Android Smartphones & Tablets Ene SUT Everything you need to yirierymibiasas take your Android powered device to the next level Next level Cee Bay CMO MURIEL CRU U Tle) BMC NEC Re HCH} ET Re CR Celg SON helm ETRETRICKS & TIPS Tech Guides Neda Readly RIC ais cA ole Mi Nim mae Re www.pclpublications.comTRICKS aL) Android Smartphones & Tablets Android Tricks & Tips is the perfect digital publication for the user that wants to take their skill set to the next level. Do you want to enhance your user experience? Or wish to gain insider knowledge? Do you want to learn directly from experts in their field? Learn the numerous short cuts that the professionals use? Over the pages of the new advanced user guide you will learn everything you will need to know to become a more confident, better skilled and experienced owner. A user that will make the absolute most of their use and ultimately their Android device ver the page itself. An achievement you our journey Continue. can earn by simply enabling and we will be with s us to exclusively help and at every stage t you teach you the abilities we inform and es advice, have gained over our decades Wimately inspire you to of experience. q 9 Further.Contents oe ‘ 1 THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO FACEBOOK ere Senn EXPLORING ANDROID : get the most from + renee Google Home Routines 8 SI err i ; SS piel 10 Things to Try with Google Home 10 . Ss ena Navigating with Google Maps 12 iS Che ee ci The Ultimate Guide to Facebook 16 Get Started with WhatsApp 22 Android Security Tools 24 Boosting Android Performance 28 Manage Multiple Passwords 30 SIN How to Use Multi-window 32 ANDROID Using a System Monitor 34 PAY How to Boost Battery Life 36 pees Cees fea ests pee Re ee DOING MORE WITH ANDROID eens = pe Using Android Pay 40 ‘ Erase and Reset an Android Device 42 5 Things That Can Affect Phone Signal 44 Using the Developer Options 46 Speed Up Android Animations 48 COMMON Cut Blue Light with Twilight 50 ANDROID Hidden Android Test Menus 52 PROBLEMS Save Web Pages Offline 54 SOLVED SMS Messages on a Wi-Fi Tablet 56 Dealing with Viruses on Android se eee eye inch Disable Android Bloatware 60 shea ie thai Sideloading Android APKs 62 ees Geese Smart Home on a Budget 64 sdeccaiehalphennestuhctel 10 Android Security Tips 66 Seas enero a Clean Up with Smart Manager 68 10 Common Problems Solved 70“solving common Ue problems and on to aed mL learning about adding 7 a launchers and rooting your device. \ Varela Kel how to explore the OS and Ge MMC ie kL) phone or tablet...”BreesEXPLORING ANDROID From using new Android features like Allo, Duo and Google Assistant to planning a journey and making the most of every photo taken on your phone, this section is all about POOP Ucn Rte uc eic ely oe BOO EE Life RC ol oR ee ks ile Rok dele k omExploring Andr Google Home Routines Routines are a set of actions that your Google Home can perform when activated by a single voice command. You can customise existing pre-set routines in the Google Home app, or you can create your own personalised routines from scratch, using a wide variety of available actions. Create and Manage Routines Learn how to customise, create and use Routines with your Google Home speaker and the Google Home app on your eae E RSE ee ame ena SEs ‘ Rowinee © tmuhme 8 v ® Semeremnceramameeran |) wen ‘you adjust to ft your day end creste customised russ ware ee ‘say "Entertain me” > Sos re rn : a : Cesare ss as a Good meming 5 X— Saysomating * 4% epson wih ee canenand ™ ” “ees |Add action ; cctoa “Assistant devices > O Mosie = a O Phone ‘One action » ° © radio a Bicester oo : eo € = Oo € eo oo € ‘Your Gooale Home app comes with several prs routines To view oF edit thas, tp the Menu button at the top let, and select “More settings" cro down and tap the" Routines" section Here you wilse0 displayed al ofthe existing routines, for example “Good morina” or “Bedtime! Below each routine name, you will ee the number of associated ‘setions. Tap 9 routine to start, editing It While all routines can be edited, you willrotice they have ditfering numbers of actions that can be added. The pre-set routines ilustrate this diference Each Routine is spit into sections These are: “When 180." (the command) "My assistant should (the main actions to perform) followed by “And then play. (adltional actions). You can manage and ect each of thare sections inividually to create the routine you want.wae ame ane © Good moming vi When say. "ood moming or "Tellme about ry day ot My Assistant should... ovsnor omen Take phone off ent 2 oO ° o © Teime abou tne weather © Tat me abot commute £8 For example, the single command "Good morning” could take the Phone off silent; tell you the ‘weather, reminders and your commute Information It could then give you the news hneadlines from a variety of sources (BEC, ‘CNN. etc) before playing your favourte rac station. (efoto naan erry eRe ame ae © Listen tothe radio E What radio station would you ke to play? ‘ap the checkbox next to each ‘action toad or remove fom the routing, the action has 2| ‘900 con next tit, you can tap this to see further settings For example the Play Radio ‘ction allows you to choose the radio station {you want to use, and music settings lets you ‘choose the music source © Edit commands 00d moring Teme about my doy Fmup You can also change the command that activates the actions (although you wil sit need to say "Hoy/Okay Google” fist), Most pre-set routines have @ couple of commands aready set, Bt you can add 2 ‘new one by tapping the top section, then tap + and type your desired command, aie wean | Pow wane | [ow wwe © New routine Yi) © Setatimeandday Gi © Routines : w | com [ome hen. et ter ne commands (eas) > | | 000 Enero me > Set ate and ey tons) > |_| omer shade Pe epee ‘My Assistant should. BAD WA) DKS) Ae ood mening 5 sss nton wl eset oat sect speaker Bectine > ‘And then play... Set soci oe ‘Add media | Learing me > Cet nation you: phone when st tame . tone of the pre-set routines 7) your own from seratch. Open the routines settings in the Goosle Home app ‘and tap the + button, Start by editing the (€9. Good Morning”), Simple commands {are the most effective, so keep it short for best results If you wish, you can seta day/ time of day when the routine activates automatically although ‘you can stil activate the routine at other times withthe commands. Next, ad an ‘2ction, ether by typing the name of ‘Google Assistant command. or by tapping “Choose popular action’, selecting one and tapping "Ade" ‘when you've finshed setting up the new routine tap the check ‘mark atthe top and the screen will change to display all routines. Your nesly created routine wil be siven the name of the command word you used (2. Entertain me") Test the routine by speaking the command te your Google Home speakerExploring Android 10 Things to Try with Google Home Your Google Home speaker is great for playing music or listening to the news, but it also allows you to do so much more! From getting information about your day, reading out a recipe and finding your phone, to playing a game or telling you a joke, there are literally hundreds of things it can do. eo Listen to Audio Your Google Home allows you to listen to music, news, Dodeasts rac stations, audiobooks and more Sou can aso tell to play ambient founds in the Backgroune. Sst say “Hey ge F G005%0, hel mmerelax or “Hey Google play forest/ fature/ocean Sounds You Can even make i play white noise! Start your day off by saying, "Hey Gooale, Good morning,” to hear traffic, weather and news reports along witha list of your appointments, reminders, and ‘more; you can also ask for these things individually. If you need to find something nearby, Just say, “where is the nearest pharmacy?" for example. my e Control Your TV Ifyou have a Chromecast plugged in (or builtin) to your TV, you can easily control it with your Google Home speaker, If your Chromecast is plugged in to a power socket (rather than UsB), you can ‘even use the speaker to turn your TV on and off, Just say, Turn on the TW" or” turn my TV oft” eG Create Lists a a gue oweFind Your Phone Never lose your phone again! Provided Voice Match is set up, you can ask your Google Assistant to ring your phone. To do this say, "Hey Google, find/ring my phone,” and your Google Assistant will ring your phone, even ifit's set to ‘Do Not Distura’ mode. eG Manage Tasks You can easily set and ask about reminds reminders by saying, “Hey Google, remind | = me to.." You can also use it to set meee timers and alarms by saying, "Hey sik Google, set a timer for 10 minutes." If toe you want to check how much time is | soma left just say, "..how much time isieft?" You set alarms in see the same way. e Control Your Home If you have smart home devices such as smart plugs, a Nest thermostat or security cameras, you can link them to your Google Home and control them using your speaker. You will need to add the devices in the Home app, and follow any instructions to set them up. You may also assign devices toa room. STOR ROM NAT aReCerete tare @ cov Yeucan tr >— from your Google ae erect me cies sotcan Sei then say, “..prepare ee start recipe.” ocean RRR e Get Answers You can ask your ¥ SeseaiT Google Home to os give you information about everything tow from finance to nates sports, you can ask for calculations, translations and unit conversions, for example, “Hey Google, how much is 1000 Danish Krone in dollars?" You can even ask for the nutritional information on most types of food. © Have Fun Your Google Home [= wees speaker lets you os 2 play games with it, simply say, “Hey very Google, play lucky trivia" (other games| ME Tuueepreneae include Crystal Bal —— {and Mad Libs). if you don't want to play a game, just tell it to entertain me," or ‘ele say, “let's have fun.” You can even ask it to tell you a joke! atmo Gog eatNavigating with Google Maps Google Maps is a fantastic tool but it can often be overlooked by Android users in favour of the seemingly more exciting features that their device offers. Google Maps is much more than just a way to find out where you are. It can help you find hotels and restaurants in the local area, show you a list of local plumbers, act as a satellite navigation tool and show you the distance between two points. Set Up Google Maps Before you can use Google Maps on your device, you will need to ensure that a fow other services are activated. These may vary, depending on where you are trying to use the app. tats a as Google Maps uses Live data 20 To take fll advantage ofa the > Now that you have a connection you wil almost always need to be features of Gooale Maps, you wl ‘nd loestion-tracking on, you ean Connected tothe Internet to use it ‘also need to ensure that Location ‘90 ahead and open Google Maps toi fll extent. So the fst thing you need to Services are enabled and that the GPS feature Give the app afew seconds andi wll pinpoint dois connect toa WiFi networkor.f you are of your device ison Yu can use maps your location and zoom in to show it on fut ofrange ofa Wi-Fi network, connect ta'8 without these features turned on ut the Screen You are now ready to start using Maps ‘mobile data network such 8836 oF AG, Information shown wil be much more Basle. to find places and navigate your way to them Location History Lecation History helps you get useful information such as automatic commute predictions and improved search results by creating a private map of where you go with yout logged-in devices. Rediscover the places you've been andthe routes you've travelled in your timeline. 