PCDeck icon PCDeck
Download

PCDeck Features & Hardware Controls Reference

Complete technical documentation of all 8 core input, media, and streaming modules: UI locations, button IDs, network protocols, and step-by-step instructions to turn any phone into an all-in-one PC peripheral suite.

Updated September 2026 · Windows 10/11 & Linux (SteamOS/Ubuntu) · Local Wi-Fi

Feature Architecture & Specification Matrix

All PCDeck features run locally without cloud servers or telemetry. Below is the quick-reference matrix of feature locations and transport channels:

Feature UI Location Protocol / Port Platform Support Latency Target
Multi-Touch Trackpad Tab 1 (Trackpad View) WebSocket /ws (JSON Delta) Web + APK < 5 ms
Mechanical Keyboard Tab 2 (Keyboard View) WebSocket /ws (Key Codes) Web + APK < 4 ms
60 FPS Screen Mirror Tab 3 (Screen View) WebSocket /ws/screen (JPEG Stream) Web + APK 20 - 40 ms
On-Screen Gaming HUD
Free default / Pro custom keys		 Tab 3 (Screen FAB Button) Direct Canvas Touch → SendInput Native APK < 6 ms
Dedicated Console Gamepad
Free standard deck / Pro layout editor		 Header Gamepad Icon / Tab 1 Toolbar WebSocket /ws (Gamepad Payload) Web + APK < 5 ms
Wireless Microphone Tab 5 (Media Tab) → Mic Card Raw PCM Audio TCP Port 8002 Native APK 15 - 25 ms
HD Phone Webcam Tab 5 (Media Tab) → Camera Card WebSocket Binary /ws/cam Native APK 30 - 50 ms
PC Audio Receiver Tab 5 (Media Tab) → Audio Card WASAPI Loopback TCP Port 8003 Web + APK 25 - 45 ms
Wi-Fi File Transfer Tab 4 (Files Explorer) HTTP Chunked Multipart Port 8000 Web + APK Line Rate (Wi-Fi)
01

Multi-Touch Trackpad & Precision Gestures

Tab 1: Trackpad

Turns your smartphone touch screen into an ultra-responsive laptop trackpad. Backed by a physics momentum simulation engine that provides natural glide and inertia when scrolling or flicking.

1
Single-Finger Tap: Instant Left Mouse Click at cursor position. Hold and drag for window moving or text selection.
2
Two-Finger Tap: Instant Right Mouse Click (context menu).
3
Two-Finger Slide: Smooth vertical and horizontal scrolling with friction-tuned momentum deceleration.
4
Pinch-to-Zoom: Two-finger pinch triggers native Windows Ctrl + Wheel zoom in browsers, documents, and code editors.
5
Toolbar Controls: Bottom toolbar features Left/Right/Middle physical buttons, Drag-Lock toggle, Sensitivity slider, and Gamepad mode toggle.
02

Mechanical Virtual Keyboard & Shortcut Chords

Tab 2: Keyboard

A complete full-size virtual keyboard that matches desktop PC ergonomics, featuring sticky modifier states for complex keyboard chords.

1
Sticky Modifier Chords: Tap Ctrl, Alt, Shift, or Win to latch them in an active state, allowing single-finger entry of complex shortcuts like Ctrl + Shift + Esc or Win + Tab.
2
Function Row (F1 - F12): Dedicated top function row for system actions, refreshing (F5), renaming (F2), or full screen (F11).
3
Integrated Numpad & Navigation: Instant toggle between QWERTY typing, standard 10-key numeric keypad, and full arrow/navigation keys (Home, End, PgUp, PgDn).
4
Native Phone Keyboard Sync: Includes a rapid text input field that syncs whole sentences or dictated voice-to-text directly into your PC cursor location.
03

60 FPS Low-Latency Desktop Screen Mirror

Tab 3: Screen

Streams your entire Windows or Linux desktop straight to your phone display at up to 60 FPS using adaptive hardware-accelerated JPEG compression over local WebSocket (/ws/screen).

