these are devices on an older version of Android). In such cases, you need to root your smartphone and use a special StickMount application to read files on the external drive. And further. If your version of Android does not have a built-in file manager, I suggest you use a separate application like ES File Explorer.

I successfully tested the process of rooting and accessing the USB drive on an old Nexus 7 running 4.1 Jelly Bean. But I can’t guarantee that everything will go as smoothly on other devices. The older your gadget, the more steps you will need to perform, starting with installing drivers and other things. Anything can happen!

1. Once you have installed both the apps, connect one end of the USB OTG cable to the gadget and the other end to the USB drive. After which you will see a StickMount message indicating that a flash drive is connected to Android. Tap on the “OK” button and StickMount will open access to the files on it. To do this, you need to have “root” access to the StickMount application. This cannot be done if you have not done ROOT in advance.
2. If you say “Yes” in both dialogs, and in the first dialog box you activate the “Use by default” option, you will never again see any questions when connecting a USB drive. That is, everything will then happen automatically.
3. As a result, a message will appear on the gadget’s screen indicating that StickMount has successfully attached (mounted) the external disk volume. The path to it will be like this: /sdcard/usbStorage.
4. Open the file manager ES File Explorer, find the “usbStorge” directory and tap on it.
5. Inside the "usbStorge" directory, you will see at least one subdirectory. Each of them represents partitions (volumes) into which an external USB drive or USB flash drive is divided.
6. Tap on one of the directories and you will see the files inside it. Tap on one of the files to perform the necessary actions with it.
7. After you complete the necessary operations with the file (watch a movie, listen to an audiobook, or do something else, tap on the StickMount icon in the message bar. This way you can unmount the external drive and safely disconnect it. By this icon you can always determine what there is an active connection to the USB drive and it is mounted in the operating system.

At the end of the article on how to connect a flash drive to a smartphone, I think it is necessary to note that the USB OTG cable is quite a bulky thing. But not so much that it ruins the pleasure of watching videos on a plane or during your lunch break at work. It is equally convenient to use this cable for transferring and processing files for other purposes. Moreover, the OTG cable can be used to connect a USB drive to a computer.

Bonus

For the most curious, I would like to answer the question: what is the difference between a regular data cable suitable for connecting a smartphone to a computer and an OTG cable? Is it possible not to buy a separate USB OTG cable to connect a flash drive to Android? The answer is NO! I give the reason below; those who know how to read electronic circuits will find the differences, and perhaps remake the cable themselves. Good luck!

Diagram of a regular data cable for connecting to a computer and charging

Standard connection methods can be considered using the example of two operating systems, such as Android and Windows.

If the Windows system is installed, then connecting will not be difficult. In this case, working with a flash drive is as simple as with a regular desktop computer. You just need to insert the flash drive into the USB connector and all the contents will open automatically. Folders can be accessed using Explorer or a file manager.

Most tablets run on the Android operating system, which complicates the task of connecting a flash drive and requires additional work with the device.

First you need to download and install the StickMount application and a file manager, for example, ES Explorer, which can be downloaded from the Google Play app store. To work with StickMount, you need to have Root rights installed in the file manager, which will allow you to create, edit and copy files in system partitions. You should install both programs and connect the USB flash drive. Allow StickMount Root access. You should see a message on your desktop indicating that the flash drive is connected. Launch the file manager and follow the path - /sdcard/usbStorage/, where the contents of the flash drive will be located.

ES Explorer is also considered a good file manager. After installing it, you should launch the application and open the SD card partition. A folder tree will open: you will need to follow the path mnt/sda/sda1, where the contents of the flash drive will be displayed.

If the device does not have a USB port, this does not mean that connecting a flash drive is impossible. You can connect to the miniUSB or microUSB port located on the side of the tablet using the included USB OTG cable, which in this case is an adapter. You need to connect the flash drive to one end of the cable, and the other to the tablet connector, and open it through Explorer or a file manager.

