Ever wish you had instant access to your recent smartphone photos, notifications, texts and calls right on your Windows PC? You can now view them all using the Microsoft Your Phone Companion — Link to Windows app.
Microsoft’s Your Phone Companion allows you to see up to 2,000 of your most recent photos, view notifications, send and receive text messages, and make calls right from your desktop. Better still, the application has been integrated natively into Samsung’s latest flagship smartphones, including the new Galaxy S20 series and 2019’s Galaxy Note10 series. You’ll find it conveniently accessible in your quick panel under “Link to Windows.” This is one of several smart integrations between Samsung’s Galaxy devices and Microsoft.
Here’s a quick guide to getting the Your Phone Companion app set up on your PC and phone, plus how to take advantage of some of the key features.
Set up the Your Phone app on your PC
Linking your Galaxy smartphone to your PC with Your Phone Companion is easy. The first step is to install the Your Phone app on your PC.
- Go to the Microsoft Store, search for Your Phone and download it.
- Click “Sign in” to sign in with your Microsoft account. Make sure that you use the same account here as you do when you sign in on your smartphone in the steps below. When that’s done, you’ll see a blue “Launch” button. Click it.
- Your Phone will launch on your PC and ask you to specify your mobile OS. Select Android and click “Get Started.”
- When the setup process is complete, Microsoft Your Phone will ask you to provide the phone number to your smartphone so it can send a text message to the device.
- Then, you’ll see a screen saying “Please open Your Phone Companion — Link to Windows.” Now it’s time to set up the app on your Galaxy smartphone.
Set up the Your Phone Companion app on your Galaxy smartphone
You’re in the home stretch now. Here’s how to set up Your Phone Companion — Link to Windows on your Galaxy S20 or Note10 series smartphone.
- Swipe downwards from the top of your screen to reveal your quick panel. Tap “Link to Windows.” You can also access the feature by opening Settings, tapping “Connections” or “Advanced features” and navigating down to where it says “Link to Windows.” For other Samsung smartphones which don’t feature Link to Windows, you can download and install the Your Phone Companion app from Google Play.
- You’ll see a welcome screen that says “Sign in to start linking.” Tap the “Sign in with Microsoft” button.
- If you’re signed in, you should see a screen saying “You’re currently signed in” with your Microsoft account listed below. Tap “Continue.” Again, make sure you use the same Microsoft account on your PC and your phone.
- After accepting the app permissions, you’ll see a screen saying “Set up the Your Phone app on your PC.” Tap “My PC is ready,” since you’ve already installed Your Phone on your PC.
- You’ll see the Link to Windows settings open up on your smartphone, indicating that you’re connected to your PC.
- If you don’t have the Your Phone app open on your PC, open it now.
You’re all set! Once you open the Your Phone app on your PC, you should now be able to access your most recent photos and screenshots, your most recent text conversations, and notifications about incoming emails, texts and calls.
Sending messages and making calls from your PC
One of the best features of Your Phone Companion — Link to Windows is the ability to respond to text messages and make calls directly from your PC.
Sending text messages is very simple. Just click the “Messages” tab and you’ll see all of your recent conversations, much like you would on your phone. Select a recipient, type a message and hit “Send.”
To place calls, you will need to pair your PC and phone via Bluetooth. You’ll be prompted to do this when you click into the “Calls” tab on your PC, but you can also do so manually in your PC’s Windows settings under “Devices” and then “Bluetooth and other devices.” Click “Add Bluetooth or other device” and select your smartphone. Make sure your phone has Bluetooth turned on so that it will be visible.
In the “Calls” tab, you’ll now be able to see a log of your recent calls. There’s also a bar to search your phone’s contacts. Note that when placing calls in the Your Phone app on your PC, the call is really being made by your phone, but the audio comes through your PC.
Viewing your phone’s screen on your PC
Another nice feature is the ability to view your phone’s screen on your PC and control it with your mouse.
Just click into the “Phone screen” tab to get started. You’ll be prompted to make sure that your phone and PC are on the same WiFi network, if they are not already.
Once connected, you’ll be able to see your phone’s screen and interact with it using your mouse or touchpad. This can be great if you want to demonstrate a mobile app to a group of people, or have mobile apps that you check throughout the day but want to keep everything consolidated on one screen.
Once set up, using Your Phone Companion is extremely simple and intuitive. And, because of the native Link to Windows integration on the Galaxy S20 and Note10 devices, you can connect and disconnect from your phone with a single tap within the quick panel.
With Your Phone Companion, you now stay more focused when working on your Windows PC because your notifications, messages and calls are easily accessible. You also have a handy option for transferring photos to your PC.
