Apple has finally given Control Center the love that it needs with an updated interface design and more customizations than ever before. Taking the more customizable overhaul one step further, iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 have elevated controls beyond Control Center, so you can use co ...more
Our everyday lives are inundated with displays from smartphones, computers, tablets, TVs, and other devices, so it's important to find ways to limit your screen use wherever possible to improve your overall digital well-being. One simple thing you can do if you have an Apple W ...more
Apple has a few exciting surprises for you in its latest iOS 16 and iPadOS 16 software updates. Released on Thursday, May 18, version 16.5 includes new features, bug fixes, and security patches, and there are even hints of some big things coming in future software updates for ...more
With the prestige appeal of its original programming and relatively low subscription price, Apple TV+ is one of the more appealing streaming options out there — and you don't need an Apple device to subscribe and watch movies, TV shows, sports, and other Apple TV+ content. Th ...more
There's a new hidden Safari feature for your iPhone, one that makes it even easier to find words, numbers, phrases, and other text on a webpage. In case you didn't know, Safari has a built-in "Find on Page" feature on the iPhone, and it helps you locate content on a webpage j ...more
You can play background sounds on your iPhone to help you focus, stay calm, or fall asleep, giving you a personal sound machine wherever you go. Even better, there's a way to set each of your apps to play one of Apple's six ambient soundscapes automatically. When you open the ...more
Apple removed the option to quickly change between miles and kilometers when using Apple Maps on iOS 16, but it's not entirely gone — it's just not as easy to find. On iOS 15, you can switch between miles and kilometers from an obvious location: the "Maps" preferences in the ...more
Some apps look great with Dark Mode, and some do not. So when you have system-wide Dark Mode enabled on your iPhone and are using an app that only looks good in Light Mode, you'd normally have to turn the dark appearance off manually, then switch it back on when you leave. But ...more
By default, your iPhone's share sheet will have a row of contacts iOS thinks you'll want to share the content with. Those suggestions are handy if you frequently share things with the same people, but they also clutter the share sheet, invade contacts' privacy in screenshots, ...more
Apple's bringing big changes to your iPhone's lock screen in iOS 16, and one of those changes lets you pick an always-updating wallpaper for your local weather conditions. If you don't want to wait until the fall for the stable iOS 16 version and don't want to install any iOS ...more
With the release of Object Capture this fall, Apple is giving everyone with a Mac and a camera the means to create their own 3D objects. But what about volumetric video, which currently requires multi-camera rigs like those at Microsoft's Mixed Reality Capture studios? One de ...more
Your iPhone is full of apps that are all vying for your attention. Notifications from Facebook, Instagram, and even Apple Messages can get out of hand fast. With iOS 15, Apple gives you the tools to choose exactly who can contact you and when. Keep reading to see how to take c ...more
It's no secret that Apple and Spotify haven't exactly gotten along in the past, but things are looking better than ever in iOS 14.5. For years, Spotify's platform felt very disconnected from the iPhone, mostly because of Siri incompatibility. Spotify even favored its own Voic ...more
Every now and then, an iOS secret surfaces that makes me wonder, "How am I just learning about this?" I remember the first time I found out how to delete numbers in the Calculator app, and when I discovered you could bulk-move apps around the Home screen. Now, there's another ...more
The COVID-19 pandemic forced many businesses into remote work models, whether they were ready or not, making Zoom a household (or home office) name for its video conferencing service. Now, in response to this general shift, smartglasses maker Epson and remote assistance platf ...more
You might have noticed some of the videos you upload to TikTok don't always look great. If you think the answer is that you need a DSLR, you're wrong. The blurriness, pixelation, and overall bad quality that can happen in your uploaded videos is probably not your smartphone's ...more
In recent weeks, Google managed to capitalize on the hype surrounding the Star Wars streaming series The Mandalorian with an AR app that was not only exclusive to Android but also available only for 5G-equipped devices. Now, Google has partnered with Red Bull to launch an AR ...more
The Pixel 5 is a great value proposition in this era of $1,500 phones. With its reasonable price tag, fully open-sourced software, and unlockable bootloader, it's also an ideal phone for rooting. The process of rooting the Pixel 5 is a tried and true method: Unlock the bootlo ...more
Instagram is addicting — and that's done on purpose. To stop your Instagram habits, your smartphone likely has a built-in feature to curb the daily usage of a particular app, like Apple's Screen Time for iOS and Google's Digital Wellbeing for Android. But you don't need to mes ...more
For the most part, new features for Google Maps, such as Live View augmented reality walking navigation, come to Android first. One exception is changing your vehicle icon in driving navigation, which is now coming to Android after debuting on iPhones and iPads. On both vers ...more
