Android is everywhere. Apple’s major rival to iOS is a popular choice across a variety of smartphones and tablets. Like any operating system, there is a learning curve. Even if you’re already well-versed with Android, it’s easy to overlook some of the tips and tricks that can improve your experience.
Just remember that there can be quite a bit of variation between different versions of Android, so you may have to do a little hunting to find the right settings, and some features may not work with older operating systems.
Some of these tips are deceptively simple, but they’ll make your Android experience easier and more enjoyable. So go ahead and put them to work and take your Android skills to the next level.
1. Add something smart to your lock screen
You are good about keeping your Android phone off. You have a password, a PIN, a pattern or a fingerprint that is required to access your phone. It’s a smart security move, but sometimes you want convenience. This is where the Android Smart Lock feature comes in. This lets you keep your phone or tablet unlocked in certain situations, such as when you are near your home.
Go to your Settings and look for the Security menu. Select Smart Lock and open it. It gives you a suite of options ranging from on-body detection to voice match, allowing you to unlock the device with your voice.
If you’re new to this, you might want to start with the “Trusted Places” setting and set your home as the place to keep your phone unlocked. You can also set more locations, like your workspace, but keep in mind that your phone will remain unlocked in those places if you leave it sitting.
2. Get Your Quick Settings Even Faster
You probably swipe down from the top of your phone when you want to access your Wi-Fi, battery, Do Not Disturb, Bluetooth, and other basic settings. It shows icons of some of your settings as well as any active notifications you have. You’ll have to swipe down again to open the full tray of settings.
But there’s an even faster way to go to your quick settings. Swiped down with two fingers from the top and like magic, your quick settings are all set up, ready to do what you need.
3. Swipe Your Way Through Your Chrome Tabs
Most of us open multiple tabs in Chrome browser whenever we are searching the internet. On a desktop or laptop, clicking between tabs is easy. On Android, though, you probably tap on the square at the top that shows the number of tabs you have open, and then sort through the stack of tabs until you find the one you want to switch to. .
There’s another way to move between your tabs in the Chrome app and it’s more fun. Simply swipe left or right in the address bar to zip between your open tabs.
4. Use Split Screen
Starting with Android 7.0, users are able to use a split-screen feature that lets two apps share the real estate on your screen simultaneously. Tap the square icon at the bottom of your screen to view your running apps. You should see a message at the top that says “Touch and hold the window, then drag to use split screen.”
For example, you can touch and hold the Gmail window and wait a few moments for it to pop out a bit. Drag it upwards and it will take up half the space. Then, click on any other running app like Chrome to fill in the bottom and now you can use both. Press and hold the square icon (which should now resemble two vertical rectangles) to return to the normal screen.
Keep in mind that not all apps support split-screen, so you may run into some apps that won’t work with this feature. If you find that split screen is too tight for you, read on for a separate tip that will help you when using two apps at the same time.
5. Double tap on the square
Here’s a clever Android feature that is often overlooked. You are already very familiar with the three icons that are usually found at the bottom of your screen: triangle, circle and square. Touching the square shows all your open apps stacked on top of each other. That’s great for choosing an app from across the entire line-up, but there’s another handy function of the class. Double-tap it to automatically switch between apps. This is especially good if you keep a few apps open and need to bounce back and forth between them.
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