Android How-Tos
How To: Hacked! How Thieves Bypass the Lock Screen on Your Samsung Galaxy Note 2, Galaxy S3 & More Android Phones
Lock screen exploits are becoming increasingly common in the mobile world. Four weeks ago there was the iPhone 5 passcode bug (which just got fixed yesterday...kinda). Then there were a couple lock screen bugs on the Samsung Galaxy S3 two weeks ago.
How To: Pick Up a Better Wi-Fi Signal on Your Samsung Galaxy S3
Having trouble getting a strong Wi-Fi signal on your Samsung Galaxy S3? Does the signal drop out on you when changing rooms? Frustrating, isn't it?
How To: Enable the Hidden Voice Call Recording Feature on Your Samsung Galaxy Note 2
In most states, it's completely legal to record a telephone conversation that you're a part of without the other parties knowing. You can even record a conversation that you're not a part of, as long as you have consent from at least one person involved in the call.
How To: Need a Remote for Your MacBook? Use Your Android Device
As most everyone knows, Android and Apple don't get along so well. Even the users don't get along well, with Android and iPhone users constantly berating and insulting each other online—any chance they get. I should know, since I was one of them, but I'm now rare breed who's learned to appreciate both. People just need to realize that they have their own unique strengths—Android with its customization and Apple with its simplicity.
How To: Music Not Loud Enough? Here's How to Increase the Volume Limits on Your Samsung Galaxy Note 2
Got a Samsung Galaxy Note 2 phablet? Sure, it has its problems like any other mobile device, but it's still one of the hottest phablets on the market right now, because, well... it's awesome, right?
How To: Send & Receive Text Messages from Your Nexus 7 by Wirelessly Syncing SMS with Your Phone
We've all been there. Your phone is on your nightstand, but you're on the couch in the living room browsing the web on your Nexus 7. Then you hear it—a faint sound for a new text message notification from the bedroom.
How To: Install Multi-View on Your Samsung Galaxy S3 to Run Multiple Apps at the Same Time
While many of the U.S. carriers have updated their Samsung Galaxy S3 devices to Android 4.1.2 already, one major absence from the upgrade is Samsung's Premium Suite. One of the coolest features from the Premium Suite is Multi-View, a function that lets you truly multitask by running two apps at the very same time—right next to each other. As you can see above in the left image, I have both Pandora and Spotify running. Why? Because why not?!? On the right, I have YouTube on top and Maps on the...
How To: Automatically Update All of Your Google Play and Third-Party Android Apps
With the Google Play store on your Android device, it's a relatively easy process to check all of your application updates. All you have to do is launch the Market app, go to the My Apps section, and from there you'll be able to see all of the available updates for your applications, which should be positioned at the top of the list. The problem with this process is that many times, you'll go days or weeks and quite possibly even months without checking the Google Play application market, lea...
How To: Get the HTC One's New Wallpapers on Any of Your Android Devices Now
The HTC One has been officially released in Taiwan! The new wallpapers preloaded on the phone have been ripped and put up for download. Grab them for your phone now!
How To: Memory Full? Optimize the Photos on Your Samsung Galaxy S3 to Free Up Storage Space
While the increasing superiority of smartphone cameras is great, they can be a double-edged sword. Sure, we get great images that are crystal clear, but at what price? Storage space on your devices ends up paying the price for this luxury, filling up quickly due to the high-quality images and their grotesquely large size. Not only that, but most photo editing applications only make it worse. Adding a few filters, changing the hue/saturation, or adding some text across the picture can all incr...
How To: Tired of the Stock ROM on Your Nexus 7? Install CyanogenMod Instead
You've gotten used to your brand spankin' new Nexus 7 and finally have a feel for Android, but now you want more features. Well, user Juan Mercator was in that predicament, and asked how to install the ever popular CyanogenMod ROM on his Nexus 7 over on our Nexus 7 SoftModder forum.
How To: Control and Protect Your Android Phone Over SMS with aeGis
Security is always a top priority for our smartphones. Leaving your phone at the bar or even at a friend's house can leave you open to hacks and lead to the loss of sensitive information.
How To: Access All of Your Apps Right from Your Android Phone's Lock Screen
The lock screen is your friend. It shows you the most basic information (time, date, battery life) and hides your apps and contacts until you wish to access them. But the lock screen is also a great place to open up commonly used apps very quickly. And that's where Shipoopi comes in.
How To: Install Google's New Jelly Bean 4.2 "Photo Sphere" Camera on Your Samsung Galaxy S3
Amongst the many rumors emerging about the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S4, one that seems like a fairly sure bet is the inclusion of Google's Photo Sphere feature.
