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Your Phone app adds Calls feature in Windows 10 18999

by Mark Tyson on 10 October 2019, 12:11

Tags: Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), Google (NASDAQ:GOOG), Windows 10

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Microsoft first demonstrated its Your Phone app Calls feature at the Samsung Unpacked event in Brooklyn in August, when the Galaxy Note10, 10+ and 10+ 5G were launched. It followed up with a live demo of the feature at the Surface event last week. Now the firm is making the feature available to the general public, or at least its ring of volunteer Insiders in the fast ring, via Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 18999 (20H1).

With the Calls feature enabled you can use your PC's speakers microphone, and large screen "for a richer calling experience," says Microsoft. Probably more importantly, it’s a handy way to answer calls when at your desk / on your laptop, when your phone is in a bag, pocket. Official highlights of the Calls feature in Your Phone are as follows:

  • Answer incoming phone calls on your PC.
  • Initiate phone calls from your PC using in-app dialler or contact list.
  • Decline incoming phone calls on your PC with custom text or send directly to your phone's voicemail.
  • Access your recent call history on your PC. Clicking on a specific call will auto populate the number within the dialler screen.
  • Seamlessly transfer calls between your PC and phone.

According to the Windows blog you don't need a shiny new mobile such as the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 series or Microsoft Surface Duo, it will work with any Android 7.0 or newer phone with Bluetooth (Bluetooth on both phone and PC of course), as long as you are running this insider build of Windows or newer.

If you are interested in the new Your Phone app and the Calls feature but don't wish to start testing fast ring versions of Windows, you won't have to wait until next year and the next major Windows 10 update. Microsoft says that Insiders on 19H1 builds or newer will be able to download the updated app in a few days.

Elsewhere in Windows 10 18999 (20H1)'s changelog, there are details of updates to Cortana, and a long list of general changes, improvements and fixes. Would-be users are warned that pre-release builds of Windows 10 may contain "bugs that might be painful for some".



HEXUS Forums :: 20 Comments

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Why would i pair/ sync my phone with my computer, the 2 have absolutely nothing to do with each other.
Other than E mail and i am okay with having that in 2 places, and its sure as hell not something i need synced up.
But maybe people that work on a computer, so they can take their work with them home on the phone,,,,, wait that's also no good working all the time, not least not getting paid for that.

SO,,,,,,, Pass.
Gentle Viking;4140785
Why would i pair/ sync my phone with my computer, the 2 have absolutely nothing to do with each other.
Other than E mail and i am okay with having that in 2 places, and its sure as hell not something i need synced up.
But maybe people that work on a computer, so they can take their work with them home on the phone,,,,, wait that's also no good working all the time, not least not getting paid for that.

SO,,,,,,, Pass.

This is really useful for Home workers like me… being able to take calls hands-free is useful when collaborating with others, as is viewing & responding to SMS messages via the full-sized keyboard. The recent photos functionality is also quite handy… so all in all, I've been quite impressed with the “Your Phone” app and Microsoft's symbiotic tie-up with Android in recent times.
Don't see a need in this aspect personally and as much as I like the idea for text messaging because it seems that the app routes stuff through their server backend (servers went down a while back and my phones stopped working) I won't be linking it up for that either…. there is absolutely no need for this when in most cases it will be connecting over the same wifi network.
Here is an amateur video of the Call feature being used:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EIB3tBBGGCE
gets a big thumbs down from me too