1
Touch-to-Click on Desktop: Tapping any button, window, or file on the video feed translates the touch coordinates directly into PC cursor clicks at native monitor resolution.
2
Pinch-to-Zoom & Pan: Freely zoom in on tiny UI elements, menus, or terminal windows and drag to pan across multi-monitor desktops.
3
Emergency Headless Display: Perfect for operating PCs with dead screens, cracked laptop monitors, or headless home servers without attaching physical HDMI displays.
04

On-Screen Touch Gaming HUD Overlay

Tab 3: Screen → Cyan FAB (#btn-screen-hud-fab)

A transparent tactical gaming heads-up display rendered directly over the live 60 FPS desktop screen feed, turning your phone into an intuitive handheld console for casual PC games and emulators. Default tactical HUD controls are 100% free; custom button key-mapping and layout positioning are unlocked with PCDeck Pro ($3.99 one-time).

1
Where to Find It: Open Tab 3 (Screen Mirror). Look for the floating cyan circular button in the corner with a controller icon (#btn-screen-hud-fab). Tap it to toggle the HUD.
2
Virtual 8-Way WASD Thumbstick (Free): Left-hand analog joystick that sends high-frequency W, A, S, D movement keystrokes.
3
Tactical Action Buttons (Free): Right-hand button cluster featuring Space (Jump), Shift (Sprint), Ctrl (Crouch), E (Interact), Esc (Menu/Pause), and quick Left/Right click triggers.
4
Simultaneous Cursor Aiming (Free): Move your right thumb across the center screen area to steer the game camera while holding movement keys on the left.
5
Custom Key Mapping & Layout Designer (Pro): Tap Edit Layout to drag buttons, adjust size, or bind custom keyboard hotkeys and macros (R, Tab, M, etc.) for your specific game. Unlocked with the optional $3.99 lifetime Pro license.
05

Dual-Mode Console Gamepad & Gyro Steering

Header Gamepad Icon (#btn-header-gamepad) or Tab 1 Toolbar

A full-screen virtual controller deck replicating modern console controllers with zero driver installation required on Windows or Linux. Standard console layout is 100% free; custom layout designer is included in PCDeck Pro ($3.99 one-time).

1
Where to Find It: Tap the Gamepad icon in the top header (#btn-header-gamepad) or the Gamepad mode button on the Tab 1 toolbar (#btn-gamepad-mode-toggle).
2
Complete Controller Layout (Free): Dual analog thumbsticks (with deadzone auto-calibration), 4-way D-Pad, ABXY face buttons, Bumpers (LB, RB), and analog triggers (LT, RT).
3
Gyroscope Motion Steering (Free): Enable the Gyro toggle to tilt your smartphone like a steering wheel for racing games (Forza, Assetto Corsa) or fine gyro aiming in shooters.
4
Direct Windows SendInput (Free): Emulates keyboard and mouse or integrates with virtual gamepads with zero input lag.
5
Custom Gamepad Layout Designer (Pro): Tap Edit Layout to customize button positions and stick placement for custom ergonomics. Unlocked with PCDeck Pro ($3.99 one-time).
06

Wireless PC Microphone & Gain Control

Tab 5 (Media Tab) → Microphone Card (#btn-toggle-mic)

Streams high-fidelity audio from your phone microphone directly to your PC, turning your phone into an emergency Discord, Zoom, or gaming headset microphone.

1
Where to Find It: Switch to Tab 5 (Media Tab, film/camera icon). The first card is the dedicated Microphone card.
2
How to Enable: Tap the lime green Transmit Mic button (#btn-toggle-mic). Allow the one-time microphone permission prompt in the app.
3
Live VU Meter: Watch the real-time audio level meter (#vu-meter-fill) and decibel readout (#vu-meter-db) as you speak.
4
Gain Slider & Mute: Adjust the Input Gain slider from 0% to 200% to boost quiet voices, or tap the dark Mute button (#btn-mute-mic) for instant privacy.
5
Network Socket: Transmits raw PCM audio packets over TCP port 8002 directly to the PC receiver sink.
07

HD Wireless Phone Webcam (1080p / 720p)

Tab 5 (Media Tab) → Camera Card (#btn-toggle-cam)

Turns your smartphone camera into a wireless PC webcam over local Wi-Fi. Far superior image quality and low-light performance compared to cheap built-in laptop webcams.