How To: Theme a TouchWiz ROM on Your Samsung Galaxy S3 Using Morphology
One of the best aspects of Android is its customization options. You can change launchers and icons, add widgets, and replace standard apps with others that allow full customization. Android allows your device to really take on your personality, from the inside and out.
How To: Improve Data Speeds by Changing PRLs on Your Samsung Galaxy S3 for Sprint and Verizon
PRL, or Preferred Roaming List, basically tells your phone which towers to connect to first. Changing PRLs can improve reception and data speeds, and in some cases even give you access to corporate/test towers.
How To: Root Your Samsung Galaxy S3 (And Flash Stock ROMs) Using Odin for Windows
Need root on your Samsung Galaxy S3? Phone not getting the Jelly Bean update? Stuck on the Samsung screen? Phone bricked? Need to restore back to stock? Odin can help!
How To: Install the WhatsApp Messenger onto Your Nexus 7 and Sync It with Your Phone Number
WhatsApp is a very popular messaging app on the Play Store, but unfortunately, tablet users have been left out of all the fun because WhatsApp only works on smartphones—until now.
How To: Keep the Display Off When Receiving a Notification on Your Samsung Galaxy Note 2
As is the case with most smartphones, the Samsung Galaxy Note 2's screen turns on whenever you receive a text or picture message. While having the screen turn on when you receive a notification is handy to have (especially when the phone is on silent), it isn't always preferable. Having your screen turn on for every notification can be quite the distraction, especially at work or school. I find myself watching the screen turn on from the corner of my eye, then rushing over to it and see who t...
How To: Completely Back Up Your Samsung Galaxy S3 Using Windows
Forum member Luciano posted a terrific guide on adding hacks to our phone by editing build.prop. The article was great, but one of best things I saw in it was the "What You'll Need" section:
How To: Tweak Your Samsung Galaxy S3's Performance with These "Build.prop" Android Hacks
One of the best things about the Samsung Galaxy S3 is the ability to modify the device in countless ways, as with any other Android device.
How To: Reduce Battery Drain on Your Samsung Galaxy S3 by Fixing Android System Usage
The Jelly Bean update brought a lot of cool features to the Samsung Galaxy S3, but one nasty bug remained. Something was causing "Android System" usage to be consistently high. Of course, the percentage of this process that is used is dependent on what you're doing at any given time, but it shouldn't be anywhere near this level with "standard" use (calls, texts, emails, light browsing, etc.).
How To: ROOT Samsung Galaxy S3 for AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile
The advantages of rooting are vast. From free wi-fi tethering, being on the latest and greatest software, theming all aspects of the OS, to ditching Touchwiz for a pure Google experience and much much more.
How To: Add On-Screen Buttons to Your TouchWiz ROM (Root Required)
Samsung bucked the trend and threw hard keys onto the Galaxy S3 while most manufacturers are going the soft key route. This hack will add on-screen buttons to your TouchWiz-based ROM. You'll need a root file manager with a system writable text editor—I recommend ES File Explorer for this, but feel free to use whatever you want. If using ES, hit Menu, Settings, go down to Root Settings, and check Root Exploerer, Up to Root, and Mount File System.
How To: Install an HTC Sense-Style Task Manager on Your Samsung Galaxy S3
As much as I love my Samsung Galaxy S3, I'm always on the lookout for cool features I can borrow from other smartphones. One of the most recent "borrowed" features I've added to my S3 is the Galaxy Note 2's smart rotation feature, which uses the front camera to detect my face-to-screen angle, which then rotates my screen accordingly. But the S3 already comes packed with some awesome features, as well as some less-than-stellar ones. One of these less-than-stellar features is the task manager, ...
How To: Auto-Change Keyboards on Your Samsung Galaxy Note 2 Based on the S Pen's Position
Got a Samsung tablet with an S Pen stylus? Then you might be one of the many people irked about having to manually choose a different keyboard layout after pulling the S Pen out of the device. For instance, if you have a Samsung Galaxy Note I or Note II, when you pull the S Pen out, the keyboard layout stays the same. But if you'd like it to switch to a different keyboard, say, from the stock Samsung keyboard to something like SwiftKey, then you're out of luck.
How To: Do Your Nexus 7's Speakers Sound Distorted? Fix Them with Bubble Wrap
One of the issues most commonly complained about with the Google Nexus 7 is speaker defects. Some people have issues with their tablets freezing when using the built-in speakers, others say they were pretty much busted right out of the box.
