Ditch Your Desktop! Turn Your Smartphone Into A Desktop Replacement
by Kannon Yamada
If Christian's tablet experiment piqued your interest in ditching your PC, then you should know that a smartphone will perform the same function. You only need a handful of additional software and accessories.
This article gives a run-down of the hardware, accessories, and software that users can use to replace their desktop with a smartphone. Not all the parts and software in this list are required. You can get away with just one or two of them. It also includes some information on hardware compatibility. Most, but not all phones can replace your desktop.
The Hardware
Without the following hardware, it may be difficult using your smartphone as a desktop:
- A smartphone with Android, or iOS, preferably capable of outputting video. Most modern Samsung phones, the Nexus 4 and any phone with a micro-HDMI video output can mirror its video onto an HDMI-capable monitor. Pictured below is a micro-HDMI port.
- Correct cable for connecting your phone to your monitor. Virtually all of these only work with HDMI. For Samsung that's an MHL connector, for SlimPort phones, that's a SlimPort connector. The iPhone requires a proprietary device to work with HDMI. Pictured below is a MHL adapter.
- For connecting to video, four basic technologies exist: (1) The iPhone 4S uses a proprietary video adapter; (2) The Nexus 4 uses a Slim Port adapter; (3) Many phones have a micro-HDMI; and (4) Samsung phones frequently have MHL connectors.
- If you have Android 1.5 to 2.3, you may require a special Bluetooth keyboard. The only manufacturer that I'm aware of, currently producing Android keyboards with legacy compatibility, is Freedom Input. iPhones, fortunately, work with pretty much any Bluetooth keyboard around.
- Bluetooth, for Android devices without USB host mode. The host mode allows your handset to use USB devices. However, it wasn't implemented until Android 4 and even then, it's a crapshoot whether or not your phone will have the required drivers.
- Host mode also requires an On-The-Go cable (OTG). OTG cables sell for cheap at Amazon. If you don't know what an OTG cable is, let Erez enlighten you.
- HDMI-equipped monitor.
The Accessories
The most important desktop accessory is the keyboard. In fact, a keyboard singularly distinguishes between the mobile and desktop experience. It also dramatically increases productivity. After all, who in their right mind composes an essay on a smartphone touchscreen?
There exist two kinds of keyboards: Bluetooth and USB. Out of the two, Bluetooth equipped wireless keyboards pair far easier with Android and iOS devices. USB devices couldn't work on Android until Ice Cream Sandwich (4.0) and, unfortunately, even many ICS phones omitted USB support.
Therefore, if you want a keyboard, check if your ICS phone supports "USB host mode". If it doesn't, a Bluetooth keyboard is your best bet. As mentioned above, older implementations of Android should use a Freedom Input keyboard.
A phone stand: Phone stands keep your mobile in an upright, readable position. They can be purchased cheaply on Amazon and Ebay. They're also ridiculously easy to build yourself. Take for example the template phone stand below, via Instructables:
Cardboard phone stands possess the advantage of being inexpensive and eco-friendly. They're also easy to put together. It took me about ten minutes to cut my own from the template above.
Problems with multiple USB devices: For those seeking to use a wired keyboard while charging, you might have problems. Using multiple USB devices simultaneously may require USB host mode and a powered USB hub.
The Software
Word processing: There's a variety of office productivity apps that can approximate offerings on the desktop. Opinions on which software reigns supreme varies, although I personally recommend King Office for Android, because of its feature set and light system requirements. For those with iPhones, QuickOffice Pro offers one of the best experiences. If you perpetually have online access, you may want to consider Google Drive, which features both an all-in-one cloud backup and office suite.
Social: Aside from the Facebook app, there's a lot of good social apps, such as Google+ and Twitter. If you haven't tried it already, give Falcon Pro a go for Twitter on Android. For iOS, try the official client.
Pin Websites to Your Launcher: We all know what an embarrassment the Facebook app is on Android. Fortunately, you can bypass this by going directly to their site from your home screen.
Watch Movies: MX Player offers one of the best video experiences on Android. iOS has It's Playing, as well as many others.
Play Games: Adam Dachis explained how to turn your Android or iPhone into a tiny emulator. Android, however, remains the king of emulated gaming.
Conclusion
Turning your smartphone into a desktop doesn't take much hardware, software or money for that matter. The cables themselves cost very little, except on the iPhone, and the software is mostly free. To turn my phone into a functional desktop (and I screwed it up by buying an MHL adapter instead of a SlimPort adapter), I only had to get a Bluetooth keyboard and a SlimPort adapter.
For anyone who wants to save space in their apartment, or simplify their life, ditching the desktop and the laptop just got much easier.
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