How To: Your Android Device Can Help Save Lives While You Sleep: Here's How to Help Out
"Millions of us have smartphones with the power to speed up research that will benefit billions of people around the world." - Professor Francois Grey
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How To: Disable the High Volume Warning When Using Headphones on Your Samsung Galaxy S4
I've been told numerous times that I listen to music way too loud, to the point of potential hearing damage, especially when I have my headphones plugged in. Not only do my friends tell me this, but my Samsung Galaxy S4 likes to nag me as well. Once I pass a certain volume threshold (nine steps) with my headphones, I get that annoying high volume alert. Sorry, my hearing isn't as good as it once was, so let me jam in peace!
Join the Party: Now Anyone Can Become a Glass Explorer
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.
How To: Theme the Stock Phone Dialer App on Your Nexus 5
When it comes to smartphones, we can sometimes get a little carried away with the "smart" aspect of it all. Things like apps, games, and softMods take center stage, and we can almost forget that the device also functions as a phone.
How To: Get iPhone Ringtones, Notifications, & System Sounds on Your Nexus 5
As Nexus owners, we love our device's operating system, and it's probably the reason we went for a pure Google experience in the first place. But that doesn't mean there's not room for improvement in Android, especially when the OS has so many freely available softMods to tinker with.
News: This “Weight-Loss” App Lets You Shed 15 Pounds for Selfies
If mainstream media has taught us anything, it's that being beautiful can get you ahead in life. The notion isn't necessarily correct, but it's what the general consensus accepts and it seems to hold quite a bit of weight (no pun intended) in the western world.
How To: Encrypted Sites May Not Be Safe to Visit Using Chrome's Default Settings
As you may have already heard, the worst bug in OpenSSL history went public yesterday, dubbed Heartbleed. While we can go deeper into the technical details of it later, the short version is that OpenSSL, the library used to encrypt much of the web running on Linux and Apache has been vulnerable for up to two years.
How To: Open Google Now Instead of S Voice with the "Hi, Galaxy" Command
Google released its long-awaited Google Now launcher a couple months ago, allowing users to access Google Now with the simple command of the voice. As great as the feature is, it requires that our screens be on, unlike the Moto X's "active listening" service that operates with Google Now, activating through a screen-off state.
How To: The One Trick You Need to Use When Microwaving Leftovers
There is and always will be a staunch anti-microwave camp, but they're a fact of life. The whole point of a microwave is convenience, right? But it's not so convenient when you pull out reheated leftovers and discover that your food is only partially warm.
Hack Like a Pro: How to Set Up a Honeypot & How to Avoid Them
Welcome back, my aspiring hackers! Those of you who've been reading my tutorials for some time now know that I am adamant regarding the necessity of learning and using Linux to hack. There is no substitute, period.
How To: Prank Your Bad Mouth Friends with Teeth-Whitening Oreo Cookies
Ah, the art of the April Fool's prank. If you're a dedicated prankster, you probably already know who you're going to get on the big day. But if you're still searching for a prank to pull, never fear—we've got one that's pretty easy to execute and is guaranteed to get reactions. Those Oreo cookies look irresistible, right? Unless you're on a strict no-chocolate diet, you wouldn't be able to help yourself from shoving those in your mouth—and that's where the fun comes in.
News: How Beer Saved the World & Other Bizarre Food Facts
It's easy to take the food we eat for granted, but the truth is, there are a lot of bizarre, wonderful, and just plain weird things about what we eat and drink, the effects it has on our bodies, and vice-versa. Read on to learn how bugs provide food dye, the Japanese grow square watermelons, and more.
How To: Draw Your Own Personal Clock Widget for the Nexus 7
I never really cared much for the clock widget on my Nexus 7, mainly because it only gave me two styles—analog and digital. There are many different styles of clock widgets available on Google Play, but the majority of them just don't look good enough for me.
How To: Activate Modules After Installation in Xposed Installer
Created by by XDA developer rovo89, the Xposed Framework allows you to quickly search for, download, and install new modules that allow various forms of customization for your Android device.
How To: Wake Up to Spoken Calendar Events & Weather Forecasts for the Day on Your Nexus 7
I regularly use my Nexus 7 to wake up in the mornings (well, sometimes afternoons), but it's pretty minimal in what it does. I shouldn't have to open multiple apps when I wake up to figure out my schedule for the day or what the weather is going to be like.
How To: See Instant Translations of Foreign Text Using Google Glass
Google Glass is all about transforming the world around us with little to zero interaction from the wearer. Much of this is done using augmented reality—a live view of physical, real-world environments that are augmented by computer-generated input in the form of graphics, sights, and sounds.
How To: The Easiest Way to Access Recent Files & Photos on Your Nexus 7
If you use your Nexus 7 like me, then you're constantly downloading APKs, installing new games from Google Play, taking a million photos, and using multiple apps at the same time.
How To: Create Restricted Profiles on Your Nexus 7 for Guest Users
Whenever I hand my tablet over to someone, my heart always races for a second at the thought that they may stumble across my private pictures, texts, and videos. I trust them, and they may not be the snooping type, but it can be easy enough to come across private stuff by accidentally opening a gallery or messaging app.
How To: Set Your Current Location & Weather Forecast as Your Galaxy Note 3's Wallpaper
Muzei Live Wallpaper is a popular Android app that refreshes your home screen background at set intervals, turning it into blurred pieces of artwork or photography while keeping your icons and widgets in the spotlight.
How To: Control Which Apps Boot During Startup on Your Nexus 4 or Nexus 5
The more you use your device, the more you'll download and install apps. These apps range from helpful to fun to simple distractions, but after a while, you may notice slow down on your device or a marked reduction in battery life.
