Android, Windows marriage
By Marshal John Mdeza
Microsoft has released a test update 18999 for forthcoming Windows 10, 20H1 update. This update confirms that Android is now the official smartphone operating system for Microsoft. In other words, Windows phone sunset is here.
The Microsoft’s Your Phone App has been enhanced in this test update and now allows you to link to an Android phone. Using the feature, you can do a number of interesting things with your Android phone; your Windows computer can notify you of an incoming call on your Android phone or indeed make a call from your Windows 10 computer.
You can even go as far as replying to texts from the computer.
The App does photo upload seamlessly. For those with Samsung Android phones, they can go further and share the android phone screen on the Windows 10 computer.
For these features to work, you need to have Android 7.0 Nougat or newer running on your android phone.
This is not magical; Microsoft has taken advantage of Bluetooth and internet to deliver your call audio to a computer.
The app allows you to switch a call between the computer and the phone. The computer accesses your phone’s call log, a feature which makes initiating a call from the Windows computer look easy.
This is a test update and as is the case with test updates, there are usually issues. All I am trying to say is that it may not work perfectly. You may, therefore need to wait for the actual Windows update 10, 20H1 which should arrive early 2020.
What do these things mean? First things first, forget about Windows phone; it is dead. However, if you loved Windows Phone just as much as I did, do not despair, get yourself an Android phone and pair it to your Windows laptop or tablet. In that way it will be like using Android on Windows platform.
It is like what you do with WhatsApp when you link it up on your Windows computer. WhatsApp works just as good but your phone has to be on and your Windows computer must have a data bundle.
This will do until you finally admit that Windows phone is gone. This will also be useful when you are working on your laptop and have to take call or make calls in between. You can do so without lifting your phone. The calls can be routed to your laptop.
Microsoft is trying to use Apps on Windows to bribe you to migrate to Android. If Microsoft had asked for an opinion, I would have hastened to beg Microsoft to tweak Android to look like Windows phone, and we would be less confused.
A vibrant writer who gives a great insight on hot topics and issues
