Stuff You Didn't Know Your Phone Could Do

5 things you didn't know you could do with your smartphone

With each new generation of smartphone capable of doing more than the one before it and the technology behind them advancing at practically lightning speed, it's difficult to imagine there was ever a time when we just used them to make phone calls. New features and apps are hitting the market on a daily basis, making our phones capable of performing tasks for us that we couldn't have imagined 10 years ago. If it's been a while since you browsed for new apps, it might be time to ask yourself this question: Am I getting the most out of my smartphone? Take a look at these five FREE apps and see if there's something new your phone can start doing for you today.

               1. Scan documents

Forget the bulky scanner/fax machine combos of the late 1990s. These days, most smartphones sport powerful cameras that let you do much more than snap a few photographs. Apps like CamScanner for iOS and Android allow you to turn almost anything you can take a picture of into a PDF. With this feature, you can keep digital copies of business cards, receipts, or other important documents. You can even share documents via email straight from your phone, or you can send documents to a landline fax machine.

               2. Monitor your heart rate

Measure your heart rate, watch every heartbeat with a real-time PPG graph, and monitor your cardio workouts with apps like Instant Heart Rate for iOS and Android, which uses your phone's camera in a way that's about as far from a document scanner as you can get. It uses your phone's camera to detect the color changes in your index finger that are linked directly to your pulse. Apps like these are fun to try even if you're just curious to see how they work, but they can also help you track your heart healthand stay on top of your fitness goals.

               3. Track your kids

Giving parents everywhere a little extra peace of mind are GPS tracking apps like Life360's Family Locator for iOS and Android. This app allows family members to stay in touch and let each other know when they've safely arrived at a destination. Users can view the locations of friends and family on a private map, chat one on one, and even track a lost or stolen phone.

               4. Surface level/Tape measure

These practical apps turn your smartphone into a convenient multi-use tool. Bubble Level or iOS and Android uses your phone's accelerometer (the same thing that rotates the view of your screen when you change the position of your phone) to detect how level a surface is. Using this app is as easy as setting your phone on or against the surface of a given object. And never guess height or distance again with Smart Measure for Android. It uses trigonometry to measure the distance, height, width, and area of a given object. When using the app, all you have to do is point your phone's camera at what you want to measure, then press the shutter as if you were taking a picture.

               5. Identify things

Have you ever looked at something and been totally baffled as to what it is or what it does? Has the name for it been on the tip of your tongue, driving you crazy because you can't remember what it's called? Kiss that frustrating struggle goodbye with Google Goggles for Android. Just snap a picture of a product, painting, barcode, famous landmark, or popular image. If Google can match your picture to something in its database, it will provide you with useful information. You can even use it to translate by taking a picture of text in a foreign language.

These are just a few of the nearly countless apps available for smartphones today, and more are being developed all the time. With so many apps available for free, trying out a few new ways to use your smartphone is both easy and fun.

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10 Everyday Uses For Your Phone's Camera

10 everyday uses for your phone's camera

Most mobile phones have built-in cameras, and their image quality is getting better and better. They're also convenient because people keep their phones with them wherever they go. Because of this, the built-in camera is actually a really useful tool—not just for snapshots, but also for scanning documents and recording almost any type of information you want to remember.

Here are 10 situations where a camera phone is useful.

1. Nutrition Facts labels

If you're keeping track of calories or other nutritional information, it may be easier to take a picture of the labels and then write everything down at the end of the day. You can find this information on boxes, restaurant menus, or online.

2. Comparing prices

When you're out shopping, you may like to compare prices at different stores. Just take a picture of the item's price, and try to include the item itself in the photo. The price isn't the only thing that matters; if one store sells a pack of 48 plastic cups and another store sells a pack of 96, you'll need to include this information in the photo so you can make an accurate comparison.

3. Product dimensions

If you're shopping for furniture, shelves, or appliances, it's best to measure the space before going to the store. But if you forget to do this, you can take a picture of the item's dimensions (on the front or back of the box), then measure the space when you get home. This is usually easier than buying it and having to return it if it isn't right, especially if it is large or heavy.

4. Parking lots

If you've parked at an airport or the mall, you might forget where your car is. Right after you park, take a picture of your car, and be sure to include an identifying feature like a sign or a building. When you're looking for your car, the photo can help jog your memory. Similarly, if you're visiting another city, you can take a picture of the street signs near your hotel so it's easier to find after a long day of sightseeing.

5. Car accidents

If you're involved in a car accident, it's a good idea to take pictures of your car and all other cars that were involved. If there is a dispute about who's at fault, the photos may help support your side of the story.

