How To: Stream Movies, Music, & Pictures from Your Nexus 5 to Your Computer
Koushik Dutta, the developer behind the Android app AllCast, has made the leap over to the realm of personal computers with his latest offering.
Paranoid Android Pie Search Results
How To: Categorize Old & New Photos Automatically by Topic on Your Nexus 7 for a Tidier Gallery
It can be a pretty exasperating ordeal to hunt for one image on your tablet when you have hundreds and hundreds of photos in your gallery. Luckily, there are ways to make this a pain-free process on your Nexus 7, as well as make sure it's never a problem in the future.
How To: Record the Screen of Your Nexus 5 Directly from the Device
One of the lesser known features brought along by the roll-out of Android 4.4 KitKat is the ability to screen record from within the device. This features isn't overtly obvious, nor is its implementation the most streamlined, but if you were ever looking for a way to capture video of what's happening on your screen, this is now the best way to do it.
How To: Turn Your Nexus 7's Screen Off & On Faster Using Gravity
Sometimes... no, most of the time, I don't want to do anything, so I was excited to find a developer teaming up with Sir Isaac Newton to create an application that encouraged my slothfulness.
How To: Get the iOS 7 Home & Lock Screen on Your Samsung Galaxy S3 or Other Android Device
Big bad Apple recently announced its next iterations of iPhones and the world went crazy—as usual. Displaying an array of cool colors and futuristic features, the new iPhone 5S and 5C will both be rocking iOS 7, a sleek, modern operating system that gets rid of the old icons and glossy finish for a more flat and contemporary design.
How To: Easily Root Your Nexus 7 Tablet Running Android 4.3 Jelly Bean (Windows Guide)
The new Jelly Bean is out in the wild, but if you've installed Android 4.3 from stock, you'll notice rooting is now not possible. If you miss the ad-blocking capabilities of AdBlock Plus, how Seeder made apps snappier, or the convenience of backing up with Titanium Backup, you'll need to get rooted.
How To: Patch the Latest Android "Master Key" Bugs on Your Samsung Galaxy S3
A few weeks ago, Bluebox Security uncovered a bug that could potentially effect 99% of Android devices. Bug 8219321, dubbed the Master Key bug, works by allowing applications with modified code to pass Android's signature verification system, thereby bypassing security measures that normally wouldn't allow these apps to be installed.
How To: 5 Ways to Reduce Android Lag, Increase Speed, & Enhance Your Nexus 7's Overall Performance
No matter what device you have, Android lag will get you down. It's our little green robot's only major downside, and you've probably noticed it quite a bit on your Nexus 7 tablet. Apps open slowly, actions stutter or pause, and loading files takes forever.
How To: Top 7 Free Playable Wallpaper Games for Your Android Phone or Tablet
Last week, I highlighted 5 of my favorite free interactive live wallpapers that you could use on your Android device. But where do you go from there? What's the next step up?
How To: Top 5 Free Interactive Live Wallpapers for Your Android Phone or Tablet
You can find a ton of live wallpapers for your Android device on Google Play, but the more alluring interactive ones are a harder to come by, which can bring your home screen to life using a few finger swipes and taps.
How To: Fix Lock Screen Issues When TalkBack & Explore by Touch Are Enabled on Your Samsung Galaxy Note 2
One little known feature on Android devices is TalkBack, which provides you with spoken feedback and vibrations in order to help you navigate your device. Obviously, if you're not blind or visually impaired, this isn't a feature you're likely to use.
How To: The Fastest Way to Share Large Files from a Nexus 7 to a Samsung Galaxy S3 or Other Android Device
Recently, I wanted to share a large video file from my Nexus 7 to my friend's Samsung Galaxy S3, and even though he was standing right next to me, it was an extremely difficult and frustrating thing to do. Every single Nexus 7 tablet comes NFC equipped, so it can share files with other NFC-equipped devices just by tapping and holding them together. With both NFC and Android Beam enabled, sharing a small file between two devices should be fairly simple.
How To: Play Almost Any PSP Game Smoothly on Your Nexus 7 Tablet
Remember that PSP you had? I pretty much dropped mine when smartphones became more prevalent in the mobile gaming scene. Why would I want to carry around a huge PlayStation Portable when I've already got an Android in my pocket?