If you have a group of iPhone users to manage, whether for work assignments, planning a trip, or organizing an event, Reminders might just be your new best friend. With iOS 14, the app now lets you assign reminders to contacts, so everyone knows what they're supposed to be wor ...more
Apple just released the fifth public beta for iOS 14 today, Wednesday, Aug. 19. This update comes one day after Apple released iOS 14 developer beta 5. It follows iOS 14 developer beta 4 by 15 days, and iOS 14 public beta 4 by 13 days. Apple released this new update to public ...more
Samsung uses their own SamsungOne font for their Galaxy lineup. But if you're coming from an iPhone or another Android device, you might not love it. With the help of this mod, however, you're sure to find a font that's right for you. Samsung's Galaxy Store has fonts that you ...more
The Wallet app on your iPhone can be used to store and access event tickets, loyalty cards, boarding passes, gym memberships, airline miles, gift cards, coupons, and more — all in one centralized place. Before doing so, though, you must add your passes to Wallet, and there is ...more
Every iPhone Apple currently sells, including the brand new iPhone SE, ships with Portrait mode, injecting DSLR-like depth effects into your Camera app. If that's the shooting mode you use more than any other, it may feel tedious having to switch to "Portrait" from "Photo" eve ...more
It's not so difficult to stay at home during the coronavirus lockdown when there's so much free entertainment to take advantage of. That seems to be the M.O. for many studios and streaming services, as they've made so many shows and movies available to the public for free. Tha ...more
Facebook's mobile app lacks many features from the desktop site. Even if you open Facebook in your phone's browser and request the desktop version, all that does is basically resize the mobile app. But there's a simple workaround that will force Facebook to appear in all its d ...more
Your smartphone is likely full of COVID-19 news and coronavirus panic. These are scary days, and there doesn't seem to be any end in sight. If you're having trouble coping with the stress and anxiety the virus brings with it, know that your iPhone or Android device can actuall ...more
When left unmaintained, lock screen notifications can be an overwhelming, chaotic mess. Alerts coming in at a rapid pace can be hard to see because there are just too many of them, and your iPhone's screen sometimes can't even take it, falling asleep before you can read only a ...more
The iPhone's ingenious trackpad function offers an intuitive way to place the cursor where it's needed. Not to be outdone, Samsung phones like the Galaxy S20 have a similar feature baked in. If you're running One UI 2, it's even enabled by default. To use the function on One ...more
Binging on YouTube these days can be just as fulfilling as Netflix or Hulu, but sometimes you just need to skim through a video. Whether you want to skip over a long-winded intro or you want to show your friend the best part in the middle, YouTube has a great gesture for you. ...more
Whatever it is you're into, Facebook Groups are a great way to connect with others that share your interests. And beyond matching you up with like-minded people, Groups also give you access to deals on items, help you organize play dates with families in the same area, and so ...more
If you need to call someone back in a hurry, don't bother redialing the number. In fact, don't bother digging through your phone app to tap on the number in the call log. Instead, use this simple trick to quickly redial the number, whether you have an iPhone or Android. Open ...more
I think everyone with an iPhone should be making every purchase they can with Apple Pay. I also think everyone who uses Apple Pay should open the Wallet app ahead of time, instead of simply tapping their iPhone to the card reader. But there's a much faster way to open Wallet t ...more
When you place your iPhone over a card reader for Apple Pay, it'll always pull up your default card. That might work fine for you, but perhaps that isn't the card you want to use. The problem is, you don't have time to switch cards before the payment goes through. That might r ...more
It wasn't long ago Apple released iOS 13.2 to the masses. The second major update to iOS 13 included 22 new features and changes that added a significant layer of depth to an already feature-filled experience. Apple isn't ready to stop the fun, however, as iOS 13.3, released D ...more
So you want to know what that person who is always on their phone is up to? If you're on the same Wi-Fi network, it's as simple as opening Wireshark and configuring a few settings. We'll use the tool to decrypt WPA2 network traffic so we can spy on which applications a phone i ...more
Fullscreen isn't always fullscreen, especially on your smartphone. As screens get taller and bezels get slimmer, more phones end up with an aspect ratio that doesn't match most YouTube videos. Luckily the video-sharing app has a nifty workaround to fill your screen. First, op ...more
Even if you're totally familiar with all the routes you can take to go home or work, you'll still want to use Google Maps to find the fastest route in current traffic conditions. If you're on Android, there's an extremely fast way to do this. To quickly initiate navigation to ...more
The share system on your iPhone serves as a hub for actions and share extensions, streamlining the process of saving files, sharing photos and videos, and other important tasks. On iOS 13 the Share Sheet has received a considerable upgrade, including the ability to more easily ...more
