News: 34 Beautiful Material Design Apps to Replace Your Old, Ugly Ones
I have a personal rule when it comes to an app's interface: If it doesn't follow Android's design guidelines, it was probably written with Apple's iOS in mind first and foremost.
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News: 30 Relatively Unknown Google Now Voice Commands & Easter Eggs
As Android's de facto virtual assistant, Google Now lets us speak directly to our phones in plain English to answer our questions and perform many basic tasks. With the app open, just say "Okay Google," then wait for the beep, and ask almost any question.
How to Make Money on Android: 15 Apps That Give Rewards & Cash Back for Doing Almost Nothing
With the amount of time we spend glued to our smartphones, they could be considered a second job (if only we got paid). I spend a large part of my day scrolling through Reddit, Facebook, Instagram, and countless other apps, and burn through hours and hours without even noticing.
How To: Share Paid Android Apps for Free (Legally)
Last year, Apple debuted a feature that allows families to share iTunes and App Store purchases across their various accounts. Us Android users, on the other hand, have to buy separate copies of apps for each of our accounts—well, at least from an official standpoint.
Google Photos: How to Transfer Pictures from Facebook, Dropbox, Instagram, Flickr, & More
Google made a huge splash this year in their annual Google I/O with an awesome announcement regarding their Photos app. Although I was primarily interested in the details surrounding Android M, my ears instantly perked up when Google announced that their Photos app will now offer free, unlimited, high-quality storage.
How To: Earn Free Google Play Credits on Android by Filling Out Surveys
Make no bones about it—Google is an advertisement company first and foremost. Nearly everything they do is geared towards targeting the right people with the right ads.
How To: Customize or Remove the Home Screen Search Bar in the Google Now Launcher
With the release of the Nexus 5 back in 2013 came the Google Now Launcher, which has become the go-to choice for many Android users, especially those who prefer the Nexus line. With its integration of the Google Now page and the always-listening hotword detection, you'd be hard-pressed to find a more complete and useful launcher.
How To: Remove Your Location History from Apple Maps, Google Maps, & Waze
Applications like Apple Maps, Google Maps, and Waze save every location you visit or search for as a way to speed up future searches and to find commonly-frequented places. But what if you go somewhere unsavory and don't want anyone knowing?
News: Google Now Gets Voice Toggles for Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, & Flashlight
The biggest pet peeve of many Google Now users has always been the fact that you can't toggle basic system functions with voice commands. In fact, this was such an annoyance that folks even went so far as to apply root mods to get the functionality.
How To: Find Anything on Your Android Device by Drawing, Not Typing
We use our smart devices for pretty much everything these days, from getting directions to playing games just to kill time. They're extremely important to our daily routine, and as we use our devices more and more, things get a little bit messy.
How To: Translate Foreign Text Live in Real Time Using Your Smartphone
Early last year, Google purchased Quest Visual, acquiring the immensely popular augmented reality translator app Word Lens in the process. While Google did put the feature on the Google Glass, they spoke more about implementing Word Lens into their Translate app sometime in the future.
How To: Get “Anywhere” Gesture Support, Themes, Call Counts, & More with Blinq for Android
The lack of Xposed support on Android Lollipop has left modules like GEL Settings incompatible with my Google Play Edition HTC One, so I've had to find a new launcher to meet all of my needs. While I can safely say I will never find the perfect launcher for me, Blinq comes pretty damn close.
How To: Get Redbox Working on Incompatible Android Devices
Sitting at home alone on Friday night, I'm often in the mood to watch something more recent than the offerings on Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon Prime Video. And since the demise of video rental stores, that leaves me with browsing through the Redbox catalogue, then strolling down to the nearest 7-Eleven to pick up my movie.
How To: Get the Sense Camera on Your Google Play Edition HTC One M7
While I do enjoy the vanilla Android Lollipop experience that comes with the Google Play Edition HTC One, I do miss the sweet camera that ships with Sense. Luckily, the people behind Liberty ROMs found a way to port that camera over and now we can enjoy the best of both worlds... well, sort of.
News: Exclusive & Free Albums You Can Download Right Now on Google Play Music
Google's music offerings have been on a roll lately. First they announced a new music video streaming service called YouTube Music Key, offering ad-free playback with background listening. Then they stated that the new offering would be rolled in with their Google Play Music service, with members allowed to exclusively test the Music Key beta, which just went live. And if all that wasn't enough, they're also offering free music to boot!
News: Google Calendar Gets a Huge Makeover & New Features (APK Inside)
It's been a long time coming, but Google's Calendar app for Android has finally received a visual makeover. In the spirit of Android Lollipop, Google's new Material Design permeates throughout the update.
How To: Lock Down Your Google Account with Google's New Physical Key
While most of us don't think twice about dragging a pattern or using Touch ID to open our phones, or entering a password in for our email and bank accounts, these features are there to protect some of our most private information. Only problem is, they don't do a good job of it.
News: Google's New Nexus Devices & Android 5.0 "Lollipop" Coming Very Soon
It's that time of year again, folks. Each fall, Google debuts a new device alongside the latest iteration of its mobile operating system—but this year marked the release of three new Nexus gadgets.
How To: Hangouts Just Got Better with VoIP Calls for Android & iOS
It's been a long-rumored feature, but today, VoIP calling has finally started rolling out to users of Google's Hangouts service. Essentially integrating Google Voice into the popular messaging platform, Google has given Android (as well as iOS) users an easy way to make calls without eating up their plan's minutes.
How To: Google Will Replace Your Damaged Nexus 5 for Free
If you purchased your Nexus 5 from Google Play in the United States, we've got great news for you. In an unprecedented move, Google has started offering customers the chance to exchange their broken or water-damaged Nexus 5 for a new or refurbished unit—free of charge.
