Cyanogenmod Android

Keeping prying eyes off your device isn't always the easiest thing to do, especially once you lend somebody your phone to make a call. Seems that whenever someone is scrolling through your pictures or checking out your new phone, they always end up somewhere you don't want the ...more

These days, our smartphones carry some very sensitive data. From banking app passwords to personal photos, there are many things on your Nexus 5 that you might not want other people to have access to. Luckily, most mobile operating systems have some sort of security available ...more

With over 8 million active users, CyanogenMod is definitely the most popular ROM for Android devices, which explains why venture capitalists invested $7 million last month for future development. Still, not everyone is willing to root their smartphone or tablet to install Cya ...more

If you're new to Android phones, one of the first things you've probably noticed is how notification alerts differs from Apple devices, especially in regards to getting a text message. When you receive a text on an iPhone, the display turns on and shows you a popup notificati ...more

In a previous softModder tutorial, we installed CyanogenMod on our HTC Ones to approximate the look and feel of the Google Edition HTC One. Unfortunately, this rendered Beats and HTC's ImageChip (among other things) useless. This is no longer an issue, though, thanks to Andro ...more

Rooting, bootloaders, custom ROMs, CyanogenMod, ClockworkMod... it's all pretty confusing, isn't it? You're not the only one having trouble with this. Many users in the Nexus 7 SoftModder forum have been scratching their heads at these many terms. First, let's cover the terms ...more

Rooting a phone lets us install custom operating systems, known as ROMs, which replace the device's preinstalled OS. Most custom ROMs are based on code from the Android Open Source Project (AOSP), which gives them a look and feel similar to Google's version of stock Android. B ...more

The latest Google Play Services update has somehow broken major functionality in both Titanium Backup and Substratum. Titanium Backup has suddenly become stuck at zero percent while restoring, and Substratum simply fails to apply themes anymore. Both of these apps do require r ...more

Android comprises an entire ecosystem of apps, games, functions, and features, so it would only make sense that it has its own lexicon. Words, phrases, and acronyms that didn't exist ten years ago are now used in an off-the-cuff style by developers and support technicians acro ...more

If you're an Android fan, you probably made your choice in mobile operating systems based on the insane level of customization options that Google's software offers. Don't like your home screen app? Simply replace it. Not a fan of a particular app's sharing system? No big deal ...more

If you've ever flashed a custom ROM on any of your devices, one of your main motivations for doing so was likely the set of neat tweaks and extra options that come with something like CyanogenMod. Another deciding factor was probably the fact that most custom ROMs offer a much ...more

One of the few areas where Android lags behind iOS is a comprehensive backup solution for apps. Root tools, such as the popular Titanium Backup, are capable of backing up all of your apps and their data, but not everyone wants to root their device and potentially run into issu ...more

Yesterday, the Free Software Foundation published an article written by Paul Kocialkowski. A software developer for the the Android fork system Replicant, Paul stated that his organization discovered, and later patched, a "backdoor" vulnerability that existed in older Samsung ...more

Fresh off the heels of their latest agreement, Google and Samsung may soon be further aligned in their mobile technology outlook. The two tech giants signed a cross-licensing patent agreement, but that doesn't mean that Samsung was just going to start putting out stock Android ...more

If you've been using Google's hidden App Ops to lock down and prevent some of your Android applications from exposing your privacy, then think twice before updating to the new Android 4.4.2 software. What Is App Ops? App Ops was Google's hidden gem that was built into the An ...more

HTC's Sense 4 may be leaner and faster than previous versions, but one thing my EVO 4G LTE sorely lacked was the "Quick Settings" option that Sense 2 and 3 had. Developers were able to port it to Sense 4 for Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich), but the only way to get this featur ...more

One of the biggest features to come out with Android O was the addition of a new System UI Tuner submenu that lets you customize the navigation bar at the bottom of your phone's screen. But as it turns out, this same feature can be enabled on devices running Android Nougat, ev ...more

Starting with the Priv, BlackBerry's become an Android manufacturer. This move gives BlackBerry's phones access to Google's sizable app store, but it also presents several hurdles to keeping the security brand they've built intact. For example, Android encryption still lags b ...more

