Microsoft has made a considerable update to its Link to Windows application, designed to link certain smartphones with Windows 10 and Windows 11 machines.
The app, which has for a long time worked with Samsung and HONOR phones, will now support additional devices from OnePlus, OPPO, and Realme. The desktop app is also compatible with iOS models.
Some Android models remain noticeably absent from the list, including Google’s own Pixel phones. It’s unclear whether Microsoft or Google is hindering progress on this front, but Google has a similar solution for Chromebooks.
Link to Windows just got even better
An updated Microsoft support page details the full list of compatible smartphones, including some recent models like the Surface Duo 2, Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5, Samsung Galaxy S23, and HONOR Magic4 Pro.
Microsoft’s app serves as more than just a desktop client for receiving phone and message notifications. It’s also a place for viewing a smartphone’s camera roll, checking your contacts, viewing phone connectivity information such as Wi-Fi and Bluetooth status, controlling media playback, and even altering modes such as Do Not Disturb.
The features for iOS users are more limited but include all the staples.
Separately, Microsoft is actually testing an option to disable Phone Link in Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 25997.
Redmond has been under a lot of pressure in recent months over anticompetitive practices, seeing it unbundle Teams from the Microsoft 365 package in order to satisfy EU regulators and competitors like Slack.
Not forcing its Phone Link on customers could be a preemptive decision to appease competition.
More broadly, Apple recently revealed plans to bring RCS in 2024, something that it has previously refused to do despite intense pressure from the likes of Google and Samsung.
What all of this means is that, with time, a more interoperable mobile technology landscape will give consumers even more choice and freedom to pick the precise combination of hardware and software that they prefer.
Via WindowsLatest
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