Hot Android Posts
How To: Set Emergency Contacts to Bypass Silent & Vibrate Modes on Your Galaxy Note 2
Extremely important calls have a way of coming at the most inopportune moments: when you're in class during an important lecture, at a big business meeting for work, or even when you're just enjoying a day at the movies.
How To: Theme the Android System UI on Your Nexus 5
When it comes to theming your Android device, it's the little touches that count the most. That's why developer SArnab created the Android Theme Engine, an Xposed Module to theme those hard-to-reach corners of the Android System that often go untouched with other themes.
How To: Download SoundCloud Tracks for Offline Playback on Your Samsung Galaxy Note 3
I love finding new artists on SoundCloud and listening to the tracks they put up. While some artists allow fans to download their tracks, others don't, leaving you to constantly load up their webpage to have a listen.
How To: Send Encrypted Self-Destructing Messages on Your Galaxy Note 2
In February of this year, the Higher Court of Berlin ruled that Facebook must follow strict German data protection laws, which Facebook's terms of services and privacy policies circumvent.
How To: Change App Icons on Your Galaxy Note 3 Without a Third-Party Launcher
Samsung devices may dominate the Android market, but that doesn't mean everybody loves TouchWiz, the user interface on all of their smartphones and tablets. It's difficult to modify, comes with lots of bloatware, and isn't much to look at, to say the least.
How To: Split Large Files for Easy Sharing on Your Nexus 5 or Other Android Device
Owning an Android device is almost like having a PC in your pocket. Android's ability to easily navigate the file system on your phone is one of many features that separate it from the competition. Just plug your phone into a computer, drag the file over, and you're all set.
News: New Tool Promises to S-Off Any HTC Device, but There's a Catch
Rooting your phone is one thing, but to truly be in control of your device, you need to be S-Off. S-Off allows you to flash, mod, and tweak just about any aspect of your phone, including the ability to run custom recoveries and flash kernels, which are vital tools for power-users. Up until now, there have been many ways to S-Off your device, but some newer HTC models have become un-exploitable.
How To: Root ANY Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Variant in Just One Easy Click
AT&T and Verizon customers, it's finally happened. After many long months of waiting, and a fairly significant bounty up for grabs, your Galaxy Note 3s can finally be rooted! Best of all, it may be the simplest method for achieving root we've ever encountered.
How To: The Easiest "One-Click" Root Method for Your Samsung Galaxy S3
Rooting an Android device used to be a nightmarish labyrinth of .zip files and command prompts, confusing seasoned modding veterans and newbies alike. Thankfully, the process has gotten simpler over the years, with various "one-click" rooting tool kits surfacing and working for nearly every major Android flagship on the market.
How To: Root Any Samsung Galaxy S4 in One Click
Something pretty awesome happened over the last couple of days. George Hotz, better known as Geohot, the infamous hacker known for jailbreaking iOS and exploiting the Sony Playstation 3, has brought joy to owners of just about all Android smartphones and tablets, especially those on AT&T and Verizon.
How To: Take Amazing Long-Exposure Photos of Fireworks with Your Android Phone
Long-exposure photography gives us the ability the capture some pretty amazing shots by delicately capturing moving elements in an image while keeping the shutter open at a slow speed. While that's great for things like traffic, scenery, and carnival rides, it can come in especially handy for 4th of July fireworks.
How To: Increase Pattern Lock Screen Security on Your Nexus 5 with Larger Grid Sizes
These days, our smartphones carry some very sensitive data. From banking app passwords to personal photos, there are many things on your Nexus 5 that you might not want other people to have access to.
How To: Bypass the 31-Character Limit in Snapchat Captions on Android
Twitter found a sweet spot with its 160-character limit, but Snapchat sports a social media low of 31 characters, forcing us to condense our ideas into a few short words when typing in picture captions because of their ephemeral nature. While this severely limited amount of words is Snapchat etiquette, I've got so much more to say than 31 characters!
How To: Sync & Dismiss Notifications Across All Your Android Devices & Computers
We're not always near our phone, so Pushbullet made it easy to get your phone's notifications straight to your computer, like calls and text messages. But with their latest update, you can also sync alerts with other Android devices using their new cross-device mirroring feature.
How To: Get Rid of the Annoying Red "Development Build" Text on Your HTC One M8's Bootsplash
HTC thought it best to cover their own ass by placing a red warning whenever you start your device if you've unlocked your bootloader. While it may help them identify a tampered phone, it does not help you in any way. Luckily, XDA member santod040 created a modified HBOOT that removes the "This build is for development purposes only..." text for you. While this will modify HBOOT, it will not change your unlocked or S-Off status.
How To: Free Up Storage Space on Android & Keep It from Getting Full
With apps and games getting bigger and more memory-hungry every year, storage space is at a premium. High-definition videos and photos of innumerable pixels certainly don't help the matter, either.
How To: Text & Call Favorite Contacts from Within Any App on Your Samsung Galaxy S4
I'm a textaholic, as I've said many times before, but even textaholics forget to respond sometimes. When I'm watching a YouTube clip or devouring delicious snacks in Candy Crush Saga, I'll often ignore incoming texts and forget to respond later.
News: Android 4.4.2 KitKat Is Finally Here for the Samsung Galaxy Note 2
The Android 4.4.2 KitKat update is available via firmware upgrade for the international GT-N7100 variant of the Samsung Galaxy Note 2, about a month after we saw its first leak. The update is available via Kies in France, with and OTA update soon to follow. Details courtesy of SamMobile are as follows:
How To: Make the Volume Slider Less Annoying When Playing Videos on a Nexus 5
Let's say you're watching a video and everything's going great, but you feel the need to raise the volume a tiny bit. You hit the volume button on your Nexus 5, and all of a sudden, a giant volume slider appears that obscures half of your video for 3 seconds.
