PixelBridgeDownload
A laptop and an Android tablet side by side on a dark desk, one wallpaper running across both screens, joined by a ribbon of light. A pen lies in front of the tablet.

Second monitor for Windows and Mac

Your tablet,a second monitor.

PixelBridge turns an Android tablet or phone into a real extra display for your PC or Mac. Plug in a cable or use your own Wi-Fi, then extend your desktop, mirror it, or draw on it with a pen.

Get PixelBridge Read the wiki
Display
Native resolution and refresh rate
Link
USB cable or your own Wi-Fi
Input
Touch, pen and pen pressure
Account
None. No ads, no analytics

What it does

A monitor you already own.

Most of us have a tablet in a drawer. PixelBridge puts it next to your keyboard and makes it work like a screen you bought for the job.

  1. A real second display

    Your computer sees a new monitor at your device's own resolution and refresh rate. Arrange it, drag windows onto it, full-screen a video on it.

    • Native resolution
    • Native refresh rate

  2. Extend or duplicate

    Extend gives you a second desktop for reference, chat or your tool palettes. Duplicate shows your main screen on the device, for drawing on what you see or showing someone across the table.

    • Windows: Display settings
    • Mac: menu bar

  3. Turns with the device

    Rotate the tablet and the desktop turns with it, portrait or landscape. Lock it when the tablet sits on a stand.

    • Portrait
    • Landscape
    • Lock

  4. Pen with pressure

    A pressure pen such as the Samsung S Pen draws with real pressure in Krita and other drawing apps. Tune the curve to your hand.

    • Samsung S Pen
    • Krita

  5. Touch that works the computer

    Tap to click and drag to move things. On Windows, two-finger scroll, pinch and press-and-hold too. Zoom the picture on the device for close work.

    • Tap
    • Drag
    • Windows: scroll and pinch

  6. Shortcut palette

    Send undo, brush size and the rest of your keyboard shortcuts from the screen, with no keyboard in reach.

    • Undo
    • Brush size
    • Your own shortcuts
A hand drawing on a tablet with a pen. A ribbon of light runs from the computer monitor behind it down to the tip of the pen.

Pen

Draw on it with real pressure.

A pressure pen such as the Samsung S Pen draws with real pressure on your computer. Krita is the drawing app we test with, on both Windows and macOS.

Pen and pressure in the wiki
Pen pressureSoft · Linear · Hard

Start from a preset, drag the dots to bend the curve, try it, and save it under a name.

How it works

Set up in three steps.

  1. Install the computer program

    A free download for Windows 11 or macOS 13 and later. On Windows it adds its own display and pen drivers; on a Mac it uses the display support built into macOS.

  2. Get the Android app

    Install PixelBridge from Google Play on your tablet or phone. The computer program shows a code that opens the right page.

  3. Plug in, or pair once

    Connect with a USB cable and PixelBridge picks the cable on its own. For Wi-Fi, scan the code your computer shows, and it reconnects by itself after that.

A laptop on a stand with a tablet beside it as a second screen, joined by a glowing USB cable.

Cable or Wi-Fi

Use the cable when you can: there is no network to set up and nothing to pair, because the cable itself is the trust. Wi-Fi gives you a tablet you can pick up and walk around with.

USB
No USB debugging, no developer mode. PixelBridge switches to the cable when one is plugged in.
Wi-Fi
The computer and the device on the same network. The session is encrypted.
After a drop
Reconnects by itself, and when the app opens.

Pairing

Pair once. Then just open the app.

The first time a device connects over Wi-Fi, you show it that the computer is yours: scan its code, or check that both screens show the same six digits and click Allow. After that it comes back by itself.

Rename or forget a device at any time, on the computer or on the device.

How pairing works

Private by design

Your screen goes from your computer to your device, and nowhere else. It never passes through us.
  • No account to create
  • No ads, no analytics
  • Wi-Fi sessions are encrypted
  • Pairing keys stay on your devices

Pricing

Try it first. Then decide.

The computer programs are free. The Android app gives you an hour of connected time to try everything, with nothing locked.

One hour free, counted only while connected.

Setting up and pairing cost nothing, and the app waits until you have seen a minute of steady picture before it suggests a plan.

Monthly

Renews every month until you cancel.

$1.99/ month

Yearly

Renews every year until you cancel.

$9.99/ year

LifetimePay once

No renewal. Yours for good.

$14.99once

  • Every feature, no time limit
  • Every Android device on your Google account
  • Any number of computers

US prices. Google Play shows the price in your own currency and handles payment; cancel a subscription at any time in Google Play. Every plan unlocks the same thing.

Download

Install it on both ends.

The program on your computer and the app on your device. Downloads open here at launch.

Your computer

Windows

Setup installs the display and pen drivers, a small background service and the tray app.

Windows 11, 64-bit · FreeWindows download page
Your computer

Mac

A signed, notarized disk image. Drag PixelBridge to Applications and the Setup assistant walks you through the rest.

macOS 13 or later · FreeMac download page
Your screen

Android

The app for your tablet or phone, on Google Play. The same app on both, and one purchase covers both. Try it for an hour of connected time, then pick a plan.

Android 11 or laterAndroid download page

Questions

Good to know.

All questions in the wiki
Do I need to turn on USB debugging or developer mode?

No. Plug in a USB data cable and PixelBridge takes it from there. On a Windows PC, set the phone's USB mode to File transfer if it is on charge only.

Does it work without a cable?

Yes. Over Wi-Fi, the computer and the device must be on the same network. You pair once by scanning a code, and after that it reconnects by itself.

Is there an iPhone, iPad or TV app?

Not yet. Today PixelBridge runs on Android phones and tablets, with a Windows PC or a Mac as the computer.

Does sound play on the tablet?

No. Sound keeps playing from your computer.

Give the tablet a job.

Free on your computer. An hour free on your device. No account, ever.

Get PixelBridge Getting started