#Android - Page 4
509 Stories
How to Use Phone as Webcam for Streaming or Video Conferencing
Arjun Sha
Abubakar Mohammed
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Desktop and Laptop cameras have hardly improved in decades and offer laughable video output. Hence, you might want to use your phone's cameras to take video calls or record videos. We'll explain how you can use your Android phone as a webcam via Android's native "Device as Webcam" feature. There are also third-party apps that you can use to do the same on both iOS and Android.
List of Trackers Compatible with Android’s New Find My Device Network
Abubakar Mohammed
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If you want to start using the latest Find My Devices, some of the best trackers that work with Android's new Find My Device network are Pebblebee Clip, Card, and Tag, and Chipolo One Point and Card Point. Other supported devices from Eufy and Jio will soon land in the market.
Every Android device comes with an in-built screen recorder these days. However, in some phones like the Pixel series, you don't get a lot of control over the screen recorder. You can't tweak the screen recording quality, frame rate and other settings. This calls for reliance on third-party screen recording Android apps, like XRecorder, AZ Recorder and Mobizen. These are free too, with only certain features like recording at over 60 FPS being locked behind a paywall.
The Android Ecosystem Is Fractured: Here’s Why It Can’t Catch up to Apple
Anshuman Jain
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In this article, I discuss the state of the Android ecosystem in 2024, highlighting the lack of a unified ecosystem. Going over some aspects of why it is that way and what can be done to change or fix it and whether there is a future for a well connected Android space just like Apple's.
Android 15 Beta 1 is out and it comes with the option to change the default wallet app from the settings menu. This will facilitate NFC payments for your preferred app that you use regularly for making transactions. The feature only works with a limited number of apps as of now depending on the region but wider support should be available later down the line.
Google has released the first Android 15 Beta and while it doesn't bring many new features, it brings a few improvements over Android 15 Developer Preview 2. Some of the highlights of this update are the WEP toggle, new Predictive back gesture animations, and TalkBack support for Braille displays that use HIDs via USB or Bluetooth. Besides, Google has replaced the NFC stack with a project mainline one.
Secret codes on Android devices let you access hidden settings and information. These codes are entered through the phone's dial pad, can be divided into two categories: MMI (Man Machine Interface) codes, which are specific to the device's manufacturer, and USSD (Unstructured Supplementary Service Data) codes, which are used to connect with the mobile service provider.
Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 vs Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 Benchmark Comparison
Arjun Sha
Sagnik Das Gupta
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We recently got our hands on the Xiaomi Civi 4 Pro from China which is powered by Qualcomm's newly launched, Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 chipset. We tested the SoC on several benchmarking apps and compared the scores with the premium Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor. We have performed various tests including Geekbench, AnTuTu, CPU Throttling, Geekbench GPU, and more.
Qualcomm has delivered a powerful mid-range chipset in the 7-series segment. In our benchmark tests on the OnePlus Ace 3V, which is powered by the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 chipset, the SoC performed consistently on all fronts, be it the CPU, GPU, modem, or memory. It has officially defeated MediaTek's Dimensity 8300 Ultra and stands as the top performer in the mid-range segment. You can read our detailed article to find all benchmarks, including Geekbench, AnTuTu, CPU throttling, 3DMark, and more.
Demystifying A/B Partitions: A Look at Android’s Seamless Updates
Abubakar Mohammed
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Seamless updates make OTA updates install quicker on Android. Traditionally, upon receiving an update, your Android device would require a restart to start the installation process. However, with seamless updates and what Google calls A/B partitioning, the updates are installed parallelly without interruptions and would only need a restart once installed.
OnePlus has launched its mid-range Nord CE 4 smartphone so we benchmarked the Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 chipset to evaluate the performance of CPU, GPU, 5G modem, etc. Its CPU performed fairly well and in the CPU Throttling test, it sustained a high workload without dropping performance. In the 3DMark GPU test as well, the Adreno 720 GPU offered exceptional stability. You can go through our article to find more benchmark numbers of the Snapdragon 7 Gen 3.
