Mirror, mirror, on the wall...


jro11

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Seems worth a go. Curious to know how you use, or what your experiences have been with these and which is the fairest of them all.

Mirroring (aka tethering) is a very useful tool. It allows me to see my new cellphone(!) --a Pixel 8A--making it easier for me to learn how to use it. And I notice that it's being touted as a way to operate tablets, laptops, probably other PCs--virtually (wrong word?) an RDC on steroids...

To my knowledge there are three "Mirrors" available. No, four.

1) MirrorTo
First I tried to install. Seems a scam to me. The interface is confusing at best (and, on the large screen smaller than the cellphone interface!); the directions confusing and contradictory to themselves (note the YouTube video MirrorTo cites and how what it writes-to-do is not what it-pictures-being-done); involves enabling programs and features often not on the cell phone (this fact alone makes me worry that ,come uninstall time, REVO won't be up to the task). And as its coup de gras or offers you a significant discount--almost 40%--if you haven't bought it as you try and dismiss it from the screen.
Oh and did I mention IT'S FREE! That is, if you're willing to sacrifice every feature it offers. Seems, these days, that the word "free" has been redefined to mean a) (if you're lucky) not free; b) probably a subscription; or c) something you're graciously you're allowed to test--MirrorTo takes this to a unique level--apparently you can run MirrorTo indefinitely provided you do so for no longer than 10 minutes at a stretch,

2) SCRCPY ("screen copy")
I trust this program. It's open-source and public-domain. It's provided by GitHub (still, I believe, a trusted website). And it offers all the bells and whistles. And works tethered (if by tethered one means using a connecting cable) or wireless.
However, installing it seems a technical nightmare (the REVO problem again, come uninstall time), and there's very little documentation that's easy to follow to help the install process.

___1742221915314.webp___
Can't imagine this is free. Comes from a reliable company, one not likely to kick-the-bucket anytime soon (though I wonder if my new Ryzen will have problems), and seems to also have all the bells and whistles...
Oops! 1742222165165.webp

3) Pixel (or Motorola, Samsung, etc.) technical support
Forget it! They know nothing, are helpless, promise and don't deliver; and could care less.

This is not a luxury or prestige item. The pendulum is swinging toward smaller phones--maybe to watches, Mirroring should be built into the Windows OS, if only as an "Accessibility" feature. (I have to use Accessibility/Magnification regularly to compensate for Win11 display on this laptop!) You will all be experiencing the issues I have to contend with today.

So what about it?
- What do you think of Mirroring?
- What do you think of these programs?
- Will REVO perform a clean uninstall of programs requiring tricky other-party enabling/disabling procedures?
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Win11 Home
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Inc. Inspiron 16 7610
    CPU
    Dell Inc. 0FHWFD A01
    Motherboard
    Dell Inc. 0FHWFD A01
    Memory
    16GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    2.30 gigahertz Intel 11th Gen Core i7-11800H
    Sound Card
    Intel® Smart Sound Technology for USB Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    laptop (small) and 1 or 2 external monitors
    Screen Resolution
    -
    Hard Drives
    PC711 NVMe SK hynix 1TB 1.02 TB NVMe ANB2N582412102F0G_0001
    PSU
    -
    Case
    Laptop
    Cooling
    fan
    Keyboard
    External!
    Mouse
    External
    Internet Speed
    -
    Browser
    Chrome (Chrome profiles), Firefox (Bookmark Search Plus2), Edge (History page), Opera (annoying)
    Antivirus
    WinDefender
    Other Info
    Win11 Home 23H2 22631.3447
  • Operating System
    Win10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    self
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte B75M-D3H
    Memory
    8068 MB Usable Installed Memory
    Graphics card(s)
    2.30 gigahertz Intel 11th Gen Core i7-11800H
    Sound Card
    Intel® Smart Sound Technology for USB Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    3 Displays
    Screen Resolution
    n/a
    Hard Drives
    SSD and others (internal and external)
    Case
    Desktop
    Cooling
    Fan
    Mouse
    External
    Keyboard
    External
    Browser
    Chrome, Firefox, Tor, Brave, Opera, etc.
    Antivirus
    Win Defender
    Other Info
    Win10 & unfortunately OneDrive: Can't completely rid myself of this!!

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    ASUS ROG Strix
  • Operating System
    Windows 11
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    ASUS VivoBook
I feel the same way as @Edwin , It may be good for those that need it but it's something I doubt I'll ever need.

Edit: to answer your question which is the fairest of them all, the one in my bathroom. ;-)
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Canary Channel
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    PowerSpec B746
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-10700K
    Motherboard
    ASRock Z490 Phantom Gaming 4/ax
    Memory
    16GB (8GB PC4-19200 DDR4 SDRAM x2)
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 TI
    Sound Card
    Realtek Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    #1. LG ULTRAWIDE 34" #2. AOC Q32G2WG3 32"
    Screen Resolution
    #1. 3440 X 1440 #2. 1920 x 1080
    Hard Drives
    NVMe WDC WDS100T2B0C-00PXH0 1TB
    Samsung SSD 860 EVO 1TB
    PSU
    750 Watts (62.5A)
    Case
    PowerSpec/Lian Li ATX 205
    Keyboard
    Logitech K270
    Mouse
    Logitech M185
    Browser
    Microsoft Edge and Firefox
    Antivirus
    ESET Internet Security
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Canary Channel
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    PowerSpec G156
    CPU
    Intel Core i5-8400 CPU @ 2.80GHz
    Motherboard
    AsusTeK Prime B360M-S
    Memory
    16 MB DDR 4-2666
    Monitor(s) Displays
    23" Speptre HDMI 75Hz
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 970 EVO 500GB NVMe
    Mouse
    Logitek M185
    Keyboard
    Logitek K270
    Browser
    Firefox, Edge and Edge Canary
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender

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