6. Scanning documents

You don't need a scanner to keep a record of documents. If your phone has a good camera, you can just take pictures of tax forms, bills, letters, and other documents. Even if the quality isn't perfect, it still may be good enough to read small text. For higher quality, keep the papers as flat as possible by putting them on a table or floor.

7. Rental cars

Most rental car companies require you to return the car with the same amount of gas in the tank (or more) to avoid extra fees. They'll give you a document that shows the current fuel level, but it's easy to misplace it. The first time you start the car, take a picture of the gas gauge. You can then check the photo before refueling the car.

8. Confirmation numbers

If you're buying tickets online for a movie, concert, or baseball game, you may need to bring your confirmation number to the ticket window. If you take a picture of the confirmation number on your computer screen, you won't have to worry about bringing it with you.

9. Making repairs

If you've ever taken something apart to repair it, you know that the hardest part is putting it back together. Before you start disassembling something, take a photo of it, and if necessary take more photos as you take it apart. Later, when you forget which part goes where, you'll be glad you have the photos to remind you.

Note: Do not take apart any electrical appliance or device unless you know how to do it safely. Electric shocks can cause injury or death.

10. Saving evidence

Remember that Twilight Zone episode where William Shatner (or John Lithgow in the movie version) sees a gremlin on the wing of the airplane and no one believes him? A camera phone would have been helpful in that situation. If you're telling your friends about something unbelievable that happened (for example, catching a really big fish), it's nice to have proof. Take several photos, just in case your friends are still skeptical.

With all of these tips, you'll have better luck if you know the basics of taking photos.

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Managing Notifications on Android

Managing Notifications on Android

Notifications alert you to many things on your Android device, including incoming messages, new emails, and calendar events. Notifications work slightly differently for each app, but they're easy to customize. In this lesson, we'll show you how to view and manage notifications and customize your notification settings.

The process for managing notifications may vary depending on which version of Android's operating system your mobile device is running.

              Viewing notifications

Android displays all of your current notifications in one place. You can see icons for your current notifications in the notification area at the top-left of your screen. This can tell you at a glance what types of notifications are awaiting your attention. These icons can show you what type of event they're for or which app they're from.

To see more detail about your notifications, swipe down from the top of the screen to open the notification drawer. This will show you a list of your current notifications and a little information about each.

You can manage your notifications from the notification drawer. If you tap a notification, the app that sent it will open. To dismiss a notification, touch it and swipe left or right. Tap the dismiss icon to dismiss all notifications.

On newer versions of Android, you can manage some notifications from the lock screen. Double-tap a notification to open the app or swipe left or right to dismiss the notification.

You can disable notifications on the lock screen in the sounds and notifications menus in the Settings app.

Notification settings

On Android, you can customize your notifications in several ways, including choosing which notifications you receive, when you receive them, and more. Most of these settings can be found in the sounds and notifications menus in Settings.

Interruptions

The Interruptions menu contains settings for managing when and how you receive notifications. You can find the Interruptions menu in the Sound section of the Sound & Notification menu.

The Interruptions menu lets you choose which notifications will alert you of their arrival with a sound or vibration, rather than being alerted of every notification. To enable this, tap When calls and notifications arrive, and select Allow only priority interruptions. Then select which kinds of interruptions you would like to alert you. You can also choose to only receive alerts with calls and messages from certain people.

The Downtime section allows you to set certain times when you will receive fewer or no notifications. You can select a time range for your downtime and which days of the week will have downtime.

Sounds for notifications

You can select the default sound for notifications in the Sound & notification menu by tapping Default notification ringtone.

Some apps allow you to customize the sound for notifications from that app. This option can be found in the settings menu within those apps.

App notifications

The App notifications menu allows you to customize the notifications you receive from apps. You can find the Apps notifications menu in the Notifications section of the Sound & notification menu.

The Apps notifications menu will list your installed apps. Tap on any app to change its notification settings. You can set it to block notifications from being generated by that app, or to flag this app's notifications as priority notifications.

Some apps have additional notification settings accessible from within the app. This will vary significantly for each app. Some apps don't have any additional notification settings.

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Keeping Your Device Running Smooth

Maintaining your device

Android devices are usually pretty reliable, but there are certain things that can affect your phone or tablet's performance. Poor battery life, apps that misbehave—these are just a couple of the most common complaints. With a little know-how, you can easily troubleshoot these issues to keep your device running smoothly.

Boosting your battery life

Each device is different, but most of them have a strong enough battery to get you through the day (so you only have to charge at night). If you feel like your battery is getting drained too quickly, there are a few simple things you can try.

• Many devices have big, bright screens—which is great for you, but not so great for your battery! Fortunately, reducing your screen brightness can help. To access this feature, go to your device's settings, then look for Display.
  
