Synchronize Android Phone with Linux Ubuntu Desktop

Sometimes I wonder what is the easiest way to share picture from my phone to my laptop. Instead I found something much more powerful.

Several ways I have done to transfer images from my phone:

• Upload it to temporary group of whatsapp, then open whatsapp from desktop browser and download it.
• Upload it to private Slack, then open Slack in laptop.
• Upload it to google drive and then download from google drive in laptop.
• Connect phone to laptop via usb cable? Too much hassle.

Many of these options involve third party service, which is not good if you are being vigilant about confidentiality of your private file.

Introducing Gnome Shell Connect (https://extensions.gnome.org/extension/1319/gsconnect/). It has amazing features:

• Transfer files directly from your phone to Linux desktop if both devices are on same network.
• Take camera picture from phone, and voila it is saved automatically to your desktop!
• Mount phone storage and browse it from desktop. Easily transfer any files from/to as needed.
• Clipboard synchronization. Type something on your phone, copy the text and paste it on desktop directly! Applicable vise versa, very neat.

How to install

1. Check if kdeconnect is installed in your ubuntu, if yes, then uninstall that: `sudo apt remove kdeconnect` otherwise GSConnect will be conflicting with kdeconnect.
2. In my previous tutorial I have explained about how to install plugin to show network speed in your taskbar. We shall install similar plugin of gnome shell extension, just go to https://extensions.gnome.org/extension/1319/gsconnect/ and enable the plugin from your browser.
3. Install KDE connect from Google Play Store to your android phone.
4. Make sure both laptop and phone are on same network, and open the KDE connect application, it should automatically show your laptop name. Start pairing and you’re done.

That’s all, thanks for reading. Cheers 🍻