What can be done with an Android mobile in Windows 10? + Tips and Tricks

Using some of the functions of an Android mobile in Windows 10 is possible and convenient for many users. Microsoft has turned Android into its operating system of reference in mobility once Windows Phone / Windows Mobile were canceled after the disaster of the adventure with Nokia. A strategy that we have seen confirmed in the launch of the Surface Duo, the first device (and the only one so far) of the Microsoft brand that does not use Windows as an operating system.

The current CEO, Satya Nadella, like other Microsoft executives, was never a fan of a mobile division of his own. This does not mean that Microsoft has abandoned the mobile business, and on the contrary, it has promoted it in other ways. Remember that Microsoft enters a million for each Android device that reaches the market. In 2015, Forbes estimated that Microsoft earned $ 6 billion in royalties from patent agreements with virtually all manufacturers working on the Google platform.

Microsoft’s positioning on Android goes far beyond patent agreements. Microsoft released its own launcher for Android; signed with Cyanogen the integration of Cortana and the packaging of other Microsoft applications; negotiated agreements to provide dual boot terminals from manufacturers such as Xiaomi and signed important alliances with Samsung to pre-install their apps on terminals of the sector leader.

Furthermore, Nadella has promoted a smart strategy not to lose the smart mobile segment, connecting mainstream Android (and also iOS) platforms with their best apps, mainly those related to the Office productivity suite (one of the most downloaded and valued in the Play Store), but also the Edge browser, Skype or Cortana, services such as the one dedicated to cloud storage OneDrive and all kinds of functions like the one we are going to to see in this article.

What can be done with an Android mobile in Windows 10?

“Your Phone” was one of the novelties that Microsoft presented at the BUILD 2018 conference. It is a UWP application (Universal Windows Platform) that has the objective of joining a smartphone and a PC. Or for Microsoft, unite its main mobile Android system with its own desktop, Windows 10. The idea is to offer a seamless transition of content and features between devices.

In the latest versions of Windows 10, the company has included “Your Phone” in the group of pre-installed applications and has extended its management to the general configuration tool. Although the ideal would be for PC and smartphone to have the same operating system, as Microsoft intended since the development of Windows 8 and a path that Apple will surely travel with ARM producing a single operating system in the future, this group of functions can be very useful for hundreds of millions of users who use Windows and Android on a daily basis.

Linking mobile and PC

To activate the functions we need to link the smartphone to the PC, enable Bluetooth, connect both devices to the same Wi-Fi network (although you can also synchronize it with mobile data), use version 1904 of Windows 10 or higher on the PC and Android 7.0 or top on the smartphone.

Microsoft offers a dedicated page to troubleshoot connectivity and data synchronization with this application that you will surely have to consult if you do not link the two computers correctly through these steps.

Management on Android. In Samsung terminals you probably already have the app installed due to the aforementioned alliance between Samsung and Microsoft.

• Once the app is started on the mobile, grant the corresponding permissions to link the phone and the PC.

• Allows connection with PC.

• Your phone and PC will be linked. (Remember to enable Bluetooth and be on the same Wi-Fi network)

– Management on PC. If you use the latest versions of Windows 10 you will see the application “Your Phone” in the list of applications and if not it can always be downloaded from the Microsoft Store like any UWP software.

• Open the application and select your Android mobile. (You can also use an iPhone following the same process)

• Connect with your Microsoft ID account.

• Scan the QR code on the terminal to link the terminal to the PC.

• The process will be completed by following the instructions.

General functions

For those of us who spend many hours a day working in front of our personal computer, but cannot forget our mobile phone (as we sometimes would like) «Your phone» is a very useful application to continue using the PC without touching the mobile phone. It offers an extensive configuration page to manage all the details of the same and four general functions:

• Phone calls. Making and answering calls directly from the PC is one of the most interesting functions of this application. You will have in view the list of your contacts and a marker for numbers.
• Notifications. Android notifications will appear on the PC once, like the rest of the functions, you grant the corresponding permissions. You can read, respond or dismiss the notification on the mobile from the PC.
• Posts. It does not require any configuration. Simply type in the text box to reply to a message or tap on “new message” to send one to your contacts.
• Photos. It will show the images stored in the mobile and can be copied or moved to the PC in a simple way. Also delete them from the internal storage of the mobile.

Advanced features

The above functions are the general ones that are available for any Android terminal and PC that meet the indicated requirements. However, Microsoft’s own devices such as the Duo or some of the latest Samsung models offer more advanced features and benefits such as:

• App pre-installed on Android without the need to install additional software from the Play Store.
• More direct connection from a “connect to Windows” link in the quick access tray.
• Ability to copy and paste content between computers.
• Drag and drop files function.
• Access to your favorite mobile apps from your PC.

Features for the future

There is no doubt that Microsoft is going to improve this application and increase the advantages of using an Android mobile on Windows 10. Nor have we doubts that Apple works on a single operating system that completely links an iPhone with a Mac. Or Chrome OS and Android …

The ideal will be a single system, but in mobility Microsoft already has Android as a dance partner. Among the functions for the future is the ability to control parts of phone settings on a PC with Windows 10. WI-FI, Bluetooth, Do not disturb and others directly from the Your Phone application. It is already available in the latest development version of the app.

THE run multiple Android apps. We saw this function in Windows Insiders and since this month it is available in the app Link to Windows of the latest Samsung smartphones, from the Galaxy Note 20 onwards. We will have news this year for the rest of manufacturers and models.