Microsoft has been slowly showing more and more love towards Android and its interoperability with Windows 11. This is something that is abundantly clear in the latest builds of Windows 11 released to Insiders on the Dev and Beta channels.
The latest feature to start rolling out is the ability to seamlessly resume apps from Android phones on PC. This is not something that works with all apps – indeed, it is not something you would want or need to work with all apps – but it is an interesting feature which has a lot of potential. For now, however, it is starting small.
The idea is a simple one. You can start using an app on your phone, perhaps while you are out and about, and then continue where you left off on your PC. This might be something that you would think is associated with work, but this is not the case – at least not for now. Microsoft is introducing the feature with support for just one app: Spotify.
In the release notes for the latest preview builds of Windows 11, Microsoft says:
We are beginning to gradually roll out the ability to seamlessly resume using your favorite apps from your Android phone on your Windows 11 PC to Windows Insiders in the Dev and Beta Channels. To start with, you will be able to resume or continue listening to your favorite Spotify tracks and episodes right from where you left off on the Spotify app on your Android phone.
Amanda Langowski and Brandon LeBlanc go on to say:
First, start listening to one of your favorite songs or episodes in the Spotify app on your Android phone. On your PC (running the latest Insider Preview builds in the Dev or Beta Channels) a ‘Resume alert’ will appear on your taskbar. When you click on that alert, Spotify’s desktop app will open and the same track will now continue playing on your PC.
It should go without saying that the same Spotify account must be used in both the Android and Windows apps. But there is also a degree of configuration that users interested in trying out the feature will have to complete.
Microsoft shares the following instructions:
- Turn on access to your phone.
- On your PC, go to Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Mobile devices.
- Switch “Allow this PC to access your mobile devices” to On.
- Click the “Manage devices” button and follow the steps to connect your Android phone.
- Set up the Link to Windows app on your phone.
- On your Android phone, open the Link to Windows app.
- Make sure you allow the app to run in the background (this keeps the Resume feature working reliably).
- Try the feature.
- Open Spotify on your phone and play a track or episode.
- You should see a Resume alert on your PC’s taskbar.
While Microsoft has put the framework in place for this type of functionality, what happens next is down to app developers. There is not yet any hint of which other apps may offer this feature in the future, but it is easy to imagine more streaming music apps following suit. The same applies to video tools, be they streaming video services or standalone video players.
If you are that rarer breed of person who uses Windows 11 in conjunction with an iPhone, the chances of seeing the same functionality hitting your handset are vanishingly thin.
Does this feel like a useful addition to Windows 11 for you – assuming you are an Android user? If so, which other apps do you envision working in this way, and which would you like to see? Share your thoughts in the comments below.