Well, well. well. This may just be the “killer app” that induces more users to upgrade to Windows 11. Thanks to fellow WIMVP @_sumitdhiman and Windows Central, I learned yesterday that an exciting new Intel app was out and available through this Windows Store link. It showed me that Intel Unison brings Windows 11 iPhone link previously missing from that lineup. Then, I spent most of the afternoon learning my way around this new tool.

Unlike the Microsoft Phone Link app, which works only for Android devices, Intel Unison serves Android, iPhone and iPad devices. As a long-time iPhone user, this “missing link” has vexed me on and off for years. No longer!

What Intel Unison Brings Windows 11 iPhone Link Means

First, some limitations. Intel says Unison is “currently only available on eligible Intel Evo designs” running Windows 11. I found the Windows 11 requirement valid. Indeed, trying to download Unison on Windows 10 produces an error message. It reads: “The version of Windows on your PC doesn’t meet the minimum requirements for this product.” That said, I was able to run Unison even on non-Evo 8th Gen Intel  CPUs (and a Ryzen 7 PC as well).

That said, the app works only when the device is accessed directly. In fact, it quits as soon as an RDP (or other remote client session — e.g. TeamViewer) is established. Remote access breaks things enough that I had to “forget” the target iPhone device. Then, I re-established the Bluetooth-based link between PC and phone.

Likewise, the link also collapsed when I used a USB-to-Lightning cable to establish a direct link between the same PC and phone pair. Alas, that means you can’t currently use the targeted PC to charge the iPhone and link to it simultaneously — at least as far as I could tell. That’s also a potential issue…

Unison does work well when these limitations are scrupulously observed. Note to Intel: it would be helpful if the PC-to-iPhone connection could persist into an RDP session from the standpoint of remote manageability, support, and troubleshooting. I also urge Intel to support USB links between PC and iPhone to allow ongoing interaction and charging.

Exploring the Unison UI and Capabilities

If you look at the headline graphic, it shows the “Messages” interface. You can see I was able to send a text message to my son directly from my PC keyboard. As somebody who dislikes typing on the iPhone this is a terrific boon. It’s also convenient as well.

The other options at left in that image include (in order of appearance):

• iPhone: shows the device to which Unison is connected.
• File transfer: supports a mechanism to copy files to and from the connected device. Works with drag and drop.
• Gallery: provides access to the iPhone’s photo folders. Intel says “Experience your phone gallery on your big screen.”
• Calls: enables the PC user to make and break phone calls on the PC via the connected device.
• Notifications: shows iPhone notifications through the Unison UI.
• Settings: controls Unison App settings and appearance.
• Downloads: shows the contents of "%userprofile%\Downloads\Intel Unison" folder (?Intel downloads for the app?).

I’m still figuring my way around this app, and learning its ins and outs. But because it supplies a long-missing and useful set of functions to tie Windows and iPhone together, I’m already glad to have it. And indeed, there will be some users for whom this app tips the balance more heavily toward Windows 11. All I can say is: Good!

Saw an interesting story at Neowin.net this morning. It’s entitled “Top 11 apps every Windows 11 user should have.” I’m not so sure I agree with various selections — though I do use Start11 on some of my PCs — but I do like the concept. So I used Task Manager’s app history function to view top tools I use frequently. These 11 great Windows 11 tools may not fit “every user,” but I bet many admins and power users will like ’em. For simplicity, I list them in alphabetical order. I also separate built-ins from third-party items.

The List: 11 Great Windows 11 Tools

A couple of initial disclaimers: I’m not talking about everyday apps or applications. I’m talking tools I use to access, find, identify, diagnose, capture and manipulate, or fix and clean up stuff. Items marked with an asterisk cost money; unmarked items are free. The apparently odd numbering reflects alph order split across categories. Sigh.

The Top 11

Built-ins/Native Apps & Applications

3. Notepad/Notepad++: I use the MS built-in text editor for most stuff, but when I want syntax checking and/or line numbers I use the ++ version instead. Both are great.
5. Photos: the built-in Windows app for managing images is what I use to review and perform simple operations on screencaps. These are often essential when writing about or reporting on Windows issues (for Feedback Hub).
6. Snipping Tool: the built-in Windows screen capture tool now includes video recording in some Dev Channel versions. I use it every day to document what I see in my Windows environments.
10. Windows Explorer: I especially like current Insider versions which give this tool tabbed operation. Has to be the MS app I use most frequently and assiduously.
11. Windows Terminal/PowerShell: I can no longer function as a Windows Insider without repeat, daily access to the command line. The Windows Terminal with PowerShell (current version 7.3.1) is my favorite way to start rooting round at the command line.

Third-Party Apps & Applications

1. (Search) Everything: My go-to file finder, this tool is faster, more reliable, and tweaks easier than built-in Windows Search function.
2. Macrium Reflect*: Though I seek a replacement for the free version (EOL on 12/31/2023), it remains my fave backup and restore tool, with super-fast imaging abilities.
4. PatchMyPC: a great, if limited, PC application update tool. It automates updates for everything it recognizes. That’s why I like it.
7. SUMo: KC Software’s excellent Software Update Monitor catches most Windows applications. I sometimes quibble with its findings.I don’t use its auto-update (found only in the for-a-fee version) but it’s a great scanning tool.
8. UnCleaner: Although not updated since 2012, Josh Cell’s UnCleaner still cleans up stuff that other cleanup tools miss. I don’t use it every day, but do use it weekly.
9. Windows Gadgets: Helmut Buhler revisits and recreates this Vista-based environment for modern Windows versions (8GadgetPack). Still my favorite always-visible health indicators.

