Androids Articles

Article / Updated 09-11-2024

Android Auto is a new feature available for your Droid smartphone. Because cellphone-related car accidents are on the rise, many major automobile manufacturers have decided to implement a safer way to use your smartphone while driving. Once your Droid is connected to your automobile, the phone’s screen will be mirrored on the display of your car stereo. Credit: Image courtesy of Android.com Android Auto gives you a hands-free option for operating your smartphone while driving. What do you need to use Android Auto? Before you can use the new Android Auto safety feature, you will need to take a couple of things into consideration. Do you have an Android smartphone running OS 5.0 or higher? The Android Auto safety feature is only available on 5.0 (Lollipop) and higher. If your smartphone is running an older Android OS, unfortunately, you will not be able to use Android Auto. Update your device (if applicable) to Android 5.0+. If your device is unable to update to Lollipop and you want this new feature, a new phone purchase may be required. Do you have a data plan through your cellphone provider? Because Android Auto uses data-rich applications such as the voice assistant Google Now (Ok Google) Google Maps, and many third-party music streaming applications, it is necessary for you to have a data plan. An unlimited data plan is the best way to avoid any surprise charges on your wireless bill. Do you have a compatible car or supported aftermarket stereo? Many 2016 automobile models and aftermarket stereos will support Android Auto. If a new car purchase is not in your near future, an aftermarket stereo is a great option. Check the Android Auto page to see if the car or stereo you wish to purchase is supported. What is included with Android Auto? The built in applications supported by Android Auto are listed as follows: Google Maps: The Google Maps app offers directions, road and traffic conditions, as well as travel time. Get directions quickly and accurately. Messages: The Messages application will read incoming text messages. You speak your response into the car stereo/microphone. Android translates your speech into a text and sends it to your recipient. Messages paired with Android Auto allow you to keep your eyes on the road instead of on your Droid. Music: The Music app allows access to the stored music on your smartphone. You can rock out to all your favorite jams directly from the car stereo. Home: Home is a shortcut icon that takes you directly to your Home screen. Here, you can quickly see all of your supported applications and safely make your selection while driving. Phone: The Phone app, paired with Android Auto, allows you to make and receive calls through your car stereo. When a call is coming in, your music or audio pauses and you will hear the ringtone instead. Take or reject the call and the music resumes as soon as you are finished. Applications such as Pandora, Spotify, Google Play Music, and many more are supported. Search the Google Play Store for additional applications. To access other supported applications while your phone is connected to Android Auto, you simply download the applications to your smartphone and coordinating icons will display on your car stereo. If no extra icons are displayed then no supported applications have been downloaded. Keep in mind that Android Auto is not an OS built into your car stereo, but is a feature that allows your phone to display on the screen in your car. Most Android Auto-supported stereos also support Apple CarPlay.

Cheat Sheet / Updated 11-17-2022

One of the best things about your Android smartphone is that it is, well, yours. Android gives you a number of ways to customize not only the look and feel of your phone, but also the way it works for you. From adding widgets to your home screen, disabling notifications from apps of your choosing, and setting tap and zoom accessibility settings, you can add a little personality to your Android smartphone and turn it into a unique device for a truly unique user experience.

