When it comes to getting your computer and smartphone to work well together, there's no service more robust and capable than AirDroid. For years, it's been the go-to tool for users looking to transfer files between their devices or access contact lists and call logs from their computer.
Lollipop's imminent release should be cause for excitement with Google bringing out new features, a huge redesign, and under-the-hood changes. Unfortunately, the Nexus line of devices will be the first to receive the Android 5.0 update, leaving the rest of us to wait on manufacturers and carriers to release their skinned, bloatware-packed builds.
With all of the cool new animations and features in the upcoming Android 5.0 Lollipop release, some pretty awesome system apps may have been overlooked amidst the fanfare. Most noticeably, a new Messenger app was added to the OS, containing many touches of Material Design.
With the release of the ARChon Runtime, many Android apps can now be run within the Chrome web browser. Minor changes must be made to existing Android APK files before they can be installed on Chrome, so the process isn't exactly as easy as pasting an Android app into a folder on your computer.
With root access, you're granted greater control over your device, allowing you to do things that your Android system wouldn't allow otherwise. Things like installing Xposed mods are made possible with root, but other advantages address performance and security, like stopping your Android logging, which is exactly what we'll be going over today.
Apple just announced the iPhone 6, and no matter whether you've been with Android for a few months or few years, there's a good chance you're enticed by the idea of switching over to the other side.
Oddly enough, stock Android does not come with a "do not disturb" function out of the box. Samsung has their own version built into to TouchWiz called "Blocking Mode," and Apple has had their "Do Not Disturb" feature since iOS 6, so why is stock Android so late to the game?
It's that time of year when high school students say goodbye the their past four years of coddling, ready to enter the "real world" and the next chapter of their lives—college.
For some reason, when you're typing in landscape mode, Android extends the text input field to cover every bit of the screen that the keyboard's not occupying. This gets pretty annoying sometimes, especially with messaging apps where you might need to reference what the other person just said in order to properly form your response.
When a big company (Google) concentrates on big things (Auto, TV, Wear), some of the smaller aspects of their design can be overlooked. Just as we saw in Android KitKat, battery percentage information is absent from the status bar. While we were able to enable a hidden setting to show that all-important number in KitKat, you could see why it was never enabled—the white text on the white battery icon made it nearly impossible to read.
Having an open-source platform like Android is great, allowing manufacturers and developers the ability to make their own skins and apps to truly customize the end-user experience. The only downside is that when an update comes to vanilla Android, many of us are left in the cold, unless you have a Google Play Edition HTC One.
When Apple recently unveiled iOS 8, many of the newly-added features in their mobile OS seemed eerily familiar to Android users. This is probably because the vast majority of these new features have been available in Android for quite some time.
Allowing us to easily get features that would otherwise be available only through flashing mods and custom ROMs, Xposed Installer has been a godsend since its development, simplifying the sometimes tasking and potentially harmful process of changing the core components of Android's operating system.
There are countless mods and apps for Android devices that give them an iOS-style look, but maybe it's about time we take some notes from Android, especially when it comes to the iOS 7 lock screen.
We've all been there. Rushing to find an outlet because your smartphone's battery is about to die and you're in the middle of uploading a picture on Instagram or something else of dire importance. Android's operating system shuts down automatically when ever there is 1% left in order to allow for a proper shut down, and so as not to mess with the calibration of the battery, extending its overall life.
If you've been using Google's hidden App Ops to lock down and prevent some of your Android applications from exposing your privacy, then think twice before updating to the new Android 4.4.2 software.
If you haven't heard yet, Google made it possible a couple months ago for every Android user running 2.2 or higher to track his or her smartphone or tablet using their Android Device Manager service. It's a super easy way to track, lock, and secure erase your Android device from the web without ever having to download a third-party application, like Droid Finder, since it occurs in the background via Google Services.
Anyone who uses a computer on a regular basis probably knows how to access the task manager to check system resources and usage stats. However, on a Samsung Galaxy S3 or other Android device, it may not be so obvious. There's no equivalent to Control-Alt-Delete, but it's still fairly easy to monitor running processes and battery usage.
Android's stock appearance is easy on the eyes, but after a while, it's outright boring to look at. Unlike other tablets from some manufacturers, the Nexus 7 runs stock Android and is free from any special UI tweaks or customizations. Sure, you can download themes for a third-party launcher, but themes are launcher specific. They will not work for launchers they weren't designed for.
Thanks to HTML5 and dedicated video apps, watching your favorite shows, movies, or video clips on your Samsung Galaxy S4 couldn't be easier. However, there are still times when you'll run into a website that requires Flash to play a video or interact with its content. Although its mobile life has been dead on Android for 2 years, Adobe Flash Player still lives on in the desktop world, fueling millions of websites such as YouTube, Vimeo, ESPN, CNN, and more.