1s easy to change or delet locations, days or your entire Location History. You can turn it ‘nor off at anytimeINE Eeur Re Retort 1. Maps Menu 2. Search Maps 3. Map Icons > Tap this to open the main menu in Google _ You can search for both locations tke » As you scroll around the map, you wil see ‘Maps. Within the menu you willfind inks to towns, tis, landmarks, ec. aswell as various leans marking paces of interest, ‘Your Paces. This shows previous searches, speci businesses or types of business. restaurants train stations and many other ‘tc, maps that have been saved for offi ‘When you tap the soarch bar, alist of things. You can tap any ofthe icons to Viewing (more an that later and enebied previous searches, routes and locations wll see more information inthe pane! atthe literent map layers ‘pen allowing you to pick ane again. bottom of the map sereen (ap on oF drag the panel up) 4. Find North > This isthe compass, showing you at all times whieh direction you are facing. You can tap the compass button at anytime to find North. The map view will rotate until itis aligned With North andl you can then, match it up to the compass. 5. Info Panel > When the map i focused ‘vera town or ty the Information panel wil show information about that location cbars, restaurants, te). Tap or drag the panel up to view the info. you tapan icon or set pln in the ‘map by tapping a location, the info pane wll show details about that location. 6. Find Route > This isthe button you tap te start planning a route and Using the navigation tool. If you have a pin inthe map, tapping this wil ind ‘route between your current location and the pin. Ifyou tap it without a pin, a new sereen will pen where finish points Offline Maps > You can save maps for use cine when you have no ‘access toa mobile or Wi-Fi network, fer example) Depending on the size of wound Exeter the area you save, these offline maps can be quite large end will expire ater @ certain umber of days to avoid fling your storage up. To make an offine ‘map, tap the menu button and select “Offline Maps" Follow the instructions toExploring Android Navigating with Maps ‘The Navigation option for Google Maps works just like a proper stand-alone Sat Nav. Let Google find your current location, enter a destination and then follow the directions shown on the screen, You can enter the destination by typing ‘oF speaking, although the voice option is not 100% accurate. > Ensure that GPS, Wi-Fi and > Press the bie Directions button >It you have searched for ‘ptionally, date connection ae located on the bottom menu that ‘snything in mops before now, looks ike 3 road sign. Type in your ‘you wil ea ist of your locaton enabled and open Google Maps Let the GPS pinpoint your curentocation if destination (and starting point nat your history on ths screen, Tap any to select a previous destination, Once the route is you ae indoors, the GPS may struggle to find current ocation) and then touch the Get 2 satelite, so give the app abit of time Directions button Enable Navigation if asked plotted, tap the Navigation button at the bottom of the sere (ist use only) > The map view will nw change, > while in Navigation mode, press > Atany time, whist navigating, You can now use your devies in the Menu button to see options to {yeu can zoom and slide the map exactly the some way as you would mute the voiee directions, check ‘round to Sut your needs. To centre the map again, tap the Recentre button atthe bottom To view an altemtive route, tap the spit arow button atthe bottom right the overall route, change map lyers and exit "Navigation. You can tap the mic button to record the audio directions if you wish standard satlite navigation system. Cp it somewhere you can see it and start iving Yeu can buy car holders for aimast any sized ‘Android device fay cheaply.Neca nMakertre en css) Local Search You can use Google Maps to find people, places and businesses in your local area. This is very useful both at home, for locating tradesmen, etc. and also great for finding places to vist or restaurants when you are in an area you don’t know: ‘on holiday for example. Turn on Location connect to Wi- Fiand open Gooale Maps. The local search feature alo works using jst your 3G or 4G connection whichis easier on your battery but isnt quite as accurate Map Layers ere toni ki @ > From the main map seen, tp in the sear field and type what you ‘want to search for You ean search for spectic businesses oust type something Iie “harrassersto see alin that area > Results relevant to your search wil now be shown onthe map. The bottom haf of the screen contains 2 ist thse locations, long with a button to ‘uicky load directions to each one ‘There are several different ways that you can view the map in Google Maps, from basic block colours to full satelite Image. To see the available different layers, tap the menu button in the app. Traffic > The Trafic ayer allows you to se cifferent tafe densitis for the roads you pan to travel on Trafic density is overlaid ont the standare map as a series of coloured lines. Red shows where trafic heaviest, whist ‘green shows where itis flowing smoothly. If no coloured lines are shown for 3 ection ‘ofr the trafic information is normal oF Uunovaiobe for tat strotch The information Is usually more accuatein and around major tone and ete, Satellite This changes the map view from block colour image to afl satelite image. You tan z00m into the satelite image as you ‘ean with the normal map, and the level fof detall captured is pretty impressive. You ean overlay any other layer onto the satelite view (trafic places, ec). If you dre using @ mobil Internet connection to iw Mops, bear in mind that viewing the satelite view wll take more data and may ‘cost more mone, Street View » To see StreetView on the Google Maps ‘90, re58 and hold on the map to drop & Bin. You can them tap the | conto pull up the information sheet to learn more about that place tind dvections, check out Street View ‘3nd sa¥8 of share the location by text or ema ‘When in Street View, tap the arrows onthe reed to move the camer in that ection, To laaveStret View, simply tap the Back button ‘on your device to return tothe maps view.A] Facebook ac 2e00Navigating the Facebook App ‘The Facebook app is laid out differently to the browser version, even on th at the key part of the app on a mobile device. @ Fecebo0k camera- Tren nap caer son trund a moe vie Te carers nde es ot Sal wera eset orem err ecto (RMER Us cone) aons wit how ona opo ws po © Fiend Requests - youre ary new rend Nme soos tnof oiicaonn ted tthe rs @ Frecebook ten = iss vee you can id ot te O inet. ia new direct messaging feat fn the nerean who rele! (Once the Conversation ends the images o videos sant wil isp Baers-e Into the night. Custom oll drum lid © stories - think of stories n Facebook ike me make tsvalabie The Ultimate Guide to Facebook Poe ae en Your frends. ewil paar atthe op ed fortwo days before disappearing.Eeeienucie Peet og te Login Alerts If you are concerned that someone logging into your account without your knowledge the frst option to mediately change your password Anather option is to enable Login ‘Alen. This lets you choose a method le exmaor sms message of ting yu know ven anew device los in Wo an see your future pos .” Who can see my stuff? Move in ta the privacy settings and you can 90 controls fer who can see your posts, including images, that you add to Facebook. Yeu can change wi sees future posts (rom this point on or you can lt future and ol posts. Content you have shared may change fer some people. Facebook Security and Privacy With the Facebook app up and running on your device, the next thing you should do is check and edit the privacy and ree tee Care Leet 1 See i ns a 1 Ser a 5 Nn At nd [By loan ne gn tenn en Ae tn Meh tee ie en Known Login’s Change Password ‘The security setings includes an section Changing your password is one ofthe called Where you ae logaedin. Ths ists all simplest ways to add security deal. use 2 ofthe devies (phones, tablets, computers) combination ofa east 6 letters, numbers and iti have accessed your Facabook account punctuation marks. Avoid including your name Inthe past isa good idea clear tis lst for commen wards Dnt use your Facebook {you ae using the Login Alerts option. passwoed anywhere ese online and never share your password Wo an send ou end ut? no anlok av up eng teem ress © @ cmon ‘rn npn abc or en, Ab Fretted ee © wn mene ane Who can contact me? Who can look me up? “This controls who can send youfrend requests, Ths section controishow visible you are or Anyone or Friends of Friends and bow tebe more exact, now visible your Facebook messages arefitered out within our inbox _proflinformaton i If you want to allow Basic fitering allows you to seo messages people o be abl to view your emai and ‘mostly from people you know but the ‘hone number used when setting Up your ceasional unknown contact may get through. account eave as aot, change these settings a 2 prion,The Ultimate Guide to Facebook Posting on Facebook Posting a message to the News Feed, sometimes known as to include several different features and post type: Se Cay a ‘These are some thoughts. eooeece amee the ‘What's on your ming? at the top of the News Feed. In its simplest form, a pestis made up of us text You can type inthe box that opens and then tap the Post button atthe top right ofthe post creation screen Your pos then appears eo0o000 you want to tll your frends on you are posting, you can Check In. Using your location, Facebook will pul up list of suggestions and previous check in locations, You can eter pick one ofthese oF create a brand new checkin locaton ad thoughts. amnee EFR SBAReA: Ifyou wont to alert rind to your post, yu ean tag them in the ‘nate Tagging means thatthe person wil 562 notification when they next check Facebook, making ita great way to ‘Typing their Facebook name in the text box @ mm omnes a SnUsing Facebook Messenger ‘Although designed primarily for use on phones, Facebook Messenger can be used effectively on your other Android devices. Additional features include group chats, easier photo sharing and Chat Heads. ae ex ry ‘You wil nas tohave the Facebook app installed on your device before you can use Facebook Messenger ‘once you have installed Facebook and fogged Inwth your account details, 190k for the "Messenger chat bubbe icon atthe top ofthe eee oe Ast of any recent chats, lncuding those from other devices, will bs shown at the top. These ae ust blow the new area forthe Messenger Day featur. This lows you to show your finds ‘on Messenger what you are up to and to lecourage them to interact with you 20 Messenger chat feature is © 8 seperate (out linked) opp, $0 08 wil now need to instal You can search for and instal the app from the Google Pay store Dut tis just as quick nc eazy to dit rough the Facebook app, Just tap instal. ® ea ene Reid mr @ e@-- ‘ @ ‘Chariote Coombes sre Oo es Qc" [Active Now and Favourites These e canbe hidden using the menu button besice the section te. Taping any image wil open conversation with tht person. You can tap the New Message button at he bottom right ana then choose a contact ‘Thave ate varus sections including Tohave anormal instant chat with ‘any one of your Facebook Friend, ‘pen the main Facebook sop and tap the messenger chat bubble ean atthe top ofthe screen If this ste fst time you have used the app you wil be prompted to (Open Messenger and then signin (using your FB deta). & © Timbsterntage my Boye soa, e eri A 8 RH tha ‘At tha bottom ofthe Messenger main screen, you will see the main ‘contro tabs These take you to Cals, Peopie (where you find new contacts) ‘and the information serees. nthe mide ofthe to bar's a camera button, used for creating your Messenger Day messageThe Ultimate Guide to Facebook cee Seg QB en top garth stcvecty a Notations © cor we Emoji ‘== co Nicknames: @Qa cote sect conversation Enter a conversation wth You can customise ech of Fecebook Hessngar ads 2 Someone ond you wil se 2 Your Mossnoe coats ond Clever new feature which the old Telos cht won The onvoratons nly Open ‘ternal cat ysten Br hve icons at tho bottom alow yout fom ft anon comeration and tap tho Chat Heads eee a sal cre rte toriht Toc. ake Phota Add Photo Add canattheopight of he screen Hereyou ples which at on your screen when 2 Sticke Add nGIF Recor Voce Message canchange he cou ofthe comerston