Windows 11 could put your iPhone or Android device at the heart of the Start menu, so to speak – or at least the Phone Link app seems to be heading this way.
This is evident from clues unearthed by MS Power userwhich reported whispers from Windows 11 testers that Phone Link would be made a Start Menu ‘Companion’.
If you missed the Companion panel that appeared in Windows preview builds last month, it’s a floating panel that can be docked to the left or right of the Start menu. The Companions it hosts are a bit like Live Tiles from old, widget-like things that display real-time information being piped through.
In theory, Phone Link will be one of the apps that will appear in the Companion panel, as MS Power User has dug deep into Phone Link’s files and found some code strings related to ‘StartMenuCompanion’ settings.
Analysis: Digging into phone integration
This seems to be the basis for Phone Link to become a Start Menu Companion, but of course this is just work that’s currently hidden in testing – and we can’t assume it will happen. The Companion panel itself could even be abandoned if Microsoft gives it more thought – only time will tell.
Given the rumors, and at least some concrete evidence that Phone Link will get this treatment, on balance it seems more likely than not. Phone Link would also be a logical and useful app to have in the Companion panel, to forward notifications from your smartphone and bring them to your attention when you are in the Start menu.
Phone Link has been a staple of Windows for a while, and it’s not surprising that Microsoft is pushing ahead with potential features like this – working on the Cross-Device Experience Host (although that’s been disappointing lately) and other phone-related features. capabilities – considering Apple now has iPhone Mirroring inbound with macOS Sequoia.
Any way you look at it, smartphones are becoming increasingly deeply integrated into desktop operating systems these days.