Samsung Features
How To: Connect to Protected Wi-Fi Hotspots for Free Without Any Passwords
Depending on who you ask, internet connectivity should be a basic human right. With Google recently embarking on a project to provide internet capabilities to remote corners of the world using balloons and satellites while Facebook attempts to do the same with unmanned drones, the concept of free web access is steadily gaining steam.
How To: Install the Android Debug Bridge (ADB) Utility on a Windows PC
While still extremely awesome, the Samsung Galaxy Gear smartwatch is limited as to what you can download on to it, especially apps. It also doesn't have its own internet access (only Bluetooth), so apps like Instagram, Facebook, and Vine have yet to make their way to the Gear Store.
How To: Remotely View & Send Text Messages from Your Android Phone Using Any Web Browser
A huge chunk of my life revolves around my computer, and whenever I'm on my laptop and get a text message notification on my phone, I find it extremely distracting to stop whatever I'm doing to hunt it down. That's why I'm a big fan of text messaging via my computer.
How To: Schedule Bluetooth, Data, Wi-Fi & Other System Settings on Android
Before you head to class, work, or sleep, you're probably doing the same thing over and over again—toggling off system settings like Wi-Fi, sound, data, or brightness, depending on the circumstances. Schedules and routines can help increase efficiency, so while you abide to a particular schedule, so should your Android.
How To: Secure Your Samsung Galaxy Device by Disabling the Clipboard History
Whether you use a third-party keyboard or the stock offering, your Samsung device keeps a history of the last 20 words you copied on its clipboard. Samsung added this feature to Android to help make multitasking a bit easier, but if you use a password manager like LastPass, this feature quickly becomes a gaping hole in security. While you're copying and pasting your various passwords, the last 20 of them become freely available to anyone that gets their hands on your device.
How To: Automatically Silence Your Phone When You're Wearing Your Galaxy Watch
Smartwatches are great for notifications. No need to dig your phone out of your pocket or purse when someone texts you — just glance at your wrist! It's great for driving, walking, and any other activities where you need to stay connected to your surroundings. Except it can still be a little distracting, depending on your settings.
How To: Root Your Samsung Galaxy S7 or S7 Edge (US Models)
The international, Exynos-powered Galaxy S7 and S7 edge have had a working root method ever since a few days after release. But the North American variants—those using Qualcomm's Snapdragon 820 processor—have locked bootloaders, and have proven to be almost unrootable up until now.
How To: Root Almost Any Galaxy S6 or S6 Edge Without Tripping KNOX
Both the Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge have had root methods available to them before the phones were even released, but the problem with these existing root methods is that they would trip the KNOX counter on your device.
How To: The Easiest "One-Click" Root Method for Your Samsung Galaxy S3
Rooting an Android device used to be a nightmarish labyrinth of .zip files and command prompts, confusing seasoned modding veterans and newbies alike. Thankfully, the process has gotten simpler over the years, with various "one-click" rooting tool kits surfacing and working for nearly every major Android flagship on the market.
How To: Trick Apps That Won't Run if Your Phone Is Rooted into Thinking Its Not on the Galaxy Note 3
As a preventative measure against exploitation, certain Android applications won't work if your device is rooted. Opening one of these apps that detects root will typically end up with a warning and an inability to access its features, like in the picture below. AS IF!
How To: Use the Earpiece & Speaker Together for Surround Sound on Your Galaxy Note 3
Located at the bottom of the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 lies the speaker from which music, notifications, and most other audio comes from, which provides warm and clear sound when needed.
How To: Fit More Content on Your Screen by Changing the Pixel Density on Your Android Device
Because of Android's massive array of supported smartphones that carry vastly different display sizes and resolutions, the operating system uses a value known as DPI to determine the size of icons and visual assets that will best suit a given screen.
How To: Root ANY Samsung Galaxy S5 Variant (Even AT&T & Verizon) in 20 Seconds Flat
With a root bounty of over $18,000 up for the taking, developers were highly motivated to get the AT&T and Verizon Wireless variants of the Samsung Galaxy S5 rooted. Legendary hacker George Hotz, aka Geohot, has won the race and can now step up to claim his prize.