In the digital age, maintaining your privacy is a never-ending battle. All sorts of companies and agencies have access to your data, and quite a few can eavesdrop on almost every method of modern communication. In an effort to push back, Open Whisper Systems has been at the f ...more

Despite CyanogenMod actively working on their CM 12S Lollipop-based ROM, OnePlus has opted to develop their own ROM, and after a few setbacks, OxygenOS is finally out. The OS is the result of OnePlus wanting to ship their devices without needing an outside company to create a ...more

Finding the right theme can be a pain. Some are too gaudy or simple, while others look like they were thrown together as a joke. So why not try your hand at making your own? It used to be that you had to decompile apps, theme and repackage them, then hope and pray that everyt ...more

The camera in CyanogenMod, CameraNext, takes some pretty impressive shots when compared to those offered by HTC Sense and Sony Xperia, but it doesn't have many of the features that make it a real competitor. Even the Color OS version of the OnePlus One has received better revi ...more

The vague 90-day release window for CyanogenMod 12 has done nothing to stop my craving for Lollipop on my OnePlus One. Luckily, there are other "unofficial" means of getting my hands on it. Since CyanogenMod still gives users a way of building their own variants of their ROM, ...more

With Safestrap bringing custom recovery functionality to the AT&T and Verizon Wireless variants of the Samsung Galaxy S5, it's high time we covered this process for all other versions of the GS5. If you're not familiar with the term "custom recovery", it's a piece of software ...more

Android enthusiasts have their own opinion as to whether you need antivirus software on an Android device. This debate will never end, provided that Android malware is in existence. This guide is not here to say, "Yes, you need antivirus," or "No, you don't." It's to give you ...more

Sometimes, stock just doesn't cut it. When you're sick of the limitations in Sense on your HTC One, a new ROM can be a ray of sunshine. By installing a custom ROM, you can add or unlock new features in Sense, or you can get a pure Android experience instead. It's all up to you ...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

Rooting is usually the first thing on the to-do list whenever one of us softModders gets a new Android device. Unfortunately our efforts are sometimes hindered by certain obstacles; a common one is a locked bootloader. What Is a Bootloader? A bootloader is the lowest level s ...more

Samsung is currently dominating the Android market with their line of Galaxy devices, including the GS3, GS4, Note 2, and Tabs. All of these devices run Samsung's TouchWiz, which is something every softModder should try out eventually. The only thing is that Samsung devices ar ...more

The new Samsung Galaxy S4 just received an update to Android 4.2.2, so why is it that my Galaxy Note 2 is still running an older version of Jelly Bean? It felt like yesterday that my device was finally updated to 4.1.2, but why even bother since 4.2 has been around since last ...more

Your beloved Samsung Galaxy S3 is nearing the end of its life cycle. Sure, it can do most of what newer devices can, especially if you were lucky enough to receive the KitKat update, but your diminishing battery and scratched up screen have seen better days. When you upgrade ...more

One of the best aspects of Android is its customization options. You can change launchers and icons, add widgets, and replace standard apps with others that allow full customization. Android allows your device to really take on your personality, from the inside and out. Stock ...more

If you're anything like me, you started down the Android-modding path for two distinct reasons; to run cutting-edge software and squeeze every bit of performance out of your hardware. Utilizing the new F2FS file system on your rooted Nexus 4 or 5 fulfills both of those desires ...more

If you're reading this, chances are you're a softModder, someone who doesn't let anything stand in his or her way from ultimate customization. That means you've probably rooted and unlocked the bootloader on your HTC One to upgrade to the Google Play Edition ROM or CyanogenMo ...more

Just the fact that you own an Android device means you're privy to an entire world of third-party development. Many of the mods you'll see here on Gadget Hacks can be performed fresh out of the box, but with root and Xposed, the list grows longer. But to truly be able to take ...more

The hardware running your One is nothing short of powerful, but the people at OnePlus can't control how developers choose to utilize that power—or rather, not utilize it. Most popular developers have removed all signs of lag from their apps, but others still have archaic lines ...more

My OnePlus One easily gets over a day of battery life without a problem, but when I try to charge it, it seems to take just as long. For some reason, no matter what charger you plug your OPO into, it never gets more than USB-level power, meaning that charging times are more th ...more

