How To

6 Best Ways to Sync an Android Device to Your PC

Use these methods for a more seamless Android and Windows experience.

May 31, 2023

If you want to remotely use your smartphone using your PC, your options are very limited. There is no native Android interface that lets you send/receive messages or make calls using your PC. However, Microsoft’s Phone Link is able to bridge this gap in functionality. Some Android smartphone manufacturers like Samsung have their own connectivity apps for PC. In this article, we bring you the 6 best ways to sync an Android device to your Windows PC.

Use Microsoft Phone Link

While there are a lot of third-party tools to manage your smartphone from your PC, the closest thing you’ve got to a native interface is Microsoft’s Phone Link. Using Phone Link you can sync your phone’s messages and notifications with your PC. The interface allows you to respond to texts, make & receive calls, browse the gallery, and a lot of other stuff. Here’s how you can sync your Android device with a PC using Microsoft Phone Link.

Step 1: Download and install the ‘Link to Windows’ app on your Android smartphone.

Step 2: Go to your PC settings and select ‘Phone’.

Step 3: Click on ‘Add a phone’ and choose whether you want to pair your phone manually or with a QR code.

Step 4: Launch the Link to Windows app on your smartphone and select ‘Link your Phone and PC’.

Step 5: Select ‘Continue’ and scan the QR Code on your PC.

Step 6: Select ‘Try another way’ to link your phone manually.

Step 7: Sign in using your Microsoft account.

Step 8: Click on ‘Create PIN code’ on your PC to generate a PIN for manual linking.

Step 9: Enter the PIN on your smartphone.

Step 10: Give the app the necessary permissions to function.

Step 11: Use the sidebar on the Phone Link on your PC to connect your phone and computer via Bluetooth.

You will now be able to send and receive calls and messages while accessing your phone’s personal data on your PC.

Use Samsung Flow

Samsung users can use the Samsung Flow app to sync their devices to a PC. You can find the Flow app on Microsoft Store. Here’s how you can link your Samsung device to your PC using Flow.

Step 1: Install Samsung Flow on your smartphone and PC and hit ‘Start’.

Step 2: Select your Samsung device.

Step 3: Launch the Flow app on your Samsung device.

Step 4: Confirm the pass key to sync your phone with your PC.

Step 5: Pair your PC and smartphone via Bluetooth or WiFi to complete the syncing process.

Once the two devices are linked you can view your phone’s notifications on your PC, send and respond to messages, share mobile internet, sync the clipboard, and do a lot of other stuff.

Use a third-party tool

There are plenty of third-party tools like Pushbullet, Coolmuster, and AirDroid that let you sync your phone with your PC. These apps are generally reliable and do a good job of syncing messages and notifications. The process to set up these tools is mostly similar. First, you need to install the PC and Android clients on the respective devices. Make sure your PC and smartphone are on the same network. Once that is done, you will need to create a profile on the application and then link your device via a QR code.

Use OneDrive or Google Drive to sync files

If you want to sync the personal data on your smartphone to your PC, there is no better way of going about it that using a cloud storage service. Upon signing up for Google Drive, you get up to 15GB of free storage, which is optimum to create a backup of all the essential files on your device. You can sign into Google Drive using your PC to access those files. You can also use Google Drive to create an online backup of your WhatsApp conversations and media.

Use Google Calendar to sync calendar entries

Most Android smartphones have Google’s app suite preinstalled in them. Google Calendar is one of those apps. You can use Google Calendar to sync your calendar entries across multiple devices. All you need to do to access the entries on your PC is sign into Google Calendar using the same Google Account that you use on your smartphone.

Use Sync for Chrome

For a lot of people, syncing the passwords to different web services is more important than syncing media and calendar entries. Luckily, Google Chrome is able to achieve this with ease. The only prerequisite is that you must be using the same Google Account for Chrome on all devices. To begin syncing, launch Chrome on your smartphone, go to Settings, and turn on Sync. Once that is done, you will be able to access your saved passwords, browsing history, bookmarks, and more across multiple devices.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I sync files between Android and Windows?

You can use Microsoft Phone Link to sync files, messages, calls, and more between Android and Windows. To access the media on your device across multiple devices, back up your data on Google Drive or OneDrive.

How do I sync photos from Android to PC automatically?

To sync your photos from Android to PC use the Microsoft Photos app to import all the images from your phone to your PC. You can also use Microsoft Phone Link on your PC to view the contents of your phone’s gallery at any given time.

How do I sync my passwords from Android to PC?

To sync passwords, bookmarks, and web history from your phone to your Windows PC and access them across multiple devices, launch the Chrome app and go to Settings>Sync.

Conclusion

These are the 6 best ways you can sync your Android device to your Windows PC. Out of all these methods, we would suggest using Microsoft Phone Link as it is as close to a native method as it gets. You can also use Phone Link to sync your iPhone messages to your PC.

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