The main screen of my Android phone as seen in a RemotePC web session.
Most remote desktop programs provide only clients/viewers for Android (or iOS), from which you can control your remotes devices. Don’t ask me why I immediately thought of this… ? Access it from your PC, and have your phone make noise (play a tune, or change the ring tone) so you can find it.
In remote desktop lingo, a server or host is the software on board a device that lets you control it.Īndroid control could be insanely handy for locating a misplaced phone. RemotePC doesn’t rely on web access for variegated OS support either: there are servers for Windows, macOS, Linux, and-very unusually-Android. You can also invite others for one-off sessions. It supports both client/server access using locally installed software, as well as web-based access from your browser.
Go there to learn more about our evaluation process and how competing products compare./Įven when it comes to the basics, RemotePC is playing big-league ball. Note: This review is part of our roundup of Best remote desktop software. I like the attitude-if it can or should be done, let’s just do it. And RemotePC, which can leverage iDrive for backup, is the most feature-laden remote desktop software on the planet.
Having reviewed iDrive’s online backup service several times over the years, I’m familiar with the company’s penchant for feature-rich efforts. Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Fast and feature-rich with multiple-OS support, there’s also a meetings (Zoom, Skype, etc.) facility for only $10 a year.
In most cases, we use less tech-savvy family and friends as guinea pigs.ProsClient/server and web accessSupports just about every operating systemControls Android phonesIntegrated online backup (costs extra / requires iDrive 360 install)ConsPricey when there are free optionsOur VerdictiDrive’s RemotePC not only offers excellent remote control of your desktop (even of Android devices!), it can also leverage the company’s online storage service (extra) for backup. The other major consideration we evaluate is how intuitive and easy the software is to set up and use. This allows good performance both locally and across the internet, but requires configuring firewalls and routers for the latter. Windows Remote Desktop Connection and Apple Remote Desktop are peer-to-peer by nature. This has some advantages if you’re using a web browser to view the remote PC, but can slow things down otherwise-especially on local network connections. Others such as GoToMyPC route all traffic through their portal. Remote-desktop software such as TeamViewer will establish a connection using the company’s web portal, then gets out of the way to allow traffic to flow directly from machine to machine. That said, there can be noticeable differences. With the increased speed and bandwidth most users have access to today, remote internet performance isn’t the issue it was back in the days of dial-up, DSL, etc. We control the remote machine, transfer files, check out the chat function and any other features that are available.Ī very important criteria is speed, i.e., how nimble the remote operating system feels, and how fast files transfer. If mobile clients are available, we test them on a Google Pixel 4 (Android) and an Apple iPad (iOS). Virtual machines on both the local and remote computers are employed to test alternate operating systems such as Linux. We test all the software both over a local network and the internet.