Phone calls and SMS messaging from PC

[Bobvfr]

We had a taster of this before the anniversary update, well at least with the messaging and I for one thought it was one of the best parts of Windows 10, this was then dropped with the idea that Skype would take this over (I think I read this).

I like Skype, I think it is a valuable tool, I have some credits, my Office 365 subscription and I have taken a Skype number. Above and beyond video calls it allows me to do a few things that I cannot do with my phone. I have even taken the trouble to learn all I can about Skype by helping out on their "Community" forums.

BUT, Skype are a very funny division of MS, I am not sure they would have brought out the UWP preview if someone hadn't leant on them.

So I am worried about backtracking.

On my phone I have unlimited calls, unlimited texts (And a lot of data, for a good price), why on earth would I use up Skype credit to send an SMS. Cortana already allows me to send SMS using my phone, but it was nicer in the messaging app, I don't mind using Skype as my messaging app at all, but it doesn't work yet.

I really want to be able to use my phones calls via my PC, and again don't mind if I use Skype as my fully integrated system, choosing between phone or Skype calls as and when appropriate. Will this ever happen?

As mentioned I am a bit of a pedant, my phone, PC and SP3 start screens are laid out based on my phone. I start with a wide tile next to a normal tile, then like brickwork a normal tile and a wide tile and this carries on down my screens always in the same place (Don't half make finding things easier), on the PC's this stops after X amount of rows and then goes to a new column, and so on, eventually it comes to some apps that don't correspond for example my banking app is not UWP, there are plenty of PC only apps, so the last part of my Start screens is device specific tiles.

Unfortunately after the anniversary app, there really was no point in having the Phone and Messaging apps on my start screens yet they are the top row on my phone, this causes me no end of personal grief

So come on MS and Skype, please show us you are working on this, don't backslide, put this lifelong pedant out of his misery and blow the opposition out of the water with a truly integrated system.

And do we have any MS insiders on here who can shed any light on any progress towards this end

 

[Chintan Gohel]

I used to have the same design as yours for my mobile screen - wide and normal and then next row normal and wide and so on. Then with windows 10 in the later builds, I could put 2 wide, then next row normal wide normal and then 2 wide again

 

[Bobvfr]

Notice those two at the top, they are distinctly missing from my PC and SP3 and this causes me no end of grief, why can't I send messages and call from my PC using my phones abilities, I am sure this is possible.

As I said I don't mind if this gets moved to Skype, I just want to be able to do it.



Notice they are missing from this picture, but it's not the tiles or tile layout, it's the function that is far more important.