How To: Share Your Samsung Galaxy S3's Screen with Other Devices
Sharing screens is a great way to showcase projects, photos, or videos without having to download and upload those files on the other devices. This is made easy with AllSharePlus. You can download the AllSharePlay application for your Samsung Galaxy S III or Tab 2 right here. If you would like to download it for sharing on your laptop, you can visit the Samsung website. For now, the desktop app is only compatible with Windows XP or Windows 7 and the devices shown above. Nevertheless, it is gr...
How To: Fix the Wi-Fi Roaming Bug on Your Samsung Galaxy S3
The Samsung Galaxy S III is undoubtedly a great phone, but still has some minor issues to work out.
How To: Fix Google Now Bluetooth Problems on Your Samsung Galaxy Note 2 or Other Android Device
Google Now is an extremely intelligent personal assistant that automatically updates and prepares the most pertinent information for you on your Android device. Traffic updates, alternatives routes, weather conditions, and other important data is constantly being monitored and updated for you.
How To: Customize the Brightness Settings on Your Samsung Galaxy Note II or Other Android Device
Needing to use your device in bright or low lighting can require an adjustment in the phone's built-in brightness settings. However, there are times when those default settings just don't do the trick.
How To: Silence the Annoying Camera Shutter Sound on Your Samsung Galaxy S3
SNAP. That's the sound of your Samsung Galaxy S3's camera going off. Not that big of deal, unless you're trying to take some top secret pics or some candid shots of your friends. The shutter sound gives you away, and the next thing you know, you're deleting pictures. On most other smartphones, if the users turns the phone on silent or vibrate, the shutter sound is killed. If that doesn't do the trick, usually muting the shutter sound itself in the settings will do the trick. But for some of y...
How To: Turn Your Samsung Galaxy S3, Note 2, and Other Android Devices into Wi-Fi Computer Mice
With all of the advancements in the smartphone world, we can virtually use them for anything. You can use your smartphone as a mobile hotspot, an Xbox controller, a car locator, and a security camera. Heck, you can even turn it into a Swiss Army knife. And now you can even use it as a wireless mouse for your computer!
How To: Unlock the Hidden Daydream Easter Egg 'BeanFlinger' in Android 4.2 Jelly Bean
Android's newest Jelly Bean 4.2 update comes with Daydream, a feature that allows you to run screensaver-like apps while your Android device is docked or charging. While the feature comes with several stock 'daydreams' available, there's a hidden Easter egg one that you can unlock! The 'daydream', aptly titled BeanFlinger, is hidden inside of Android's 4.2 Jelly Bean. In order to unlock it, you'll have to go to the phone's Settings and click on About phone. From there, you should come across ...
How To: Trick Verizon into Thinking You Never Modded Your Samsung Galaxy S III
One of the main reasons why the Samsung Galaxy S III has dethroned Apple's iPhone 4S as the best-selling smartphone in the world is due to Android's open-source operating system. The vast spectrum of customization that comes with Android has become one of its focal points, allowing n00bs and programmers alike to build and destroy. The open-source OS has allowed rooting and modified ROMs to flourish within Android community. The only problem with this is that rooting and installing your own RO...
How To: Replace Your Kindle's Broken E Ink Display Yourself
The reason Amazon's Kindle has become so popular over the past several years is due to the amount of digital books one can fit inside—over 1,000 for the smallest Kindle. Gone are the days of lugging around heavy books to school and the airport. Instead we can fit our e-readers snugly inside our bags and never worry about forgetting a book.
How To: Get Some of Jelly Bean 4.2's Cool Features on Your Samsung Galaxy S III Right Now
Google's newest Android system update should be arriving on Tuesday, November 13th, with the release of the Google Nexus 4 smartphone, and Nexus 7 and 10 tablets. All will come preloaded with the new Android 4.2 Jelly Bean OS, but what about the rest of you (especially those with the Samsung Galaxy S III) who just got Jelly Bean 4.1.1?!?
How To: Use Blocking Mode to Disable Alerts at Specific Times on a Samsung Galaxy Device
If you're like me, getting as much sleep as possible is priority number one. With more and more time spent on or around our cell phones, it's becoming harder and harder to block out all the noise.
How To: Mod Your Samsung Galaxy Note 2 for Multi-Window View with Any App
With the new Samsung Galaxy Note II, there's a new Multi Window mode that allows users to run two different apps simultaneously on the tablet's screen. This feature works with Samsung and Google apps like Gmail, YouTube, Chrome and Talk.
How To: Use S Voice Commands on a Samsung Galaxy Note 2 & Galaxy S3 to Unlock, Open Camera, & More
With voice commands becoming conventional on most new smartphones, it's only ideal that their abilities increase as well. Thanks to Apple's Siri, you can do things like update your Twitter account and look up who the president of Costa Rica is.