Microsoft has updated the Your Phone application on Windows 10 to deliver a more seamless Android-to-PC experience for users, and then some. On top of its existing ability to mirror a phone’s screen onto Windows 10, the app now allows users to access the phone’s list of Android apps and launch them accordingly from their PC.
These applications will then run in an independent window on screen, which would also be mirrored from the phone. In addition to this, users could launch more than one Android app in separate windows and switch between them effortlessly – in addition to also multitask with other Windows 10 applications. For added convenience, launchers for these Android apps can be pinned to the platform’s taskbar or Start menu for ease of access, provided that the phone is already connected to Windows.
However, Microsoft said that not all Android apps will be compatible with this new feature. It noted that some applications may block the ability to cast to other screens, while others may lack the ability to be used with a mouse or keyboard.
At this time, the new Your Phone features are only applicable to Samsung devices, especially the newly announced Galaxy Note20 series. Additionally, users will also need to opt into the Windows Insider program in order to preview this feature before it rolls out publicly, which Microsoft said is planned to be available “later this year”.
The company has not revealed if it will include other Android-powered smartphones from other brands to be compatible with the application at this time.
