Unlocking our iPhones with Touch ID isn't something most of us pay any mind to; it's quick, simple, and gets the job done. Today, I'll be slowing things down for a second and showing you how to add the Apple Pay checkmark animation to your Touch ID-enabled lock screen. It looks awesome and doesn't add any additional unlocking time than normal.
A few months ago, we showed off a great third-party keyboard for iOS 8 called CooolKey which lets you customize the keyboard itself with any background image you want. Well, take that idea and apply it to the Control Center and we have CCBackground.
While change is good, it isn't always welcomed. All software updates with radical redesigns and brand-new features bring at least a few complaints from those accustomed to previous versions. iOS 7 got a lot of flak from iOS 6 users, as did iOS 8 from iOS 7 users.
Automator takes the work out of common repetitive tasks. I don't enjoy compressing videos for quick sharing or uploading to the web, so I created an Automator action to handle the process for me.
Accumulating approximately one million downloads on the Google Play Store in less than 72 hours from its initial release, TouchPal instantly became a favorite among Android users.
Who doesn't love The Lego Movie? With a theme song that shouts the film's awesomeness, becoming one of its brick-bodied, eternally happy characters is everyone's dream.
Living in a densely populated city means that I usually have a strong cell signal, but that isn't always the case when I start driving out to the boonies. When I do get that occasional dropped call, it makes more sense to shoot off a text or email instead of trekking around trying to get more bars.
The idle screen for the Chromecast is certainly beautiful. Full of many high-definition pictures taken of various parts of the world, it's almost a shame that we have to dismiss this screen in order to cast content.
Included among the many new features in Android L is the new "Heads Up" notification system, showing notifications as interactive floating windows anywhere on your device. Floating windows are nothing new, though, as we've already showed you how to get floating widgets, floating application shortcuts, and even floating notifications.
Facebook will let you do pretty much anything via a text message, but unless you still have a flip phone, it's more of a novelty than actually useful.
Normally, your sound settings only let you change up a few of the sounds on your device—generally your ringtone and default notification sound. While some developers include the option to choose custom notification sounds within their app's settings, most of the time you are left with an ambiguous ringer for everything—not very helpful for identifying what app that alert just came from.
I'm a textaholic. One of the problems with being a textaholic is that your device just can't keep up with you.
Cooking spray is super convenient to have around, but it can be expensive compared to regular old oil, and sometimes comes with some nasty sounding additives like dimethylpolysiloxane and dimethyl silicone.
Have you ever been a little overzealous in dismissing notifications on your Nexus 5? Perhaps you missed your target and swiped away the notification you meant to read later. Or maybe you simply hit the "Clear All" button when you really meant to tap the button that switches to the Quick Settings tiles.
With Chromecast-capable applications slowly seeping into the market, it's difficult to find useful ones that we might use on a daily basis.
For me, the worst thing about makeup has always been taking it off. It's always that one last thing you have to do before you go to bed, and if you don't, you instantly regret it when you wake up. When you're tired, makeup removing wipes are a godsend because they're so quick.
The sovereignty that's granted when we jailbreak our iOS 7 devices can only be described with one word—liberating. With this freedom comes countless themes and apps that let us manipulate our devices to really own them and turn them into something that is truly ours.
The iOS 7 release brought with it many new aesthetic upgrades, from new flat, vibrant icons to a sleeker text messaging interface. Another small, yet noticeable, difference is the minimal and clean lock screen, which removed the overbearing "Slide to Unlock" background bar in lieu of just the text.
Modern smartphones can easily handle anything you throw at them, but it's always good to keep a tight grasp of what your phone is actually doing and how well it's doing it. System information can be viewed by looking through your Application Manager, but this process makes it difficult to keep an eye on usage in real time.
There are countless things you can do to your lock screen to customize it, including adding app shortcuts that adapt to your time and location or custom widgets with DashClock. However, one thing you can't easily do in KitKat is change your lock screen background to be different from your home screen wallpaper.
Waking up to my Night Owl iOS alarm has grown beyond old. I'd switch it up to one of the other ones, but I pretty much hate all of them. Thankfully, Pandora added an alarm clock feature to their application. Godspeed Pandora, Godspeed.
There are two scenarios that absolutely suck when someone calls you. The first is when you accidentally pick up a call you seriously didn't want to take. Debt collectors (thanks college), crazy exes, or that one guy from work. And the other is when you miss a super important call and can't get a hold of them afterwards.
