Microsoft announced on July 24 how you can use your Android phone to interact with your Windows 11 PC. “We’ve reimagined the Link to Windows app as a connected PC experience hub — a central place where you can access, share, and control content between your Android phone and Windows PC,” Microsoft said in a blog post.
Imagine this: you’ve just stepped away from your desk: that confidential presentation you’re working on has been hard and you need a breather. Standing by the coffee machine, you realize your PC display is still on and, as mentioned, that stuff on your screen is secret. Don’t panic: the Android app, Link To Windows has just been upgraded so you can lock the PC from your phone with one touch.
This is a serious upgrade: already you could set your PC so it would lock if you went more than a certain distance from it, judged by the location of your phone. But this enhancement means you can do it manually — handy if you’re still within the geofencing range but just too far to lock the screen instantly without breaking into a run.
The new app also has an updated design and allows you to check things like your PC’s battery life and current Wi-Fi status from your Android phone’s display.
What Microsoft calls the onboarding experience has also been improved, so you can set it up directly on your Android phone without the involvement of a PC.
You can also send files to your PC from within the app and mirror your phone screen on your PC’s display.
Just as usefully, you can access the most recent files received on your PC, and clipboard items, which is useful if you’re waiting for something specific before you drag yourself back to the office.
Microsoft stresses that this new experience is rolling out, so you may not see it straight away. To access it you need the latest Windows Insider Preview build on your PC and Phone Link version of 1.25062.83.0 or higher. On Android, you need Link to Windows app, version 1.25071.155 or higher.
