If you’re using an iPhone and a Windows PC, you’ve definitely noticed the challenge of sharing files between the two devices. But with the new functionality that Microsoft is testing, things might soon change. There will soon be an upgraded version of the company’s Phone Link app that will allow users to more easily transfer files between their iPhones and Windows PCs.
An official blog post from Microsoft confirmed the news, stating that the feature is now accessible to Windows Insiders. Phone Link is a program that allows your Windows PC and your phone to communicate with each other. You can see your phone’s notifications on your computer and answer calls without ever picking up the phone because it already has those capabilities. Microsoft is now adding support for file sharing on the iPhone to its list of features.
How iPhone and Windows File Sharing Work?
The new feature is now exclusively available to Windows Insiders for testing purposes, as stated earlier. A few items are required for its use:
- To use this, you need an iPhone running iOS 16 or later.
- You must have the latest version of the Link to Windows app 1.24112.73 or later installed on your iPhone.
- The Phone Link app on your Windows PC needs to be updated to 1.24112.89.0 or a later version.
- After completion of the setup process, your iPhone will be able to use the Link to Windows app through the sharing menu. In other words, you may choose media from your iPhone, hit the share button, and then transfer the items straight to your Windows computer.
Relax if you aren’t a member of Microsoft’s Windows Insiders Program. According to Microsoft, this feature will be available to all Windows 10 and Windows 11 users soon. This means that in due time you won’t need to register for any testing programs in order to use it.
With AirDrop, Apple’s ecosystem has long made it simple for iPhone users to transfer data to Macs. However, a comparable option is not available to iPhone owners who choose to use a Windows PC. Microsoft hopes that their upgrade will help close this gap and simplify things for those who live in hybrid ecosystems.
But it’s still not ideal. When integrating with iOS, Microsoft’s Phone Link app has encountered a few challenges. For instance, certain features have been difficult to incorporate due to Apple’s constraints. To facilitate the sending and receiving of texts from PCs to iPhones, Microsoft integrated basic iMessage functionality into the Phone Link program in 2023. The app’s limitations include an inability to replicate iPhone apps onto a Windows PC and an absence of functionality for group conversations over iMessage.
This new function is a big step forward, but things could still be better. Regardless of the limitations of Apple’s environment, Microsoft appears determined to enhance the Phone Link app for iPhone users. The long-awaited ability to transfer data between an iOS device and a Windows computer may finally be here with this upgrade.