1
Where to Find It: Switch to Tab 5 (Media Tab) and scroll to the Camera card.
2
How to Enable: Tap the cyan Start Camera button (#btn-toggle-cam). The placeholder transitions to a live on-device preview with a green LIVE badge.
3
Lens Selection: Easily toggle between Rear Camera (environment lens for ultra-crisp documents or workbench streaming) and Front Camera (selfie lens for video calls). You can also tap the quick lens switch button (#btn-switch-cam-lens).
4
Resolution Chips: Select between 480p (for weak Wi-Fi), 720p HD (recommended default), and 1080p Pro (full high definition).
5
Torch / Flashlight: Tap the yellow lightning bolt button (#btn-toggle-torch) to illuminate your desk or subject in dark environments.
6
Streaming Protocol: Video frames are encoded as binary JPEG buffers and streamed over WebSocket route /ws/cam directly into the PC backend.
08

WASAPI PC Audio Streaming & Wi-Fi File Transfer

Tab 4 (Files) & Tab 5 (PC Audio Card)

High-efficiency local network utilities for multimedia consumption and cable-free file management.

1
WASAPI Audio Loopback (Port 8003): Captures PC system audio directly from the Windows sound subsystem and streams high-fidelity 48 kHz stereo audio to your phone, turning your mobile earbuds into wireless PC headphones.
2
Two-Way File Explorer (Tab 4): Browse your PC file system and phone storage side-by-side. Download movies, documents, or photos to your phone, or upload mobile files directly to your PC Desktop.
3
Chunked Auto-Resuming Transfers: Large files transfer in chunks over local HTTP (port 8000). If your Wi-Fi momentarily drops, transfers resume automatically where they stopped rather than starting over.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is the HD Webcam feature located and how do I turn it on?

Open the PCDeck mobile client and tap Tab 5 (Media Tab, film/camera icon). Scroll to the Camera Card and tap 'Start Camera' (cyan button). You can choose between Rear and Front lenses, adjust resolution from 480p to 1080p Pro, and toggle your flashlight torch. The feed streams directly over WebSocket (/ws/cam) to your PC.

How do I use my smartphone as a wireless PC microphone?

Navigate to Tab 5 (Media Tab) in the PCDeck client. Under the Microphone Card, tap 'Transmit Mic' (lime button). A live VU meter shows your voice level in real time. Adjust the Input Gain slider (0-200%) to boost sensitivity. The audio transmits over TCP socket port 8002 directly to your PC.

Where is the On-Screen Touch Gaming HUD Overlay?

Go to Tab 3 (Screen Mirror). Tap the floating Cyan Joystick FAB (#btn-screen-hud-fab) located in the corner of the video stream. This toggles a semi-transparent HUD overlay on top of the live PC screen, giving you an 8-way WASD analog thumbstick and gaming action buttons (Space, Shift, Ctrl, E, Esc, Left/Right click) directly while watching your game. Default HUD controls are 100% free; custom button key-mapping and layout editing are unlocked with PCDeck Pro ($3.99 one-time).

How do I access the Dedicated Console Gamepad?

Tap the Gamepad icon in the top header bar (#btn-header-gamepad) or tap the Gamepad toggle button on the Tab 1 Trackpad toolbar (#btn-gamepad-mode-toggle). This opens a dedicated full-screen console layout with dual analog thumbsticks, D-Pad, ABXY buttons, shoulder triggers (LT/RT, LB/RB), and optional gyroscope motion steering. Standard controller layout is 100% free; custom layout designer is unlocked with PCDeck Pro ($3.99 one-time).

Do these features work in the browser or require the APK?

Multi-touch trackpad, mechanical keyboard, 60 FPS screen streaming, and Wi-Fi file transfer work 100% inside any mobile web browser (Safari, Chrome, Firefox) via QR code with zero installs. Low-latency hardware-level Webcam, Microphone, and Gamepad features run best in the native lightweight PCDeck Android APK (1.5 MB) due to browser security restrictions on background media streams.

Ready to Turn Your Phone into an All-in-One PC Peripheral?

Get PCDeck for Windows or Linux. Zero cloud accounts, zero telemetry, 100% offline local network performance.

Get it from Microsoft Store
Download Android APK (691 KB) · Standalone Windows .exe (portable) →

Windows 10 / 11 · Linux (Steam Deck, Ubuntu, Arch, Fedora) · Android 5.0+ · Instant Web Remote