conversations ctv Even you lave tnd Aid Location Thefaliconopensa, buble eda ictnare or dale Messenger (ond Facebook) te Chat Hood tran of eden messoge oo, noteations for that contact. reine accesible a eo Checking In king in is @ simple way of updating your status to show where you are. Check-in’s can either be places you have Re eee note eter ray °— = rere Ys x @ amen Tinonto Om © seerane Pace © Perse oss ae © etree O meee: @ sever tierce Ome © rere sot ate Prarie Jamies Jamaican —_Jariane Be cote @ mmm napoGcoEH00n © crtin @ minen qwertyuitop ‘Open the Facebook app and ap It you see your curent location ifyoudon' se your required ‘the What's on your mind? box at listed apt, and then tag any location inthe checkin Ist. you the top of the sreen. You can type friends you are with Gi you wish) on can acd one there and then Tap ‘a stotusvodate you wish, or simply tap the the next screen. You can skp this step using the search fe atthe op of the Ist and type Checkin button below the text Box. Ast of the button at the top ofthe sereen, You now thera ofthe location Ii ready has 2 previous ecations avaliable to check nto wil simply need 1 tap the Post button to update check-in logged (by someone else), tap it then be asplayet onscreen your status withthe checkin not at your home for example, you wll be sole to enter one 21Exploring Android Get Started with WhatsApp WhatsApp started as an alternative to SMS but now supports sending and receiving a variety of media, including text, photos, videos, documents and locations, as well as voice calls. WhatsApp messages and calls are secured with end-to-end encryption, meaning that no third party including WhatsApp can read or listen to them. This makes it the perfect choice for your private and personal conversations. How to Chat on WhatsApp \WhatsApp Is a very popular chat platform and not just because it is secure and private. There are dozens of features to ‘explore but here are the most important tools and functions. ore B comer e 8 conse % tecaten e & Mongo e Bos e once e 1 etane e 000 eoe Lo - QwerRtyu Nea oP 4 ZxXcVBNMG .e ° Adding Contacts > WhatsA\pp quickly and easly recognises Which of your contacts are using WhatsApD bby accessing your phones adress book It you cant see your contacts, make sure you have alowed WhatsApp to access your ‘Phone's contacts in your phone's Settings (Settnge > Ane > App Permision). 22 Start a Chat > Assuming tis sa fresh instal of Whats Ap, you won't have any conversations listed ‘under the Chats tab. Instead tap the New {Chat button at the bottom right and choose 8 contact fom thelist that opens. Fora group chat tap the New Group option atthe top and Chat Tools » During a chat you can use several tools toadd content. The smiley face con inthe text bo lets you add various emo and the camera lets you add or take a photo. Tap ‘the paperclip on at the top to attach 2 document, photo, ecorcing, locaton ora contact toa message. Tapping the phone starts VOIP call‘Open WhatsApp and go tothe chat containing the message you wish to delete, Tap and hold the message and then tap the Trash can icon on top ofthe chat screen and select Delete. Optionally you can tap several ‘messages to delete multipe messages a the You can stop recelving WhatsApp messages, calls and status updates fom certain contacts by blocking them. Tap the Menu Button > Settings > Account > Privacy > Blocked contacts. Tap the add contact icon nd then select the contact you wish to block Using WhatsApp Status By default any WhateApe user can see your read receipts, last seen status, about infe and prfie photo. Your contacts ean also ‘see your status. Te change these settings, {90 to WhetsApp > Menu Button » Settings > Account > Prvoey, Ifyou dont share ‘Last sen” you wont see for your contacts. \WhatsApp Status allows you to share photos, videos and animated GIFs that disappear after 24 hours. It's abit like Snapchat Stories but with a WhatsApp twist. In order ta send anc receive status Updates to and from your contacts, both you ae your contacts must have each other's phone numbers saved. To ow someone's status updats, tap the Stats tab and select contact’ statu. To reply to one of your contact’ status updates tap Reply atthe bottom ofthe sereen, > * qwerty asdfghjk! Toadd a satus update, goto the Status screen and tap the status btton atthe bottom right. You can take anew photo or record. a new video thon tap the send button, The camera i ay base, only allowing you to adda flash or switch to front camera However, you can ade a caption and personalise your status updates by adding emo, text an freehand Asmentioned, Android features lots of ferent security settings and mere are being added with every update and new version ofthe OS. All ofthe sytem security setings are accessed in Settings > Security Scroll tothe bottom ofthe Security settings and you willsee Trust Agents under the advanced heading. This is where you enable Smart Lock > Before you can use Smart Lock, ‘you will eed to setup a screen lock on your deviee. Many of the editions! security features in android reajure this. Your choice a seen lock rust be Pater, PIN or Password to use ‘Smart Lock. Find the setting and follow the instructions. You can read more about the screen lock elsewhere inthis magazine Yu naed to enter your sereen lock code when you want to change your Smart Lock settings It youve tured off smart Lock in the past turn on now nthe Securty menu under Advanced, tap Trust Agents and make sure ‘that Smart Lock set fo On. With Smart Lock now activated, you can begin to set up ‘and use the ater security features.Trusted Devices and Places Melee crete satel With Smart Lock turned on, you can now start to add those devices, places or even faces that you trust. To set up a trusted device o¢ ‘rusted place so that your device will automaticaly unlock, open your devices Settings menu > Personal> Security and tap Smart Lock Enter your pattern, PIN oF password on the next Seen, > When your devices connected tothe Bluetooth device, il automaticaly unlock To remove ‘a trusted Bluetooth device select i from the list of trusted Smart Lock options inthe Twsted Deviess menus % sococosnsnec 3 hee keep your shone unlocked whenever that devi is connected. You have to pair your Bluetooth device before you can make ta trusted device, % tons * be Cs) To add your home or workplace Lockman touch Trusted Paces Move the switch nest to Home or Work to the On poston. You need to have an ntornet On your hone or tablet. make sure tat Bluetooth ie tumad on In the Smart Lock menu tap Tasted Devices. ap the Add icon, and then choose Bluetooth. Touch adevie to select it from thelist of connected devices, Only paired vices wil show inthis ist Oi 70 eat your home or workplace, ‘pen the Google Maps app on your ‘device and sign in Tap the Menu button, then select Settings > Eat Home or ‘Work Undate the information and tap the ec ror To remove or edt customised plac, move the switch tothe Off postion 25Exploring Android Trusted Faces ‘Although contained in the same menu, Trusted Faces works differently to Trusted Places or Devices. > You can have your device unlock when t recognises your face. After setting a trust fco, everytime you turn on your device, it wil search for your face and uniock ft recognises you The data sed to recognise your face I only stored on your device Screen Pinning rut paces To set a Trusted Face, open your device's Settings menu. Open the Security menu and, under Screen Security, tap Smart Lock Enter your Pattern, PIN, or password. Tap Trusted Face, read the disclaimer message and then tap, Setit Up. vo: > Face Unlock captures an image fof your face during setup, whichis thon used as a template to match townen trying to unlock using Trusted feature up whist indoors ina wal it room, Feliow the instructions to complete setup. Although part of Android 5.0, Screen Pinning might not be available on all devices running the OS. 14:55 re rene) > Screen Pining enables you to lock your deviee on a specific app 0 screen Ths i seful when allowing someone to wateh a move, for example, without allowing them access to anything else onthe davice. ts perfect for nen you're sharing your device with ehilren 26 See] » To enabie Screen Pinning, open Settings > Security, and lookin the Advanced section, Tap Seren Pinning and use the sider to tun the feature (nf you can find the Screen Pinning option inthe Security manu, check whether the feature is avaliable with your deve, > Now open an app and goto the screen you want to pin. Tap the Overview button (you might know tas the Recent Apps button) on your ‘device Swipe up to reveal the pin icon on the bottom-right corner of your selected screen, Tap the pin icon,Use screen pining? Sszvn pining ots dona sie If you want the lock sereen to ‘appear after an app is unpined, ‘check the Box next to As for Unlock Pattern Before Unpinning. Finally, tap the vies over to someone ele, knowing that they cant snaop around > ‘To unpin the seen tap and hold ‘Overview and Back a the same Sereen wil be urpinned If you requed that the lock sreen show ater an apps unpinned, you wil ned to enter your pattern, PIN, or password to fish, Little Used Security Tricks ‘Adding a screen lock is a must, as is using Guest accounts if you let someone borrow your device. But there are several other simple security features which many users overlook. ‘Automatically lock = O tmmadistey Seeconds fond please ema used O15 seconds ‘schae O20 secends > 1 mite O2mintes ursondroidebeginers O Smintes qwerty wuiop asdfghjkt a zxcvbama This setting means that once your phone The Owner Information tion alows you sersenistumed off the serge lack younave _to-ritea message which wil appear on the Set up instantly applet canbe set to lock sreen. Tis allows you to give anyone 5,15 ar 30 seconds, but tis wil make your finding your lost device a phone number or device vunerable if you putt down ater ‘ther contact deta without them needing turning off the screen ‘the device tobe unlocked, Verify App Downloads {you chose to allow the instalation of "200s fom unknown sources and tal from sources oer than Goose Pay, ts ‘more Ihely that these apps could har you ‘your device I you alow the Istalton ‘of aps rom unknown sures, the Very reelerereer tied ‘Apps feature protects you by conus ‘checking your device to make sre that all {pps are behaving na ate mann ter thee been downloaded 27[ee Boosting Android Performance Remember when you first used your new Android phone or tablet and it ran quickly Ere ae hae em Rn Rn eC ea aeons one ee one a eR aca Rta eR Aa ele hs ee ase aac Me Rm en AO} aR Se aos Re Ok ue oa co frame rate and smoothness. Choose Widgets Carefully errr ery reed ee ree ees widget uses small amounts of procesing power (otto ee Cee id eer ree ret? Se Ret teeta See tet eee ete eats Use Device Maintenance eer ent ens clear out old files left behind by apps clear the cache, eee eee eet ee tear Tate ans ere een tee eee ny Ps et eee etl Clear the Cache eee pee ere a ence Pe er erent nt i eee eee een ea Sr ene nC en ee eryTurn Off PU Leary eer corner ern Pine Developer Options. Go to Settings > roar thar Perea Tannery einen eee eet end es eet Serer een nt) er eee Peete ay eee eens Tica no UT Reena eC eee ee ees eee See aed eee eee Seton) Seen nts pone eT ees Perea) ets eens ee eccs fal Taeltig Some Apps Peet ry eter ee ee ieee ey eter ret’ eect er eres Cd eras Deena) eee tener errant Meo eee ee eee eee Pte eres erin entero Keep the OS Updated Make sure that your Android device is upto ate with the latest system software releases. Major and minor eet eee ieee) ore eens Soa Sree ter center) ware Update section. You can manually check for Updates using the button there, or you ean check the Peery ee eet at en raced eed eer Set re aed eee enone rey Pee ne ea ras emer teeta eee eer ee eee ena erent et eterern eee ent Ce eer) Gevice storage (or Privacy) > Factory Data Reset. On eee ee ee ear Se eae eatery Peer ererne et eet renters et eect) eee onVa