Transferring Photos and Music from an SD Card to an iPhone

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The iPhone doesn't support SD cards, but you can transfer files via a computer.
Image Credit: Sean Gallup/Getty Images News/Getty Images

Transferring files to an iPhone requires syncing through iTunes. Unlike some phone models, the iPhone does not directly support SD cards, making it impossible to copy photos and music directly from the card to the phone. Because iPhones can only sync to a single computer, if you're trying to share files with another party, often the best solution is to send the files over the Internet and let the recipient sync them himself. However, if you have access to the syncing computer, you can first move the files off the card and then onto the phone.

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Step 1

Insert the SD card into the card reader on the computer.

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Step 2

Copy all the photos and music onto the computer's hard drive. If you already have photos and music synced to the iPhone, place the new files in the same location as the existing files on the computer.

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Step 3

Open iTunes. Drag all the music files into the iTunes window to add them to the library.

Step 4

Attach the iPhone with the USB cable and click its name in iTunes.

Step 5

Open the "Photos" tab and check the box to enable photo syncing if you haven't used the feature before. In this situation, you'll also need to select which folder on the computer has the photos you want to sync with the phone.

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Step 6

Switch to the "Music" tab and check the name of the artist or album of the new music files to sync them. If the iPhone is set to sync all music, you don't need to perform this step.

Step 7

Press the "Apply" or "Sync" button in the lower right corner of iTunes to sync the new files to the phone.

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