Big Tech Is Using ‘Powered by AI’ as a Marketing Gimmick, and It Needs to Stop
Anshuman Jain
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There is a new trend used by Big Tech to plaster the term "AI-powered" in their marketing for features that are iterative improvements of features we have seen before. This tactic is being used quite freely by manufacturers to highlight of their new smartphones, catch attention and sell more phones. I took a deep dive into this matter and here are my thoughts on it.
Android, no matter which skin it features, comes with an in-built screen recorder. All you have to do is swipe down from your home screen to enter the Quick Settings panel and tap on the screen recorder icon to start recording. Some devices allow you to tweak the recording settings but devices like the Pixel series do not. In such cases, you can use the XRecorder app to record your device's screen or a tool call Scrcpy.
You Can Now Install Any Extension on Edge Canary for Android; Here’s How
Arjun Sha
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If you are on Android, you can install browser extensions on Edge for Canary. With the latest update, it now lets you install any web extension on Edge. You just need to paste the extension ID and Edge will install it for you. While the experience is somewhat buggy and it crashes the browser often, the availability of extension support on Android is quite promising.
Kanika Gogia
The answer is no. AirTags do not work with Android. There's simply no way to set up an AirTag using an Android device. An AirTag uses Apple's Find My network for precision finding and location tracking. However, an Android phone can be used to scan for unwanted AirTags. This way, you can ensure that you aren't being tracked without consent.
Setting Custom Contact Ringtones on Android is Now Easier Than Ever
Abubakar Mohammed
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Google is rolling out a new feature in the Contacts app that allows users to set custom contact ringtones for different contacts on Android. The previous flow to add custom contact ringtones wasn't as intuitive as the latest one. You can now add a custom contact ringtone by going to the Contacts app > Fix and manage tab > Contact ringtones.
If your Android device struggling to hold a charge, there it's important that you identify the apps that are draining your battery and take control. To prevent excessive battery drain, you can enable Adaptive battery, restrict apps from running in the background, force-close apps you're not using, uninstall apps you no longer use, and update them to their latest available versions from the Play Store.
AirPods don't play well with Android devices but if you want to enjoy certain features that are exclusive to iOS, apps like MaterialPods, AndroPods, Assistant Trigger should help. These apps offer features like pop-up animations, Google Assistant integration, battery status, in-ear detection, and more to enhance your AirPods experience on Android.
The Files by Google app on Android is now getting the ability to scan documents. To use it, open the app -> tap on the floating scan button -> point your phone at the document you want to scan -> once it automatically scans, tap one. This feature gives you additional options like crop & rotate, filter and clean. Also, note that the documents are automatically saved in the PDF format.
In a surprise move, Microsoft has declared that it is ending support for Windows Subsystem for Android (WSA). The feature was first introduced with Windows 11 and allowed users to run Android apps via the Amazon Appstore without taking to third-party emulators. Microsoft is now doing away with it and won't allow users to download new Android apps via Amazon Appstore, starting March 5, 2025. Moreover, from March 6, 2024, users will not be able to search for any new apps on the Appstore. Those that already have Amazon Appstore apps will be able to use it till the support cutoff date.
What Is Health Connect on Android, How to Use and Supported Apps
Abubakar Mohammed
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Health Connect is a framework module in Android that syncs various parameters of fitness data across all fitness apps on your Android devices. For example, you could sync data between two fitness apps like Fitbit and Samsung Health since the data is stored and synced via the Health Connect framework.
Although the new features are not groundbreaking, Google has announced some key AI features for all of its platforms including Android, Android Auto, Wear OS, Google Docs, etc. You can chat with Gemini in the Google Messages app, have all your notifications summarized in Android Auto, view your boarding pass and other cards on your Wear OS smartwatch, and more.
