iOS 17.1, which was released in its final version on October 25th, brought with it a new feature that was briefly presented at WWDC 2023: Content transfers via AirDrop will no longer be interrupted when the two devices are no longer within range of each other condition. To continue the locally initiated transfer remotely, the sending iPhone or iPad is responsible for transferring the content to the cloud and the receiving device retrieves this content via its Internet connection.
Image Apple/iGeneration
To take advantage of this new capability, simply check the following box if you haven’t already: Settings > General > AirDrop > Use Cellular Data. In theory, nothing more needs to be configured; AirDrop automatically switches the transfer to the cloud when the receiving device is no longer nearby. In practice, we were unable to use the function despite our various tests with several videos. Every time we moved the two devices apart (one leaving the office Wi-Fi network while the other stayed there), the AirDrop transfer stalled without the cloud taking over.
If you have had better luck than us, do not hesitate to let us know, specifying the devices used and the conditions of Internet transmission.