2 Ways to Download Files on iPhone [One Is Provided by Apple]

Updated Oct 12,2018 | by Cody

If you are new to iOS, you probably have been annoyed by the lack of downloading feature. Don’t worry because there are a few workarounds now. actually, Apple has provided a solution to download files on iPhone or iPad. Read on to know how.

With the regular web browser, you can only save PDF files on your iOS device. For other files, you may have to bookmark the page, download it from your computer, and then transfer files to iPhone.

Fortunately, you do not have to go through all that anymore because here I will show 2 perfect solution for downloading any files to your iPhone or iPad.

Siri Shortcuts is the new feature in iOS 12. You can simply use the standalone app Shortcuts to download any files. Shortcuts is the updated version of Workflow, so you can also use Workflow to do the same if you are running iOS 11 or previous version.

You can follow the steps below to see how it works.

Step 1. Download Shortcuts app from AppStore. It is totally free.

Step 2. Get the Download File from Shortcuts Gallery or you can get it from this link.

Step 3. Within your web browser, tap on the file that you want to download and then copy the link from the address bar.

Step 4. Open Shortcuts app and run the Download File shortcut.

Step 5. Preview the file downloaded and select a location to save this file.

After that, you can open the Files app to view the file you just downloaded offline. Shortcuts app can do much more than that. You can download all kinds of shortcuts from the Gallery or from the web. Shortcuts is limitless and wait for you to explore. I highly recommend you check it out.

Besides the Shortcuts app, there is another great free app Documents 6 that allows you to download any files on iOS devices. It also allows you launch the app from Safari and start to download the file. Sound cool? Follow the steps to get started.

Step 1. Download the Documents app from AppStore. Select the one named Documents by Readdle and don’t get it wrong.

Step 2. Open the web page that you can download files and then tap on the file that you want to download.

Step 3. Tap on the address bar and change the first part of URL from http:// to rhttp://.

Step 4. When the page loaded, you will be prompted to “Open this page in ‘Documents ?”. just tap OK to open Documents app

 Step 5. Change name or location of the file that you are about to download if needed. Then tap Done to start downloading this file.

If you download video from Safari on iPhone, you can save the video to Camera Roll. When the download is finished, you can also use this app to move the file to another location. You can also open the web page for downloading files with the Documents app because it has a web browser built in.

If the file is too large, downloading it from your iPhone maytakes forever and it may crash the app. Therefore, it is recommended to download large files on your PC and then quickly transfer them to your iPhone.

Speaking of transferring files to iPhone, you can use a dedicated Windows software IOTransfer that allows you to fast transfer files to iOS device with or without USB cable. You can free download it now to get started.

If you have a USB cable connected, then you can simply get to the Manage tab and drag the file from your computer to IOTransfer. Then this program will automatically save it to your iPhone.

You can also get to the AirTrans tab to enjoy wireless Wi-Fi transfer. As long as your iPhone and PC are connected to the same network, you can wirelessly transfer files between iPhone and PC.

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