The Next 5 After That

1. Advanced IP Scanner: my favorite LAN address scanner. It tells me lots, and lets me access more tools and tests than similar tools. Use it regularly for RDP and Printer issues.
2. DriverStore Explorer: A GitHub project,it lists all DriverStore items. Makes it easy to update and/or purge old/obsolete entries.
3. MiniTool Partition Wizard: an excellent tool to manage storage devices and partitions. The fee version adds useful data recovery.
4. PowerToys: This MS GitHub project keeps adding great, free tools to Windows. Hats off to Clint Rutkas and his team, and  volunteers who add “sweat equity” and IP to this project.
5. Remote Desktop Connection/Remote Desktop: (application and app respectively) let me work on LAN PCs from a single desktop.

What Now?

Check those tools out, if not already using them. Each comes with my strong personal recommendation. In fact, I use them all regularly and sometimes obsessively. Thus, trying them out could be a good thing. After you visit one or more of them, I hope you’ll agree!

If you know of others, please post a comment and share them with me here. Remember: cool tools rule!

Ha! There are times when I delight in being wrong. This is one of them. Thanks to Sergey Tkachenko at WinAero, I accessed a backdoor Store that updates Snipping Tool. Warning: it comes from a Russian source — namely rg-adguard.net. But it accesses MS URLs, so I’m inclined to think it’s safe (and FWIW, VirusTotal agrees). You can see the new version including a “Record” button, as the lead-in graphic for this story.

Using Backdoor Store That Updates Snipping Tool

Let me explain how I was wrong, before I explain how to visit the backdoor Store if you’re so inclined. In my Monday post, I said (bold emphasis added):

Visiting the Microsoft Store and running updates didn’t help either. Nor could I find a download source for the updated app. Of course, I didn’t expect that, either — the whole point of a phased roll-out is to limit access to new stuff to a carefully-chosen subset of the target population.

Tkachenko proved me wrong by finding a mirror of the MS Store that did indeed include a download for the missing 11.2211.35.0 version of the Snipping Tool. It may (or may not) be available to visitors at https://store.rg-adguard.net/. Enter the following string in the URL entry field (at center):

https://www.microsoft.com/store/productId/9MZ95KL8MR0L

On one of my Dev Channel test machines, I saw the desired listing (reproduced below). On the other, I did not. So obviously, YMMV. Here’s what it looked like on the successful attempt:

The desired package name is Microsoft.ScreenSketch_2022.2211.35.0_neutral_~_8wekyb3d8bbwe.msixbundl, where the version number 2211.35.0 is key.
[Click image for full sized view]

Just for grins, I installed this version on my “other Dev Channel PC” (even though I didn’t see it at the backdoor Store directly). And of course, it worked as expected there, too.

Caveat Emptor, Baby

Of course, you use such alternate (backdoor) sources at your own risk. And it’s entirely possible that the next CU  or upgrade will overwrite this version for those not included in the phased rollout. So you may want to stash the msixbundle file somewhere on another drive, and be prepared for evasive maneuvers. Or, you may decide to take the safest course, and wait for MS to bring the mountain to you.

As I said in my Monday post, my problem is one of patience (at least, in part). I didn’t want to wait for my turn: I wanted the new version NOW. I’ve got it and I’m playing with it. Do as you see fit, please!

Here’s a familiar plaint. Windows 11 Dev Channel includes a new version of the Snipping Tool with screen record capability. As far as I could tell, my two Dev Channel test PCs are not yet included. Then I figured out what’s involved in Sussing out new Snipping Tool, and proved that my version is behind the new one. Let me explain…

App Version Info Helps, Sussing Out New Snipping Tool

What you see in the screencap at the head of this story is the version number for the Snipping Tool running on my test PCs. According to this December 8 MS Announcement, the updated version number that handles screen recording is 11.2211.35.0. As you can plainly see above, my PCs are running 11.2209.2.0, which is a couple of digits lower in the second position.

Visiting the Microsoft Store and running updates didn’t help either. Nor could I find a download source for the updated app. Of course, I didn’t expect that, either — the whole point of a phased roll-out is to limit access to new stuff to a carefully-chosen subset of the target population.

Playing is Easy; Patience is Harder

As somebody who’s been later to receive items during most phased feature roll-outs, I can’t say I’m surprised by this turn of events. If I had the new version, I’d be using it right now (playing). Waiting for my turn requires patience, which I find considerably harder to exercise.

But indeed, as I know from repeat prior experience, that’s the way things go sometimes here in Windows-World. I’ll keep checking my test PCs after updates, and wondering how much longer I have to wait. Then, suddenly, they’ll get the update (or it will go into more general release) and I won’t have to wait any more.