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: Make Chrome Always Open in Incognito Mode
Chrome's Incognito Mode gives you a layer of privacy when browsing. While it's enabled, your browsing history, cookies, site data, and information entered in forms is not saved, making it perfect for, cough, more private web usage. With an Android smartphone, you can jump right into this mode.
How To: Use Your iPhone or Android Phone as a Remote Control for Android TV or Google TV
If you can't find the remote for your Android TV or Google TV, don't like using its voice control feature, are sick of using the directional pad to type, or can't get it to work at all, use your smartphone instead. Using your iPhone or Android phone as a virtual remote control can be more convenient, easier to use, and more helpful than the original remote, so it's definitely worth trying out.
How To: Shazam Songs with Blazing Fast Speed Straight from Android's Quick Settings Panel
While you can use Google Assistant on your Android phone to identify songs playing around you, you may still prefer Shazam's music recognition service, which has been available on Android since 2008 — a full nine years before Google Assistant's audio-fingerprinting technology. If that's the case, it's even easier now to Shazam songs in seconds, no matter what screen you're on.
How To: Double Tap Your Status Bar to Quickly Turn Off the Screen on Any Android — No Root Needed
Several popular custom ROMs and root mods let you double tap the status bar at the top of your screen to put the phone to sleep. It pairs perfectly with the double tap to wake gesture you'll find on pretty much any Android phone. But if you're not rooted, you'll be glad to know you can finally do this by installing a simple app.
How To: Activate Developer Options on Your Galaxy S20, S20+, or S20 Ultra
The first thing any Android power user does with their phone is unlocked the Developer options. The hidden menu has many low-level tweaks, such as forcing Dark mode on all apps, speeding up animations, or enabling hidden Quick Setting tiles. And most modifications require nothing more than hitting a toggle.
How To: Force Stop Apps on Your Galaxy After the Android 10 Update
When an app is acting buggy, you head to its App Info page in Settings and hit the "Force Stop" button. And since all software has bugs, this is quite the handy feature. But now that Samsung's Settings app got a makeover with the Android 10 and One UI 2 update, you might have trouble finding this option.
How To: Hide the Navigation Bar & Enable Gestures on Your Galaxy Note 10+
Android is moving away from navigation buttons. Even with the transparent navigation bar on the Galaxy Note 10+, it still takes up space on the screen that could otherwise be used to show content. What's great about the Galaxy Note 10+ is that you can remove it, without installing one app.
How To: Make Chrome Always Open Desktop Sites by Default on Android
It's now standard for websites to have a mobile version. Conveniently, we can browse the web with a mostly mobile-optimized experience. But what if you want the desktop experience on mobile? If you want, you can browse the mobile web and see only the desktop version of websites on Android devices.
How To: Force-Enable Dark Mode in Gmail for Android Right Now
Dark mode is finally rolling out for Gmail on Android. But this is a Google product, so you already know it'll be a while before the server-side update hits most devices. Sideloading the newest APK doesn't work, neither does switching accounts. But if you're rooted, you can enable dark mode by modifying a simple XML.
How To: Getting Delayed Gmail Notifications on Your OnePlus? Here's the Fix
OxygenOS is often described as one of the best skins for Android on the market. It's fast, clean, and has a ton of useful features that appeal to just about everyone. However, it's also faced a significant issue for the longest time — overly aggressive battery optimizations that frequently kill background apps, including Gmail services.
How To: Install Spotify Lite in the US
To make its services more accessible to regions with limited bandwidth, Spotify has rolled out with a leaner, stripped down version of its music streaming app. The aptly named Spotify Lite has been released for Android devices in 36 countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, but you can try out the app right now thanks to a simple workaround.
How To: Take a Photo While Recording Video with Google Camera
Though primarily a Pixel exclusive, Google Camera has become the go-to camera app for many Android users. Not only does come with a standout features like Night Sight and capture better photos than most stock camera apps, but it's also packed with functionality that makes it a one-stop-shop for all your photo and video needs.
How To: Shoot Videos in Slow Motion with Google Camera
Slow motion recording is an incredibly handy feature that works by capturing moments at a higher frame rate than they're played back at. Timing is everything when recording in this setting, so if you want a user-friendly app that keeps device interactions to a minimum and leaves you to focus on capturing your subject, Google Camera will surely fit the bill.
