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Android Customization 101

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Dec 3, 2020

The Pixel 5's beautifully slim and symmetric bezels don't leave much room for extra hardware like a notification LED. But with the Ambient Display feature and an inventive app, you can turn the displa ...

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Nov 25, 2020

Android's status bar is ever-present. It sits at the top of almost every screen in every app, making it the most prominent part of your Pixel's theme. So it only makes sense that Google would give you ...

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Oct 8, 2020

Android 11 has a new power menu with integrated contactless payment cards and smart home toggles. It's definitely futuristic — so much so that it pushed out a tool many of us use in the present: the s ...

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Aug 10, 2020

In Android 11, music player controls have been moved from the notification tray to the Quick Settings. The change frees up space for the new Conversations notification section. It also adds media outp ...

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Jul 30, 2020

Samsung's stock Galaxy Themes system leaves much to be desired with its restrictive and expensive theme packs. Back in the day, the gold standard for Android theming was CyanogenMod Theme Engine. And ...

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Jul 15, 2020

After more than a decade, iPhones are finally getting widgets on the home screen. They even have that Apple aesthetic that many people crave, with their uniform, squircle appearance. But fret not, as ...

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Jul 10, 2020

Not trying to gatekeep here, but if you're not customizing things on your Android phone, you're doing it wrong. Still, I won't shame you for not knowing what to do if you take this time to learn how t ...

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Jun 5, 2020

Updating your Galaxy to the latest software version is optional, but you wouldn't know that from the persistent notification and status bar icon that are constantly reminding you to. Thankfully, you'r ...

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Apr 28, 2020

Your Galaxy's lock screen already lets you know there's no SIM card installed if it's missing on your device, so there's really no need to have a persistent icon for it on the status bar. If you want ...

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Mar 26, 2020

Despite Android's flexibility in regards to customization, the options available in stock Android are pretty barebones. It is only with the help of third-party apps that we can entirely transform sect ...