Article / Updated 01-14-2022

The word roam takes on an entirely new meaning when applied to an Android phone. It means that your phone receives a cell signal whenever you’re outside your cell phone carrier’s operating area. In that case, your phone is roaming. Roaming sounds handy, but there’s a catch: It almost always involves a surcharge for using another cellular service — an unpleasant surcharge. Relax: Your Android phone alerts you whenever it’s roaming. A Roaming icon appears at the top of the screen, in the status area, whenever you’re outside your cellular provider’s signal area. The icon differs from phone to phone, but generally the letter R figures in it somewhere, similar to what’s shown in the image. How to turn off data roaming on your phone There’s little you can do to avoid incurring roaming surcharges when making or receiving phone calls. Well, yes, you could wait until you’re back in an area serviced by your primary cellular provider. You can, however, altogether avoid using the other network’s data services while roaming. Follow these steps: Open the Settings app. In the Wireless & Networks section, touch the More item. Choose Mobile Networks. On some Android phones, you may have to choose Battery & Data Manager and then Data Delivery. Remove the check mark by the Data Roaming option. On some phones the option is titled Global Data Roaming Access. Choose it and then choose the Deny Data Roaming Access option. Your phone can still access the Internet over the Wi-Fi connection when it roams. Setting up a Wi-Fi connection doesn’t make you incur extra charges, unless you have to pay to get on the wireless network. How to avoid texting surcharges Another network service you might want to disable while roaming has to do with multimedia, or MMS, text messages. To avoid surcharges from another cellular network for downloading an MMS message, follow these steps: Open the phone’s text messaging app. Ensure that you’re viewing the apps’ main screen, the one that lists all the conversations. Touch the Back icon or the app icon in the upper-left corner of the screen until the app’s main screen is displayed. Touch the Action Overflow icon or Menu icon. Choose the Settings or the Messaging Settings command. Remove the check mark by the Auto-Retrieve or Roaming Auto-Retrieve command. Or if the item isn’t selected, you’re good to go — literally. The lock screen may also announce that the phone is roaming. You might see the name of the other cellular network displayed. The text Emergency Calls Only might also appear.

Article / Updated 10-15-2021

One way to share the Android phone’s digital cellular connection is to connect the phone directly to a computer and activate the tethering feature. Not every Android phone has this capability. Tethering is a solid way to provide Internet access to another gizmo, such as a laptop or a desktop computer. Follow these steps to set up Internet tethering: Connect the phone to a computer or laptop by using the USB cable. The best success with this operation is when the computer is a PC running Windows. Open the Settings app. Choose More, and then choose Tethering & Mobile Hotspot. Place a check mark by the USB Tethering item. Internet tethering is activated. The other device should instantly recognize the phone as a “modem” with Internet access. Further configuration may be required, which depends on the computer using the tethered connection. For example, you may have to accept the installation of new software when prompted by Windows. When tethering is active, a Tethering or Hotspot Active notification icon appears. Choose that notification to further configure tethering. Unlike creating a Wi-Fi hotspot, you don’t need to disable the Wi-Fi radio to activate USB tethering. Sharing the digital network connection incurs data usage charges against your cellular data plan. Be careful with your data usage when you’re sharing a connection.

Article / Updated 10-08-2021

You don't have to live with the unbearable proposition that you’re stuck with only the apps that come preset on your Android’s home screen. Nope — you’re free to add your own apps. Just follow these steps: Visit the home screen page on which you want to stick the app icon, or launcher. The screen must have room for the app icon. Touch the Apps icon to display the apps drawer. Long-press (press and hold) the app icon you want to add to the home screen. Drag the app to the home screen page, lifting your finger to place the app. A copy of the app’s icon is now placed on the Home screen. The app hasn’t moved: What you see is a copy or, officially, a launcher. You can still find the app in the apps drawer (see below for more on this), but now the app is also available — more conveniently — on the home screen. Not every app needs a launcher icon on the home screen. I recommend placing only those apps you use most frequently. The best icons to place on the home screen are those that show updates, such as new messages, similar to the icon shown. These icons are also ideal to place in the favorites tray. You can add apps to the home screen also by choosing the Apps command from the home screen menu. Often this command merely skips over Steps 1 and 2 in this section; you still have to long-press the icon and drag it to a Home screen page. Finding apps in the apps drawer The place where you find all apps installed on your Android phone is the Apps drawer. Even though you can find launcher icons (app shortcuts) on the home screen, the Apps drawer is where you need to go to find everything. To view the Apps drawer, tap the Apps icon on the home screen. This icon has a different look to it, depending on your Android phone. Here are some variations on the Apps icon, though more varieties may exist. Apps icon varieties After you tap the Apps icon, you see the Apps drawer. Swipe through the pages left and right or up and down across the touchscreen. To run an app, tap its icon. The app starts, taking over the screen and doing whatever magical thing the app does. As you add new apps to your phone, they appear in the Apps drawer. Some phones allow you to create folders in the Apps drawer. These folders contain multiple apps, which helps keep things organized. To access apps in the folder, tap the Folder icon. The Apps drawer displays apps alphabetically. On some phones, you can switch to a non-alphabetical viewing grid. With that feature active, it’s possible to rearrange the apps in any order you like. For apps that you use all the time, consider creating launcher icons on the Home screen.

