Some Apple iPod’s have a Disk Mode where you can use the iPod as a hard drive and browse the file system. This is normally done by selecting “Summary” and “Enable Disk Use” in iTunes. However, the iPhone and iPad doesn’t have this mode. By default, there is no way to get it to show up in the Finder on a Mac or on the Windows Desktop. You are only able to browse it as a media device and use the iPhone or iPad within the iTunes application.
With the addition of a third-party solution, you can browse the file system of your iPhone or iPad and drag files between your computer and the device. While there are many solutions, the best one I can recommend is iMazing. While the software costs $29.99 for a full version, you are allowed a 15 day trial to use the software.
Once installed, launching the software provides the ability to select “File System” where you can drill down into each file on the device.
Melanie Embers says
The title of the article is deceiving. It should be “Third party app for sale hat lets you access iPad like a hard disk to access files.”