Microsoft once saved all the best Windows integrations for its in-house mobile platform, but the sun has set on Windows Phone. Android is Microsoft’s new mobile platform of choice — it’s even making its own dual-screen Android phone called the Surface Duo. That won’t launch for another year, but in the meantime, users of other Android phones can route phone calls to Windows 10. Although, you’ll have to be on the latest Insider build if you want to give that a go right now.
The new phone call feature is part of Microsoft’s Your Phone app, which also includes a suite of other features. Users of almost all Android phones should be able to use Your Phone for notification sync, photo upload, and messaging replies on a computer. However, Samsung has partnered with Microsoft to get some custom features like screen sharing.
Thankfully, call routing via Your Phone doesn’t require a Samsung phone.
You’ll just need a phone running Android 7.0 Nougat or newer, the Your Phone Companion app, and a computer with Bluetooth connectivity. As you might guess from the Bluetooth requirement, Microsoft isn’t running your call audio through the internet to a computer — it just turns your computer into a really powerful Bluetooth headset.
When connected to the Your Phone app on the new preview build, you can initiate a phone call from your computer. The call audio can go through the PC or your phone. You can even transfer the call back and forth between the phone and the computer. If you get an incoming call while connected to the app, you can accept or decline from your computer. The app also has access to your call log if you want to call someone back.
The phone call feature is currently only available in Windows 10 build 18999, which is a test version of the 20H1 update. You’ll have to join the Insider program if you want this feature now, but that means coping with all the usual pre-release bugs. Specifically, Microsoft says this build has known issues with some gaming anti-cheat systems that could cause your computer to crash unexpectedly. You can expect a stable version to launch in early 2020. You’ll probably want to wait for the final release, which will also include a new Cortana UI, a touch-optimized desktop, cloud download recovery options, and more.
Now read:
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- Windows Is No Longer ‘The Most Important Layer’ at Microsoft
- Microsoft: Latest Windows 10 1903 Update Can Cause CPU Spikes, Break Desktop Search
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