(Credit: Microsoft/PCMag)
If you use both an iPhone and Windows 11, you can connect the two, allowing you to see iPhone notifications, reply to text messages, and even make calls from the PC. It's less than you get when you connect Windows to an Android phone, which allows access to photos shot on the phone and even the ability to run phone apps on the PC screen. But given the tight grip Apple keeps on its closed ecosystem, it's a minor miracle to even get this degree of interoperability.
The PC/smartphone synergy comes courtesy of the Phone Link app in Windows 11, the same software used when linking Android to Windows 11. We take you through the process below, which is simpler than you might think.
Note that I tested this with a Microsoft Surface Pro 8 running Windows 11 Home and a Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 running Windows 11 Pro. On the mobile side, I used an iPhone 12 mini running iOS 17.4.1. The minimum requirements are an iPhone running iOS 14 or later, any Windows 11 device, a Bluetooth connection, the latest version of the Phone Link app on the PC, and optionally the Link to Windows app on the iPhone. Note that the feature doesn't work with school and business accounts.
At this point, you should see a screen on your PC that says you’re all set and can now get on with texting and calling from the computer.
(Credit: Microsoft/PCMag)If instead you see a dire screen like the one below ("Unable to complete pairing"), you have to go into Bluetooth settings on both devices, choose "Forget this device," and start the process over. The steps for doing this are clearly spelled out on the page.
(Credit: Microsoft/PCMag)What Can You Do After Connecting Your iPhone to Windows 11?
Now is the fun part. You see your iPhone notifications in Windows 11’s right-hand Notification pane, and you can reply to texts from the toast notification that pops up in the lower right corner. The Phone Link app places a tiny icon in the System Tray, but I prefer to pin its app icon to the Taskbar.
Here’s the interface for calls, where you see your call history and can place calls from the PC using your contact list or a phone dialer.
(Credit: Microsoft/PCMag)To see notifications from apps on your iPhone, tap the > button at the top left. Below are some example notifications, with the text messaging interface showing on the right side.
(Credit: Microsoft/PCMag)A couple of bonuses: You can see the battery level of your phone in the top-left corner of the Phone Link app on Windows 11, and you can see what music is playing on your iPhone and use play, pause, and skip controls.
What Are the Catches?
Crashes aside, assuming the app works as intended, there are still some known issues that Microsoft support staff points out in an online forum.
Messages
One pointer is that you have to remember that if you "X" out the small phone-call window on the PC, you hang up the call.
You Get a Lot More With Android
You get far more functionality with Windows Phone Link if you use an Android phone, and particularly if you use a recent Samsung model. For example, you can run multiple phone apps on your Windows desktop screen. You can see and transfer any photos from your phone’s camera roll. You can turn on Do Not Disturb on the phone, do group messaging, and send media files in texts. If you want iPhone-to-Windows photo syncing, you can snag Apple’s iCloud for Windows application.
But what you do get with the iPhone is darned useful. In fact, the features I use in Phone Link most with my Samsung Galaxy phone are text messages and notifications. If you need the tightest, fullest-feature connection between an iPhone and your desktop, consider getting a Mac, which offers robust integration between the two with Continuity and Handoff features. But if you prefer using Windows and want the richest phone-to-PC integration, consider switching to an Android phone.