How To: Install a Custom Recovery on Your Bootloader-Locked Galaxy S5 (AT&T or Verizon)
As the largest wireless service providers in the United States, AT&T and Verizon Wireless carry some serious clout. Sadly, they use some of this power to heavily modify the Android phones that they offer.
How To: Take Still Photos with Subtle Animations on Your Samsung Galaxy Device
When it comes to added features, no manufacturer out there can hold a candle to Samsung. Whether it's a remote control for all of your electronics, a heart rate and stress level monitor, or a seemingly-magical stylus, Galaxy devices always have as much functionality as possible packed in.
How To: Trick Out Your Galaxy S3's Status Bar with New Icons, Clocks, Colors, & More
The status bar is where we get all of the important need-to-know information for our phones. At a quick glance, you can see what time it is on your Samsung Galaxy S3, how much battery power you have remaining, your current signal strength, and more. But after a while, things can feel a little stale up there.
How To: Theme a TouchWiz ROM on Your Samsung Galaxy S3 Using Morphology
One of the best aspects of Android is its customization options. You can change launchers and icons, add widgets, and replace standard apps with others that allow full customization. Android allows your device to really take on your personality, from the inside and out.
How To: Final Burn Alpha Emulator Revived on Android for Old-School Gaming Fun
Arcades have long faded away from popularity, but their legacy is being kept alive thanks to emulators and the avid fans who grew up loading quarters into all of those coin-op games. Although nothing beats an actual arcade environment, my favorite emulator from the early 2000s has found a new home on Android, and with it a second life.
How To: Update Your Samsung Galaxy S3 to the Newest Available Android OS
Using a phone that hasn't been updated is like playing NBA 2K10 in 2013. Everything works fine, but you're missing all those new features and current rosters.
How To: Get LG's "Knock Code" Feature on Your Galaxy S3 for Increased Lock Screen Security
LG's arsenal of screen-off and screen-on tap gestures recently expanded into lock screen territory. Dubbed "Knock Code", this feature allows owners of various LG phones, like the G2 and upcoming G3 to unlock their phone with a series of taps on the screen. The most impressive part is that the screen doesn't even need to be on!
How To: Bypass Filters, Firewalls, & Open Hotspot Restrictions on Your Galaxy Note 3
Ever use an open hotspot on your Note 3, only to find out that it's severely restricted to what sites you can access? While getting online with free Wi-Fi is great for those who have a limited data plan, when that one site you absolutely need to visit is blocked, you're left frustrated and sent back into the Wi-Fi menu for another access point.
How To: Retain Swipe to Unlock Effects with Lock Screen Security on a Samsung Galaxy S4
Most hardcore Android fans loathe carrier or manufacturer additions to the Android operating system. Whether it's bloatware or changes to the user interface, many enthusiasts prefer the clean look of stock Android.
How To: Disable Lock Screen Security While in Trusted Locations on Your Galaxy S5
With all of the personal data that's stored on our smartphones, it's of vital importance that we have some sort of lock screen security enabled. One of the Galaxy S5's killer features is obviously the fingerprint scanner. It makes the process of dealing with a secure lock screen a bit easier than typing in a password or PIN.
How To: Enable "Unknown Sources" in Order to Download Independent Apps on Your Galaxy Note 2 or 3
Installing applications that are not on Google Play requires you to enable a certain permission in the settings so that the whole process goes down smoothly. If you're downloading one of these third-party applications (in the form of an APK), you'll need to enable Unknown sources.
How To: Get the Google Play Edition Camera & Gallery on a TouchWiz Based Samsung Galaxy S4
While there's still no set date, Jelly Bean 4.3 is rumored to be released on the Samsung Galaxy S4 and other TouchWiz devices within the next couple of weeks (or months), presumably sometime after the upcoming Samsung Unpacked event.
How To: See What Your Android Emojis Look Like on iPhones Before Sending Them
When you send an emoji from your Android device to someone that uses an iPhone, they don't see the same smiley that you do. And while there is a cross-platform standard for emojis, these don't work the same way as unicode-based smilies or dongers, so not every operating system displays these little guys the same way.
