I'm trying to connect a 1TB SanDisk Extreme Pro external drive to my iPhone 13 Pro, but it never appears in the Files app. The drive is formatted as exFAT and works normally when connected to my Mac. I've restarted the phone, reinstalled Files, and tried supplying power to the adapter while connecting both the phone and drive, but nothing has helped. What adapter or power setup do I need to make the drive show up?
2 Answers
The drive may be drawing more power than the iPhone can provide. Even if the drive works with a Mac, iPhones can be picky about powering external storage. Use a powered USB hub or the USB 3 Camera Adapter connected to a wall charger, and make sure the drive is connected after the adapter has power.
Because the iPhone 13 Pro uses Lightning, a regular direct cable usually isn’t enough. Try Apple’s Lightning to USB 3 Camera Adapter, with a charger connected to the adapter’s Lightning power port, then plug the drive into the USB port. The drive should appear under Browse > Locations in Files.
So I need the Lightning-to-USB 3 Camera Adapter rather than a basic Lightning cable or adapter? I’ll check that setup.