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You normally need your smartphone to make phone calls, view text messages, and access your photos. But wouldn’t it be convenient if you could do all these things and more on your Windows PC? Well, you can.
By pairing and syncing your Android phone with your Windows computer, you’re essentially uniting the two. Your PC can then manage certain features and tasks from your phone – a convenient option if you’re at your computer but your phone is out of range.
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With your phone and PC paired via Microsoft Phone Link appYou can use Windows to make and answer phone calls, read and respond to text messages, view photos on your phone, and receive notifications.
How to use Microsoft Phone Link
Pairing and syncing your Android phone with Microsoft’s Phone Link works the same in Windows 10 and 11, although there are some differences. Here I will discuss the process specifically for Windows 11.
A QR code then appears in Phone Link. Scan this code with your phone’s camera and tap the corresponding link. This should take you to the Google Play page to install the Link to Windows app on your phone. Once the installation is complete, open the application. Enter and then submit the code that appears in the Phone Link app on Windows. A message should then tell you that the devices are paired.
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Next, you’ll need to grant Phone Link permission to access your contacts, make and manage phone calls, and send and view SMS messages.
You may also be asked if you want the phone’s app to refresh when it’s running in the background, which helps keep your texts and photos fresh, but can eat into your battery charge. If this notification appears, deny or allow background refreshing depending on your preferences.
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Tap Done on your phone and Continue on your computer. Your phone and your PC are now linked.
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A welcome to Phone Link screen appears. If you want the application to launch automatically every time you load Windows, check the “Open phone link when logged in to Windows” box. Click the Get Started button to continue.
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Now let’s look at each of the tasks you can accomplish on your computer with your connected phone.
Send or receive an SMS on your PC
Click the Messages header at the top and the latest text messages from your phone should appear. Otherwise, click the Refresh icon next to the word Connection in the left pane.
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Select a text to read it. To reply, type your message at the bottom and insert an emoji, GIF, or image to add a twist.
To create new text, click the New message button. Type the name, phone number, or email address of the person you want to text. Then compose your message and send it.
Make or take a call on your PC
For phone calls, click the Calls heading, then click Get Started. You may be asked to turn on Bluetooth on your phone. If so, allow access and then complete pairing by confirming the PIN. Next, click the Send Authorization button to allow recent calls on your phone to appear in the Phone Link app on your PC.
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Select a phone number for a recent call and click the Phone icon to call that number. To make a new call, enter the name of a contact in the Contacts field or dial the number on the keypad.
Incoming phone calls will appear on your Android phone and in the Phone Link app on your PC, so you can answer them on either device. You don’t need to keep the application open on your PC if you have checked the option for it to start every time you log in to Windows.
Access your photos
Click on the Photos title. You should see all the recent photos you took on your Android phone. Otherwise, click Refresh. Click on a specific photo and you can open it in the Photos app, copy it, save it, share it, or delete it.
Show notifications
Then you can check your phone’s notifications on your PC. Click the Notifications icon in the left vertical toolbar. The first time you do this, you will need to grant permissions through your phone. Your notifications will then appear in the left pane.
Manage settings
Finally, you can manage your linked phone in the Phone Link app. Click the gear icon at the top right. On the Settings screen, you can change different options for different categories, enable copy and paste between your phone and PC, and add or remove a linked phone.
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