• Certain apps and background processes use more battery than you might think (we'll talk about this more below). To find out what's drawing the most power on your device, go to your settings, then tap Battery. If you see an app that you hardly use near the top of the list, you might want to uninstall it or attempt to adjust its settings.
  

There are other more technical things that can put a strain on your battery, including location reporting and scanning for nearby Wi-Fi networks. If you're interested in doing more to improve your battery life.

Closing, quitting, and managing apps

There are a couple of reasons you might want to close an app (or quit it as a last resort). For example:

• The app might be malfunctioning—maybe it's frozen, or it isn't displaying properly.
• The app is running in the background even though you aren't using it, which can put undue strain on your battery.

Many apps are designed to run in the background, so you should be careful about quitting anything important. (For example, email runs continuously so it can check for new messages.) This generally doesn't use much power either. If you're dealing with a true "energy hog", it's better to go into the app and adjust its settings or uninstall it all together.

To close one of your current apps (also known as swiping), tap the Recent Apps button, then swipe the app off the screen. Technically, this doesn't "close" the app—instead, it just stops any current activity that the app is trying to process. This is the first thing you should try if an app is giving you trouble.

To quit an app, go to your device's settings, then look for Apps or Application Manager. Next, open the app you're looking for and tap the Force Stop button. This will close the app and stop any and all activity (including new messages, notifications, and other activity in the future). In most cases, the app won't start again until you open it yourself, but some may restart on their own.

Be careful what you download

Finally, one of the easiest things you can do to keep your device running smoothly is to avoid suspicious software. In other words, don't download anything questionable from the Play Store . Some apps may contain malware or other power-draining features that can affect your device's performance.

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Security and Privacy

Protecting your device

People lose their devices or experience some breach of privacy more often than you might think. Luckily, there are several things you can do to protect your phone or tablet—and, by extension, your personal information.

Some of these precautions involve enabling something on your device (for example, a screen lock that provides extra security). Others depend on your knowledge of safe browsing habits, like knowing when to avoid public Wi-Fi. It only takes a minute to review your options and prepare for any mishaps down the road.

Basic security tips

A few basic strategies can go a long way toward protecting your device. Here are some everyday tips to help safeguard your information and keep your device safe, secure, and healthy.

• Update your version of Android whenever prompted. System updates often contain bug fixes and other improvements that can protect your device from the latest security threats.
• Know how to access your security settings. Take some time to review them, and make sure you understand how they work. Everyone's security settings are different—you can usually get to them in your device's settings.
• Be careful when downloading apps. Many apps in the Play Store are safe, but some may pose a risk to your privacy. Stick to apps you trust, and think carefully about any permissions they require.

Secure screen lock

By default, most devices don't require a PIN or password to unlock the screen. This means anyone can access your information if you aren't careful—including your email, photos, and text messages.

To help combat this, you can set up a secure screen lock using a feature that's already built in to your device. All you have to do is open your settings, then look for the option that says Security or Screen Lock. Your choices may vary depending on your make and model.

The next time you turn on your device, you'll have to enter the code (or pass whatever security check you chose) in order to unlock it.

Tracking and remote erase

Hopefully your device is never lost or stolen. If it is, there's a feature called Android Device Manager that can help you track it down. You can even use it to erase all of your data remotely, so there's no chance of anyone accessing it.

Android Device Manager must be set up in advance, so we highly recommend doing this now just as a precaution. To get started, open the Apps view on your device, then look for Google Settings. Next, choose Android Device Manager. You can enable or disable two options—one lets you locate your device, and the other lets you lock or erase it remotely.

Now you can track or manage your device at google.com/android/devicemanager, the Android Device Manager website. Go ahead and test it out—you'll need to sign into your Google account first. To learn more about Android Device Manager, visit Google Support.

Wi-Fi security

Using Wi-Fi instead of mobile data is one of the best ways to stay connected on your device. However, your privacy and security could be at risk if you aren't careful about the networks you use. When connecting to Wi-Fi, consider these tips:

• If you have a home Wi-Fi network, make sure it's secure (i.e., you have to enter a password to connect to it). If you don't know how to set this up, try asking a friend, relative, or even your Internet service provider for help. To learn more about wireless security, read our Connecting to the Internet lesson from our Computer Basicstutorial.
• Avoid using public Wi-Fi for sensitive tasks like online banking or shopping. Even if the network is secure, someone else on the network (for example, a patron at the same coffee shop) could gain access to your activity.
• Never connect to an unsecured network (in other words, one that doesn't require a password)—especially an unidentified hotspot in a public place. Criminals sometimes set up rogue networks with common names like "Free Wi-Fi", making it easy for them to access your information.

