Microsoft is catching up with Apple in terms of a smartphone that will serve as a webcam for desktop operating systems. At Apple, this function is called Camera in Continuityv has been supported on iPhones since 2018. Microsoft is thus catching up with Apple after six years, with the function Connected Camera in Windows 11. Unlike the efforts of some mobile brands, such as Samsung, Microsoft does not address the brand of computer or smartphone, the connection will work with all newer Androids.
This is what the Android screen and desktop widget look like when launching the webcam aka camera from a connected phone
The feature is tied to the desktop application Connection with the phone, respectively with a mobile application Connecting to Windows. From Android, you connect to the computer in the standard way, i.e. in the mobile and desktop application, you log in under a Microsoft account, read the QR code from the PC with your phone, confirm the connection and grant all the necessary permissions on the mobile.
However, the feature will need to be activated manually and not in the Connect to Phone app. You can find it in the Windows settings, in the section Settings Bluetooth and other devices – Mobile devices. Here it will be necessary to select Mobile device management, in which you manually activate the function for using the phone as a webcam. We can imagine a much more straightforward activation, but that wouldn’t be Microsoft…
You turn on Android as a webcam directly in the Windows system settings
Once you do so, the Cross Device Experience Host module will be downloaded from the Microsoft Store, which is a necessary addition for all communication. The feature will be available on Android 9.0 and later, provided they are using the Connect to Windows app version 2.24012* or newer. The feature is currently released in the Windows Insider channel, and should be released to regular Windows 11 users in the coming weeks.
Source: Windows
2024-03-01 10:57:22
#phone #camera #webcam #Android #Windows