How to Root Android: Our Always-Updated Rooting Guide for Major Phone Models
Without a comprehensive root method for all Android phones and tablets, a device-specific approach is needed. And since we always cover new rooting methods for all the popular phones here at Gadget Hacks, we've built this always-updated guide to rooting many mainstream Android devices.
Google's Next Smart Device: Contact Lenses That Monitor Glucose, Detects Cancer, & More
Warning: Google wants to take control of your sight. While this statement isn't (or is) true, it doesn't change the fact that Google is partnering up with Novartis to create contact lenses.
News: Google Celebrates Chromecast's Birthday with Free All Access Music
It's hard to believe it's already been a year since I was frantically searching every Best Buy in the Los Angeles metropolitan area to find one with a Chromecast in stock.
How To: Fully Control Your Galaxy S5 with Google Now Commands—No Root Needed
Google Now is a wonderfully powerful service—with its predictive cards and voice search, it serves as a great starting point for any searches you need done. In fact, Samsung liked it so much that they decided to build the "Okay, Google" hotword detection right into the Galaxy S5's stock launcher.
How To: Install Incompatible Apps from Google Play onto Your Android Device
There are over one million apps in the Google Play Store, and many of them are restricted to certain device types, brands, and Android systems.
How To: Play Your Google Music Library in Any Music App on Your Galaxy Note 3
As great as Google's own Play Music app is, your MP3 library is restricted to Google's own app. There are much better music players that give Google Play Music a run for its money, but duplicating music files on your device for this reason alone is a waste of storage space.
News: Everything Google Didn't Tell Us About Android "L"
It was the star of the show, but now that Android L has been released for preview to Nexus 5 and Nexus 7 owners, there's a lot that Google didn't tell us about their latest mobile operating system, rumored to be called Lollipop.
How To: Install the New KitKat 4.4.3 Dialer on Your HTC One
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.
News: Google's Self-Driving Car Is Here & You've Gotta See This Thing in Action
Unless you've been living under a rock for the past five years, you've at least heard murmurs of Google's self-driving car, with Big G even getting California and Nevada to sign off on legislation to allow these motorist-less vehicles on the road. But now, Google is showing off their in-house manufactured vehicle, as opposed to the Prius' that doned their hardware in the past. And it's...well, it's something.
How To: Customize the Default Landing Screen & Tab for Google Play Music on Your Galaxy Note 3
For the most part, Google Play Music makes it extremely easy to upload and organize your music library, as well as access it quickly using the default settings—but there are a few things it could do better.
News: HTC-Built Nexus Tablet & Android TV Leaked in Latest Changelog
Veering from common practice, XDA commenter, "the_commenter", discovered a changelog for the upcoming version of Android 4.4.3 tucked away on Google's servers.
Update: Google's Official Camera with Photo Sphere Is Available for All Android KitKat Devices
Update: May 7, 2014: Google's Camera has seen its first update, with a small yet important addition baked into the app—the ability to take pictures while recording a video. Now, when in video mode, simply tap on the screen to take a picture, while your recording continues as normal. The update to version 2.1.042 is set to hit today, but if you haven't yet received it, apply it manually by downloading the apk here.
News: New Google Calendar & Gmail Apps May Be Just Around the Corner
Google I/O may still be a couple of months away, and although we don't expect anything groundbreaking—no new Android versions, just fixes to KitKat—we could be treated to some new apps. No, not Pokémon inspired Maps, rather new versions of Google's Calendar and Gmail apps.
How To: Catch Pokémon Using Google Maps
April Fool's has come early, with an update for Google's Maps application for both Android and iOS that's geared towards finding their next big hire: Pokémon Master.
How To: This "Search by Photo" App for iPhone Blows Google Goggles Out of the Water
A picture is worth a thousand words, and depending on what you're taking a picture of, it could be worth a lot more. Our phone's camera can easily capture high quality photos, scan barcodes, and make us Instagram famous. You can compare prices of items and download applications just by scanning a QR code. Of course, we can always do this stuff a little bit better on our iPhones.
How To: Find the Latest & Greatest Chromecast Apps
Now that the Chromecast development kit has been out for over a month, more and more Android apps are being released or updated to work with the Chromecast.
How To: "Tell" Your Nexus 5 to Play Music, Toggle Settings, & Other Custom Voice Commands
When Google introduced their new launcher alongside the Nexus 5, one of the most innovative features was the "always listening" voice search, meaning that at any time you were on your home screen, triggering a Google search was as simple as saying "Okay, Google."
It's Begun: Chromecast All Your Movie, Music, & Picture Files with AllCast
That didn't take very long! Yesterday, after a lengthy delay, Google opened up the development kit for their Chromecast HDMI dongle.
How To: Bye Bye, Inbox Zero? Gmail Is Going to Let Anyone on Google+ Email You—Here's How to Block It
As of this week, Gmail is going to start letting Google+ users email each other using a new option called "Email via Google+." There's nothing wrong with making it easier to get in touch with people you want to hear from, but the default setting allows anyone with a Google+ account to send a message to your Gmail inbox. After the feature is in use, Gmail will start to suggest Google+ connections along with your other contacts as recipients. Email addresses will not be displayed for Google+ co...
How To: Safely Download the Right Versions of Google's Apps (GApps) for Your Custom ROM
We have shown you how to get CyanogenMod on your HTC One and Samsung Galaxy S3 in only a matter of minutes. But when modding your phone by installing custom ROMs, you'll often lose your access to Google Apps. Since Google's Apps are very useful (Gmail, Chrome, and Maps to name a few) most people will prefer to have these apps on their custom ROMs. While you can scour the internet searching for individual .APKs, it's hard to find the correct versions to work with your particular system (and do...