Yesterday, Microsoft released an update to its Skype Preview app for Windows Insiders in the Fast ring, adding SMS support on both Windows 10 PCs and phones. Today, the company revealed some of its plans for the new feature.
Referred to as 'SMS relay', Microsoft says that it allows Skype Preview users to send and receive both text messages (SMS) and multimedia messages (MMS) from a Windows 10 PC, when Skype is set as the default messaging app on your Windows 10 Mobile phone. New messages will appear in the Skype Preview app on your PC, and you can respond to them directly from there too, with a single view that - as you've probably guessed - also includes your correspondence with each user over Skype itself.
Microsoft says that it will make the feature more widely available, to those not enrolled in the Windows Insider Program, "over the next couple of months". Some features that are already in the latest Skype Preview for Insiders will also make their way to non-Insiders during the same timeframe, including:
- The ability to hide conversations
- 'Add contact' button
- Support for Skype URIs (start Skype calls and chats directly from websites, desktop and mobile apps)
Additionally, Microsoft says that it's now working on more improvements to the app:
- Improved messaging – message sent status, copy and paste quoted messages, read/unread line indicator, preview a URL in chat, keyboard shortcuts, drag and drop of files and photos, drag and drop of URLs from browsers, and video messaging.
- Easier calling – start call or conversation from profile page, group calls continue even when the initiator leaves, audio/video device settings, loudspeaker improvements.
- Additional Windows Mobile updates – transparent tile, video calls will default to loud speaker for video calls, and improved back button navigation.
To use the new SMS relay feature, here's how to set things up:
- On your Windows phone, launch Skype Preview, go to settings and select “Make Skype your default messaging app”; and
- On your Windows PC, launch Skype Preview, go to settings and select “Enable Skype on this device to sync my SMS messages.”
Have you tried the new SMS relay feature in Skype Preview yet? Do you think it's a useful addition to the app? Let us know your thoughts below.
Source: Skype Blogs
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