Can a phone act as computer replacement? Given the power of current day smartphones it seems like many could work as basic computer replacements.  In the past Microsoft tried to provide a display dock to turn a Microsoft Phone into a PC. Is there something similar for Android phones?

I guess some of them allow HDMI output, but is the software adapted to work with a keyboard+mouse? Would a phone be able to power/connect to an external hard drive?
You can accomplish this with Samsung Dex.

What you'll need:


A Compatible Samsung smartphone.  As of the time of this post, this includes the S8, S9, S10, Note8, and Note9.
Either the Dex Pad or Dex Station to dock your phone and connect it to an external display, mouse, and keyboard.