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What you need to know
- Microsoft’s new feature for Windows 10 and 11 aims to rival Apple’s AirDrop, making file sharing between PCs and Android devices super easy.
- Integrated into the Phone Link app, it simplifies file transfers if you update both Phone Link and Link to Windows apps.
- Currently, this feature is only available to Windows Insider Program members (Release Preview Channel), but a wider release is expected soon.
Apple’s AirDrop is hard to beat for file sharing, but Microsoft is closing in with a new feature designed to make transferring files between PCs and Android devices a breeze.
Microsoft has launched a new feature in Windows 10 and 11 that mimics Apple’s AirDrop for Android, first spotted by Windows Central. It’s built into the Phone Link app, so you can easily share files between your PC and phone. Just update Phone Link and the Link to Windows app, and you’ll be set to swap files effortlessly.
The new file-sharing feature boosts the Phone Link and Link to Windows apps, which already handle calls, screen mirroring, and syncing notifications and messages. Microsoft details this new addition in a support document.
Before this update, Phone Link mainly handled notification mirroring, app use, and call management.
To share files from a Windows PC to an Android phone, just pick Phone Link as the destination in File Explorer. For the reverse, use the regular Android sharing menu and select Link to Windows as the sharing method.
Whatever direction the file is moving, the receiving device will get a heads-up with a notification about the incoming transfer.
For smooth file sharing between your Windows PC and Android device, make sure your PC has the Phone Link app version 1.24032.156.0 or later and your phone has the Link to Windows app version 1.24032.518.0 or higher.
To send a file from Windows, open File Explorer, right-click the file, and choose Share from the menu. In the Share window, pick Phone Link as the vehicle.
On the flip side, to share a file from your Android device, tap on any file and hit the Share icon. Choose Link to Windows from the sharing options, then select your PC’s name.
While Google’s Nearby Share already lets you transfer files between Windows and Android devices, Microsoft’s new feature promises to make the process even smoother and more efficient.
As per Windows Central, this AirDrop-like feature is currently only available to those in the Windows Insider Program’s Release Preview Channel, which tests near-final updates. But it’s a safe bet that a wider release for everyone is on the way.
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