Browse Files on Android Device without a File Explorer

We all know how to extract and push files using ADB commands on Android, but do you know how you can browse files without a file-scanning application? The plethora of hidden settings that could be made on your Android devices is literally unlimited. From time to time, at DroidViews, we find such useful tips and tricks to get the most out of your Android device. Continuing the tradition, we have another useful tip for your device. In this tutorial, we'll see how to browse files on your Android device without using a file explorer.

This is not everything. You can even view images, videos, audios or text files without using any file explorer. For this hack to work, you will need a browser. Although any web browser does the trick, we would use the Chrome browser. In addition, you do not need an active Internet connection. It also works offline. So, without further discussion, let yourself go directly to the process.

Browse files without file explorer

This guide on how to browse files without file explorer will be more useful for users who do not have a lot of storage space on their device. Although there are some lightweight alternatives like Gallery Go. But if you run out of storage, chances are you do not prefer to install these apps in the first place.

Since this guide only requires a browser, it is preinstalled on all Android devices. It is not necessary to install a third-party application. That said, let's start the guide on how to browse files without using File Explorer on Android.

1. Open your desired web browser. An active Internet connection is not required.
2. In the address bar, enter the command below and press Enter.

   file:///sdcard/

   

3. Now all your internal storage directory will be right in front of you. You can search any file, view images, texts or videos directly from the browser. Listening to audio is also supported. However, to listen to songs or watch videos, your browser must incorporate this feature. Some of the most popular browsers such as Chrome, Mozilla, etc. integrate this functionality into their applications.
4. By default, the size of the view will be quite small. You can perform the pinch gesture using both of your fingers to zoom in on the content.

Before concluding our guide to browsing files on Android devices without file explorer, it is important to present some of the weaknesses of this tip.

limitations

The trick also comes with a fair share of the disadvantages. For example, the files are available to you in read-only mode. This means that you can not cut, copy, paste, or perform other similar actions on files. You can not even rename files for this reason. In addition, you can not access hidden file systems or the root directory using the steps mentioned above. But even then, you can not take away the benefits it provides. After all, who would not like a 0 MB file explorer!

With this, we conclude the guide on how to browse various files and folders without using file explorer. Share your thoughts on this little practical tip in the comments below.

Read more: Everything you need to know about the Android WebView system