How to use NameDrop on iOS 17: send contact details easier than ever before

(Image credit: Apple)

iOS 17 is the next major software release for iPhone and was revealed at WWDC 2023 with loads of new features. One of those features is a huge update to AirDrop that allows you to easily share contact information, including your Contact Poster, with new people.

This is called NameDrop, a really easy way to simply tap your iPhone with another to trade contact details with someone.

It's awesome and will be available on iOS 17 when the update launches in the fall. If you can't wait until then, you can install iOS 17 developer beta 1 or wait for the public beta release next month.

How to use NameDrop on iOS 17

Beta software, also referred to as a preview, seed, or release candidate, is a version of software that’s still under development and not yet released to the public. This software is intended only for installation on development devices registered under your Apple Developer Program membership. Registered development devices can be upgraded to future beta releases and the public version of the software. Attempting to install beta software in an unauthorized manner violates Apple policy and could render your device unusable and necessitate an out-of-warranty repair. Make sure to back up your devices before installing beta software and install only on devices and systems that you’re prepared to erase if necessary.

iOS 17 is only available as a developer beta at the time of writing. Here’s how to install it.

To use NameDrop, you must first have AirDrop switched on. You can do this buy opening the Settings App and tapping General, then AirDrop, and make your AirDrop open to Everyone.

Once AirDrop is set up correctly, you can start sharing your contact details straight away with NameDrop.

Move your iPhone next to the other person's device also on iOS 17
Wait for your contact cards to magically appear
Click to share your contact information

It's as simple as that, there's no faffing around - all you need is iOS 17. NameDrop on iOS 17 works between iPhones and with Apple Watches too, it has truly made sharing contact information between iPhones easier than ever.

NameDrop is the future and the now

NameDrop is the kind of feature that makes using your iPhone easier than ever before, just like sharing Wi-Fi passwords with contacts with a tap of a button. Now, you never have to search for your phone number again when out and about at work events or in a bar making new friends.

NameDrop might be the most used feature of iOS 17 when it drops later this year.

John-Anthony Disotto is the How To Editor of iMore, ensuring you can get the most from your Apple products and helping fix things when your technology isn’t behaving itself.

Living in Scotland, where he worked for Apple as a technician focused on iOS and iPhone repairs at the Genius Bar, John-Anthony has used the Apple ecosystem for over a decade and prides himself in his ability to complete his Apple Watch activity rings.

John-Anthony has previously worked in editorial for collectable TCG websites and graduated from The University of Strathclyde where he won the Scottish Student Journalism Award for Website of the Year as Editor-in-Chief of his university paper. He is also an avid film geek, having previously written film reviews and received the Edinburgh International Film Festival Student Critics award in 2019.

John-Anthony also loves to tinker with other non-Apple technology and enjoys playing around with game emulation and Linux on his Steam Deck.

In his spare time, John-Anthony can be found watching any sport under the sun from football to darts, taking the term “Lego house” far too literally as he runs out of space to display any more plastic bricks, or chilling on the couch with his French Bulldog, Kermit.