Android Recovery Mode

If you've ever tinkered with a phone, you're familiar with booting into recovery mode. You're probably used to using a combination of hardware buttons to get into recovery, which usually includes the power button and one of the volume buttons. The thing is, you don't really ne ...more

You can't call yourself an Android pro without knowing about Recovery or Download Mode. These menus are critical to do more advanced tasks on your phone, include sideloading software updates and un-bricking a device. But this year, Samsung changed the button combinations that ...more

You don't need to be a hardcore modder to know the importance of booting your S10 into either recovery mode or download mode. In fact, these pre-boot menus are something everyone should be familiar with. The former can help you get out of soft bricks, while the latter lets you ...more

Samsung devices have two pre-boot menus that every Galaxy owner should know about: recovery mode and download mode. The recovery screen allows users to wipe cache files or perform a factory reset, which can help save the phone from a soft brick. Download mode, on the other han ...more

From veteran modders to casual tinkerers, booting into either recovery mode or download mode is something every Galaxy S9 owner should know about. These two pre-boot menus serve a very important purpose — recovery mode is the go-to solution for soft bricks, while download mode ...more

Recovery mode and download mode are useful for modding and they can come in handy in a pinch. Booting into recovery mode to do a factory reset or wipe cache fan save your Galaxy S20 from a soft brick, and entering download mode lets you install firmware with utilities like Odi ...more

Hi, everyone! Recently, I've been working on a pretty interesting and foolish project I had in mind, and here I'm bringing to all of you my findings. This guide's main aim is to document the process of building an Android kernel, specifically a CyanogenMod kernel and ROM, and ...more

Team Win Recovery Project (TWRP) is a custom recovery for Android devices and the one used by most softModders, mainly because it has touch-based actions, as compared to the more time-consuming button-based approach that ClockworkMod (CWM) uses. With TWRP, you can flash new R ...more

Getting into fastboot or recovery mode on your Android device is nothing new, especially if you're a softModder. Accessing the bootloader menu is the genesis to a lot of mods, and if you're like me and constantly tweak your device, you probably get irritated every time you hav ...more

In a welcomed Wednesday twist, iOS 13.4 public beta 3 follows the release of developer beta 3 by just three hours. While that isn't super uncommon for most beta cycles, it is for this one. Apple waited 24 hours between dev beta 2 and public beta 2, and five full days between d ...more

Both the OnePlus 5 and 5T have two pre-boot menus that every owner should know about: Recovery mode and bootloader mode. The recovery screen lets you wipe cache, perform a factory reset, or install firmware, which can help save the phone from a soft-brick. Bootloader mode, on ...more

The majority of Android web browsers carry a "desktop mode" feature that makes mobile websites look like normal computer versions. Mobile versions are designed to work faster and more efficiently on smartphones, but sometimes the desktop version looks better on large displays ...more

After Android 10 added a system-wide dark mode, hordes of app developers rushed to add support for the feature. This even helped users on Android 9 and below since most apps could be manually set to a dark theme now. Emphasis on most — WhatsApp was conspicuously absent, for on ...more

In the new Android P, the multitasking view is reminiscent of webOS days. As a result, enabling split screen mode no longer works as it once did. However, it's still easy to use, whether or not you're using the new "Swipe up on Home button" gesture or have stuck with the old-s ...more

When it comes to modding Android, root gets all the glory, but a good custom recovery is really the only thing you need. Not only does it allow you to back up your entire phone, install flashable ZIPs, and load custom ROMs like LineageOS, but a custom recovery will even let yo ...more

Recently, Google's Messages app has become an important cog in the Android ecosystem. That's because, for the time being, it's one of the only texting apps which supports RCS Universal Profile for iMessage-style conversations. Even better, Google just gave it a highly sought-a ...more

One of the biggest features of Android Oreo is a picture-in-picture mode that lets you watch videos in a floating window while you're using other apps. Honestly, it's fantastic and intuitive, but there are a few ground rules you'll need to learn to master the new feature. Cur ...more

Android Lollipop has an awesome feature called "Battery saver" mode that reduces power consumption through various tweaks in order to squeeze in an extra hour or two of standby time when your battery is running low. It does this by disabling background processes as well as loc ...more