AED CU Laeeee UC Ce chs [OR oO reese eee oe oe Unlimited satisfaction one low price Cheap constant access to piping hot media Protect your downloadings from Big brother Safer, than torrent-trackers 18 years of seamless operation and our users' satisfaction Oy rey 4-43 Pie Ma a meolouls OTT) UNEP da lelit tem (ola alo ma 1A We have everything for all of your needs. Just open https://avxlive.icuExploring Android Manage Multiple Passwords Password security has never been more important than it is today. We can manage everything from our business website to our bank balance online, and to do so we need passwords. A great bit of password security advice is to avoid using the same password for multiple accounts, but this also may mean keeping track of anything from five to 25 different passwords. LastPass, one of the best-known password managers around, solves that problem. Never Forget Your Log ‘You almost certainly have dormant or inaccessible accounts littering the Internet, all because you have forgotten the login details. El ies pete Snore pchases 2 erty 8 merophone Google pay Dusrmtine To install open Goodie Play > You wil then need to create a >If you would tke Lastass to ‘Store on your phone or tablet anc ew account Ente your emai be abe ofilin osins in other earch for LastPaes. Ifyou would acres frst, an then choose your Anoid aps you should activate lke to atemot a manual instalation, youcan master password, This the password which the feature now. You willbe taken tothe ‘download the Android app fle (plo from gets you nto LastPass, and controls access Accessiblity setings on your device ane wil htpsd/lastpassconvipandroid.apkLastPass tal of your other passwords and ferm see anew adation. Tap LastPass and vse vwllonly work properly for apps on devices information, 2a make sure i trong But the sider to enable the funtion. You can set running Android 4.1 and ater fou wank to. memorable, Canfm and choose a reminder. this up liter fou wish Tap Back o return filin forms in Chrome version 43 isrneeded toLastPas 30Manage Multiple Passwords @ EvERNOTE Epeintonne 9 a > Tofllan app, st a9 on 0 » tr nstaing LastPass, you > Lastass for Andi features laune rm yourhome sree, wave the option to enabe 2 bun browser tat wl tnd Lactose wl fer ton the theFil Helper Te Fil Peper automata fil your losin details for you Tofilinchvoma, you wil eat for pages and appr where the information foreach ot your saved ned tolnunch your Crome browse tTom ADP Fil Window snot alowed to pop-up Lasts sites Once you have installed the Yournome screen andthennavigateto a” automaticaly Select the options ond apps LatPass Andro apo tap the App icon 0 Stepping onthe Userare or Password you would the Fil Helper to appear on. launch the login page. Tapping the button fed wil engage te ati fate Youcanlzo change tess settingsiaterin. inthe upper ofthis screen gives you Settings» Ape acess tthe Vout options sreen aa eerie Arn Qicrmer simply Your Ue ‘Stes enoutonese sues Sum sapsnstom Googe D Famrarties v Foci seat Caos ember tgineneome ‘Request Desktop Se @ bowser Peientee a © comestrsomet toe song out a a) © toaout Clear hitaryontogcut o @ when LastPass detects that you oe once the app is up and running e > Shared Folders are available ‘are entering a password fora site Tes time to check some setings. for both LastPass Premium and thats not already stored in your Lock LastPass Automatically wil LastPass Enterprise users. You LastPass Vault, or creating anew login ona allow youtto set when LastPasswilllock can open the Manage Shared Folders new sit, ill pop-up the Generator icon sf sent to the backaround ori the Feature from the Vault Men. From there to assist you. Use the slider to change the sereen i turned off. cessing LastPess_you can tap on the Pius Floating Action password length, and tap the Copy icon again will equ either your master button) to instantly create anew Shaved tecopy the curent password shown. Tap password ora PIN code. The sub-options Folder. You can also add or remove users Save to finish ‘low you to seta PIN code and modify the from the Shared Folders, Reprompt Timer 31Exploring Android How to Use Multi-window The update to Android 7.0 (Nougat) adds support for displaying more than one app on the screen at the same time. On handheld devices, such as phones or tablets, two apps can run side-by-side or one above the other in split-screen mode. On Android TV devices, apps can use picture-in-picture mode to continue video playback while users are interacting with another app. Launching Multi-window It seams that most apps can be viewed in multi-window mode but you may find some force full screen (including many ‘games) so this feature won't work. o o 3 e aot °| | a= *| | aT te eet tee roe or > Open the frst ap you want » Now tap and hole the Recent > You can then selec the sop to to view on your phone o tablet ‘Apps button, the square icon on {ithe Bottom hal ofthe sereen ‘This wil obviously il the whole Your device, previous known 35 trom recent apes. an app doesnt screen as usual. In ourcase we have opened the multtasking button IFthe button son support split-screen a message will appear on Fcabook but almost any nen-game app ‘screen (nota capacitive button), you willsee the thumbral telng yu so. You can change wil work wth mult-window med in ‘that the it changes to two smal rectangles the rato ofthe split by touching and holding ‘Android Nougat and later. few apps, and and the screen spits. The fst app open will onthe whiteline inthe vier and moving up resey all games wil force Fullscreen, on ‘ove tothe top and the bottom wil show and down uni the seroen i pita the ratio ant be viewed in muthwindow mode recent apps to choose trom. you wan to use 32How to Use Multi-window Multi Multi-window mode on Samsung devices has been available for some time and works slightly differently to most other devices, even after updating to Nougat. i-window on Samsung Top esters eoe0 vam tert 2 @ On your Samsung device, tap ‘thumbnails of recently opened _20ps.On the top bar ofeach app thumibrall is Ss mul-window icon. Tap this to open the Fst 9p in the top half ofthe sereen. You wil $6e thatthe bottom haf stil shows Recent Apps. > You can also open an application in. pop-up window on some Somsung devies. To open an application in 3 pop-up window. open the apaleation, touch atop comer ofthe screen and swipe dlagonally towards the centre of the screen, ofthe spit touch and hod on the diving line and rag it up nd own. you dag ‘the divider ll the way up oF down you wil cop out of mult-windew back nt single ‘window mode. Touch and drag the blue outline to resize the pop-up. Teuch and 40g the contro dt tthe top of the pop-up window to move i around the Screen, You can tap the arrow contals atthe top of the box to change back to full crea or shrink the window down © 0 >If you leave mut-window mode by pressing the home button, wil stay ative, A notifeation nthe status bar wll espay the mult-window icon, ‘nd topping it wil switch back to the spit Serven view You ean cance the spit sereen by tapping the Xin the natiteation. >If you search for muitiwindow inthe setinas on your Samsung Golan, you wl in that there ae @ few options for the spit screen made. You ean tum certain features on and of and change how the made i accessed. There ie aleo a There are lots of erent system > Once installed, open the app to > Swipe left to see the next graph, monitors avalable, bth free and set the monitor running. Te nil showing the GPU i apoleabie screen wll show CPU usage ona fn your dees. In most eases ro versions, which wil maitor variety of system functions. We have ‘raph invealtime.fyourdevice is amult-_the GPU should not be using any system chosen thelite version of System Monitor cor, tis willbe spitinte two orfeur separate resources unless you have something running by Christian Goinor. This versions free, but _ charts, showin what each of the cores is inthe background, Curent. minimum and coffers the option to upgrade should you ‘oing. Te the Grid button to view the CPU as maximum speeds re shown atthe bottomUsing a System Monitor By oventenerine wom BD restos system 5 sc Krom on Bh awes =“ ta Re Prone/tessaging Storage ew Donnlosd 19.0MB 1.58 feos ewe fl] enter oe ay sure re | ee Fora smoty uring device 1 rng elie Pye mest for serion fat wage shown onthe crt dow extern on toscn ones Gon the Sane per gran on ote ost Bis and the bata work Sa shout come nan You impotant gt stsyoucan monies At Fyouare cre comecte toa canview sage sty ther ng it eoctemotthescsenyounseethe | tabie data nator afters you ‘emit ther age rapa te ene toaaroun camila awa ac—wlaee the Top Apps serene button nd eating om est The Tow much scwertySonauaed Tyte | saieany vetlfr cheating weicn | llwrion of tw aon oe ou lta few is owe tan the omoun ee ops ue the mos system resources, Geet rome e ~ Schedule monitoring [FULL VERSION) eee ne |. a > re sty and an sat > bina of avy Poulan accurtepctre of Youse exacts opening bats topertre The your erreurs ape ye ‘rth your estate, tereraure gah aloe you rely re tont oe appr tetveencharee The atery gah shows tossevbenysurdeventar hens, thebaksound or fe dys so cn a caro eels, ene peohed” | inacitna ch sower age Usratte | otter ifonatin when yore txtmaton wn tt corge marek | rein seury be sls nha we to | phen ore ey Top the Snr Sendoncureetiag Forno daatep | spanticrepparfomueyouwere ang.” | Mumon’ sackguund Mootng et the Baer sate acroumn 35Exploring Android How to Boost Battery Life Short battery life has been a drawback of all smartphones and tablets for as long as they have been around. As device manufacturers improve battery technology and capacity, more power-hungry processors have become the norm. However, there are several things users can do to increase the length of time between charges. Quick Settings > mony curent Android devices now allow you to auicty ee and control what services are running: WHF, GPS, ete. Ths i silo to the Power Contra widget found on some other devices. although the ick settings don’ actualy save battery pow, thay do allow you to ‘quickly and easily keep battery draining services under contro Adjust Backlight Brightness > One ofthe quickest and easiest ways to save some battery juice Is to turn down the brightness ofthe sereen backlight There are @ couple of different methods to do this, Open Settings > Display > Brightness and then move the sider down to wherever you think I acceptable. Less than 50 per cents advised. You can aso access the brightness control fram the Notifications pane Power Saving Mode > Many Android devices now Include a Power Saving festure which with the lick of a switch, can automatically activate several power: saving tools. These include limiting the performance ofthe CPU, reducing the amount of power going to the display and turning off Haptic Feedback. You probably won't want to activate all of these tools all of the time but In an emergency It can work wall - BEG AE Change the Wallpaper > Getting ris of your lovely Live Wallpaper isn’ going to give you tn extra 24 hours for watching videos but it will make a sight diference if your devices really struggling to last a day: and it you're changing to static wallpaper, choose a dark (preferably back) one, The pixels in AMOLED screens, ound on many Android evices, are photo emissve. This means that they generate lah.ae = = | we a > = a EE 0 mm Decrease Screen Timeout > This wil not save massive amounts of power but every ite helps! ‘Tren, do you really need your sereen to stay on for ten minutes after you finish using it? Obviously you can switch off the sereen manually before you put your devi away, but each tne you gt anotication fora message and then don't check tor don't hear it, your sean may stay on for whatever period is set. GPS and Wireless Networks > Having GPS turned on wil dain the battery ike slmost nothing lee It you are using location reliant apps, then of course you may need to have GPS on. Just remember to turn it off when youre