How To: Get New Themes for Your Pixel on Android 10
In Android 10, Google is letting you adjust the accent colors to give your phone a bit of flair. When combined with the new system-wide dark mode, you are looking at eight different color combinations. That is seven more than we had in the previous version and seven additional ways to help your phone stand out.
How To: Change Your Step Count Goal in Samsung Health
Once known as S Health, Samsung Health has become one of the most comprehensive health apps available for Android. In fact, we all can benefit from the features the app brings to the table — whether you're a marathon runner or a couch potato. If you're in the latter category, the app has a simple feature that can nudge you towards becoming more active.
How To: Block Annoying GDPR Cookie Pop-Ups While Browsing the Web on Android
Ever since the GDPR was implemented, it seems every website on the internet needs to inform you of how its privacy policies have changed. If your web browsing experience has been marred by a constant barrage of these cookie pop-ups and privacy dialogs, you should know there's an easy way to block these web annoyances so you never have to tap another checkbox or accept button again.
How To: Activate Developer Options on Your Galaxy Note 9
Just because Developer Options is hidden by default doesn't mean you shouldn't unlock it. While for rooters its benefit are obvious, even for the average user it opens the door for tools which enhance your experience. From animation speed to improving gaming graphics, Developer Options has something for everyone.
How To: YouTube Finally Has a Dark Theme on Android — Here's How to Get It
After months passed since Google first announced the feature, YouTube's dark mode has finally reached the Android masses. Sure, it just changes some colors, but it has been a highly sought-after feature since iPhone users got it months ago.
Back to School Batteries: Fast Charge Your Android on the Go with These 11 USB-C External Power Packs
Will smartphone batteries ever last as long as we need them to? Perhaps not. That's why we rely on external batteries to help us stay connected for hours, even days, longer than usual. But in 2018, you don't want to use just any external battery. Modern Android phones have fast charging — so should your portable charger.
How To: Change the Lock Screen Shortcuts on Your Galaxy S9
One of Android 8.0's best features is also one of its most subtle — customizable lock screen shortcuts give you more control over the two functions you care about most. Your Galaxy S9 has the Phone and Camera apps in those spots by default, but you can quickly and easily change them if you have other ideas in mind.
News: Finally, You Can Unlock Your S9 Automatically Using a PIN
It's often the smallest details that determine your overall experience with a smartphone. Unlocking your device with a PIN is an example — and iPhones have had a leg up over Android thanks to their automatic unlocking. Thankfully, this era has finally come to an end with the arrival of the Galaxy S9.
News: Samsung Galaxy S7 & S7 Edge Receive December Security Patch & Update on AT&T
Samsung's 2016 line of smartphones has a new update, at least for the devices on AT&T. The update brings the Galaxy S7 to version G930AUCS4BQL1 and the Galaxy S7 Edge to version G935AUCS4BQL1. Here's what's on the table.
News: Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Gets Update from T-Mobile, Includes December Security Patch
T-Mobile has just pushed out a new update to the Samsung Galaxy Note 8, bringing the build number to N950USQU2BQLA. Here's what to expect.
Galaxy S8 Oreo Update: Notification Channels Bring Granular Controls for Alerts
This week, Samsung officially kicked off the Oreo Beta Program for the Galaxy S8 and S8+ in North America and several other markets. The full list of changes is quite substantial, so we'll be running through them in a series of posts detailing what's new. First up, the Galaxy phones inherit notification channels from Android 8.0.
News: Galaxy S8 Oreo Beta Update Coming to US in November
With all of the Pixel 2 excitement the past few weeks, many Samsung fans are feeling left out on that new software hotness. If you're anxiously awaiting the Android Oreo update on your Galaxy S8 or S8+, that wait may come to an end this week. Users over on Reddit decompiled the APK for the Samsung+ app to reveal multiple mentions of the upcoming Oreo Beta Program for the Galaxy S8 and S8+.
News: 5 Things We Learned from the Pixel 2 XL POLED Debacle
It looks like the dust is finally starting to settle on Google's POLED PR nightmare. The Pixel 2 XL — one of the most hotly-anticipated phones of the year — has been plagued by screen issues and worries. While it is certainly not without its faults, Google has created several software fixes and is offering a 2-year warranty for screen burn-in, so we can rest a bit easier about purchasing Google's latest Pixel.