Crack a Phone Lock

Ever-shrinking bezels and disappearing hardware buttons make for good looking phones, but they also increase the need for gesture controls. Android Pie comes with seven new swipe gestures, but if you don't have the update yet (or find its default gesture options to be lacking) ...more

If you have the Xposed Framework installed, there's a module that lets you enable background playback in Android's YouTube app without buying a YouTube Red subscription. But Xposed is not available on many devices—particularly those running Android Nougat—so this isn't an opti ...more

At Apple's highly anticipated special event held today at their headquarters in Cupertino, California, it was announced that their latest software update, iOS 9.3, would be available to the public complete with several new additions. The most notable element of this announceme ...more

Unless you're in law enforcement, you won't usually have a flashlight on hand for those rare moments when you need to sift through the dark. However, it is very likely that you will have your phone on you, so you'll have fast access to a bright light with just a few easy taps. ...more

With a slab-style touchscreen device, butt dialing is always going to be a problem. While you're moving about, your phone can unlock itself and give your most recent contact a ring, leading to an awkward one-sided conversation where the other person gets to eavesdrop on everyt ...more

Returning your device to stock, whether it is because you need to sell it or just want to receive OTAs again, is not always a simple process. Since HTC has released countless variations of both the M7 and M8 HTC One, it can be a pain in the ass finding the right files and tool ...more

Contacts on your phone can be messy. Keeping all of those numbers, emails, and addresses organized takes time and, even then, they still may not be be as accessible as you want them to be. Drupe, an application currently in beta for Android, drastically improves the native wa ...more

In a previous softModder guide, we converted our HTC One smartphone into a legitimate Google Play Edition HTC One, but that conversion cause our bootloader to be locked once again. So, if we ever want to convert it back to a regular Sense-style HTC One, we'll need to unlock th ...more

Dorothy had it right: "There's no place like home." This is especially true when it comes to using your Samsung Galaxy S3, or pretty much any other smartphone, whose most vital button is the Home key. But what happens when that button no longer works? Replacements can be pri ...more

Nearly two years ago, Peter Chou, CEO of HTC, confirmed that the company would no longer be locking bootloaders. Whether or not they've actually lived up to this claim is debatable. Any phone bought from a wireless carrier comes locked. Only the new HTC One Developer Edition s ...more

We go to such great lengths to secure our smartphones. We put passwords on our lock screens, encrypt our data, and install anti-theft programs, but it's never enough—someone, somewhere, will find a way around any protective measure you use, no matter how sophisticated. Unfort ...more

Many people drop their phone, resulting in the dreaded cracked screen. Luckily for you, a few of those people end up replacing the screen themselves, and sometimes they even leave behind detailed instructions on how to do it. How to Replace Your Samsung Galaxy S3's Cracked LC ...more

The new iOS 14 for iPhone arrived Wednesday, Sept. 15, 2020, alongside iPadOS 14, and there are a lot of features to uncover. Improved widgets. Better home screen customization. Exciting Messages improvements. New abilities in Camera and Photos. There's so much here that it'll ...more

Apple just released the fourth public beta for iOS 14 today, Thursday, Aug. 6. This update comes two days after the company released iOS 14 developer beta 4, 15 days after Apple seeded developers the third dev beta, and two weeks after the release of public beta 3. Apple rele ...more

Apple just released the fourth developer beta for iOS 14 today, Tuesday, Aug. 4. This update comes 13 days after Apple seeded developers the third dev beta, and 12 days after public testers got their hands on public beta 3. Apple released this update at 10 a.m. PDT, the stand ...more

In iOS 13 and under, whenever you were in an app or on the home screen, and a Phone or FaceTime call came in, the entire screen would be taken over by the incoming call. Apple changed it to a subtle banner notification in iOS 14 so that it doesn't wholly obfuscate what you're ...more

Apple just announced the iPhone 6, and no matter whether you've been with Android for a few months or few years, there's a good chance you're enticed by the idea of switching over to the other side. As a diehard Android user, I can't blame you. A bigger screen, better camera, ...more

Sugru is some pretty versatile stuff. The company's slogan is "Hack things better," and for good reason. It sticks to aluminum, steel, ceramics, glass and plastics, it's waterproof and heat-resistant, and it can be molded into any shape you can imagine. Anything from your kitc ...more

WWDC 2017 is right around the corner, where Apple is expected to reveal iOS 11, the newest version of their mobile operating system. There have been many rumors floating around about what iOS 11 will have in store for us, but not all of those features will end up in the final ...more

Apple's newest mobile operating system, iOS 8, is out for the general public, and we've got a rundown on the best new features you can use on your iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch. While there's not a huge visual change as there was from iOS 6 to iOS 7, there's still plenty of coo ...more

