Earlier today, we reported that the Windows maker was planning on introducing a new “phone screen” feature that will enable users to mirror their Android screens on Windows 10 devices. The feature is in beta right now with Windows Insiders able to test it starting today with Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 18356.
Here’s the complete changelog:
Related March 2019 Windows 10 Cumulative Updates Are Out for Windows 10 1803 – No Updates Released for Other Versions Yet
Take your phone’s screen to the big screen
We are excited to provide an early preview into the newest feature for the Your Phone app – phone screen. You can now mirror your Android phone’s screen directly on your PC without having to dig for your phone.
The new phone screen feature gives you easy access to your phone apps on your PC. Whether scheduling a ride to the airport or checking your social updates, do it with ease from the comfort of your PC without having to take your phone out of your bag or go back and forth between devices. Go ahead, give your thumbs a break, and get things done faster with your keyboard and mouse.
This feature will gradually roll out to Insiders on 19H1 builds. It may take a few days for this feature to show up inside the Your Phone app (version 1.0.20701.0 and above).
You can use the Your Phone app on any Windows 10 PC running Windows builds 1803 (RS4) or newer and any Android phone running Android version 7.0 or newer. But the new phone screen feature is initially only compatible with a limited set of devices. Surface Go will be the first device in the Surface lineup to preview this feature. We will continue to expand the list of devices over time for both the PC and phone.
We look forward to your feedback as we continue to test, learn, and improve the overall experience.
Phone screen requirements:
- Select Android phones* running Android 7.0 or greater (*Samsung Galaxy S8/S8+/S9/S9+).
- Windows 10 PC with a Bluetooth radio that supports low energy peripheral role. How to check if your PC supports this.
- Latest 19H1 preview build (18335+ recommended).
- Android phone must be on, within Bluetooth range of the PC, and connected to the same network as the PC.
Known issues:
- Touch input doesn’t work yet
- Always on display will not be shown on the phone screen displayed on the PC
- Blue light preferences will not be applied on the phone screen displayed on the PC
- Audio will play out of the phone speakers, not the PC
- Double clicking may bring down notification center
- Some games and apps do not support mouse interactions (e.g. Pokémon Go, Merge Dragons, Feedly)
- If you turn on the setting to hide soft keyboard when a physical keyboard is present your soft keyboard will disappear whenever you’re within Bluetooth range of your PC regardless of the state of the Your Phone app or phone screen session
For more details, including general improvements and other known issues, head over to the official blog post.
Products mentioned in this post
