Perhaps your laptop has run out of battery, or your PC hard disk has failed. Whatever the problem, you need access to a computer right now, but all you have is your phone.

Is your phone going to get you out of this problem and avoid missing that deadline? Well, it is if you turn it into a PC. Here are six ways you can convert your phone into a computer in seconds.

Why Use Your Phone as a Computer?

Having a portable computer in your pocket at all times--for any eventuality--makes sense. Unfortunately, pockets aren't big enough for even the most compact ultrabooks. Smartphones, on the other hand, slip into a pocket with ease.

This means that you can use a smartphone as a desktop – a substitute PC for use in an emergency. The limits of the small screen are no longer a problem, thanks to wireless HDMI solutions like Chromecast.

The real magic of this context-aware dynamic, however, is in the presentation of a desktop UI (user interface). Once displayed on a compatible TV, you won't be looking at the phone's current UI. Instead, a traditional, familiar desktop is presented.

What You Need to Convert Your Mobile Phone Into a Computer

Before you choose one of these methods to turn your phone into a PC, you need some equipment. Take a moment to grab some or all of the following:

  • Bluetooth keyboard and mouse
  • Alternatively, a USB keyboard and mouse and a USB-OTG cable
  • A display supporting wireless HDMI or screen mirroring

Alternatively, you can use a dock with support for HDMI, USB, and SD cards. An example of this is the Anker USB-C 7-in-1 Hub.

6 Ways to Turn Your Phone into a PC Today

Depending on what phone you’re using, it’s relatively straightforward to convert it into a computer. Sadly this isn’t an option with an iPhone, but other platforms (mostly Android, with a few exceptions) are more flexible.

Here are the six ways you can use a smartphone as a desktop computer:

  • Use Samsung DeX
  • Use an old Windows Phone
  • Install a desktop launcher on Android
  • Install Maru OS on Android
  • Use Android like a desktop with Chromecast
  • Install Ubuntu Touch on your phone

Let’s look at each option in more detail.

1. Samsung Devices Boast the DeX Desktop Mode

Perhaps the best option to turn an Android phone into computer in 2023 and beyond is exclusive to Samsung owners. With a Samsung Galaxy S8/S8+, Note 8 or later, you have the DeX feature. Activated from the notification tray, DeX is essentially a desktop environment for Android.

Simply connect your phone to a nearby wireless HDMI-ready display, connect the input devices, and you're ready to work. (You can also use a USB-C to HDMI adapter.)

DeX gives you access to all the usual Android productivity apps, in windowed mode. Our guide on using a Samsung Galaxy phone or tablet as a PC explains this in more depth.

Samsung DeX is simply the best way to turn your phone into a computer. If you own a suitable device, now is the time to check it out.

2. Convert an Old Windows Phone Into a Cheap PC

If you've heard of Windows 10 Mobile or Windows Phone, you probably know that it is dead. So dead that old phones can be picked up for under $70 on eBay. While largely useless in terms of apps, some models have good cameras.

But hidden in these dirt-cheap old smartphones is a secret mode: a Windows desktop. Three phones were released with Continuum:

  • HP Elite 3
  • Lumia 950
  • Lumia 950 XL

Thanks to an early version of the Continuum technology (which currently manages the switch between desktop and tablet modes on hybrid Windows laptops), you can connect your phone to a display and see a Windows desktop environment.

You get access to the apps installed on it, like Microsoft Office, and use the phone for calls while connected. A Bluetooth keyboard and mouse can be connected, but the mobile keyboard can also be used. The display can even be employed as a laptop-style touchpad.

Note: Windows 10 Mobile and Windows Phone are no longer maintained or updated. As such, use of this method may expose you to online attacks or vulnerabilities in the OS and software.

3. Turn Android Phone into Desktop Computer With Maru OS

In 2016, Android overtook Windows as the most-used consumer operating system on the planet. It makes sense, therefore, to explore its potential as a desktop OS.

Maru OS is an Android fork that currently only runs on a few models. So, if you can get hold of the Nexus 5 (2013) or Nexus 5X (2015), Nexus 6P, or original Google Pixel handsets, you should get good results. These are phones that can be picked up on eBay or other used electronics suppliers for a very low price.

This is a full operating system that must be installed in place of or alongside Android.

See our guide to installing Maru OS on Android to use your own phone as a pocket-sized PC.

4. Use an Android Phone as a PC With a Desktop Launcher App

Various desktop launchers have been released for Android. Most of these have fallen by the wayside, but one that is in active development is Taskbar.

However, you probably wouldn’t install this alone. Rather, you should use it in conjunction with Android’s secret desktop mode to get the best results.

Once that is configured, you can install Taskbar and connect your phone to a USB-C hub. With a keyboard, mouse, and even some external storage connected, no one would ever know that you had essentially converted your phone into a desktop computer.

Download: Taskbar ($1.99)

5. How to Use Android Phone as a Desktop With Chromecast

If it all seems a bit fiddly, expensive, or a combination of the two, then consider the easy option. Need to access your Android phone's word processor in an emergency? Well, you can quickly use an Android phone like a PC if you have:

  • A USB-C or Bluetooth keyboard and mouse
  • A Chromecast or (other mirroring solution) plugged into your TV

Simply load up the document that needs attention, connect a keyboard, and share your display over Chromecast. If you're planning on this as a solution, then you should take a look at our guide to turning a standard smartphone into a PC. This features an in-depth look at the additional hardware you may require.

6. Use Your Smartphone as a Linux PC With Ubuntu Touch

Ubuntu Touch is a Linux-based operating system for smartphones. Managed by the UBports team, Ubuntu Touch runs on the various devices.

Officially, Ubuntu Touch runs (and is supported) on:

  • Volla Phone
  • Fairphone 2
  • LG Nexus 5 (2013)
  • OnePlus One
  • PinePhone

However, many other phones can run Ubuntu Touch. A key feature of Ubuntu Touch is the Convergence system. Like Samsung DeX, this is a desktop environment, activated when the phone is connected to an external display.

When the phone is connected over wireless HDMI to a TV, the UI is a full Ubuntu desktop. The operating system comes pre-installed with various tools, including LibreOffice. Having a mobile phone that can be used as a computer desktop at a moment's notice is excellent for productivity!

Why Aren't You Using Your Smartphone as a PC?

With several ways to turn your phone into a PC, it begs the question: why do so few people use their devices in this way? Is it the complexity of wireless HDMI? The lack of a physical keyboard?

Whatever the case, you probably have a suitable phone that can be used like a laptop. Meanwhile, corporations with shrinking IT budgets are very interested in the handheld desktop form factor. If you're not using a desktop-capable smartphone device now, you soon could be.