Safely removing a flash drive

An equally important question that interests tablet users is how to remove the flash drive from the tablet, since this determines how long the drive will last.

There may be several options. There is a standard option: you need to go to settings, then go to the “memory” section and select “disable memory card”.

If this method of removing a flash drive is not suitable, you just need to disable it in order to safely remove the drive.

Connecting a USB flash drive to is a simple procedure: just follow the procedure. Also, do not forget about safely removing the flash drive. You need to improve your skills in working with a tablet and use all the capabilities of the device to the maximum.

On a smartphone you will not find a full-fledged USB port into which you can insert a flash drive. Therefore, connecting a USB flash drive to Android must be done using additional equipment.

Connecting the drive

For your phone to see and open devices connected via USB, it must have On-The-Go (OTG) support. The essence of the technology is that the mobile device supplies power to external equipment via a USB connector. The function is implemented in Android 3.1 and higher, so before you try to connect a flash drive to Android, you need to make sure that this is even possible. First of all, check the OS version:

To make sure there are no problems with the connection, install the USB OTG Checker application. This small program will check for OTG support and, if available, issue a confirmation. The next step is to purchase a special adapter (equipment cost starts from 100 rubles). The smartphone has a microUSB port; the flash drive physically cannot fit in it. Therefore, you need to expand the port using an OTG adapter, which can be purchased at any mobile equipment store. Some phones, like tablets, come with a “native” OTG cable, so manufacturers also assume that external drives and other USB devices will be connected to their devices.
The connection procedure itself is extremely simple: one end of the adapter is installed into the microUSB connector on the phone, and a flash drive is inserted into the USB port at the other end. Now you can find universal flash drives with USB and microUSB, which do not require an adapter to connect.
This is still rare, but it is quite possible that over time the ports will become universal, and users will be able to abandon adapters and other additional equipment.

To open a flash drive on a tablet or smartphone, it is usually enough to have a file manager installed on the device. The flash drive must be formatted in FAT32; data from NTFS cannot be read on Android. This primarily applies to the latest models of smartphones from Samsung: just connect the flash drive via an OTG adapter and find the drive through any file manager. The data will be located in the /sdcard/usbStorage directory.
However, the procedure does not always go so smoothly: even if the device supports OTG, the question of how to open a connected flash drive on Android causes difficulties. The problem is that not all mobile devices automatically mount external equipment, be it a flash drive, camera or mouse.

You can eliminate the shortcoming using the paid application USB Media Explorer, which allows you to copy music, video photos, documents from flash drives connected to Google Nexus smartphones and other devices with Android 4.0 and higher.
The application has two drawbacks: it is paid and correct operation is guaranteed only on Nexus phones and tablets, although the developers claim support for other devices. One of the advantages is support for the NTFS file system, that is, you do not have to format the flash drive in FAT32 before connecting.

If you don’t want to spend money on an application for copying data, or you basically can’t install USB Media Explorer on your device due to lack of model support, then the only way to access the data recorded on the flash drive is to use superuser rights (root).

For each model, it is better to look for its own separate instructions for obtaining superuser rights. There are also universal methods, such as using the Kingo Root program, but it should be borne in mind that obtaining root rights is a potentially dangerous operation, as a result of which the mobile device will be removed from warranty. In addition, performing the procedure incorrectly may damage the system.

If your phone is rooted, you can use the free StickMount app to detect a connected flash drive on Android.

1. Launch StickMount.
2. Connect the flash drive to your phone.
3. Set StickMount to open automatically when this drive is connected and give the application superuser rights.

You can view and copy the contents of the flash drive after mounting through any file manager. The information will be located in the sdcard/usbStorage directory.

Surely many of you have encountered the need to quickly copy files from a USB flash drive to a tablet, but immediately realized that it is impossible to do this without a computer. Fortunately, the ability to connect flash drives directly to the tablet has been built into the system since Android 3.1.