Apps sure do run great on Android tablets! If you caught that little whiff of sarcasm, you probably already figured out I was lying. There is a definite lack of good, high-quality apps specifically made for Android tablets. If you've ever tried Facebook or Twitter on a tablet, you know exactly what I mean.
You've probably see this a million times on your Nexus 7 tablet: On some streaming sites it's "You need to upgrade your Adobe Flash Player to watch this video," and on others it may be "You need to install the Adobe Flash plugin." Whatever it is, you have the same problem—Flash does not work on your Nexus 7.
So, you've finally converted from an iPhone to a Samsung Galaxy S3 smartphone. Great. Only now you're overwhelmed with the unfamiliar look and feel of the Android operating system.
Samsung's Galaxy Note and Note II phablets have been hailed for their large displays and responsive systems, making them ideal for gaming and movie watching. But if you've recently upgraded to Jelly Bean (Android 4.1) from Ice Cream Sandwich (4.0), you'll be sad to know that some Android devices running Jelly Bean no longer support Adobe Flash Player.
There's nothing better or more rewarding in the tech world than finding a hidden feature on your favorite app, and that app today is Netflix. If you've updated Netflix lately on your Apple or Android device, you can now use it to control the Netflix app on your PlayStation 3. This will work on any iPad, iPhone, iPod touch running iOS 5 or higher. Android smartphones, the Kindle Fire, and the Nook tablet require Android OS 2.3 (Gingerbread) or higher. All other Android tablets will need Androi...
If you have a Barnes & Noble Nook, you may be surprised to find that your eReader can do a lot more than just display ebooks, which makes it a great alternative to those more expensive all-in-one tablets that do everything (seriously, everything). If you want to get more bang for your buck, here are a few ways you can hack your own Nook.
No matter what Android enabled mobile device you have, if you want to add a contact to it, it's easy and the process of adding contacts (phone numbers, names, email addresses, etc) is practically the same. But how do you do it? Best Buy has answers. The Best Buy Mobile team explains how simple it is to add a contact to your Android enabled cell phone.
Sometimes you can't decide what to take… a picture or a video. But on any of the new Android enabled mobile devices, it's easy to toggle back and forth between photos and video on your camera. Once inside the multimedia section, the icons direct you to either picture or video options. Best Buy has answers. The Best Buy Mobile team explains how simple it is to capture photos or videos on an Android cell phone.
If you just got a new Android mobile phone, then chances are, the first thing you're going to want to set up is your email account, so you have instant access to your emails all the time, everywhere and anywhere. Setting up your specific email account or accounts is actually not hard. Best Buy has answers. The Best Buy Mobile team explains how simple it is to set up an email account on an Android cell phone.
The new Android enabled phones can take up a bit of power, so knowing the best way to manage your power settings is crucial in having a fully-charged cell phone all the time. The biggest key is making sure your screen brightness isn't more than it should be. Best Buy has answers. The Best Buy Mobile team explains how simple it is to adjust screen brightness to save battery life on an Android cell phone.
NFC. It stands from Near Field Communication. And it's invading the world, one small step at a time.
Google Maps is much improved in Android 2.3 (Gingerbread). And even better on the Nexus S. This smartphone can do many things, but the best feature is still Google Maps, which will appear shortly on all Android devices when Gingerbread is officially released.
With the Nexus S by Google coming out soon, we're all waiting to see what Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) can do. One of the improved features in this Android update is Google Maps.
Thankfully, the wait for the much desired Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) update from Google is upon us. And the first Android device to take advantage of this new firmware is their Nexus S. This smartphone is going to be a killer. But the thing to look out for here is Google Voice.
Battery life on all cell phones is a problem. There isn't a cell phone on the market today that can satisfy everyone's power needs, but there are a few tips and tricks to making sure you have total control of your battery's lifespan on Droid smartphones.
You may be a little confused about all the new functions and features of your new Motorola Droid X cell phone from Verizon Wireless, bud don't worry, help is here. This video will give you a complete walkthrough of the new Droid X mobile device, showing you all the new stuff and how to use it. It's the newest and most sophisticated Verizon Android phone, so don't let it get the best of you — watch and learn what it can do. See a full review at Android Central.
First off, if you haven't watched Lady Gaga's controversial music video for "Alejandro," then check it out RIGHT NOW because you're probably the last person left who hasn't. After you're done watching and are thoroughly confused, you're ready to start this tutorial!
Bring your phone's background image to the foreground by creating live wallpaper- moving wallpaper for your Android smartphone that you can interact with. This video will take you through the steps and show you how to use Ownskin to make skinlets for your cell phone.
Everyone in the world uses tablets these days, so it's no wonder that the Samsung Galaxy Tab has different languages built right in. To change your language on the Android tablet, all you need to do is navigate to the Settings menu.
Want to monitor your Verizon Wireless service and data usage from an Android phone? This brief video tutorial from the folks at Butterscotch will teach you everything you need to know. For more information, including detailed, step-by-step instructions, and to get started keeping an eye on your own minutes and data transfers, take a look.
