In a bizarre twist, Windows OS is now supporting a vital iPhone feature
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Something we never thought we’d see happen actually happened. In the latest update to its Phone Link app for Windows, the tech giant is adding support for the Apple iPhone, specifically iMessage for Windows 11.
According to Microsoft’s official blog (opens in new tab) and reported by The edge (opens in new tab), the Phone Link app works by mirroring your phone to your PC for notifications, calls and messages. With this update, iPhone users can now connect their devices to a Windows laptop or PC, send messages via iMessage, make and receive calls, and receive notifications through Windows 11.
In an interview with The Verge, Yusuf Mehdi, Microsoft’s head of consumer marketing, explains how it works. “We send the messages back and forth via Bluetooth. I think Apple in turn sends that as iMessage once it gets on their system.”
As impressive as this sounds, there are some setbacks.
Users cannot see the entire message history, only messages sent or received through Phone Link. You also won’t see any blue or green chat bubbles because the system can’t tell between a regular text message and an iMessage message. Still, this is a surprising and big step in the right direction, one that could bring even more features and support in the future, such as photo integration.
If you’re interested in testing this feature, Microsoft is starting beta testing with a small percentage of Windows Insiders who are in the Dev, Beta, and Release Preview channels. “We will be increasing the availability of the preview to more Insiders over time and based on feedback we receive with this first set of Insiders,” said the official blog post.
This new update also comes with several other features such as AI Bing and chat-driven taskbar searches, a screen recording feature, better touch optimizations, and more.