However, due to the fact that it is often not possible to build a full-size USB connector into a tablet, many manufacturers equip their devices with either a MicroUSB port or their own proprietary interfaces. In this case, all kinds of “adapters” come to the rescue, making it possible to connect a flash drive to the tablet. We will talk about them in more detail later.

Connecting a flash drive to tablets with MicroUSB

If your tablet is equipped with a MicroUSB port, then to connect the flash drive you will need a USB OTG cable, popularly known as a USB - MicroUSB adapter or USB host. Using this adapter is quite simple, just connect the flash drive to the adapter and place it in the tablet connector. If the USB connector of your tablet supports the OTG function, then the flash drive will be detected automatically.

Connecting a flash drive to tablets without MicroUSB

Some manufacturers equip their tablets only with proprietary synchronization connectors. This is how, for example, some models of Samsung Galaxy Tab tablets are designed. In this case, you will need a proprietary “adapter” with USB on one end and a 30-pin connector on the other. This option is in no way inferior to a regular OTG cable, except for the higher price.

Programs for connecting USB flash drives

• In order to use an external flash drive on your tablet, you will first need a file manager. This can be any manager, either built-in or installed separately. One of the most convenient file managers is ES Explorer, available on Google Play for free. The path to the files themselves will look like this: mnt –> sda –> sda1.
• If you use a Google Nexus 7 tablet, then the file manager method will not work for you. In this case, you will need a paid application

Android is great at working with USB flash drives; some devices even have a full-fledged USB port. But not everyone is so lucky. Most devices are equipped with a microUSB connector. What to do if you need to connect a flash drive to a smartphone or tablet equipped only with a microUSB port?

Android has USB On - To - Go technology (loosely translated: plug and use). Its essence is that the device is capable of supplying power to external media connected via microUSB. Thanks to this, the user has the opportunity to work with flash drives directly from his tablet or smartphone.

This onetechnology All devices with Android 3.1 and higher definitely have it.. As for the rest, you need to check. Use the program from Google Play Market for this.

Checking your device using USB OTG Checker

To check for OTG on your device, simply run the USB OTG Checker program. She will test the device and show you the result.

Connecting an OTG cable

So, your device is modern enough to support this simple technology. Now you need a USB to microUSB adapter. This cable is also called an OTG cable.

It looks like any regular adapter: on one side there is a flat plug for the microUSB connector, on the other there is a USB port covered with plastic.

Connect one end of the OTG cable to your smartphone or tablet, and insert a flash card into the other. If everything is fine, a corresponding message will appear on the device screen. You will be prompted to open a file manager to view the data from the USB drive.

StickMount: if the device does not see the flash drive through the adapter

Unfortunately, it's not always that simple. On some devices, the USB drive may not be recognized even if OTG is present. If we exclude the possibility of damage to the flash drive (check it by connecting it to the computer), then perhaps your smartphone / tablet does not automatically detect the external media. In this case, the program will help. You can download it from Google Play Market.

1. Download and install the program.
2. Try inserting the flash drive again.
3. Android will now prompt you to launch StickMount. Agree. The flash drive will be detected and you will be able to view the files installed on it.

Please note that StickMount requires Root access.

How to get Root access on a device

How to connect a USB flash drive to Android using an adapter - video

How to view data from a flash drive

In order to work comfortably with an external drive, you will need good file managers. If you have root access, you can choose from a variety of options. But if you are the owner of a Nexus device, then there are at least two applications in the Play Market that allow you to do without root.

These are not the only ones, but perhaps one of the best. Alas, both are paid. In general, they can work on other devices, you need to check here. You can do this using the Nexus Photo Viewer program.

Thus, to connect a flash drive to a device running the Android operating system, you will need a USB to microUSB adapter and several programs. In addition, to fully work with removable media, you need good file managers, which can only be installed on a smartphone or tablet with root access.