ShadowCat
Shares rank 7 of 17 file transfer apps by recommenders
People recommend it for moving files between devices through animated QR codes in a browser, with no cloud or Bluetooth needed. One critic reported trouble reassembling the chunks.
People recommend it for moving files between devices through animated QR codes in a browser, with no cloud or Bluetooth needed. One critic reported trouble reassembling the chunks.
12 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 11
- criticize it
- 1
- approval share
- 92%
Recommended in 1 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 11 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 11 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 1 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, not met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Works offline and air-gapped
“It's refreshing to see a tool that doesn't require a cloud connection or a functional Bluetooth stack to be useful.”
Comment from 24 May 2026 in “Show HN: ShadowCat – file transfer through QR Codes in a Browser” “I've wanted to use this for an air-gapped communication device.”
Comment from 22 May 2026 in “Show HN: ShadowCat – file transfer through QR Codes in a Browser” Clever use of animated QR codes
“animated qr + erasure coding is a neat fit here”
Comment from 23 May 2026 in “Show HN: ShadowCat – file transfer through QR Codes in a Browser” “Clever use of QR for file transfer.”
Comment from 22 May 2026 in “Show HN: ShadowCat – file transfer through QR Codes in a Browser” Parallel transfer with two cameras
“This is much more practical if you have two cameras.”
Comment from 22 May 2026 in “Show HN: ShadowCat – file transfer through QR Codes in a Browser” “Multiple QR codes at once is kinda wild.”
Comment from 25 May 2026 in “Show HN: ShadowCat – file transfer through QR Codes in a Browser”
Other file transfer apps people recommend
The four most recommended other file transfer apps, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LocalSend | 81 | 25 | 76% | 11 | — | Approved |
| Magic Wormhole | 21 | 6 | 78% | 8 | — | Approved |
| Kermit | 15 | 4 | 79% | 2 | — | — |
| croc | 13 | 3 | 81% | 5 | — | Approved |
| ShadowCatThis page | 11 | 1 | 92% | 1 | — | — |
What people said
11 of the 12 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“Multiple QR codes at once is kinda wild.”
“I tested yours and it works.”
“It's refreshing to see a tool that doesn't require a cloud connection or a functional Bluetooth stack to be useful.”
“couldn't get it to assemble the chunks”
“animated qr + erasure coding is a neat fit here”
“Finally real one way data transfer.”
“Clever use of QR for file transfer.”
“I’m fond of the “single HTML file” deployment option.”
“I've wanted to use this for an air-gapped communication device.”
“This is much more practical if you have two cameras.”
“Seems cool but I'm not at my pc rn”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.