The Snapdragon version of the Galaxy Note 20 and 20 Ultra — the one sold in the US — can't be rooted. Without root, the level of customization is limited. Such a large group of Android users shouldn't miss out on mods, and they don't have to. A number of third-party and Samsu ...more

Android 11 is here. Prior to Google dropping the naming scheme, this would have been a dessert with an R name (maybe Rice Krispies Treat or Red Velvet Cake) — but nope, just plain ol' Android 11. And after months of betas and a global pandemic, it finally debuted a little over ...more

According to a study done by Kaspersky, 7.6% of Android users root their phones. That may not sound like a lot, but with over 2 billion Android devices out there, the math works out to over 150 million rooted phones — more than the total population of Russia, Mexico, or Japan ...more

In this era of smartphones, we all know very well how easily we can get addicted to our devices. Spending hours each day doing the endless scroll through Facebook and other social media sites just because we feel like we'll miss something if we don't. Both Google and Apple are ...more

With any password manager, the only password you need to remember is the master password that locks the vault from both hackers and the company. This makes the master password very important. But what happens if you forget this password? Well, LastPass has you covered. It isn ...more

If you're ever faced with a situation of handing over your iPhone to law enforcement (or getting it taken forcibly), whether by the police, feds, or court system, there are things you can do to prevent them from getting access to all that potentially self-incriminating data. A ...more

When Google introduced the Pixel 3 on October 9th, one of new additions they briefly mentioned was the Titan M security chip. While they did talk about how it will improve overall security, they didn't expand on the number of changes it brings to the Pixel 3's security. Well, ...more

While there were a ton of features added in iOS 12, one that Apple had been bragging about since June was nowhere to be seen. Until now. With the iOS 12.1 update, your iPhone gets a huge feature, as well as a few smaller ones to boot. The iOS 12.1 update was released on Oct. ...more

If you want the best two-factor authentication app out there, our pick is Authy. A close second is LastPass Authenticator. If neither of those is to your liking, try Duo Mobile or Microsoft Authenticator. But if you're fine with missing out on great features, then and only the ...more

Apple released iOS 12 beta 9 to public beta testers on Monday, Aug. 27. The update comes at the same time as the release of dev beta 11. This is surprising, as Apple typically releases developer betas at least a few hours before the public version. Then again, everything Apple ...more

What you see when you open the Play Store is completely dependent on your country settings. Search results and top charts are specific to each region and there are lots of popular apps and games that simply won't show up unless your Play Store country matches up. Until recent ...more

The new iOS 11 was just released by Apple, and you can install it right now. Overall, it's got some great features, but how does it fare battery-wise on your iPhone? And how can you increase daily battery life for more juice and less charging every day? No matter the iOS vers ...more

As a former repair tech, I've heard the same reasons over and over as to why people opt not to purchase phone insurance. Some cite the cost—why pay extra every month for insurance when you're careful with your phone? Deductibles are expensive, so why not just spend that money ...more

A landmark bill finally went into action this week that will allow American cellular customers to unlock their smartphones for free. The process of unlocking may vary between mobile service providers, but you can rest assured that you are now entitled, by law, to carrier-unloc ...more

If you've ever noticed that the stock launcher on an Android device seems to just feel faster than any third-party home screen replacement app, this is not a placebo effect. Most manufacturers, Samsung included, force their stock launchers to reside permanently in your phone's ...more

For new Android users, rooting an Android phone can often be an intimidating process, especially since there are so many different ways to gain root access, depending on your model and firmware version. I've previously covered a way of doing it for the AT&T version of the Sam ...more

Many people all around the world have been using Korean Anycall Galaxy S (SHW-m110s), because the price is reasonable and easy to used. But after they buy this phone they always saw two clocks in the front screen while the phone locked, one is Local clock and the second is Seo ...more

Welcome back, my eager hackers! In recent blogs, I've demonstrated how to grab password hashes remotely using Metasploit's meterpreter and pwdump. Once we have the Windows passwords from the SAM file, we can then crack these hashes using tools such as Cain and Abel. In this ...more

Apple just released the third public beta for iOS 14 today, Thursday, July 23. This update comes one day after the company released iOS 14 developer beta 3, and two weeks after the release of iOS 14 public beta 2. Apple released this update at 10 a.m. PDT. While we expected t ...more

Apple just released iOS 14 developer beta 3 for iPhone today, Wednesday, July 22. The update comes 15 days after Apple released the second developer beta for iOS 14, and 13 days after the release of iOS 14 public beta 2. Apple released this update at 10 a.m. PDT, the company' ...more