How To: Enable True Stereo Sound on Your Galaxy S5
With all of the top-notch specs that the Galaxy S5 sports, the only minor quibble users have had with its hardware is the speaker situation. A front-facing earpiece is used for phone calls, but all other media is restricted to a single rear-firing speaker.
How To: PIN-Protect Mobile Data & Wi-Fi to Prevent Procrastination & Unwanted Charges
Normally, "restricted access" is something you despise. No one likes to be told they can't do something, especially when it comes to the Internet. Unfortunately, having web access at all times can not only eat away at your wallet, but make your day less productive overall, so some sort of moderation is needed.
How To: Remove TouchWiz on Your Galaxy S6 for a Clean, Stock Android Look
When the Galaxy S6 hype-train was building momentum ahead of the phone's release, many reports had Samsung cutting back on its much-maligned TouchWiz skin. In the end, these reports were either highly exaggerated or entirely fabricated, because while not as egregious as previous devices, Samsung's signature bloated UI and duplicate apps are definitely present on the Galaxy S6.
How To: Install a Custom Recovery & New ROM on Your Bootloader-Locked Samsung Galaxy S4
Third-party ROMs like CyanogenMod are the ultimate form of customization for softModders. Hard-working developers offer us alternate Android experiences to replace our often bloatware-riddled stock ROMs.
How To: Monitor CPU Temperature from Android's Status Bar
At the core of your Galaxy S5's hardware lies the central processing unit, or CPU for short. Practically every piece of data, every binary bit, has to pass through your CPU before it can be used to display a video or execute a game command.
How To: Set Your Favorite Video as Your Alarm or Ringtone on a Samsung Galaxy S3
Your smartphone has a ton of ringtone options built in, but ringtones haven't really changed much in the past decade, and it's definitely not cool to hear someone in the supermarket with the same lame ringer. While replacing the stock sounds with a song of your choosing is the best way to keep your phone personalized, why not go a step further using a video?
How To: Root Your Samsung Galaxy S4 (GT-I9500)
Ready to start rooting your Samsung Galaxy S4? For those of you with the GT-i9500 model GS4, this quick video will walk you through the entire rooting process using Odin and CWM.
How To: Fix Lock Screen Issues When TalkBack & Explore by Touch Are Enabled on Your Samsung Galaxy Note 2
One little known feature on Android devices is TalkBack, which provides you with spoken feedback and vibrations in order to help you navigate your device. Obviously, if you're not blind or visually impaired, this isn't a feature you're likely to use.
How To: Secretly Record Videos Using the Volume Keys on Your Galaxy S4 or Other Android Phone
Unlike the suave 007 that Daniel Craig portrayed, I am not a spy, nor am I that charming, but I do occasionally enjoy taking a stealthy video. Maybe I'm a jerk, but I often catch people doing ridiculous things and just think, "Aren't you embarrassed?"
How To: Install the Xposed Framework on Your Samsung Galaxy S4 for Quick & Easy softModding
Xposed, by XDA developer rovo89, is a framework for your Samsung Galaxy S4 (or other Android device) that lets you add tweaks and customizations to your ROM (either stock or custom) without any real hassle.
How To: Unlock "S Health" Features in Any Country on Samsung Galaxy Devices
S Health is one of the biggest selling points for newer Samsung Galaxy devices. It offers a centralized place to view and manage data collected by all of the various sensors like the heart rate monitor.
How To: Get CyanogenMod's New Secured Text Messaging Without Rooting or Installing a Custom ROM
In spite of the degree of difficulty it is to install, CyanogenMod has steadily climbed the ladder to become one of the most popular third-party firmwares for Android devices.
How To: Enable LED Flash Alerts for Calls & Notifications on Galaxy Devices
I'm the type of person that rarely has an audible ringer enabled on my phone. Haptic feedback (vibration) is enough for me... most of the time. When my phone isn't in my pocket, I become the type of person who frequently misses calls and texts—and no one likes that person.
How To: Get Ambient Weather Readings Instantly Using Your Samsung Galaxy Note 2's Built-In Sensors
The new Samsung Galaxy S4 may be the only phone to include temperature and humidity sensors, but your Galaxy Note 2 has a few weather-detecting features of its own.