The Android Safe Browsing feature will alert you of potentially harmful websites, redirect links, or phishing links in supported apps. Safe Browsing uses Google's SafetyNet Safe Browsing API from the Google Play Services to weed out harmful links. It can be enabled by going to Settings -> Security and Privacy -> More Security and Privacy -> Android Safe Browsing.
Read Aloud is an essential accessibility feature and Google has improved the functionality using the Reading Mode app on Android. You can install the Reading mode app from the Play Store for free, and it will read aloud the content on your screen effortlessly. It works on web pages and most apps like Gmail and WhatsApp, which is great. Alternatively, you can use Google Assistant's Read Aloud mode to read the contents of any webpage.
Bluetooth Absolute Volume is a feature that acts as a middle-man between your Android's DAC (Digital to Analog Converter) and the audio that goes to your earphones. You can disable it by going to Settings -> Developer Options -> Toggle off "Disable Absolute Volume" option.
Google Is Looking to Rebrand Android’s Nearby Share to ‘Quick Share’
Abubakar Mohammed
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Google is rebranding it's Nearby Share feature to Quick Share. The change was first spotted by tipster Kamila Wojciechowska in GMS version 23.50.13. Notably, Quick Share is the moniker used by Samsung. This suggests that Apple and Samsung are probably collaborating to merge the feature under Quick Share moniker.
You’d Soon Be Able to Remotely Uninstall an App from Your Android Device
Akshay Gangwar
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Tipster AssembleDebug found and enabled a feature flag in the Google Play Store that allows users to remotely uninstall apps from connected devices. The feature should arrive soon to all Android devices.
Satyam Kumar
Beeper Mini is a trending app that emulates iMessage for Android. It allows for seamless communication from Android to Apple devices and is touted to feature 'end to end encryption'. However, Apple broke the app recently and essentially shut it down - and despite this, the developers of Beeper Mini have brought it back alive! After all, the dream of blue bubbles & green bubbles staying friends could come true.
Beeper Mini utilizes research from reverse-engineering the iMessage protocol. With this, iMessage for Android is easy to start using - simply download the Beeper Mini app and get started. Moreover, the Beeper developers are being quite forthcoming with how their technology works. No servers, or middlemen are required, to make iMessage for Android possible. Beeper Mini is available on Play Store right now, however it is a paid app. It costs $1.99 per month to use, with a free 7 day trial.
Google Play Services is an important component of the Android operating system. It gives users access to Google apps and services such as Gmail, Google Play Store, and YouTube. Updating the app might bring new features to your device, and to do so, you can use the Google Play Store or a third-party store, or sideload the application to update it.
Android System Webview is an important system component that helps apps open web pages within an app, without the need of opening them in your default browser. You will mostly interact with the Webview app when you click on a link inside an app and a new window pops above the app to show you its web contents.
Android System Inteligence is a core Android app that enables a slew of new smart features such as Live Captions, Live Translate, Smart Autorotate, etc. Although the app is available across all Android devices, there are certain features that it enables that are Pixel-exclusive.
How to Block Spam Calls on Android (3 Ways)
Abubakar Mohammed
How to Enable Car Crash Detection On Pixel Devices
Abubakar Mohammed
RCS or Rich Communication Services is a messaging protocol that was first developed in 2007 by a group of industry stakeholders and was later adopted by GSMA. RCS offers a much better texting experience with high quality media, no character limit, read receipts, typing indicators, and even group chats. It's available on Android and iOS both, with the support for latter only arriving recently.
This Is the Most Used Android Version!
Vanshika Malhotra
This App Makes Android’s ‘At A Glance’ Widget Super Useful
Abubakar Mohammed
How to Check Battery Health on Android (2 Ways)
Abubakar Mohammed
How to Get iOS 17 Standby Mode on Any Android Phone
Anmol Sachdeva
Android 14 Release Date: Here’s When You’ll Get It
Abubakar Mohammed
Android Gets a Brand New Logo and an Adorable 3D Mascot!
Anmol Sachdeva