not using Turn off GPS either withthe Quick Setting buttons or goto Settings > Location Services. Whilst youre in Location settings, make sue that Use Wireless Networks ie alo unchecked Reduce Update Frequency > Ifyou don't want to disable Alvays-On Mobile Data, you can go into ‘ach app thet updates regularly, Facebook, Twiter, ee. and change ‘heir nc! sttings to undat less regulary Where you wil find this setting varies between apps, butt will usualy be nthe main settings menu forthe app, sometimes under Notifications. How to Boost Battery Life aay ° Turn Bluetooth Off » A surprisingly large numberof peopl leave Bluetooth runing all the time. Quite apart from being @ bt ofa secunty issue, Blutooth will aso use up a big chunk of your bettery power over the course ‘of a day, even If not actully sending or receiving flee To tun off Bluetooth go to Settings > Bluetooth You ean alo control Bluetooth with the Quick Settings e Turn Wi-Fi Off (or Have it Always On) > Following bit ofa theme, tum WI off when you don't need ‘atteratively, if you are usually near arelable Wi-Fi connection, set it to be Always On. WiF uses less battery than adata connection, ‘and when Wiig on, 3 willbe off, Go ta Settings > Wi-Fi Press the Menu button and then choose Aevanced. Open the WiFi Sleep Policy menu and choose Never Background Apps quick way to reduce battery drain is to stop some ofthe apps running in the beckground, From Satings > Apps, spe tothe lot ‘2nd you wll see a Ist of apps that are currently running Tap on each ‘one to see what they'e for, and then you ean stop any apps that you ‘don't need running in the backgraund all ofthe time. 7Doing More with AndroidDOING ie saa AV B)3(0) 1B Our advanced and expert guides will introduce you to launchers and troubleshooting, show you how to access advanced developer options, monitor your system for ele MoCo a LOL tL Colo tLe Pee R EE eo eM CRUE UM eek: Bat een Rec CuR TC ROR Cm cca m risUsing Android Pay You already use your phone for just about everything, so why not use it to pay for stuff too? Android Pay lets you do just that. Just add your credit, debit, loyalty and gift cards to Android Pay and start shopping in stores, in apps and online, all using a secure and convenient system. Android Pay can be used at hundreds of thousands of shops around the world, wherever contactless payments are accepted. Setting Up Android Pay ‘Android Pay is @ secure system but as with anything to do with money and payments, it is important to make sure that you set everything up properly. cca ou Andro Ps # cage @eeodt >You wil need to make sure that youhave your creat or debit cords close at hand and have al the details avaiable: account numbers, tise need to download the Android Pay app from Google Pay if you dont already haveit on your phone. Setting up Android Pay can take alittle time, mainiy due tothe security questions and settings 40 as}, i] ez) Plo) > Once installed, tap the ap icon ‘and thon Get Strted and choose. the Google account to use with the app Gif you have more than one). If you already havea creditor debit card registered to your Google account it wil be dislayed next, along withthe option to 0 2 diffrent card Ifyou dont already have a creditcard attached to your Google account, you can add one later. Sven 2909 > whichever option you choose you will have to add information, Including CVC codes and ‘other security information: we cant show a sereenshot ofthis process, due tov security feature that prohibits the information being captured. Be careful to.add the exact information required accept the terms.Peery ‘You havea areen lock, youre good topo. Ifyou don't aeady have @ screen lock set up on your phone, ‘you will need to set one up now, {or an adaitional eve of security ontop of the app security It isa good idea to set the screen lock delay to zero. In some cases, the phone i locked Verify your card @ Calyourbank ‘The next steps to verity your phone with your bank. In most cases, you wil need to calla ‘number specifically for Android Pay verfications but this can vary between differant banks and ard issuers. The Security and Advantages of Android Pay Turn on NFC to pay in shops (nce verted the last ting you need todo to start using Contactless Ando Pay n stores that offer the service, isto enable NFC. INFC, or Near Field Communication, allows ‘Android Pay is not only secure, it also makes shopping easler, whether you are buying a loaf of bread at your local supermarket or the latest fashions online. ‘once you've made a purchase, you" yu exactly where a given transaction happened, along with the merchant's name and number, making it easy to spet any Seno cate) or iost When you use your hon to ay in stores, ‘Android Pay doesn't send your actual eredt ‘or debit card number with your payment represent your account info, so your card details tay safe and secure erento tes er Androld Pay makes it easy to check out In apps and online. There i no need to enter your card details every time you buy something. When you're shopping in your favourite app just choose Android Pay (it avaiable) at checkout and save yourself 4Doing More with Android Erase and Reset an Android Device You can remove data from your Android phone or tablet by resetting it to factory settings. Resetting this way is also called ‘formatting’ or a ‘hard reset’. A factory reset is useful if you're trying to fix some persistent issues or are planning to sell or give away an old device and want to make sure that everything of yours has been removed. Preparing to Reset Before you reset and wipe your device you need to make sure that you understand and are prepared for what you need to get back up and running afterwards. < coocte Cy twssware@gmai com +) russware76@gmeiicom ‘entor tho information, you won't be abo to {you will nee to know the Google account Information that ie curenty being used on the device. 42 “ Backup. Turn fon Back up to Google Drive 87 M15 2 = o *— a source and keep it lugged in until the reset completes; ensure you connect your device to Wi-F oF mobile network, When the tosign nto your Google accountrase and Reset an Android Device Factory Reset Your Device < aa << acroRY ATA RESET RESTORE vest ta abe erased om your sheng, Restoring te sled data may pac oe ‘ees your ofthe dt on your pone, Make are that your Reset settings oe Dahan gta t ate Reset network settings =e et thc enor ete tig ove Galonys8-¥ Factory data eset ter sardta ene wa ere ears The ecyption ey fortes en the SD crt © select at > Open your device's Settinas Top Factory data roset > Reset > Ifyou ae resetting the device ‘app and tap System > Reset phone or Reset tablet. In some to sell or give away, you Ifyou have one setup, you ‘eases, this is where you will need finished. not, ou need to set may need to enter you PIN, pattern or to-enter your PIN, pattern or password, To up and restore your backed-up data as ‘password at this point. to tall Android that erase all data from your device's internal witha new device. Ifyou cant open your itis you trying to reset the device. On some storage, tap Erase everything. When your device's Settings app you can try factory vices, factory reset may be found under device has finished erasing, pick the option resetting your Android device by holding the Backup & reset heading torestart Its power and volume buttons Erasing Specific Data Ifyou don't want to factory reset your device but do want to permanently remove sensitive d the device, Shreddit - Data Eraser Is a usoful tool to have installed. ee “my 2m120112.165157Ipg rg 108 i = i i Oe oe aera Ineal Storage (52.91 68) [Ey 2 1c0r 20515600 & ‘sorgefemiae i corme sapvrate Bre os co By 22120112.125240}00 —e Bp zre0r 250010 (20) sovsorr2 157, eta) ® e ° ao 9 IRM 20120112.112708;00 » SHREDOIT i data eraser which > when aunche fst te the » Open theelevant folder coc securely deletes les teoving them shveder wl as for prmsion forcarere images ete) end recoverable. This oo erases your {cess ptotos mela ad fle on Select the tems you wont to data complete and protectsifitfalsinta | your device. Tmefist screen ere mounts erase, When you nave selected them, tap rrakcourhandh dave ick sbrecing | yourintraandertera sicrage wh thet | the ved Sed bution tthe botton of the {loos that ered huge data volumes mount pints path and tor toa capacy screen, Shedding may taka, so Bo PERMANENTLY ina mater of seconds, oraz ntl trages where you wil patent and wa forthe process to fsh fic ap cata before closing the app. 43Doing More with Android 5 Things That Can Affect Your Phone Signal There are several things that can affect how good your cell phone signal is, things that Me anes clue ae aaa sem UR greg dreaded no bars. If you know and understand the types of things that can affect signal Dream RRC Dette een ne enn et gee erect Your mobile phone communicates using simple ado ‘waves and these travel in straight ines from your phone to the nearest visible cal tower Anything that gets inthe way ‘can cause loss of anal strenath or ven signa aur. For ‘examole,f your nearest cel tower was a mie vay, but hidden behind ail and the nest vibe tower was five o ten miles ‘anay, your phone would be forced to connect to that one rather than the much closer tower. In this casa, distance would ‘aso begin to have an effect on signal strenath Ifyou lived in. ‘2 valoy and al ofthe call toners were outside te valley, you would ofectiely be ina Dead Zone, ‘Yu might think that living in ity would be like being in an unoatural valley all the tie but thee ae usually sr ‘towers or antennas placed al over cites, so the: hast travel far Rado signals can also bounce off builings ‘and round corner, so you might not even need lne-of-s'aht with 2 tower to get a signa. gain, in this instance, signa strength would be lost ~ Distance The astance they need to waves always a factor with any radio waves and your phone signals no diferent. The atmosphere is full of particles and even in perfect conditions, ano dust, ain o sous, the furthest cstance tothe nearest tower wll ed to be ls than 25 mils if you expect any sort Cf signal. Theoretical 2 acho wave from a mobile phone could travel 4S mles but depending onthe network cari, ‘components used and the receiving equipment the relwerld stance could be as ow as 20 mies ‘The more powerulthe transmit, the further the aco ‘waves wil ravel But thro i a lim 0 how powerful a ‘smartphone rao canbe. In act, stance s arly a problem but the great outdoors, or even justin rural towns, hiss probably going tobe the bist ng the quay of your mobil signal. RE i ad< Weather be sent tothe nearest mat: you dont even get ral booster won't help. Movement Speed Tomato a cal your phone needs tobe able to send anUsing the Developer Options Every Android smartphone and tablet contains a secret set of options - the Android Developer Options. As the name suggests, these are intended principally for developers of apps, used for debugging or simulating certain conditions. There are, however, several options within this menu which more adventurous Android users can utilise to good effect. Enable Developer Options If you choose to do so, before you can start to use the developer options, you will need to unlock and activate them in the settings. — Baseband version ene verion BEEP LEE eras Build number SE for Android status Security software version KNOX version e Open the maln setings app and locate the About Device menu (esually found a the bottom of the settings fist). This menu gives you access telets of information about your phone oF tablet. rol down unt you se the Bud Number section. Marae ae) sze Baseband version Ker vein creat et Bull number ‘SE for Android status ‘Security software version None ceo made has area been ble Tap onthe Sil Number heading ten times quicky. As you do so, you willsee a message appear counting ‘down an then saying "Yu are now 3 Tap Back and ook forthe new heading Developer Options inthe main settings, Once you open the developer options menu, you will ned