That didn't take very long! Yesterday, after a lengthy delay, Google opened up the development kit for their Chromecast HDMI dongle. And as of very early this morning, renowned CyanogenMod dev Koushik Dutta, or Koush, re-enabled Chromecast support for his AllCast app: AllCas ...more

Samsung's stock Galaxy Themes system leaves much to be desired with its restrictive and expensive theme packs. Back in the day, the gold standard for Android theming was CyanogenMod Theme Engine. And while it no longer exists, a successor has emerged to fill the void. Hex Ins ...more

There have been concerns with how much personal information Google tracks and all the things they know about us. Of course, that's what makes Google services so useful, they can use that information to cater to each of us individually. So yes, it serves a purpose, but it's not ...more

OnePlus changed the way we think about high-end phones. Their "Never Settle" motto led me to ditch my high-cost smartphone for their flagship One, which not only packs some pretty impressive hardware, but won't break the bank. Now that OnePlus has made a name for themselves wi ...more

OnePlus One's CyanogenMod firmware comes packed with personalization options that standard Android devices could only achieve with root-level access. By simply entering the Settings app, OPO owners can make changes to their lock screen, status bar, and notification drawer, as ...more

Lock screen apps are a dime a dozen, but every now and then one pops up that defies expectations. We've already covered some good ones for the Samsung Galaxy S4, including Picture Password Lockscreen (which gives you secret unlock gestures), SlideLock (which improves notificat ...more

Full screen mode, also called immersive mode, is one of the most popular features on CyanogenMod, but it's almost exclusive to CM and other custom ROMs. What this feature does essentially is remove the Status bar and soft keys from your screen, creating a more mesmeric feel. ...more

There may only be a few hardware buttons on your Samsung Galaxy Note 2, but when they're not working, your phone might as well be a doorstop. A few years back, I was texting while walking to class and a student on a bicycle crashed into me. My phone was flung thirty feet—strai ...more

If you've ever been into custom ROMs, you likely know the Dirty Unicorns name pretty well. It's been synonymous with unique features and awesome tweaks when compared to stock. Recently, Dirty Unicorns has returned again in a big way with some neat features for Android 10. Typ ...more

CyanogenMod has always been on the forefront of ROM customization, and its newest release, CyanogenMod 12, is no exception. In the newest nightlies, they have included an updated version of their Theme Engine, which allows you to effortlessly change the way your entire system ...more

The new OnePlus One packs a 3,100 mAh battery that promises to last all day and night. While that will work for most, some of us don't quite know how to put our phone down and save some juice. If you're looking to help your battery out and possibly squeeze an extra hour or tw ...more

With Google's recent release of the Software Developers Kit for Chromecast, Android gurus now have a roadmap of sorts to guide them in adding Chromecast functionality to their apps. The results are beginning to pour in. Koushik Dutta, of CyanogenMod and AllCast fame, has just ...more

It's that time of the year again when scores of students are flocking to stores for school supplies. Pens, pencils, books, and for math students, calculators. Graphing calculators like the ubiquitous TI-83 (and 84) series have been a staple of high school and college math cla ...more

You've gotten used to your brand spankin' new Nexus 7 and finally have a feel for Android, but now you want more features. Well, user Juan Mercator was in that predicament, and asked how to install the ever popular CyanogenMod ROM on his Nexus 7 over on our Nexus 7 SoftModder ...more

The 13-megapixel camera on the OnePlus One is capable of taking some pretty impressive shots, but the stock CameraNext app doesn't do the hardware justice. When compared to the camera app that ships on the ColorOS version of the One, you can immediately see an increase in clar ...more

When it comes to dictating what happens when the Galaxy Note 3's S Pen is detached, the stock settings that Samsung provides are severely lacking. There are only two measly options: launching Samsung's own Action Memo app, or displaying the Air Command menu. If you want to la ...more

As we near the one-year anniversary of its release (and the inevitable unveiling of its successor), the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 remains a device that packs quite a punch when it comes to hardware. It boasts a 2.3Ghz CPU and was the first mobile phone ever to house 3GBs of RAM. S ...more

Probably one of the most sought after features of the LG G2 is its "Knock Knock" capabilities. Rather than dealing with that pesky power button, you simply double-tap portions of the screen to either sleep or wake your device. The G2 is the Nexus 5's bigger brother of sorts, ...more