Article / Updated 10-06-2021

Wallpaper is one of the standard items controlled by your Android’s home screen menu. The home screen background can be decorated with two types of wallpaper: Traditional: The wallpaper is chosen from a selection of still images. These images can be preloaded as wallpapers on the phone, or you can pluck an image from the phone’s gallery, such as a photo you’ve taken. Live: The wallpaper image is animated, either displaying a changing images or reacting to your touch. For your home screen To set new wallpaper for the home screen, obey these steps: Long-press the home screen. Choose the Set Wallpaper or Wallpapers command or icon. Choose the wallpaper type. For example, choose Gallery to use a photo you’ve taken or Wallpapers to select a preset wallpaper design. You may see a scrolling list of wallpaper options. The Pick Image option lets you use the Gallery or Photo app to choose an image. Live wallpapers may be shown in the list by name. If prompted, choose the wallpaper you want from the list. For selecting an image from the phone, you see a preview of the wallpaper. A cropping tool may appear, and you can select and crop part of the image. For certain live wallpapers, a Settings icon appears. It lets you customize certain aspects of the interactive wallpaper. Touch the Save, Set Wallpaper, or Apply button to confirm your selection. The new wallpaper takes over the home screen. Live wallpaper is interactive, usually featuring some form of animation. Otherwise, the wallpaper image scrolls slightly as you swipe from one home screen page to another. Other options You may also be able to change the lock screen wallpaper on some phones. For example, after Step 2 (in the preceding list), you may be prompted to select wallpaper for the home screen, the lock screen, or both. The Settings apps may feature a Wallpaper command. Choose Display and then look for a Wallpaper command. Likewise, you might find a Lock Screen command on the Settings app’s main screen. Use it to set the lock screen’s wallpaper. The Zedge app has some interesting wallpaper features. Check it out on the Google Play store.

Article / Updated 09-13-2021

It's nice to be able to take advantage of the ability to connect your Android phone to other devices, like a computer or monitor. Here's how to handle those connections. Connecting to an HDMI TV set or monitor A popular feature on several Android phones is the capability to connect the phone to an high definition multimedia interface (HDMI) TV set or monitor. To make that connection, the phone must have an HDMI connector, and you need to buy an HDMI cable. After doing so, you can enjoy viewing your phone’s media on a larger-size screen. Nothing beats playing Angry Birds on an 80-inch plasma TV. After making the HDMI connection, you see a pop-up menu on the screen or you can choose the HDMI notification. Among the options you’ll find for using the larger screen are the following: Gallery: You can view pictures or a slideshow, according to the directions on the screen. Music: Choose a playlist, an album, or an artist, and enjoy watching the Music app on the big screen. (The sound should play from the TV’s speakers.) Mirror on Display: The screen output on your Android phone is duplicated on the HDMI TV or monitor. This option is the one you choose when you want to watch a rented movie on the big screen. How to Configure Your Android’s USB Connection Upon the successful connection of your Android phone to a computer using a USB cable, you have the option of configuring the USB connection. A menu appears, either automatically or when you choose the USB connection notification. If not, you can manually configure the USB connection by following these steps: Open the Settings app. Choose Storage. Touch the Action Overflow icon and choose the USB Computer Connection command. Choose either Media Device (MTP) or Camera (PTP). Select Media Device (MTP) if it’s not already selected. MTP stands for Media Transfer Protocol. When that setting is chosen, the computer believes the phone to be a portable media player, which it is, kind of. This option is the most common option. PTP stands for Picture Transfer Protocol. In this setting, the computer is misled into thinking that the phone is a digital camera. Select this option only when the MTP option fails to make the connection. If you can’t get the USB connection to work, check to see whether the phone features a proprietary synchronization program, such as Samsung’s Kies utility. No matter which USB connection option you’ve chosen, the phone’s battery charges whenever it’s connected to a computer’s USB port — as long as the computer is turned on, of course.