to Use the slider atthe top ofthe screen to fenable access to them and allow them to bbe modifiedWeihua Useful Developer Option Not all of the developer options are worth changing, or indeed should be changed unless you really know what you are doing, Limit background processes ® Frere poner oa bckops Enable OpenGl traces ‘Standard limit No background processes, O) Pope ‘Atmast process =O. Do not keep activities fe [At most 2 processes Limit background processes ° Atmost 3 processes = ° ‘Amat processes ShowalaNAS dg 1- Limit Background 2 - Desktop Backup 3- Don't Keep Activities Processes Password open > Scrolright down tothe bottom ofthe st The Andre Developer Options alow You > aknough you need to be abt careful about and you wl see Lint Background Processes. to backup ad restore to your PC things Using tis setting ean be etl your ‘This opton ets you set how many processes such as apps and ther associated data. This phone struggles after henry cat Ths option ‘anrunin the backround on your device et option eauires a password forsuch bachus. _fovecclores every applention a soon ae ary one time Be aware that too small alimt Youll need to ensure that yourdevie can enrages eam Use eae hs othe ‘might be counterproductve. connect to your computer succestly Lint Processes option not both oe Debug GPU overdraw ‘Allow USB debuggi ‘Show non-rectangular clips ae “ USB debugging is intended for development purposes ony. Enable x MSA a canbe Used to copy data Eble MAA Oper between your computer and ‘your device, install applications on your device without aotifeation, and read log data, Disable hardware overlays oO ‘Simulate color space anes cance, 0K 4- Force 4x MSAA 5 - Profile GPU Rendering 6 - USB Debugging Pit younave a powerful phone or tablet and This zetting draws a views rendering ofhow > Allows your Androla device to play alot of games, tis setting, which forces hardthe GPU is working vera periadof ime. communicate via USS to your computer via ‘mult:sample anti-aliasing (MSAA).canbe You caneither view onscreen orsavetoafie. the Android Debug Bridge (ADB). You can Useful essentially makes things ook beter This canbe useful if you are tryingto work also revoke USB debugaing authorisations. {ard not ust aomes), ut puts more strain on out what aps or features ae causing battery This setting will need to be enabled if you the CPU/RAM, dan or la, plan to fish custom ROMS during rooting 4748 Speed Up Android Animations You may already know about the hidden developer menu available on all Android devices running version 4.0 or later of the OS. Within this initially confusing list of settings, you can find some really useful tools for making your device run faster and more smoothly, as well as a few simple tweaks to get the most from your phone or tablet. Here we will look at using animation settings to improve overall performance. Modify Animation Settings You can now begin to modify development settings, including the animation settings. It is a good idea to back up your device before continuing ‘Ao development stings? ‘cepa ane en They cn caie yout == > sien day ds ee: eM O| Wrist it may be tempting to For ths guide, we are looking Before we go further you play around withthe settings ‘at animation options which can should understand what is mean here, we suggest leave everything 'be found in the "Drawing? section by animations on Andro. lone until you know what the possible about halfway down te list of stings. ‘without animations, switching home effects could be. Andif you de decide You wil se three animation settings screen panes, opening apps or seroling change developer options change them Window animation scale, Transition woul appear to be an instant site from fone at atime and test the changes before animation scale and Animator duration fone sereen to another Animations provide Bltering anything else, Otherwise it can be scale, Each ofthese options willbe set the sliding effect of home panels or the hare to know what eaused any problems tox" This means animations running at grow efect when opening @ new ape. that occur normal speedWindow srimation sale Ossian! @ hninaon vee (O pnimatn ste (Opneaton see (O pnmatn sate (Odin se (O Animation seat 10e ‘Your device has to process these ‘2nimations every time you switeh Screens or open an app. But by redicing the animation speed to"5x", you ‘can speed up all vansition effects and not ‘only improve how fast your device runs, ‘180 make the device seem smoother Aimstr dation este (O animation sae (© pnenstion seat (© pnenston sae Se (© pneatn sate (Onto sent (© Animation seat 10 Ifyou want to go further you ean change the animation scales 0 Off You will speed up transitions and window animations to their fastest but you wil lose some of the smoothness of the operating systom, Choosing 5x @ good compromise between speed and how your dviee looks when used Monitoring Performance It you find thatthe changes are causing problems, or if you {are seeing no improvement in animation spaed, try restarting your device. If this stil doesn't help, 90 back into the settings > Developer Options and reset all fof the changes to their orginal state (or simply turn Developer options off, There are also several options in the Developer settings that allow you to monitor the performance of your device. This Is useful if animation settings cause problems. © Developer options Enabling this option inthe Monitoring section of the Developer settings wil cause the sereento flash when apps perform long. potentially heavy data use operations ‘This allows you to see whether app animations are causing system strain. This option puts an averay onthe screen that shows CPU cthe main device processor) sage at all times, Ths will spay as 2 ‘ed and green bar atthe top rant ofthe screen. allows you to see which actions are causing the most CPU strain. Show autacevoes ‘This option i nthe Input section and enables sereen touch feedback. By viewing where the screen registers your touches, you can monitor whether the system i working accurately I touches are out ‘of place, you can sometimes fx this by restarting your device. 49Doing More with Android Cut Blue Light with Twilight Blue light, the type of light given out by almost all LED screens, has been shown to hinder our sleep patterns. This means that using a phone or tablet late at night can actually effect your overall health. Luckily, some clever app developers have created a solution. Twilight, just like Night Shift on the iPhone, will shift the colours in the device display to the warmer end of the spectrum, making it easier on your eyes and producing less of the blue light. Screen Shift App ‘Thore are actually a few Android apps that will allow you to add a low blue light mode. For this guide we have chosen wilight, as it offers more features than most. 2200 > Seateh for, download and Tight is designed to be a“set > if you want to read more about install the Twillant app from the and forget” app. This means that the science behind Tulight and you shouldnt really have to mess cther night shift apps, tap the Gooale Play store. The app is free, although some of the more advanced about with settings once the intial set up__ “How t works" option at the top of the features wil require an update tothe Pro Is complete, The ist screen that appears screen. Ths explains the theory bebing version, The app Is compatible with almost after tapping the app icon contains every the app. as well as directing you to places all Android devices (phones and tablets) option you need to get set up correctly. _where you can read more about hue light, currently avalable, cereadian trythms and more 50Color temperature The next optionis Colour ‘Temperature, which is initially set {8 1500k (olaxing). You can use the sider to attr the colour temp to sult your ov preference. You can even set the colour temp to over 350k, whichis classed as Energising rather than Relaxing Tap the Proview Button to test leis now time to decide when ‘you want the Twit iter to ‘sutomatiealy start and fish ‘Te default is Sun, meaning hati will turn on and off accordingly. You will need te enable Location Services forthe app to use this option ‘The intensity slider controls how ‘x bacteally turing It off, whilst 100% wall normaly be way to intense, making your screen vey red. The defaut (of 40% is a goad place to start but we found that reducing that to about 50% can ewe - son so | som EE °° < Ifyou prefer not to allow ‘automatic location detection, you ‘Tap the Custom button and use the slider to change the timeframe when the feature so Just close the settings by pressing the Home button. Ifyou want to set the sereen to dim whenever the night shit mode kicks in. use the next slider to.contrl how much it dims by. Again you ean test your settings by tapping the Preview button, & sight cimming ofthe ‘screen is thought to be good forthe eyes,Doing More with Android Hidden Android Test Menus Hidden within every Android device is a collection of different test menus, that allows users to check allsorts, including how well the touchscreen is responding and whether the notification LEDs are working. You don't need any special apps or additional software to access these test menus, you just need to know which code to enter into the dialler screen. Let's take a look at some of the most useful test menus and what they allow you to do, Testing Menu Code Whichever carrier or manufacturer is involved, these test codes should work for the majority of Android devices. If they do not, try searching online for specitic codes for your particular device. jue | iad oe EE ee Open the phone dialer > You can gain access to alot of > it your device has a removable screen on your phone and type ‘general information about your battery: you can find lots of “#RAGEGRR, As soon 25 you ‘hone by going into the Phone etalled information about the type the last, the test menu will appear information menus You wil also be able battery inthe Battery info screen. As lon screen. This contains four main sections: toruna PING test that checks the speed well as showing the charge percentage Phone information, Battery Information, of connection to your eurent phone remaining, will veal fhe battery health Usage Statistics and Wi-Fi Information. Tap mast 8 careful when running tests oF ' Good, letting you decide whether buying any heading to see more info changing configurations ‘2 replacement is worth considering, 52PHS HH a 4 6 4 re) A & & * 0 # Hidden Android Test Menus Useful Android Test Codes » Horo aro some more Android test menu codes to try out. These may not work for every vice, but should work for mest Android phones. ‘Camera Information -"8'#349715590"H" - ‘To tee detaled information about the camera hardware and software in your phone. Service Test Mode -“##197328640H"#" ‘This Android secret menu lets you access service mode where you can run various test. LCD Test Code -“#+HO"# ‘This lets you test the LCD display on your devie, to see i there are any display errors. RAM Details Menu - #¥32648"H" ‘his Android secret code can be used to find out your phone's RAM version. ‘ouch Screen Test - #r#26648-H | you want to test your phone's touch screen than use the code shown here. Phone IMEI Number = "OSH ‘One of the most popular and useful hidden menu codes for Android, showing you the IMEI number of your device. Samsung Service Test Mode If you are using a Samsung device, such as the $6, you can access a unique menu that gives you access to all sorts of tests. + Add to Contacts x#OX e 2h es 2 5 6 8 N 0 # = @ * ‘Accelerometer Sensor Sige" yange ta zane of Proximity Sensor ‘Pome 90 ADE 9606) Ights Sensor Ug anor 18 3551014712989 RAN) Gyroscope Sensor ‘Magne Sensor MAGNET 194-277. 