It's been a long-awaited feature since being announced at Google I/O in June, but Backdrop for Chromecast has finally started rolling out. With an update to the Chromecast app for Android and iOS, users will be able to personalize the background images that appear when Chromecast is idle.
An app can request a wakelock to prevent your Android device from entering sleep mode so that it can sync data in the background. This obviously drains your battery, because instead of running in low-power sleep mode, your processor is fully activated while it performs its tasks.
Google's Android Device Manager makes it extremely easy to track down your phone or tablet, but while it's simple to set up and use, it does require your device to have an active data connection, which can be an issue in some areas.
As great as the Internet is, it is not without its dangers. Hackers at any time may be breaking into your online accounts and compromising your sensitive information. Last year, hackers broke into Facebook, Gmail, and Twitter and made off with 2 million stolen passwords.
It seems like every cloud service out there is offering tons of upgrade options and free promotions to give people as much space as they need to store their files online. I personally have over 100GB of Google Drive space which is shared between multiple computers, phones, and tablets, so keeping track of everything can be a huge pain in the ass.
Google has finally announced the newest flavor of its mobile OS, Android L (Lollipop?), and I couldn't be more excited. While we won't see its official release until the fall, there are still some features we can get our hands on right now.
Hangouts and WhatsApp might be the preferred messaging apps for Android, but it's only a matter of time before Facebook Messenger surpasses them.
The release of the Nexus 5 marked the debut of the Google Now Launcher. Even with an integrated Google Now page on your home screen, the most talked-about feature was actually the always-listening functionality.
Update: April 24, 2014 Looks the the one day availability was a precursor to a wider launch, as now anyone can buy a pair of the Glass Explorer Edition without needing an invite. Check out Google's Glass Shop for some easy ordering, still with the $1500 price tag.
If you are using the the AT&T variant of the HTC One, you are well aware that the carrier opted not have the HTC Backup app pre-installed on the device. Luckily for us, HTC said "screw it" and put the app on Google Play, allowing anyone with an HTC One, regardless of carrier, to be able to download and use the app—if you're an AT&T customer, grab the app and let's take a quick walkthrough (again, the rest of us on other carriers should have the app already).
Sometimes I actually search Google Images for things other than GIFs and pictures of athletes' extremely hot wives. Google Images has helped me with school projects, work, and proving my friends wrong on numerous occasions. Unless you're strictly using it for the latter, you're going to have to be aware of copyrights.
The launch of Android 4.4 KitKat alongside the Nexus 5 was met with much fanfare from Android enthusiasts. Unfortunately, if you don't have a Nexus device or are still awaiting the 4.4 update, you may feel a bit left behind.
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.
I've covered a few multitasking app switchers before, but none of them are as sleek and smooth as the aptly titled Switchr, a new app developed by Mohammad Adib that lets you move from one app to another quickly and smoothly—just like how I switch between my women. Well, not really, but I would.
Last week, Google updated the YouTube layout to be more in tune with other Google properties. One thing that's different is the new, more Google+ look of your YouTube homepage. Though some may like the change, some definitely do not. Also new is the "Guide" on the left side when you're watching a YouTube video. for you folks looking to get back to the normal YouTube layout, it's as easy as copying and pasting some code into your browser.
If you're a Google Chrome user, you can remove the annoying Facebook news ticker recently implemented on the site with this quick trick. So if you find the news ticker annoying, this how to guide on how to hide it will clean up your Facebook just the way you want.
Find which airlines Google is providing free Wi-Fi on this holiday season, fix shutter lag on digital cameras, wipe your hard drive for free, improve your Wi-Fi router performance, adjust your television and monitor for accuracy, choose the best 1080p projector, use a single server that can handle OS X, Windows & Linux simultaneously, and use the best audio encoding system for Windows Media Center and Zune.
This half-hour episode of Hak5 covers several topics: Using a DSLR camera to create HD footage, building your own Google TV, unlocking & copying locked files with Lock Hunter, using PicPick for screen capture, using WinDirStat for analyzing & cleaning your hard drive, setting up a secure FTP server with Ubuntu Server, and secretly copying data from USB drives with USB Dumper.
The Contacts application on Android-powered cell phones provides a powerful way to manage your address books and keep in touch with friends and family. You can even add and manage multiple accounts from various sources. Watch these tips from Google to learn who to get the most of the Contacts Android app.
The browser on your Android-powered cell phone offers numerous features that enhance your overall web experience. Some of the great features include double-tapping to zoom in, searching for text on webpages, sharing websites with friends, and copying and pasting. There's a lot more, so watch this video tip from Google to see how to fully enjoy your web browser.
You can add shortcuts, widgets and folders to personalize your Android phone experience. You just have to go to your home screen and press the "menu" key, then the "add" button. It's as simple as that. In this video tip, Google show you how to use shortcuts, widgets, and folders to customize your phone experience.