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Common Tasks

Working with apps

At this point, you've turned on your device and gotten it all set up. You're probably eager to start using it—for things like taking pictures, sending text messages, and all that other fun stuff.

Fortunately, these tasks are fairly easy. You just have to know what apps to look for and how to organize them so they're easier to get to. Soon, things like making phone calls and customizing your Home screen will start to feel like second nature.

Finding a specific app

Apps can be found in two places on your device. The first is the Home screen, which should include shortcuts to several common apps by default (you can even add your own—we'll show you how in a minute). The second is the Apps view, where you can access every app on your device.

As you can see from the image above, you'll open the Apps view using the icon on the Home screen. The icon may look different on your device—sometimes it's a circle, sometimes it's shaped like a grid or a square. It just depends on your make and model.

To add an app to the Home screen:

Adding an app to the Home screen is a lot like adding a shortcut on your computer desktop. You're not moving or altering the original app in any way—you're just creating a link. Ultimately, this is a great way to make your favorite apps easier to get to.

1. Open the Apps view, then find the app you want.
   
2. Tap and hold the app (be careful not to let go!), and you'll be taken to a special view of your Home screen.
3. Continue to hold the app while you decide where to put it. If your primary Home screen is full, you should be able to access/create another one by dragging the app all the way to the right.
   
4. Release the app once you've chosen a spot, and it will be added to your Home screen.
   

To navigate between Home screens, swipe left or right.

To move (or remove) Home screen apps:

With a little know-how, you can easily rearrange your Home screen icons any way you want. You can also remove any shortcuts you don't need, like if your device came with a shortcut you don't really use.

1. Make sure you're on the Home screen, then tap and hold the shortcut you want to edit. This should give you control of the icon.
2. To move it, drag and drop the icon to a new location.
   
3. To remove it, drag the icon to the Remove option. (Keep in mind that this won't delete the app from your device. It will only remove the shortcut from the Home screen.)
   

Phone calls and texting

Now that you know how to find and organize the apps you need, there's no limit to what you can do. Here are some other tasks you might be interested in while you're still getting used to your device.

To make a phone call:

Every smartphone comes with an app for making phone calls. Yours may look different from the example below, but the overall experience—including opening the app and using the keypad—should be the same.

1. Open the Phone app on your device. It's usually located in the tray at the bottom of the screen.
   
   
   
2. The keypad should appear.
3. Enter the number you want to call, then tap the phone button to continue. (If the person is in your contacts list, the information may pop up automatically. We'll take a closer look at contacts in our lesson on Managing Contacts.)
   
4. When you're done, tap the red button to hang up.
   

As you may have gathered, tablets don't come with a phone feature. If you're interested in making calls with your tablet, you might want to look into an alternative like Skype.

To send a text message:

1. Open the Messaging app on your device.
   
2. To start a new conversation, look for the new message button.
   
3. Enter the phone number of the person you want to text (or type the contact's name if he or she is already in your contacts list).
   
4. Enter your message, then press the Send button.
   
5. When the other person replies, his or her message should appear in the same conversation thread.

Traditional text messaging is done through your device's phone number—that's why tablets don't have this feature. 

The Hangouts app

Many newer devices come with an app called Hangouts. You can use it to send and receive text messages just like you would with the Messaging app—the difference is that it can be used for Google chat as well. This makes it a great choice if you do a lot of texting and chatting. 

Taking photos

The camera app can vary quite a bit from device to device. Not to worry—the interface should still be fairly intuitive. If you have questions about how your particular camera works, try checking your manual or your manufacturer's website.

To take a photo:

1. Open your device's Camera app.
   
2. The camera view should appear.
3. If the picture is blurry, try tapping your subject to refocus.
   
4. To take a picture, tap the camera button.
   

Many devices give you the option to launch the camera directly from your lock screen. To see if your device has this feature, look for an icon like the example below.

Accessing your device's settings

Once you're more familiar with your device, you might feel inclined to customize some of your settings. These settings let you control everything from the volume of your notifications to the way your lock screen works. They can even tell you how much storage space you're using.

We'll talk about various settings throughout this tutorial, so it's important to know how to access them. As for customizing them, we recommend taking the time to explore your options on your own. Because every device is different, your settings will be a reflection of whatever makes yours unique.

To open your settings:

1. Open the Settings app on your device. If it isn't already on your Home screen, you'll find it in the Apps view.
   
2. Your settings will appear.
3. Scroll through the list to find the section or setting you're looking for. Common sections include Wireless & Networks (where you can manage your connections) and Device (for personalizing your device).
   

Some devices will include shortcuts to your settings in the Notification Shade. To get there, swipe down from the top of your screen, then tap the icon in the upper-right corner.

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