Android’s desktop mode could make mobile gaming even better

This year’s Google I/O conference showed off some snazzy tech coming our way, including Android 16’s desktop mode, which could change up the way we use our phones for gaming.

These days, you can use your phone for just about anything. TV, movies, gaming, chatting, typing – there’s all manner of attachable screens, keyboards, and touchpads. What the new Android desktop mode aims to do is bring a more ‘PC-like‘ functionality to your phone when using an external display.

It’s similar to Samsung’s DeX (dex as in Desktop Experience), which lets Samsung Galaxy owners control their Windows PC from their phone with an extended screen effect. This debuted in 2017, so Google has taken a while to catch up, but we’re intrigued to see what new features are in use. In fact, Florina Muntenescu, Google’s engineering manager, says that they’re building on the foundation of DeX.

Think of it this way. If you don’t want to shell out for an entire PC – and let’s be honest, who has that kind of money lying around – you can simply use your phone. Get a monitor, a keyboard, and a mouse, then your phone can be your PC. Which means all those mobile games you have saves in won’t go missing, and you can play them with different controls. It feels similar to Netflix Games being accessible on mobile and PC, though the latter is still in a beta phase.

As for when we can expect to see this newfangled tech, it’ll come with Android 16, which will ship with this year’s flagship Google Pixels and Samsungs. These brands make up a lot of entries in our best Android phones list, and for good reason.

For those of you looking to get a compatible Android phone, we have some recommendations for you. Here are the best Samsung phones and the best Google Pixel phones for you to consider.