Here we go again, softModders, it's time for another awesome tweak for your iPod, iPhone, or iPod running iOS 7. Have you ever felt like changing your lock screen with a custom text instead of it saying "slide to unlock"? Why shouldn't we be able to edit this? We're not given much freedom as it stands with our Apple devices.
Android's deeply customizable platform has long been the attraction for those of us looking to make our smartphones more unique, but that doesn't mean that it's always easy. Flashing mods and installing custom ROMs can be difficult at times, as well as dangerous.
There are hundreds of sites that host high-res wallpapers for your Android's home screen, but most of us stick with the same old drab stock wallpaper because we're too lazy to go hunt for new ones.
Ever since Sense 4, HTC phones have had no access to easy access setting toggles from the notification pane. CyanogenMod and other custom ROMs are an option, but even if your phone isn't rooted, you can still have clean, functional quick settings. Step 1: Install Power Toggles
Previously, if you missed a call or text on your old Samsung Galaxy S3, there was a white LED notification to let you know. It's a nice feature that most smartphones have, but wouldn't it have be nice to know what kind of notification it was before picking up the phone?
Who wouldn't want to know if someone was trying to log onto their personal computer without their permission? Be it your annoying co-worker or your girlfriend, there are many cases where people may try to gain access to your desktop or laptop.
A couple of months ago we showed you Foldify, an iOS app that allows you to create your own custom, foldable, 3D papercraft files. Your designs could then be sent to your printer, cut out, and assembled.
Step 1: Calculating Expression in MS Word Step 2:
I use Google Chrome every day for my browsing needs, and I had no idea they were hiding something from me. So, I was pretty surprised to see that Chrome has an entire hidden experimental add-ons section. There are add-ons that work for Mac, Windows, Linux, and Chrome OS, so there's something for everybody.
When you have a lot of equipment, dragging it everywhere with you can be a pain, especially when the weather's bad. Sure, you can put it in a camera bag, but a lot of them don't protect your stuff from water, and waterproof cases can get expensive.
One of the biggest downsides to the iPhone is that it isn't as easy to customize as other smartphones. It's true that this makes Apple products more secure in some ways, but it also means that you have to jailbreak your phone and void your warranty if you want to change certain things.
A faulty or broken thermostat can be one of the most annoying things to ever happen to your house. It's always too hot or too cold, and you can end up wasting money on your electricity bill.
The new Windows 8 operating system pushes the Metro interface hard, but not all of your apps will play nicely in Metro, which means you'll need to resort to the traditional desktop environment for some of your favorite programs. As a result, it has left many users picking between the two—Metro or traditional? Fortunately, there's a way to run them both simultaneously with the use of second monitor. In the video below, Donald Bell of CNET explains how you can run both interfaces simultaneously...
By default, your Samsung Galaxy S III comes equipped with a few app shortcuts that are available from the lock screen. But what if you don't use those apps very much? Wouldn't you rather customize the lock screen icons on your S3 to your favorite and most used apps?
Configuring user accounts is extremely important for those with a family shared computer or anyone using a work computer. Assigning different accounts with their own distinctive accessibility, customizations, and applications is the best way to manage a computer with multiple users.
Believe it or not, an ammo box can still be of use to you once its rounds are gone. You can use it for storage, as a toolbox, or possibly even as a Faraday cage. But if you want to use it as more than just a container, why not turn it into a portable set of speakers that you can take with you anywhere? The ammo can speaker pictured above was made by Instructables user Dustin White. He started with an empty .50 cal box, though you could probably even use thinner 5.56 or 7.62 mm cans. He remove...
Motorola launched a new webpage on Friday that tells Android users how to unlock the bootloaders on a limited number of new Motorola smartphones and tablets. This new 'Unlock My Device' page helps demystify the process and make it easier for users to customize their phones.
I've never really liked to type on a flat or low keyboard. Even the small flip-up stands underneath most keyboards were not good enough for me, as those little legs aren't usually more than 2 or 3 centimeters high. I'd like a minimum of 5 cm, so I decided to make this keyboard base for myself. Aside from giving me the right height and angle, this DIY keyboard base also features LEDs that light up my monitor, the table, and gives a nice background to my desktop. It's even got a built-in stand ...
