[aviraldg]

Hi, there. This is something that even I hadn't been able to figure out when I originally got my Playbook. Now that I have, I think a lot of people would benefit from this. This guide is for you if:

1. You want to share files from your Playbook when you don't have access to a WiFi network
2. You want to share files between an Android device and your Playbook

Step #1 - Go to the Android market Google Play Store and install ES File Explorer on your Android phone/tablet. Any other file manager which can mount SAMBA shares should be just as fine.



Step #2 - Enable WiFi tethering on your Android device. If your Android device does not support WiFi tethering, you can use a different one that does, and connect both your Playbook and your Android device to the network created.



Step #3 - Connect your Playbook to the WiFi hotspot created by your Android device.



Step #4 - Note down the IP address displayed in the "Network" section of the About page on your Playbook. Note: this may change upon reconnecting to the hotspot.



Step #5 - Open up ES File Explorer on your Android device. Swipe from right to left to reveal the LAN share panel. Tap "New" (the plus icon) and select "Server". Fill out the relevant details (IP address, username, password)



Done! - tap on the entry for your Playbook and you should see something like this:



The files on your Playbook are in the "media" folder. You can even use your Android device in this manner to transfer files over Bluetooth to other (non-Android) devices.

[andyhlin]

Thank you this works great! I appreciate all of the screenshots too.

[fedeahlers]

Thanks for the post, but is not working for me yet. I have a blackberry bold 9900 I want to share files with my galaxy tab 10.1 but is giving me and error message after I do everything you said. Is the username and pasword random or which one do you mean?

[Guyzer]

Thanks for the post, but is not working for me yet. I have a blackberry bold 9900 I want to share files with my galaxy tab 10.1 but is giving me and error message after I do everything you said. Is the username and pasword random or which one do you mean?

its for Playbook and Android phone, not blackberry phone and android tablet. im sure you can get it to work just as well but need to change some log in credentials

[brianatbb]

Works very nicely. Correct me if I'm wrong, but this would allow me to access PB files such as Print to Go one when my PB is at home and I have my android smartphone with me, or only when the two are in proximity?

[ilympt]

You can just install (sideload) ES File Explorer on your Playbook ( I found it on goodereader) and now you have access to all your home network computer/tablet files/folder that are shared, just go to the LAN tab, New, then Scan. All your networked devices should show up. You can then cut/copy/paste any files you want (depending on file permission)

ES File Explorer also has a buildin movie player so you can stream your shared video files to your pb and watch them anywhere within your home network.

[Deagle Deagle]

which username and password is required??!! where do I find them?

[xamdam]

which username and password is required??!! where do I find them?

The one you use when you setup for WIFI sharing on the playbook its recommend to make a user name and password for the WIFI sharing option, so when the other device(s) want to log into the playbook to share the hotspot or tethering need the user name and pasword in order to connect.

[okmedia]

This has been useful to me everyday. Thanks