Most people refer to "long press" as "touch and hold", but no matter which way you say it, it's an awesome feature for Android cell phones. Long pressing lets you get more information, download photos from the web, edit pictures and more! Watch as Google teaches you about long pressing, a nifty feature that reveals additional functionality on your Android-powered phone.
For a newbie, getting around your Android cell phone could be a tad confusing, but with the help of Google and this video tip, you'll learn how to navigate your Android home screen like a pro. Learn how to take advantage of the home screen's features on your Android-powered phone.
The Quick Search box on your Android-powered cell phone allows you to search the web and your phone directly from the home screen. It provides suggested results from the internet, even while you still type! Easily search both your phone and the web with the Quick Search box! Google shows you how in this video tip.
Whether you're the owner of a Google Nexus One Android smartphone or just covet one, you're sure to enjoy this Nexus One owner's guide from Nexus One Hacks, which presents a complete, step-by-step walkthrough of how to restore ROMs on a Nexus One smartphone. For complete details, take a look!
Looking to make your Google Nexus One or HTC Evo smartphone even better? Unlock your phone's full computational potential while following in a tried-and-true geek tradition: Install Linux on it! This video guide presents a complete, step-by-step walkthrough of the process. For more information, and to get started installing the Ubuntu Linux distribution on your own Android smart phone (without blowing out your phone's Android installation), take a look!
Why invest time and energy proofreading everything you write when your web browser can do it for you (and quite competently at that)? With Mozilla Firefox and Google Chrome (and the After the Deadline browser extension), setting up automatic spell and grammar checking is an easy task. This home-computing how-to from Tekzilla will walk you through the process. Avoid careless mistakes and needless embarrassment with this how-to.
Here they are used to find anime episodes and movies, but you can use advanced Google commands to perform more dynamic searches on Youtube. Learn how to narrow or expand your searches and search for multiple items simultaneously.
Check out this video tutorial on how to make your Firefox smarter using SmarterFox. Wikipedia sidebar SmarterFox adds a "related articles" sidebar to the left side of Wikipedia.
In order to completely delete items from Mac OS X. Download Google desktop. This will search your computer and the web and your computer. Go to Applications. Right click on Google Desktop. Go to Show Package Contents. Drag contents into the trash. Next, go to Google Gadgets. Click and drag it to the trash as well.
Remember those old vinyl records? Remember jumping on the 8-track bandwagon? Switching over to cassette tapes? How much money you spent converting your music collection to compact discs? To MP3s?
In this video from exosploit we learn how to find your system specs in Windows XP. If someone is trying to help your computer, you might need this information. Right click My Computer, and click Properties. Here you'll see your operating system, service pack, and how much RAM you have. Also google cpuz. Go to the first link and download it. Extract it and click the main file. Here it will tell you your processor, mother board, what bios version you have, how much RAM you have, and it will tel...
First you need the pre-downloaded game you want to burn. It will be in a ".XBE" file.You must have "Quix" downloaded off the internet. If you do a search for it via Google it will come up and you need to go through the download process.This will change it into a "ISO" that you can burn.Then go to Google and you need to find an "ISO" that fits your computer.Then you must run the "ISO" file through the "Quix" system that you downloaded. Now insert your Blank disc and burn the "ISO" onto the dis...
During the Tuesday launch of Google I/O, the company's CEO, Sundar Pichai, pulled off a Steve Jobsian "one more thing" move near the end of his keynote address that was simply stunning.
I recently picked up a Pixel Slate when Google had a deal going on. I'd been in the market for an Android tablet since the Nexus 7, and this was the closest thing to it. Unfortunately, I soon learned Chrome OS and Android aren't as integrated as I had hoped.
Mobile gaming has exploded, with roughly $70 billion in revenue in 2019. This gave rise to the so-called gaming phone, headlined by names like Razer and ASUS. While the Galaxy S20, S20+, and S20 Ultra are being marketed as everyman devices, make no mistake — these are unstoppable mobile gaming machines.
The holidays are here. From the week of Thanksgiving until the end of the year, retailers will be offering massive discounts on your favorite items. So if you're looking for smartphone accessories, this is the time to buy. From Walmart to Best Buy, there are deals everywhere on a host of items.
Dark mode themes for mobile apps are all the rage these days, but YouTube is taking that a bit literally with its latest augmented reality experience.
With Google taking on the sidewalks with augmented reality walking navigation for Google Maps, Apple has its sights set on the road.
Android 10 goes all-in on gesture navigation. Unlike Android 9, all three buttons which made up the navigation bar are replaced with gestures, with the biggest change being the back button. The problem is this same gesture is already used within apps to access the side menu, so in Android Q, this has been changed.
