4 things Microsoft should do to improve PC and phone synergy between Windows 10, Android and iOS

Microsoft'south current mobile strategy is all about making your PC and smartphone work ameliorate together past allowing users to share experiences and activities across devices, regardless of whether yous're using a PC, smartphone, or tablet. Thank you to the Microsoft Graph, features like Timeline permit users start an action on 1 device, and resume it on another. Everything from web browsing, to Word documents, and more, tin can take reward of Timeline and be shared across your devices.

You've also got Your Phone, an app on Windows x that lets you see everything that's happening on your phone, including the latest notifications, photos, and even text messages. Your Telephone is the next step bringing your PC and phone closer together; however, some notable experiences are still oddly missing that honestly should have been at that place on day 1, particularly on Android where Microsoft has a lilliputian more jerk-room for synergy. So, here's four of those obvious experiences that Microsoft should add together to its ecosystem.

Microsoft Photos app on Android and iOS

The first missing experience is a defended Photos app for Android and iOS. I use OneDrive to backup all my photos taken across all my devices, and honestly, the OneDrive app is a terrible photograph-viewer. I'd dearest Microsoft to build a Microsoft Photos app for Android and even iOS, which would let me see all the photos taken beyond all my devices. I have hundreds of thousands of photos on my OneDrive, and viewing them all using the OneDrive app is a terrible experience.

A dedicated Photos app would as well allow Microsoft to integrate some of its Windows Ink experiences, such as being able to describe directly onto photos with nice animated effects, which would so save back up to my OneDrive and be viewable in the Photos app on PC. Information technology would also exist crawly if I could tag photos with people straight on my phone like I tin on PC, and accept those tags save to the cloud so that it is remembered across my devices too.

Calls on your PC

Another missing PC and phone experience is existence able to answer and make calls straight on your PC, powered past your phone. Apple tree can practice this with Mac and the iPhone, and it'd be awesome if Microsoft could achieve the same functionality between a PC and an Android device. This could either be done using the Your Phone app or with defended Telephone apps for PC and Android congenital past Microsoft.

An integrated Calendar experience on Android

A Microsoft Calendar app for Android would also exist much appreciated. The Outlook app for Android already has your Microsoft Account agenda born, but the app itself oddly doesn't play dainty when dealing with calendar links outside the app. For example, if someone sends me an appointment, I can tap on that appointment, but Android will try to add that to a agenda app that isn't Outlook. Usually, it adds information technology to the congenital-in calendar app, which is ofttimes Google Calendar.

Your Phone app OS integration

I would besides love for Your Telephone to eventually be integrated into the OS more than just existence an app that you can pivot to your Start menu. It'd be cracking if we could take a Your Phone applet in the Organization Tray that gave yous quick access to your phones bombardment, recent notifications, and final text bulletin received, all without having to open up the Your Phone app. My People integration would likewise be excellent, letting y'all pin a phone contact to your taskbar for quick SMS and more.

Movies & TV apps for phone

Finally, a Movies & TV app on Android and iOS would complete the experience. Nosotros already know these apps are in the works, which is dandy news, but I'one thousand hoping they sync up with the PC app, allowing me to resume a picture from the second where I left it on my PC, for example. Small stuff like that makes all the difference.

What do yous call back?

Overall, I promise Microsoft gets around to thinking well-nigh the smaller details when information technology comes to PC and phone integration. There's more to it than meets the centre, and to make for a seamless experience, the synergy between devices needs to go both means. What do you hope Microsoft focuses on when it comes to telephone and PC integration? Let usa know in the comments!

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