38S As with the previous codes, ‘yu will need to enter tis one Into the dialer sereon on your ‘Samsung phone. Enter the code "#0"H. AS soon as you enter the code, the test menu will appear. Tis code may not work on ‘very old Samsung Galany phones but it should on most The sere should now be filed with buttons giving access to the tests shown on eae Within ‘each test there may be adaitional options for requirements. The Touch screen test, for ‘example, requires you to use your finger to highlight al ofthe elements on the screen before it will complate > You can leave any of the tests, jither when they are complet cor by tapping the Back button on ‘your phone. Once you have completed alot the tests you want to perform, you can leave the test menu by tapping the Back button ‘on your shone twice in quick suecession, 53Doing More with Android 54 Save Web Pages Offline Your smartphone browser makes it easy to bookmark web pages which you might want to read or refer to at a later date. But what about those occasions when you know you will need to read something online, but also know that you won't have access to a Wi-Fi or Mobile Data connection? Sure, you could spend a load of time cutting and pasting copy from a page to a text document, but why bother when there is a much more elegant solution? Save Web Pages as PDF ‘There are a few different options available to you when you want to save a web page for offline reading. The first we will look at is saving as @ POF file. ous Pat > This frst technique should require no additional apps to be installed instead taking advantage ofthe bult-n suppert for PDF's which is part of the printing options on ‘Android, However, if you are using an older device, with an older version of Android. you may need to install the Cloud Print app. The Print Preview screen wil appear. showing you what would be printed (should you choose to do that) In most cases, you can use the check mark buttons on each of the dsplayed preview pages to select and deselect those you don't want, Wit the content you want selected, tap the printer name, > Open the web page you want to save to ead offing later In this example, we ae using the Chrome browser, ‘but the same features are available in almost al third- party browsers as well In Chrome, tap the Menu button in the top> Fight comer, an rom the menu, tap the Print option. a ee > This will splay any printers available to send the page ‘0 for printing, It wil also include the option to “Save as 8 POF”. Tap this option and the “Print” button will change toa “PDF” button. Tap this and a “Save to" menu wll open. You can, then choose to save to Google Drive or Downloads.e > Saving to Google Drive is 3 good Idea as this means the ‘le will be avaiable on any devices wich are linked to ‘your rive. After afew seconds, the fle is saved. The final thing you need to dois open Google Drive, tap the! button on the file and use the slider to make it "Available Olin’ Save Web Pages to Pocket eee > You can, of course, choose to save to Downloads. This saves the PDF onto your device straight away (but only the evice you download it on). The great thing about saving web pages ke thsi that everyting is kept intact inthe document, from text links to images and ciagrams. Pocket allows you to Save directly from your browser or from apps like Twitter, Flipboard, Pulse and Zite. You can download Pocket from the Play Stor pocket > The first thing you will need to dois set up a Pocket ‘ccaunt. Open the app and tap the Sign Up button. Choose a username and password, and enter an email ‘sdaress if you prefer you can set up your Pocket account on your ‘computer Head over to getpocket.com and look fer “Sign Us". > Top any item inthe list to view it. You can change the spay style, including sereen brightness and font size, sing the buttons at the top of the page, Once you have tinned reading the article, you can archive t by tapping the Tick ‘button Alternatively, tap the Menu button and delete te article, 2a: : mz o o uM &® «@ & » To save a webpage to Pocket, open your browser and navigate to the page. Tap the Menu button and select Share > Save to Pocket. Open Pocket and view your st. Here you will see any saved pages, including a thumbnail image i the page had any the main image wil be shown). ary Pater cats aplon Googe Eth > Pocket wil save pages in stripped down form, which Usually means that images won't display when reading oifine inthe 2p. I you preter, and if you have a internet connection, you can tap the menu button in Pocket and select ‘Switch to Web View" to se the original full version 55Doing More with Android SMS Messages on a Wi-Fi Tablet Not all Android tablets are created equal and if you have a tablet with no SIM card slot, you are slightly limited in your communication options if you don’t want to use VOIP services or Online chat; or rather, you were slightly limited before now. Thanks to apps such as Mightytext, you can set up your non-3G/4G tablet to receive SMS messages from your Android phone, using the same number. Mightytext Alternative > trinstead of wanting to receive ‘messages on your tablet, you want to receive them on your PC or Mac, the best option isthe superb AirDroid. AirDroid allows you to access and ‘manage your Android phone or tablet from Windows, Mac or the web, Wwirolssiy, for free, AlrDroid lets you focus on your PC, tye With a full physial keyboard and control With a mouse, and transfer things faster Without looking for a cable. AlrDroid ‘also makes it easy to transfer fles between your phone and computer. Running Mightytext Mightytext will only work if you have a compatible smartphone to run the parent app. This is the software which sends the SMS messages to your tablet. Ceuta Saeed ST ea SMS Text Messaging Text evs » Bofore you start satina up > Once Ws installed on your Mightytext on your tablet, you wil Android device, pen Mightytoxt eed to install and set it up on the ‘and sleet the Google account Android phone you willbe using. Search you want to use from the drop-down, forthe app on your phone, and the phone menus You wil need to use the same version should automaticaly be displayed. account on both the phone and the tablet for the service to workGoogle “@ ‘alow access to the Google APP Engine when this s requested, I the setup i successful, “Connected” will be shown on the next screen. I you want 10 text from your computer visit https// imightytextnet/app, When you reply to a message via the tablet interface, a smal below it on sereen, This ats you know that the message was Sent via the connected hone. Lose your Wi-Fi connection and Cm Sorento’ SMS from your tablet entire rn ‘yu want to receive the SMS messages on. Make sure thatthe same Gooate account i selected on the setup. you see an eror message, run the setup again. ‘Yu can also use Mightytext to syne photos and videos between yur Phone and tablet. When ‘connected as mentioned, tap the Photos tab and then tap the Ty it Now button This wil sync the seven latest photos taken Launch the mightytext tablet ‘a. Ifthe connection is working, ‘you will 9@ your SMS messages ‘and conversations from your phone on {your tablet. The corwersation lst won't show all messages, ust the newer ones. receiving messages on your tablet simply by disconnecting the Wi- Fon either devies. you want t unin the two devices completely, tap the Menu button and select the Unlnk Tablet option. 5758 Dealing with Viruses on Android In some ways, when it comes to viruses, malware and other tech nasties, Android is a victim of both its own success and of its open nature. If you read any of the tech news, or even mainstream news sometimes, it can seem like virus threats on Android are increasing by the week. Exactly how much of a problem is this then and what is Google doing to make sure your device isn’t affected? Read on to learn more about viruses on Android, Sa Antivirus Software Just lke on your computer there are lots of aiferent Anti-virus tools available on “Android: and just ke on aPC, they all do broadly similar things and offer similar features, You wil aso have a choice of ‘pp. One of the best tree apps is AVG for Android phones and tablets yout receive effective, easy-to-use virus and Understanding Virus Threats You really don’t need to panic over the threat of viruses on your device, but it ‘makes sense to know more about them. eee) You are infected with Due ht Prather ey will use /system/bin/profle to Pee SCC Pe eee) ‘There are thankful stil few known viruses The distinction between viruses and which affect the Android operating system, malware on Android i something ofa (One ofthe most well-known Is Tojan-SMS. grey area, Viruses get called malware and AndroidOS-FakePlayera. This was the frst malware get called viruses. tis safe to soy Trojan-SMS virus identified on Android, and however, that you really don't want either was thought to have infected hundreds of to infect your device. One of the best, thousands of devices. The virus was capable known malware attacks was DroidDream of sending SMS messages to premium (leo known as Android Rootcager) which rate numbers without the user having ary _ affected around 60 apps on the Android Indication tnt something was wrong. ther Market (Google Play stor) in 201, The weknown viruses include Gingermaster, malware added infectea devices toa which was capable of stealing user botnet, installed additional software and information from the infected device (user stole data. is thought that hundreds of 1D, SIM IMEL ete) and DroidkungFu, which thousands of devices were infected, even allowed back door access to the davice and though Goowle was quick to release a fix files ta be removed, for the probiamPTT iae TAM AUER Ma Uale Colle} fs 3 Virus and Malware 4 @ @ fa Safety Tips No operating system is completely safe, but it can be made safer by following a fow simple steps. These tips will help to reduce the possibility of your Android device being infected. > instal reputable ant vlus app on your device. one Although the way Androids built means that anti-virus apps cannot be perfect, having one installed will at least catch some infections. What is Google Doing? » Avoid insaling apps from third-party app stores fat Although it hasn't always been super quick to remove infected or suspicious iste cael apps from the Play Store, Google is now taking the threat of malicious eect spedlinnc the ac iSe software seriously. It is getting quicker at removing dodgy apps, and in 2012 found on unofficial websites) can bea the company introduced Bouncer. Bouncer provides automated scanning of source of virus infection the Android Market for potentially malicious software without disrupting the user experience of the Android Market or requiring developers to go through an application approval process. Android also features several things that reduce the threat of malware and viruses. 