With MP3 players all but dead, phones are now the dominant portable music devices. While smartphones have gotten better at this task over the years, they do have some glaring limitations when it comes to music. On the bright side, we can use these limitations to help find the ...more
By default, Apple's Maps features a 2D overhead viewing angle when you search for a place or get directions to a specific address. In the past, Apple Maps had a button in the top-right to view cities and landmarks in 3D, but that has now disappeared for the most part in iOS 13 ...more
Not long ago, connecting your iPhone to Bluetooth devices was a true pain in the neck. Control Center's AirPlay button made connecting to certain devices much easier, but it was with iOS 13 that Apple finally made connecting to wireless acceessories like AirPods, speakers, and ...more
Swiping between pages on your iPhone's home screen feels very natural, but surprisingly, Apple has another way to switch between screens, and it's been staring us in the face this whole time. See the tiny dots on the bottom of your iPhone's home screen and app folders? Beside ...more
iPhones aren't immune to occasional bugs. But starting with the iPhone X, performing a reboot to fix minor issues has gotten a little more tedious. Thankfully, iOS 13 has a hidden option that makes the process a whole lot simpler. The old ways to restart a "notched" iPhone re ...more
When you type on a computer, you have the help of a mouse or trackpad to guide your cursor. Unless you set up a mouse with your iPhone, however, you don't have that option on the go. Therefore, iOS needs to come up with ways for you to move your cursor around to easy pick up t ...more
The Files app was first introduced to the iPhone with the release of iOS 11. In the two years since its unveiling, we've enjoyed a more desktop-class experience since there's finally a decent file manager for mobile devices. That said, there was always one major issue with the ...more
To be honest, the Mail app for iPhone had always been somewhat forgettable. It lacked many of the features that made third-party clients like Spark and Edison better, but with iOS 13, the gap between Mail and its competitors is much smaller. Apple updated the layout and added ...more
Normally, when you want to select multiple emails in the Mail app, you'd hit "Edit," tap all the bubbles next to the emails, then mark them, move them, or trash them. But in iOS 13, there's a much faster way to do it on your iPhone. While you can still tap "Edit," select all ...more
Your computer has a lot of physical keys. Your iPhone has, at most, four hardware buttons, none of which are used for typing. That means the software has to power the same typing tools you'd find on your Mac or PC, only on a touchscreen. As such, some features, such as the ind ...more
Most of us swipe on Tinder while on the go. With all the pictures, Tinder on Android and iOS uses a decent amount of data. If you know the pain of Tinder triggering overage fees, limit the data-hungry app. There's a little trick you can use to help keep your swiping up and you ...more
Facebook Messenger Lite is an official, de-bloated version of Facebook Messenger for Android. It's snappier and it's a lot more battery-friendly, but this is because there are fewer features complicating everything. One feature they didn't leave out, however, is the ability to ...more
When you're going somewhere for the first time, it's nice to know what the destination will look like. Street View in Google Maps is the perfect tool for that, though it's always been a little awkward to access. But now, Google added a new overlay that will put Street View con ...more
Live Photos are a fun way to relive memories, but there's a problem: unless you're only friends with Apple users, sharing Live Photos isn't quite as fun. Without a third-party converter, you can't share your Live Photo in all its moving glory. That is, until iOS 13, where you ...more
While the Reminders app has been largely ignored by Apple for years, iOS 13 finally makes it a force to be reckoned with. The app has been completely redesigned with easier navigation and more useful features that can compete with other task managers. After giving the new Remi ...more
Apple Maps has had a rough lifecycle. After completely dropping the ball during its inception, Apple has been slowly improving its usability and feature set. After six and a half years, users still prefer third-party apps in iOS 12 over Apple Maps, with Google Maps stealing a ...more
After months of back and forth, ZTE is finally making their return to the United States. The last phone the Chinese company released here was the Axon 7 Pro, a low priced flagship phone that competed well against the OnePlus 3 and 3T at the time. Its successor is the Axon 10 P ...more
QR codes are everywhere, from product packaging to airline boarding passes, making the scanners that read them a juicy target for hackers. Thanks to flaws in many of these proprietary scanning devices, it's possible to exploit common vulnerabilities using exploits packed into ...more
Emoji are, without a doubt, an integral part of messaging on smartphones. Whether you're team iPhone or Android, chances are you send emoji daily. However, years after their introduction, emoji remain static in most cases, even with animated stickers and GIFs supported on almo ...more
You may note be able to root your Snapdragon-powered Note 10, but thanks to the hidden Developer Options, you can still tweak low-level settings like custom codecs for better audio quality on Bluetooth headphones and faster animations to enhance your experience. Best of all, y ...more