A new feature in Android O is making it incredibly easy to multitask while you're watching a video. It's called Picture-in-Picture mode, and if you've ever used a TV with this option, you should already have a pretty good idea of how it works. PiP mode is fairly intuitive, an ...more

Manufacturers like Samsung and LG have added their own implementation of multi-window features to Android for years now, but with the release of version 6.0 Marshmallow, Google has finally gotten around to working the same feature into stock Android. Don't Miss: How to Enable ...more

The biggest complaint I hear about Android Lollipop is the fact that the new Priority Mode notification system has effectively killed off "Silent Mode." Sure, you can still put your phone on vibrate, but that's not truly silent. Selecting "None" as your notification mode isn't ...more

Chrome's Incognito Mode is a great feature for folks that don't want their browsing history tracked. When it's enabled, Incognito Mode makes sure that all cookies and cache that are saved while you're browsing are deleted as soon as you leave a webpage. Unfortunately, though, ...more

Rooting is a great way to unleash your device's full potential, but not everyone's comfortable with it. Rooting can void a warranty, cause issues with certain apps, and the process itself can be tricky for older devices. Alas, most of the great apps or mods out there require r ...more

When you're playing videos, the actual content should be the focus, not the media app's interface. But with VLC's default theme on Android, the bright orange-and-white motif shocks your eyes in a dimly-lit setting and draws your attention away from what really matters. Let's c ...more

On a recent trip to Palm Springs, I found myself navigating with Google Maps and virtually exploring my destiniation using its built-in Street View feature. The thing is, using Street View can make keeping track of your exact location difficult as you zoom in, out, and about. ...more

If you ever consider modding your Galaxy Note 20 or Note 20 Ultra, you'll need to know about recovery mode and download mode. Even if that isn't your thing, knowing how to how to boot into these modes can help save your phone from a soft brick. Without the dedicated Bixby but ...more

Rooting your Samsung Galaxy S4 has many advantages; theming, free wireless hotspots, deleting system apps, and generally being ahead of the curve when it comes to updates. It's also great for simple things like centering your clock or freezing apps. Today, I'm going to cover ...more

Ever tried using Android's split screen mode only to find the app you wanted to split doesn't support it? Even big-name apps like ESPN still don't support the feature despite the majority of Android devices having split screen. So instead of waiting for the developers, how abo ...more

Android 7.0 Nougat brought a lot of multitasking improvements along with it, but the most notable addition is a unified multi-window mode (which shines bright in Google's Pixel phones). This means that every Android device can now use the same split-screen interface, and the d ...more

Lots of Google apps are getting dark mode. Google Drive has had it on Android 10 for a few months. But it hasn't been accessible to all Android users until now. With the latest update, there's a manual dark mode switch you can turn on regardless of what OS version you have. D ...more

It's nice having a dark theme on Android 10 and One UI 2, but setting it on a schedule takes it a step further. Imagine the light theme turning on every morning, and the dark theme taking over after sunset — all automatically. It sounds pretty simple, but it's one of those thi ...more

In general, smartphones and cars don't mix—but this is mainly because you have to take your eyes off the road to poke around on your handheld gadget. In reality, the only difference between your smartphone and your car's FHWA-approved infotainment system is that the latter is ...more

Nokia's calling card used to be camera quality, a small bright spot compared to the black hole that was Windows Mobile. Since Microsoft discontinued the rarely-used operating system, Nokia phones began to run Android — and now, they're getting back to their camera-driven roots ...more

Reading articles on an Android phone using Chrome Browser can be a little bit of a battle; it often times requires adjusting the page to fit the screen in order to make it easier to read and scroll through. I sometimes lose this struggle and give up trying to read on my device ...more

One of the more talked-about features of Android Lollipop is a new Priority Mode that allows you to mute all notifications except for those coming from starred contacts. As simple as that sounds, this can still be a bit confusing—or at least lead to some unwanted interruptions ...more

Apple added a Bedtime Mode to its Screen Time tool for curbing smartphone distractions. Google's version of Screen Time, called Digital Wellbeing, actually predates Apple's, but a recent update is finally bringing in Bedtime Mode. The new Bedtime Mode is mostly a rebranding o ...more

