Are you a Windows 11 (or 10) user who’s jealous of Mac owners with iPhones who can use AirDrop to seamlessly transfer files? AirDrop’s slickness is hard to deny, even for the most hardened Apple dissenters, but Windows users with Android smartphones should soon get similarly smart file sharing powers, with any luck.
The new file sharing system for Microsoft’s OS was spotted by Windows Central, and it’s now present in testing in the Release Preview Channel (the final stage of testing before release, as the name suggests). It works via the Phone Link app (on PC) and the Link to Windows app (on your Android), and Microsoft explains all the details in a support document that was recently updated.
As mentioned, the feature will work in a similar way to AirDrop in Apple’s ecosystem, and it’ll be hosted in the built-in Share menu of the device you’re sharing from, whether that’s your Android phone or Windows PC. All you’ll need to do is tap on, or right-click, the file you want to share, then choose to ‘Share’ and then find the relevant app (Phone Link, if you’re sharing from a PC, or Link to Windows if the file is on your phone).
A long-awaited arrival that could really impress
This feature will be available for PCs running Windows 10 and Windows 11. You’ll need Windows 10 May 2019 or later, or any version of Windows 11 - and your mobile device will have to be running Android 9.0 or later. Also, your phone will need to run the Link to Windows app version 1.24032.518.0 or better, and your PC needs Phone Link version 1.24032.156.0 or later.
It’s worth noting that this new feature is not the same as the existing cross-device copy and paste feature in Phone Link, which enables you to have a shared clipboard between two devices where items that are copied are stored, able to be pasted into a suitable app on either device.
All in all, this will be a very useful addition to Windows 11 (and Windows 10) for those of you with Android smartphones, facilitating sharing files more seamlessly and potentially speeding up your workflow. Let’s hope it progresses to the release version of Windows 11 (and 10) soon enough.
