How to turn an Android smartphone into a PC

[Mr.TaLaL]

 

Can you do it? Yes. Should you do it? Let's find out.

Could your smartphone be the only computer you need? That's the dream pitched by a new Kickstarter campaign, but it's not a new dream.

Motorola tried it back 2011 with its Webtop software and Lapdock hardware, but it died within 18 months. Microsoft struck on a similar idea with its Continuum feature for Windows 10 Mobile smartphones, but the Microsoft's declining mobile fortunes don't bode well for its future.

You can forget Apple trying something this radical, too, so it’s left to Android to pick up the slack. Enter Andronium OS and its Superbook.

WHAT IS ANDROMIUM OS?

Andromium OS promises to create a desktop environment for Android, allowing you to use all your smartphone apps on a big screen — similar to how Chrome OS is now beginning to support Android apps on its desktop platform.

Andromium OS was initially launched 18 months ago and rather than being an entirely new operating system necessitating you to root your Android smartphone, it is in fact just an app which you can download from the Google Play Store and install on any Android smartphone.

The goal is to get the software to work with as many Android smartphones as possible (though there are limitations) offering features like windowed apps, a Windows-like start menu and drag-and-drop icons on the desktop.

Related: Which Chromebooks now support Android apps?

 

WHAT IS THE SUPERBOOK?

When it originally launched in December 2014, the team behind Andromium OS started a Kickstarter campaign to fund the production of a dock which you could connect your smartphone to and then hook up a monitor, mouse and keyboard for a proper desktop experience. The campaign never met its funding goals and the official dock was never manufactured.

Now the team behind Andromium is back with another solution – the Superbook. Launched earlier this month, the campaign has already clocked up almost $1 million in funding from its initial goal of just $50,000. Clearly there is a market for what the Superbook is promising.

Very much like Motorola’s Lapdock from five years ago, the Superbook is the shell of a laptop into which you plug your smartphone. Rather than the rear-mounted dock we saw with the Lapdock, the Superbook connects with your smartphone through a USB cable.

It features a 768p screen, keyboard, touchpad and promises a 10-hour battery life (up from the 8 hours the developers were initially promising, thanks to the extra funding the campaign has received).

Because this is Andromium, the Superbook works with smartphones from any manufacturer and the sales pitch says that if you upgrade your smartphone, then you are also effectively upgrading the performance of your laptop too, as it is powered by the chip inside your phone. The premise certainly makes sense in an era when smartphone chips are becoming so powerful and phones now ship with up to 6GB of RAM.

The Superbook is pegged to ship in early 2017 and costs just $99, but if you have a smartphone lying around and want to turn it into a desktop computer, then you don’t have to wait any longer.

 

TURNING AN ANDROID SMARTPHONE INTO A PC

Before you get started, you will need the following:

 

• A relatively new smartphone/tablet
• A TV or monitor
• A Chromecast/Miracast device
• Keyboard (Bluetooth/USB)
• Mouse (Bluetooth/USB)

 

Additionally, if you are using a USB mouse or keyboard, you will need a smartphone that supports USB On-The-Go (OTG), a standard which allows mobile devices to talk to each other but also crucially lets you easily connect peripherals to your smartphone or tablet – which is vital if you don’t happen to have a Bluetooth mouse or keyboard handy.

If you are going down the wired peripheral route, you will also need a USB OTG adapter. You can buy microUSB versions for between £1 and £7 on Amazon, but if you are using a newer smartphone which has a USB C port, these cables will set you back a little bit more.

WHICH SMARTPHONES WORK WITH ANDROMIUM?

Before we get on to setting up our Andromium desktop system, a word on smartphones.

The software is designed to work on as many smartphones as possible, but the developers do give some recommended specifications for the smartphones that should be used. They suggest you should have a processor equal to, or better than, the Snapdragon 800 from Qualcomm, which was released in 2013 in smartphones like the Google Nexus 5 and Sony Xperia Z1. The company also says the phone you are using should have 2GB RAM as a minimum.

I tested multiple different smartphones released in the last 24 months and had no problem getting Andromium to work with them. It should also be noted that Andromium OS is not limited to running on chips from Qualcomm (I tested it with Huawei’s Kirin chipsets too).

Finally, if you are planning to use a wired keyboard or mouse, you should check if your smartphone supports USB OTG. While almost all smartphones released in the last couple of years do, there are exceptions. During my testing I found the Honor 5X, which was released in November last year, doesn’t support the standard.