When Google released the first Developer Preview build of Android 7.0 Nougat, users were happy to see that a new "Night Mode" was included among the changes. The feature would cancel out any blue light emitted from your screen to help you get to sleep a bit earlier, quite simi ...more

Thanks to Android Pie's gesture controls, features like split screen mode now take several additional steps to activate. This change is due to the revamped navigation bar which removed the recents apps button. Luckily, we can still change it back. With some tinkering in Setti ...more

Android 10's new dark mode is a pleasure to behold for longtime users. Ever since OLED panels became widespread, we've been clamoring for the feature. But now that we have it, there's a new problem: it doesn't turn on automatically based on time of day. Thankfully, a simple ap ...more

The biggest new feature in Android 10 is the system-wide dark mode. Both Samsung and Google phones have it, so third-party support is everywhere. The only problem is OnePlus forgot to include a way to quickly toggle dark mode on and off. You'd have to imagine a dark mode togg ...more

Whether if it's to play games or watch Netflix or YouTube, children love using our smartphones and tablets. As an uncle of many, I don't mind my nieces and nephews using my gear, but I do mind them opening apps they have no business being in, like my photo gallery or messaging ...more

We all got a little jealous of the iPhone 7 Plus's dual-lens camera during the Apple Keynote in September. It's okay, you can admit it. But just because your Android doesn't have two lenses doesn't mean you can't recreate the fun bokeh effect of the iPhone's now wildly popular ...more

The OnePlus 7 Pro comes with a new Zen Mode feature to help increase your concentration and reduce distractions. It takes things a step further than Google's Digital Wellbeing by disabling your device and stopping sounds. But even if you don't have a OnePlus, you can now get t ...more

Of all the new features in Android 6.0 Marshmallow, an automatic battery-saving function called "Doze" might just be the most interesting. What it all boils down to is that if you set your phone down on a flat surface, the device uses internal sensors to detect that it's motio ...more

Several Samsung phones have a feature that turns the screen black and white when the battery is getting low. This takes advantage of the AMOLED display in these devices, because unlike red, green, and blue pixels, no battery power is used to display black pixels on this type o ...more

Picture in Picture mode is one of Android's best multitasking tools. Ever since its introduction in Android 8.0 Oreo, you've been able to watch videos in a floating window while you use other apps. In Android 11, this feature is getting its first real upgrade. In Android 11, ...more

While it's rare, there could be a day when your iPhone 12, 12 mini, 12 Pro, or 12 Pro Max isn't responding, where taps and swipes on the screen do nothing, and the Side button won't let you force a restart. The culprit could be any number of problems, from corrupted files to b ...more

So far, iOS 13.4 hasn't been a disappointment. From new Memoji stickers, a refreshed Mail toolbar, and even the beginnings of controlling your car with your iPhone, Apple's latest iOS update is looking like a good one. That's why we're excited that Apple just released the thir ...more

It's now common knowledge that the blue light emitted by phone screens makes it harder to get a good night's sleep. Apple's Night Shift in iOS and its steamrolled predecessor, f.lux (still available for desktop computers), are attempts to combat these harmful effects by limiti ...more

For years, users have been clamoring for a "dark mode" theme in Android, but it has always seemed like Google is so committed to the white motif from their web services that such an option would never become a reality. But in a stunning turn of events, Google is finally embrac ...more

Dark themes are all the rage these days, and both Android and iOS have system-wide versions. Many big-name apps and device manufacturers have already jumped on board the night train, and Google Chrome is no different. But the Chrome mobile browser offers various ways to enable ...more

Dark mode is simply a way of life these days now that both Android and iOS officially support it. Most major apps now use the system-wide setting on Android and iOS, and many had their own dark themes in-app before Google and Apple got with the program. But the social media gi ...more

Dark mode is finally rolling out for Gmail on Android. But this is a Google product, so you already know it'll be a while before the server-side update hits most devices. Sideloading the newest APK doesn't work, neither does switching accounts. But if you're rooted, you can en ...more

As smartphones become increasingly integral parts of our lives, so does data throttling. Personally, I try to save data any way that I can, so to stave off unnecessary usage, I use the GoogleOfflineVoice to limit the amount of data consumed by voice typing. With this Xposed m ...more