How to view and delete photos/files stored on phone via macbook

[Android Central Question]

I have multiple photos/files that I would like to batch delete in order to save some space on my phone, however using Android File Transfer it doesn't give me the option to view the files. So effectively I would not be able to see the files I want to delete, which is a bit pointless. Basically I am looking for a way to physically see the images so that I know what I am deleting. Thanks.

 

[Rukbat]

Connect the phone to the Mac. Use the file browser Mac provides (the last time I touched a Mac it was called finder, and the year was 1985, so I don't know what program you use in a Mac today to delete files). Go to the phone (it should show as a drive - make sure you have USB set as MTP, not as Charge) and find and delete the files.

I have to warn you, though - with some PC-phone combinations (and by PC I mean any OS - Mac, Windows, Linux) it can take an hour to delete 10 files, where doing it with a file manager app in the phone takes seconds. Maybe list the files, using ls (does Mac use that?) in a terminal, redirecting the output to a file, then write a shell script from the contents of the file deleting the files you want (and do a ping after each one to force a fake "wait" - USB clogs up on mass file operations done quickly) - if you know how to write a shell script in Mac. (If you don't, now would be a great time to learn - the knowledge comes in handy for so many things you think will take you a monumental amount of effort, when you can do it in a minute by writing a shell script.)

 

[djrakowski]

The Mac OS file browser is still called “Finder,” and yes, “ls” shows lists of files when run in Terminal.