Article / Updated 09-13-2021

Unlike someone interrupting a conversation by making an incoming call, a conference call is one you set out to make intentionally. You make one call and then add a second call to it, allowing three (or more) people to talk together at once. Touch an icon on the phone’s touchscreen and then everyone is talking. Here’s how it works: Phone the first person. After the call connects and you greet the first person, touch the + symbol labeled "Add Call." After touching that, the first person is put on hold. Call the second person. You can use the dial pad or choose the second person from the phone’s address book or the recent calls log. Say hello and let this person know that the call is about to be merged. Touch the Merge or Merge Calls icon. The two calls are now joined. The touchscreen says Conference Call, and the End Last Call icon appears. Everyone you’ve dialed can talk to and hear everyone else. Touch the End Call icon to end the conference call. All calls are disconnected. When several people are in a room and want to participate in a call, you can always put the phone in speaker mode. Touch the Speaker icon on the ongoing call screen. Your Android phone may feature the Manage icon while you’re in a conference call. Touch this icon to list the various calls, to mute one, or to select a call to disconnect.

Article / Updated 09-09-2021

It's handy to know how to connect your Android phone to a Wi-Fi network and a WPS router. Here's how. Connecting to a Wi-Fi network After you activate the Wi-Fi function on your Android phone or tablet, it automatically connects to any known Wi-Fi network ― meaning one that you’ve accessed before and for which the password is still valid. If not, you can hunt down an available network. Follow these steps: Visit the Wi-Fi screen in the Settings app. Select a wireless network from the list. Available Wi-Fi networks appear on the screen, similar to what’s shown in the figure. When no wireless networks are listed, you're out of luck regarding wireless access from your current location. If prompted, type the network password. Tap the Show Password check box so that you can see what you’re typing; some of those network passwords can be long. Tap the CONNECT button. The network is connected immediately. If not, try the password again. If prompted to remember the network, do so. Some Androids may ask whether you want to automatically reconnect to the same Wi-Fi network in the future. Choose that option. While your Android is connected to a wireless network, the Wi-Fi Connected status icon, which looks like a tiny fan, appears at the top of the touchscreen (see the figure above). This icon indicates that the Wi-Fi function is on and the device is connected and communicating with a Wi-Fi network. Some public networks require that you sign in to their web pages after connecting. The sign-in page may appear automatically. If not, open the web browser app and visit any page to be redirected to the sign-in page. Heed the directions there to gain network access. A wireless network without a password is considered unsecure. The absence of security makes it easier for people to do bad things on the network. My advice is to use the connection but avoid sending sensitive information over a nonsecured public network. The Wi-Fi connection works best when you plan on being in a specific location for an extended time. That’s because the Wi-Fi signal goes only so far. If you wander too far away, the signal — and your connection — are lost. The Wi-Fi connection stays active until you wander out of range. To deliberately disconnect from a Wi-Fi network, turn off the device’s Wi-Fi function. Connecting to a WPS router Many Wi-Fi routers feature a Wi-Fi Protected Setup (WPS). It’s a network authorization system that’s simple and secure. If the wireless router features WPS, follow these steps to quickly connect your phone or tablet to the network: Visit the Wi-Fi screen in the Settings app. Tap the WPS connection button on the router. The button either is labeled WPS or uses the WPS icon, shown here. On your Android, choose Wi-Fi Preferences. This item is found at the bottom of the list of available networks on the Wi-Fi screen. If not, tap Action Overflow and choose Advanced. Choose WPS Push Button or WPS Pin Entry, depending on how the router does its WPS thing. If you don’t see these items, expand the Advanced category. For a WPS push-button router, push the WPS button on the router. For a WPS PIN router, look on the device’s touchscreen for a PIN. Type that number on the Wi-Fi router. Connection with the router may take a few moments, so be patient. The good news is that, as on all Wi-Fi networks, once the initial connection is established, the connection is made again automatically in the future.

Cheat Sheet / Updated 02-22-2021

An Android is a complex piece of electronics: delightful, inspirational, intimidating. Obviously, that qualifies an Android phone or tablet as the next great thing. It also means that if you want to get the most from the device, you need some gentle hand-holding and careful explanation. This Cheat Sheet provides that information, plus plenty of tips and tricks and other useful information that help make your Android mobile device experience a pleasant and productive one.