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USB Media Explorer

FAQ

Which Android Devices Are Supported?

Which USB Devices Are Supported?

Can You Support My Android Device?

Do I Need A Special "OTG" Cable?

Can I write to my HDD?

Are there any physical keyboard shortcuts?

Which Android Devices Are Supported?

Supported: Nexus 7 (1st and 2nd Gen), Nexus 5, Nexus 10, Moto X, Galaxy Nexus, Motorola Xoom, LG G Tab 8.3, Samsung Tab 3 8.0

Compatible: Android 4.0+ devices supporting USB Host. For example: Sony Xperia (Models P and S), Moto G, Samsung S3 & S4, Archos G9, Note 10.1, Galaxy Tab 2, Hisense Sero 7 (N7 2012 Clone)

Not Supported: Devices that do not support USB Host. For Example: Toshiba Thrive, Nexus S, Nexus 4, HTC One X (several), Galaxy Tab 3 7"

Let me know if there are others, I will update the list.

Which USB Devices Are Supported?

The technical answer is flash pen drives and card readers. The drive/cards needs to be formatted as exFAT, FAT/FAT32, NTFS or Ext2/3/4. HFS+ is not supported, but can be reformatted as one of the supported types.

Devices that may be supported:

  1. Hard drives. These will work if they are powered properly. Some drives will work without external power, but external power is recommended and may be necessary.
  2. Cameras (direct connect). There are 2 protocols used by cameras MTP and UMS. NMI supports UMS. On a PC, a UMS drive will be displayed as a single letter, where an MTP drive will usually be the name of the device. If a camera is not recognized you should be able to read the flash card via a card reader.
Can You Support My Android Device?

Try the free Nexus Photo Viewer, if it works USB Media Explorer should too. If it is not supported by Nexus Photo Viewer, it is unlikely it will be support can be added. The NMI/NPV mass storage drive has come about as far as it can. At this point either a device will work or it will not.

Do I Need A Special "OTG" Cable?

Yes, you need a USB On-The-Go (OTG) cable. These usually need to purchased online and cost anywhere from $1 to $10 USD. A USB coupler and your data cable will not work. OTG cables can break, so a spare may be a good idea. Note: There is no brand that works better or worse with NMI, but the models with a hard plastic end seem to be the most problematic.

Can I write to my HDD?

For most hard drives, yes. The latest version of NMI supports write for NTFS. Please make sure the drive is receiving enough power to operate before writing to it. See the Hard Drive section for more info.

Are there any physical keyboard shortcuts?

NMI uses the standard Android keyboard shorts. The Photos screen uses the following shortcuts:

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