Google’s ecosystem connectivity is getting better and better
Android users have been watching Apple’s ecosystem get better and tighter for decades. iPhone owners can send text messages from iPads and Macs, share files and photos across Apple devices, and seamlessly pass their AirPods connection from one product to another. Even though Google recently canceled its internal hardware, they have committed to making the integration between Chromebooks and Android phones tighter to rival iPhone and Mac integration.
Through this effort, Google has introduced the Phone Hub to Chromebooks, bringing Android phones and the best Chromebooks closer together. This guide shows you how to get started with Phone Hub, what features it provides, and how to enable them.
How to set up Phone Hub
Getting your Android phone connected to your Chromebook through Phone Hub is simple.
- Open the Settings app on your Chromebook.
- Go to the Connected devices section.
- Next to Android Phone, click the Set up button.
- Select the Android device you want to connect to and click the Accept & continue button.
- Enter your Google account password.
- Select the Done button, and your phone and Chromebook are connected.
How to change your Phone Hub settings
There are some easy toggles to turn Phone Hub and its associated features on or off.
- Launch the Settings app on your Chromebook.
- Tap Connected Devices on the left
- Tap the arrow next to the name of your phone
- In the list of options, toggle Phone Hub to turn the Phone Hub on or off.
- Underneath the Phone Hub switch, there are three additional features to toggle:
- Recent Chrome tabs: Enabling this feature shows your recent Chrome tabs from your phone on your Chromebook.
- Recent photos: This feature displays your recent photos on your phone on your Chromebook.
- Notifications: Enabling this feature displays notifications from your phone in the notifications section on your Chromebook.
What can Phone Hub do?
The Phone hub is accessed by clicking the phone icon in the lower-right corner of the tray to the left of the date. Once selected, at the top, it shows the name of your phone and its connectivity and battery status. Beneath that are three key functions:
- Enable hotspot: Turns on your phone’s hotspot and connects your Chromebook to it, giving you a data connection while you’re out and about.
- Silence phone: Turns off notification sounds on your phone.
- Locate phone: Rings your phone so that you can locate it.
Below those buttons are the recent Chrome tabs from your phone if you’ve turned on the option. If you’ve enabled the option, you also see your recent photos from your phone beneath the Recent Chrome tabs. If you’ve enabled notification syncing, alerts from your phone show up alongside your other Chrome OS notifications on the shelf. If you dismiss a notification on your Chromebook, it is also dismissed on your phone.
What else can your Android phone and Chromebook do together?
In addition to the Phone Hub, there are a couple of ways your Android phone and Chromebook can interact. To get to these options, open the Settings app, go to the Connected devices section, and click the arrow next to the name of your phone.
- Smart Lock: Allows you to log in to your Chromebook without typing in a pin or a password. Instead, unlock your phone near your Chromebook and press the Enter key. Bluetooth must be turned on to use this feature.
- Instant Tethering: Shares your cellular connection from your Android phone with your Chromebook.
- Wi-Fi Sync: Shares Wi-Fi networks from your Phone with your Chromebook, so you don’t have to connect it manually.
Disconnect your Android phone
If you’ve used Phone Hub and decided it’s not for you, it’s easy to disable.
- Open the Settings app on your Chromebook.
- Go to the Connected devices section.
- Tap the arrow to the right of the name of your phone.
- At the bottom, tap the Disconnect button in the Forget phone section.
- Select the Disconnect button in the dialog box that pops up.
A hub for a better ecosystem
Chromebooks and Android phones may not be as powerful a pairing as a Mac and an iPhone, but they’re well on their way. Smart Lock lets you use your Android phone to unlock your Chromebook instead of typing in a password or a PIN.