The idea of a world without passwords used to be a pipe dream. But as we inch closer to making that a reality, we have services now that securely store all of our passwords under a single master password. It's a convenient way to keep our accounts safe and sound without having ...more

It's been proven that hackers can manipulate your screen with fake taps through specific exploits, so they can potentially hit the "Grant" button when you get a superuser request. This is the last thing you'd want to happen since the malicious app from that point forward has f ...more

Apple's scheduled to show off the first look of iOS 13 at WWDC 2019 on June 3, but what will the new operating system hold for iPhone? Rumors suggest that many features initially planned for iOS 12 will show up in iOS 13, codenamed "Yukon," and dark mode will be the big ticket ...more

Whether you're in high school or college, you no doubt will have your iPhone in your pocket all day long. To make your iPhone last the whole time and even help you out with your studies, these are the accessories you'll want to get your hands on. You might not think you need ...more

The default screen timeout on most Android devices is 30 seconds. This usually offers a good balance of usability and battery savings, but sometimes, you need the screen to stay on longer. For instance, practically every time I try to show something on my phone to someone else ...more

As exciting as it can be to crack open a beer, there's nothing fun about wandering around a party and asking other partygoers for a bottle opener. Don't worry, we've got you covered: here are 10 crazy ways to get to drinking while impressing your friends with your ingenuity. ...more

Apple's special September event just wrapped up with the company unveiling several new products, including the iPhone 6S, iPhone 6S Plus, iPad Pro, and the new Apple TV set-top box. In addition to hardware, Apple also discussed a couple of its latest software platforms, iOS 9 ...more

Some apps have a nasty habit of ignoring your Android's auto-rotation settings and locking the display into either portrait or landscape orientation. When you open one of these apps, the screen goes into landscape view and you're forced to hold your phone differently. Convers ...more

While it may be impolite to play around on a smartphone at dinner, having it consume my attention while I'm on a deadline or trying to study can prove disastrous. With Netflix and social media just a tap away, it's a dangerous game of wills, one that the phone usually wins. F ...more

#FOMO. If it bugs the living hell out of you that you don't know what that means, you're presently FOMO, as in you've got a Fear of Missing Out. In the world of mobile devices and everyday gadgetry, FOMO is ubiquitous, which means that GS3 you have is looking pretty lame when ...more

I've already showed you how to magically unlock your Samsung Galaxy S3 with the simple wave of a hand, but why stop there? Sure, you could go out and purchase a Samsung Galaxy S4 so you have Air Gestures that let you control the lock screen, SMS, sound, wireless, and more. We ...more

Whenever a friend borrows my Samsung Galaxy S3 to browse the web or make a quick call, I always pause to make sure there's nothing incriminating on it. I'm no superfreak, but some of my friends are, so I have more than a few photos on my device that I wouldn't wish upon anyone ...more

Tossing an old Android smartphone with a decent battery into your hacking kit can let you quickly map hundreds of vulnerable networks in your area just by walking or driving by them. The practice of wardriving uses a Wi-Fi network card and GPS receiver to stealthily discover a ...more

Are you looking for a get-rich-quick scheme? Need a way to buy that Tesla you lied about having? Well, I don't know how to get you that. But what I can tell you is there is an emerging market that pays pretty darn well, for work that's more than interesting. I'm talking, of co ...more

When I crack open a new book, I always make sure I have a pen and a highlighter nearby so I can mark away! Anything particularly witty, inspiring, or engaging gets highlighted, underlined, or circled. When I use the Amazon Kindle app on my phone, I do the same thing by writing ...more

Samy Kamkar, security researcher and friend of WonderHowTo, just had one of his devices featured in Mr. Robot. If you've never heard of Samy, you've at least probably heard of one of his hacks. For instance, the Samy computer worm that hacked MySpace, his compressed air trick ...more

Often, when you crack open a beer with friends, your buddies are more focused on texting and Snapchatting than what's happening right in front of them. Smartphones have wedged their way into bars around the world—but an innovative new beer glass is encouraging patrons to put d ...more

April Fool's Day, aka National Screw with Your Friends Day, is finally here. You can always pull a conventional prank, like strategically placing a whoopee cushion on your mom's chair, but that joke has been exhausted generations before smartphones were around. We live in a d ...more

Who wouldn't want to know if someone was trying to log onto their personal computer without their permission? Be it your annoying co-worker or your girlfriend, there are many cases where people may try to gain access to your desktop or laptop. Having a strong password is the ...more

We've seen compressed air power a homemade rocket, shoot erasers across the room, and even remove dents from a vehicle, but how about breaking a bike lock? As Theodore Gray of PopSci explains, no matter how tough your lock is, there's one thing that will defeat it every time— ...more