Link to Windows

Link to Windows pairs an Android phone with a Windows PC. Once connected you can read and send texts, see notifications, transfer photos, and on supported hardware run phone apps in a window on the desktop.

What works well

• Messaging from the keyboard is the feature people keep. Typing replies on a real keyboard while the phone stays in a pocket is the whole value.
• Photo transfer is near-instant for recent shots, which beats cabling or emailing yourself a file.
• Calls through the PC work over Bluetooth and are reliable enough for everyday use.

Where it disappoints

The store rating is low for a Microsoft app, and the complaints cluster on connection reliability rather than features. The pairing drops, particularly after Windows updates or when the phone’s battery optimiser suspends the app. Two things prevent most of it:

• Exclude Link to Windows from battery optimisation in Android settings.
• Keep both devices on the same network; the connection degrades over mobile data.

App streaming — running phone apps on the desktop — is limited to specific Samsung, HONOR and Surface Duo hardware. Most of the disappointed reviews are from people on other devices expecting that feature.

Alternative

KDE Connect does much of this cross-platform and open source, with more setup and less polish.