Aos poucos, eu vou aprendendo a conectar o celular ao computador.

Aos poucos means little by little, gradually, or bit by bit.

Literally, it is built from:

• a + os = aos
• poucos = few or small amounts

So the expression gives the idea of something happening in small steps. It is a very common fixed expression in Portuguese.

Examples:

• Aos poucos, ela melhorou. = She got better little by little.
• Estou aprendendo português aos poucos. = I’m learning Portuguese gradually.

Starting with Aos poucos puts emphasis on the gradual process.

Portuguese often moves time expressions or adverbial expressions to the front of the sentence, just like English can do:

• Aos poucos, eu vou aprendendo...
• Eu vou aprendendo aos poucos...

Both are natural. The first one highlights the pace right away.

Eu aprendo simply means I learn or I am learning, depending on context, but it does not strongly emphasize a gradual ongoing development.

Eu vou aprendendo uses ir + gerund and suggests:

• a process unfolding over time
• gradual progress
• something happening step by step

So:

• Eu aprendo a conectar o celular ao computador.
  = I learn / I’m learning to connect the phone to the computer.

• Eu vou aprendendo a conectar o celular ao computador.
  = I’m gradually learning how to connect the phone to the computer.

This construction is very natural in Brazilian Portuguese.

Both can refer to an ongoing process, but they are not exactly the same.

• Estou aprendendo = I am learning
  This focuses on what is happening right now or during the current period.

• Vou aprendendo = I’m gradually learning / I’m getting the hang of it
  This emphasizes progress over time, often in a slower, step-by-step way.

So in this sentence, vou aprendendo matches the idea of aos poucos very well.

That a is just the preposition that often appears before an infinitive in Portuguese.

In aprender a fazer algo, the pattern is:

• aprender a + infinitive

So:

• aprender a conectar = to learn to connect
• aprender a cozinhar = to learn to cook
• aprender a dirigir = to learn to drive

This is similar to English learn to do something.

Because conectar here takes the preposition a when you say what something is being connected to.

Pattern:

• conectar X a Y = connect X to Y

So:

• o celular = the phone
• a o computador = to the computer
• a + o = ao

That is why you get:

• conectar o celular ao computador

Other examples:

• Conectei a impressora ao notebook.
• Ela conectou o cabo à TV.

Ao is a contraction:

• a + o = ao

Portuguese regularly combines certain prepositions with definite articles.

Some useful ones:

• a + o = ao
• a + os = aos
• a + a = à
• a + as = às
• de + o = do
• em + o = no

In your sentence, you actually have two contractions:

• Aos poucos = a + os poucos
• ao computador = a + o computador

Portuguese uses definite articles more often than English does.

So where English may say:

• connect phone to computer

Portuguese often prefers:

• conectar o celular ao computador

The articles sound natural and complete in Portuguese. Leaving them out would usually sound unnatural in a normal sentence like this.

No, eu is not strictly necessary, because the verb vou already shows the subject is I.

So both are possible:

• Aos poucos, eu vou aprendendo...
• Aos poucos, vou aprendendo...

Adding eu can:

• make the subject clearer
• add emphasis
• sound a bit more personal or contrastive in some contexts

Brazilian Portuguese often includes subject pronouns more than European Portuguese does, but they are still often optional.

Yes. Portuguese is flexible here.

Natural alternatives include:

• Aos poucos, eu vou aprendendo a conectar o celular ao computador.
• Eu vou aprendendo aos poucos a conectar o celular ao computador.
• Eu vou aprendendo a conectar o celular ao computador aos poucos.
• Estou aprendendo aos poucos a conectar o celular ao computador.

The original sentence is very natural and emphasizes the gradual process from the beginning.

Conectar is correct and natural, especially in technology contexts.

But in everyday Brazilian Portuguese, people also often say ligar depending on the situation.

Examples:

• conectar o celular ao computador = connect the phone to the computer
• ligar o celular no computador = plug/connect the phone into the computer

A few notes:

• conectar sounds a bit more technical or neutral
• ligar is extremely common in everyday speech
• In informal Brazilian Portuguese, you may also hear no computador instead of ao computador, especially with ligar

So the original sentence is fully correct, but spoken Portuguese may vary.

Aprendendo is the gerund of aprender.

In Brazilian Portuguese, the gerund is commonly used in ongoing-action structures, especially:

• estar + gerund → estou aprendendo
• ir + gerund → vou aprendendo

Here, vou aprendendo suggests:

• a continuing process
• gradual progress
• not something completed yet

So the gerund helps create the meaning of I’m gradually learning rather than I learn in a simple, general sense.

Yes, it sounds very natural in Brazilian Portuguese, especially because of vou aprendendo.

Brazilian Portuguese strongly favors the gerund in many everyday progressive expressions:

• estou fazendo
• vou entendendo
• vamos resolvendo

European Portuguese often prefers different structures in some cases, such as a + infinitive in progressive meanings, but your sentence is perfectly standard and natural for Brazil.

Also, celular is the usual Brazilian word for cell phone/mobile phone. In European Portuguese, telemóvel is more common.