Extreme Multitasking: How to Run Multiple Apps at the Same Time on Your Nexus 7 (No Root Required)
Recently, I offered a guide detailing how to run two separate windows on a Nexus 7 tablets for better multitasking. While extremely useful, that mod was limited to only two windows, and you also needed root access to use it.
How To: Sort Your iPhone's Camera Roll into Automatically Created Photo Albums by Topic
I have over 400 photos on my iPhone, and I don't even know where half of them came from. Scrolling through all of those pictures is a pain in the ass, but it's not nearly as bad as trying to actually find an old image. Organization is not my strong suit, so I'm definitely not the type to create new albums to sort through my 400+ photos.
How To: Android 4.4.2 KitKat Update Rolling Out Right Now for Your AT&T Samsung Galaxy S4
The newest version of Android, 4.4.2 KitKat, is making its way onto AT&T Samsung Galaxy S4s right now. Itching to try out the latest that Google has to offer? Keep an eye on your status bar for a notification letting you know that a system update is ready.
How To: Patch the SSL Bug Without Updating Your Jailbroken iPad or iPhone to iOS 7.0.6
Last week, Apple issued an iOS 7.0.6 update that fixed a serious security vulnerability that could allow hackers to steal passwords, read emails, and get info from other SSL-encrypted communications.
How To: Add Endless Scrolling to Home Screen Pages & App Folders on Your iPad or iPhone
When you're scrolling through your iPhone's home screens, you'll inevitably reach the end and have to either swipe backwards or hit the Home button to return to the first page. Why Apple didn't instill an endless scrolling feature, or at the very least an option for it, is anyone's guess, but just because you can't do it out of the box doesn't mean you can't do it.
How To: Save Battery Power by Pairing Wi-Fi Connections with Cell Tower Signals on Your Galaxy Note 3
Leaving your Wi-Fi radio "on" allows your smartphone to auto-connect to trusted wireless networks in lieu of using cellular data, but it also consumes battery power while it's constantly network hunting.
How To: Stop Those Annoying Persistent Notifications on Your Samsung Galaxy S3 for Good
I love getting notifications for every email received on my Samsung Galaxy S3 and whenever a download finishes, but there are some alerts I could definitely do without.
How To: Instantly Create Important Reminder Notes After Every Phone Call on Your Galaxy S3
I can be pretty forgetful. If there's something important to remember, I need to jot it down right away or risk losing it forever.
How To: Play NES Game ROMs on Your iPad or iPhone—No Jailbreak Required
Apple hates game emulators. Go ahead, look around in the iOS App Store, you won't find any. But who needs 'em anyway?
How To: View Cellular & Wi-Fi Data Speeds from the Status Bar of Your Samsung Galaxy Note 3
I have Verizon, America's largest 4G LTE network, as my cell service provider, but there are times when I find myself with a pretty shitty signal, rendering my upload and download speeds substantially slower than usual.
How To: Stream Personal Movies, Music, & Photos to Chromecast from Any Android Device
It's been a great week for Chromecast owners. First, Google released the development kit, allowing devs to install the casting code into their apps. Then, CyanogenMod dev Koush updated his AllCast app to support the Chromecast. That means you can shoot personal movies, music, and photos directly from your Android device over to a Chromecast-connected display.
How To: Prevent Snoops from Accessing Private Messages, Photos, Videos, & More on Your Nexus 7
My friends can be pretty shitty sometimes, but they're my friends nonetheless. On various occasions, they've secretly taken my device and made me look foolish by posting crude and embarrassing posts to Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter. With friends like these, who needs enemies, right? And it's because of these types of friends that we need to substantially upgrade the app security on our devices.
How To: Launch Google Now from Anywhere on Your Galaxy Note 3—Using Only Your Voice
Exclusive to only a handful of smartphones, including the Nexus 5, the Google Experience Launcher allows us to open Google Now simply by speaking out a certain phrase, at any time—dubbed a "hotword."
How To: Stop YouTube Surfing with a Personal Video Concierge for Your Samsung Galaxy S3
Whether you're on the john or sitting quietly on the bus to work, there's always time for a little video. And thanks to my favorite high school procrastination site, I'm going to be turning that little into a lot.
How To: Get Chat Head Bubbles for Text Messages on Your Nexus 5
A while back, Facebook released a killer feature called "Chat Heads" to its Facebook Messenger app. Messages from users would "pop up" in small bubbles that floated on the screen that could be seen, accessed, and moved around from within most apps.
How To: Beef Up Your iPhone's Passcode Security with a Blank Keypad on Your iOS 7 Lock Screen
Are you tired of your snoopy coworkers and friends lingering over your shoulder as you type in your security passcode? Unless you have the newer iPhone 5S with Touch ID that scans your fingerprint, you've only got a couple of security options—either a 4-digit numeric passcode or a cumbersome password.
Pro Tip: How to Text Best Buy & Other Businesses for Quick Information on Gadget Availability
I wonder if Best Buy has any Note 3's for sale?? When trying to figure out when something is in stock, we usually either check online or call the store to talk to someone. If certain products are out of stock the process might be tedious, with having to find phone numbers and calling several stores.
How To: Who Is This? How to Display Full Contact Names in the iOS 7 Messages App
If you're a ladies man like me then this next tip could save you from sorely embarrassing yourself. Here's the problem: You think you are texting Kelly M from New Year's when you're actually texting Kelly F from that one bar. Needless to say this could cause a problem with your relationships.
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...
How To: Skip Lock Screen Security on Your Samsung Galaxy Note 3 When Using Trusted Networks
Whether it's because you have nosy family and friends or you're just cautious about losing your device, having a passcode on your Android smartphone is essential for protection. However, you don't always need or want a passcode, especially when you're home alone or in your car on the way to work.