How To: Enable Developer Options & USB Debugging on Your Samsung Galaxy S5
As softModders, several of our guides dealing with modifications involve connecting our smartphones to a computer, allowing us quick and complete access to our device.
How To: Change Font Size & Text Colors in Snapchat on Your Galaxy Note 2
In an attempt to keep things simple, Snapchat has a limited amount of editing features, made up of "smart" photo filters, drawing pens, and special text captions. If you want more editing capabilities, you'll be pleased to know there's a way, no thanks to Snapchat, but you will need to be rooted.
How To: Turn Your Galaxy S4 into a TV-Pranking Machine with a Universal Power Button
April Fools may be over, but any day is a good day to prank someone, and the best time to do it is when everyone's eyes are glued to the television.
How To: Play the Largest Pokémon Game in History on Your Android Device
Online gaming is nothing new, and with live YouTube streams becoming ever more popular, there always seems to be a way to watch people play video games. Twitch TV offers the same spectator experience you've come to know and love, but the people over at TwitchPlaysPokémon have gone a step further and made it so that the spectators are the ones playing the game.
How To: Run MIUI's Apps & Launcher on Your Galaxy Note 2 Without Rooting
While rooting your Galaxy Note 2 certainly has its advantages—everything from increasing security to relieving the Power button of its duties—it's definitely not for everyone.
How To: Watch Any Movie or TV Show & Stream It with Chromecast
The list of streaming services is pretty vast, from HBO GO to Hulu to Netflix, these subscription-based services have never been so popular, and have never been easier to watch now that they have Chromecast support.
How To: Measure Area & Distance Directly in Google Maps on Your Galaxy Note 3
Utility tool apps provide extremely powerful and useful lightweight replacements for your parents' heavy archaic tools—everything from flashlights to tracking systems and more.
How To: Customize the Boot Animation on Your HTC One
As fellow softModders, I'm sure you strive to find any and every way to make your phone unique. Wallpapers and icon packs are great to get started, but to really stand out from the rest, try changing your HTC One's boot animation.
How To: Get All the LG G2 “Knock Knock” Features on Your Nexus 5 for Faster Sleep/Wake
Probably one of the most sought after features of the LG G2 is its "Knock Knock" capabilities. Rather than dealing with that pesky power button, you simply double-tap portions of the screen to either sleep or wake your device.
How To: The Safe & Secure Way to Get Your Phone to Remember Your App Passwords
LastPass is a password manager that's been around for some time, and has finally made its way over to Android for use with apps, not just websites.
How To: The Easiest Way to Access Recent Files & Photos on Your Nexus 7
If you use your Nexus 7 like me, then you're constantly downloading APKs, installing new games from Google Play, taking a million photos, and using multiple apps at the same time.
How To: Turn Your Nexus 4 or Nexus 5 into an LG G2 Clone
The advent of a new Nexus phone begins with the bigwigs at Google partnering with a manufacturer, then selecting that manufacturer's flagship as the model for the new Nexus hardware.
How To: Your Nexus 5 Has a Real Pedometer Built In—Here's How You Use It
Seemingly lost in the fanfare of the numerous features and specs of the Nexus 5 were a few highly innovative and handy add-ons—a low-power step detector and step-counting sensor—useful for tracking fitness data.
How To: Install the Leaked KitKat Build on the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 (International Variant Only)
While the Galaxy Note 3 and Galaxy S4 are enjoying their official KitKat updates, those of us with Note 2s are left to play the waiting game. While we know our devices will eventually see an update to Android 4.4.2 KitKat, it's unclear when an official update for our devices will come.
How To: Android 4.4.2 KitKat Update Rolling Out Right Now for Your AT&T Samsung Galaxy S4
The newest version of Android, 4.4.2 KitKat, is making its way onto AT&T Samsung Galaxy S4s right now. Itching to try out the latest that Google has to offer? Keep an eye on your status bar for a notification letting you know that a system update is ready.
How To: Install Firefox OS (& Other Experimental ROMs) On Your Nexus 5 Without Any Risk
You probably already know by now that a custom Android ROM can change your user experience and give you what feels like a new OS on your device, and there's no shortage of them out there to try out.
How To: Hide Secret Photos & Videos Inside an Unsuspicious, Functional Clock on Your Galaxy S3
No matter how careful or decent you are, there will always be pictures or videos that you want to keep private. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but if someone were to go through my photo gallery, only one word would be coming out of my mouth—"%@&#!!"
How To: Download & Install Flappy Bird on Your Android Phone or Tablet Without Using Google Play
There has been a lot of news over the last couple weeks about the popular Flappy Birds mobile game and its creator, Dong Nguyen.
How To: View Cellular & Wi-Fi Data Speeds from the Status Bar of Your Samsung Galaxy Note 3
I have Verizon, America's largest 4G LTE network, as my cell service provider, but there are times when I find myself with a pretty shitty signal, rendering my upload and download speeds substantially slower than usual.
How To: Enable Blazing Fast LTE Data Speeds on Your Nexus 4
The advent of the Google Nexus 4 seemed too good to be true—high-end hardware, unlocked and contract-free at a low price. As time went on, however, we began to see the compromises. The camera was "meh" at best, and most egregiously, it shipped without LTE functionality.
How To: Use Any App You Want in Multi Window View on Your Samsung Galaxy Note 3
Much like the Pen Window feature in Air Command, Multi Window is extremely useful in its functionality, but bogged down by serious restrictions. While you can open and use two apps at the same time, you're limited to only a handful of apps that can utilize the feature, leaving all the other ones shit outta luck.