With Packet open on your Linux PC, your computer appears in your list of devices whenever you attempt to share a device via QuickShare. Your devices just both need to be connected to the same Wi-Fi network and have Bluetooth enabled. The last bit could be an issue if your desktop lacks a Wi-Fi card with Bluetooth, but a cheap Bluetooth dongle can fix that.<\/p>\n
Sending files to your phone or tablet via Packet is as simple as it is using another Android device<\/a>. The app has giant \u201csend\u201d and \u201creceive\u201d buttons that you can\u2019t miss.<\/p>\n If you download the next app on this list and only need to send files between a handful of devices, you don\u2019t particularly need to install Packet as well. But if you want to send files to or from your PC without installing companion apps on the other devices connected to your network, Packet is the simplest tool for the job.<\/p>\n KDE Connect<\/p>\n All you need to make your phone and PC become besties<\/p>\n If you want to do more than exchange files, then you want KDE Connect<\/a>. This app connects your phone and PC in many ways. When notifications arrive on your phone, you\u2019ll now see them on your PC. If the notification is a basic SMS message, you can also type out a reply without reaching for your phone. You can see your phone\u2019s battery life on your PC, and you can ring your phone from your computer if you\u2019ve misplaced it.<\/p>\n KDE Connect lets you control music playback on your PC from your phone across the room. You can skip tracks and adjust volume. You can also pause, whether you\u2019re playing music or a video.<\/p>\n Your phone can serve as a clicker during a presentation, allowing you to switch to the next slide on a laptop or mini PC connected to a projector. Your touchscreen also doubles as a virtual touchpad. With a virtual keyboard, you can interact with your PC to address issues during your presentation without having to walk over.<\/p>\n Despite the name, you do not need to run the KDE Plasma desktop in order to make use of KDE Connect. I most often use KDE Connect with the GNOME desktop<\/a>.<\/p>\n ADB<\/p>\n This gives you power over your Android phone that isn\u2019t available otherwise<\/p>\n If you want to make changes to your Android phone that aren\u2019t available in the Settings app, you eventually end up needing to install ADB<\/a>. The Android Debug Bridge is useful for far more than debugging issues with your device. You can use ADB to remove pre-installed bloatware, including system apps provided by Google or your phone\u2019s manufacturer.<\/p>\n ADB is also a necessary tool to install open-source OSes like LineageOS<\/a> and GrapheneOS<\/a>. If you want to install a version of mobile Linux using postmarketOS, you will also need ADB for that as well. While you can do a lot directly on your phone these days by running apps that simulate ADB<\/a>, some tasks still require the real thing.<\/p>\n ADB is a command-line tool. Many distributions make it available in their repositories, but you can also install it on any distro by downloading Android tools directly from Google<\/a>.<\/p>\n Syncthing<\/p>\n Keep your phone and PC files in sync without having to think about it<\/p>\n ![\"Syncthing](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/syncthing-on-a-linux-desktop-1.jpg\")
\n Credit:\u00a0Holo Launcher<\/p>\n