6 » Google, via the Play Store can remotely emove infected applications from your phone. If you receive 3 notification to tell you a suspect app has boon removed, make sue that you > Weis highly advisable to keep installation of apps {rom Unknown Sources sat to Off inthe device's settings This wil help ensure that nothing centers the system except through official channels Sandboxing > The Android platorm uses a technique called “sancboxina” to put virtual walls between applications and other software on application it cant access data on other part of your phone and its potential harm is crasically limited Permissions > Androia provides a permission system tohela you understand the capabilties of the appe you instal, and manage your own preferences, That way, f you see a game SMS, for example, you dont want to install it nil a » check permissions Malware removal carefully. When you Install bar ‘ Mising Deve any app from the Ply Store, cos dese to revert mlvare oy oe a ee tram reciting te ltr ain rm vere yore conn sl aT ‘you, 20 8 can be easiy removed #f your rn seo tegare oor Meda vice is affected. Android Market also has z ieee the eapailty of cemotely emouing malware ef Browsing from your phone or tablet, requied 59Doing More with Android Disable Android Bloatware No matter which brand of Android device you choose, from Acer to ZTE, most are all guilty of containing at least a few examples of bloatware. Bloatware means apps or services added by the manufacturer or carrier which take up memory and processing power on a device. Unless you want to root your device, removing bloatware is not possible. Disabling it however is possible. Application Settings ‘The exact location of the app settings will vary between devices. You should however, always be looking for ‘Applications, App Management or App Settings. c ° men ox cs Deere cent = ou ‘one ae ex SM Ae 2 O OI | Geer ~ port 8 sec when disabling bloatware, ‘The best way to put a stop to > To actualy begin asabiing dont be fooled into thinking bloatware safely to sable bloatware on your Andovd deviee, that just because you don't fone app ata time. Once you ‘open the main settings app on use a particular app or service that is have disabled an app, check that your {and look for Application Manager. This may not essential to your device, Removing ‘vice is stil working ast should before ‘be inthe main settings list under Apps or, feesential aps or services may cau 4you @0 ahead and remove the next bit ‘on some older devices, under the More problems with Row your device works. Its of bloatware. This makes the task of tab at the top of the main settings screen. therefore important that you understand removing beatware more labourious, but The application manager i @ great tool for exactly what you ae disabling before you reduces the risk of eisabing something viewing exactly what apps are running at aisableit important by mistake any siven time. 60© fps ene ooo wen ek ene ew Bu 2 ‘Top Application Manager and swipe across the serean to the left. This wl revel the cltferent application categories (Downloaded, (On SD Card, Running and Al). To find bloatware, 90 tothe Al tab. Disable but app? Click Disable onthe bit of bloatware you want to stop. A ‘warning will appear to tll you that comoeting this action may eause a Disabled apps wil not appear inthe ea By ‘wen you find an app or Service that you think you would Ile to esse, tap onthe name If the app cr service isnot bloatware, you ‘wills9e an Uninstall button next to the Force Stop button (you might aso see instal updates) A co aa comaniredshoretsonotckp or service that should nat be {ised will have an Android icon next to the name in the Application Manager If you disable something by mistake, a restart of your device will often fic the error, Ca cr service, the Uninstall button wil say Disable instead, Some essential system services (such as the ‘camera app or the Android system) will hhave the Disable button greyed out soit ‘when you finish sisabling the bloatware you ne longer want tehave running, you may need app drawer. It's best to perform a hard reset fora full reboot. 6Doing More with Android Sideloading Android APKs There are hundreds of thousands of apps available on the Google Play Store, from Angry Birds to Twitter to Groupon. Occasionally, there might be an app you want which isn’t, for several possible reasons, available through the offi ial download method. Although there are risks involved, it is possible to install apps using other methods. This is known as Sideloading. Note poner ie e ese ss = > Selectina this option willow 6 Goodie Play Store. Depending fon your device, you can also choose to be warned before instaling harmful apps by selecting Verity Apps. Sideload with Confidence Sideloading is inherently more risky than installing .apks from the Google Play store but as long as you take care, your device should be safe, Settings app, tap the More tab and scroll down to Security. Under the Device » On your device (or any device running Android 40 or higher), tap the Main Administration heading, select Unknown sources ook ° e > The nent stop will be finding an ‘Android package fle, aso known [Android apps are packaged, distributed and installed. PKs can be found quite easly with a Google simple searchSideloading Explained Sideloading is aterm used in Internet culture, similar to “upload” ‘and “download”, but in reference to the process of transferring data between two local devices, in particular between a computer and ‘2 mobile device such as a mobile, phone, smartphone, PDA, tablet, portable mecla player or reader. Sidoloading typically refers to medio fle transfor to a mobile device via USB, Bluetooth, Wi-FI or by waiting to.a memory card for insertion into the mobile device. When ret ‘Android apps sideloading” typically means instaling an application package in APK format onto an ‘You should never use The easiest way to download aul ini sideloading asa way to and install an APK fle is on caually Sonesta eee scatter pirate applications. This is an ‘your device. Use Chrome or the Sina thar GS ET Galena, almost sure-fire way of your Android stock Android browser to navigate to the St apps is only possible ithe user device getting a virus, You should download page for the APK. You can also as alowed “Unknown Sources” in only download APK fies from trusted download on a PC and transfer the file thelr Securlty Settings. developers and companies ee ) Keyboard Layout Selection 60 to your app drawer and You will need to connect your click Downloads: here you wil [Android device toa PC in US you downloaded the APK fle on your Using a file manager such as Astro, you can Computer, the process's sightly different. locate the file on your device and instal. 63Doing More with Android Smart Home on a Budget If you have deep pockets, it is now possible to completely transform your house into a Smart Home, with a single portable control system for everything from lights and music, to heating and security. These bespoke systems cost several thousand, and take a lot of work to install. However, if you are clever, and do some creating thinking, it is possible to create a smart home on a budget. Smart Home Essentials If you want to add Smart Home features to your home, you will need to ensure a few essentials are in place first, aside from the Smart gadgets we will look at in a moment. aq TNCAPD29A08 a harold i_NewHomesshop Downend 2.4GH2 WiFi 3 FE-gémdw7 1- Wi-Fi and gadgets wil need to connect to @ Wi devices share information and how they are remotely controled, This means you need 2 Isjust not possible, 64 wronuoa yf 2- Controls The Smert Home gadgets we willbe looking at here all require 2 companion tablet. Thi can be inconvenient to have on your current phone, so ideally use an old the phone or tablet doesn't need to be very powerful, but remove anything not needed forthe Smart Home conte. ‘Smart Home Plan DD smart 1 wets sto adaptr on i 1 axeran pis pada} nec @ ¢ 3-APlan Tere are limitations with this Budget smart Home setup, ae you might expect. that you will be able to replace every lightbulb witha smar ightoula and control all of them fram 3 lamps, not the main light fitings.Suri a alee Bele (ee (a8 Smart Home Gadgets Lot's take a look at some of the many Smart Home gadgets available, to hopefully give you ideas for your own budget ‘Smart Home. Transmitter & Receiver rc apt > ry ty 4 Awox SmartLED 7w Bulb D-Link Smart Plug Avantree Saturn Price: From £19.99 $16.49 €19.99, Price: From £24.99 $29.99 €29.99 Price: From £39.99 $43.49 €44.99 wnwimobilefun couk/-com wrmaumobilefun couk/-com wmebilefun co.uk/-com > Perhaps the most simple Smert Home tech, > The D-Link Home Smert Plug ats you _> The Avantree Saturn is both a Bluetooth these smart bulbs ae affordable ralable and turn electronic devices on or af from receiver and transmitter allowing you ‘can be setup to be controled individually anywhere inside or outside your home. The to.connect Bluetooth misc devices to fras.a group froma single easy-to-use app. smart mains adapter controls your devices nom-Bluetooth speakers or vice-versa. This You can contro both the brightness and the through an internet connection to provide means you can use your old-school CD colour ofthe bulb wireless Wireless control for your TVs, heaters and) player with your latest Bluetooth speakers much more. ‘and because Avantroe have used the latest ‘apt decoder the music ts HO quality Perfect Bake Smart Baking Spigen Pan & Tilt HD Camera Samsung SmartThings Price: From £44.99 $48.49 €49.99 Price: From £75.00 $8099 €7999, Price: From £199.99 $199.99 €199.09, \wuwimobiefun couk/-com wuwmebilefun couk/-com ‘urs mabllefun.couk/.com > Perfect Bake includes everything you > Monitor your home fram anywhere with >The Smart Things Startr Kit lets you need to achieve this, cresting delicious the Wi-Fi enablag HD Camera from Spigen. monitor, cantral and secure your home cookies, muffins and allkinds of tantalising Featuring two-way audio, night vision, pan fram anywhere. Including in the Starter Kit snacks and treats that will make your ‘and tit controls, you-can be assured of area number of devices from the Samsung ‘mouth water Perfect Bake doos al the seeing the whole picture no matter what SmarThings range including the Hub, measuring for your taking any ofthe the time of day. 720° HD video monitoring Motion Sensor, Multi Sensor, complication away and helping you with iR-Cut provides a crystal clear picture become a master chet 65Perea eau cel) 10 Android Security Tips ne VR Ree a Res aol aoe oC MU Res cei] Pe Semon ey eoeg Men une tc eeu Regal tial) aur tom Coc RUN eRe aE oun nT a a mol ree Rod aia aisle rele ees eer teed eee eee ene eas Cae el ees pene es ee etre etn ‘make it complicated enough that it cant be oer retire ete screen lockn place before they can even be setup, lt alone used effectively. Add new user? the User Profile option and ive everyone eee eer ner nes See ear ee erty) oe ere ete eed See eas Peon reat eet ere Backup & reset ay eee eee eet eae isen eee never arene can adel encryption via the Security menu in Sere ee Papert pretend Cee eet ee etre a ener ee ‘make your device more secure it does make eed eee Cente Scented CetSe el Pe eee er ee ete ee eee pecan peer tenet) ey ead pee eee Peete ete pet te ere orerenrmienss Mireriusrerenruenr tent eas pees eee ete es ee een crete renee ete’ ee eee en cee ees eres 10 Android Security Tips ij a epee 2000 aetna ure karen Peete te eee retry ee ees ees pegs oes petted eatery eee rtd Seta cer) meee a eres ead that replacing reyDoing More with Android Clean Up with Smart Manager ‘Smart Manager is a fairly new tool from Samsung, pre-installed on many new devices and available as a download on the Galaxy App store if not. It combines several tools and utilities into a single app interface, making it easy to quickly check things like battery level and usage, storage capacity remaining and amount of RAM being used. Like similar third-party apps (CleanMaster etc.) it provides both detailed information and one touch optimisation. App Management ‘Smart Manager is a very useful tool, or collection of tools, which helps you keep your device running faster and more smoothly at the touch of a button eooe > smart Manager can be found n the main app drawer Tap the con to open Smart Manager and you wil e@ 2 of your Samsung Galaxy device. As mentioned iftisnt fat simple interface. The four main areas of the app are: installed you should be abe to download an instalit Battery Remaining, Storage Used. RAM Used and Device through the Galaxy Apps store, If yu are using a Galany $6, Galny SG Secufty. At the bottom of the screen you wil see a button labeled ge, Galany Tab $2 oF Tab S, you andy have i ‘Clean A" which allows for quick device optimisation > Each ofthe sections when tapped, leads to anew screen > Tap the Battery section to see more detals about battery showing more detailed information and utually more usage. The top section ofthe net seen shows current ‘2ptimisation options and advice, You can watch in real tine battery percentage level onthe let and estimated usa9e teste battery dais or the RAM is used by Background apps and tine remaining on the right Estimated usage tie remaining is based ‘serves (it you have nothing better to... ‘on an estimate and wil be affected by heaw use 68