Pick a Lock with a Fork

One of the best features on the Galaxy S9 is the ability to quickly apply new themes from the Samsung theme store. A number of the available themes are available at no cost. If you pick the right dark theme, you might even be able to save some battery life over the course of y ...more

Since making waves at Mobile World Congress 2018, Android Go devices have slowly trickled their way onto US shores. Only one device was officially announced for the US at MWC, but several OEMs have extended availability to the US in the months since, and it looks like we just ...more

The new and improved Side button, as well as a plethora of new swipe gestures, are responsible for picking up the slack left by the missing Home button on the iPhone X. If you're really missing that Home button, however, Apple's built-in AssistiveTouch tool can help you out by ...more

On the airplane, in the middle of cold and flu season, your seatmate is spewing, despite the clutch of tissues in their lap. Your proximity to an infectious person probably leaves you daydreaming (or is it a nightmare?) of pandemics and estimating how likely it is that this se ...more

Before many games make it to the US-based iOS App Store, they get "soft launched" in a smaller country to get real-world testing for bugs. It's a pilot program, so to speak, as countries like Vietnam or the Philippines have far fewer iPhone users than the US, thus offer a more ...more

After poor sales of last year's HTC 10 and the terrible reviews their first 2017 flagship received, HTC really needs the HTC U11 to succeed. But they're not taking things lying down, as they've come up with some interesting tech for their latest handset. The biggest new featu ...more

When you want to see something far away with a little more clarity or you're having a hard time reading small letters right in front of you, you can point your iPhone's camera at the subject and "pinch" to zoom for a better look. But there's actually something built into iOS f ...more

Let's set the scene: you're at home, it's late in the evening, and you have a hankering for those deliciously decadent chocolate-wrapped squares of ice cream goodness. You could drive to the store and pick up the usual pack of Klondike Bars in the ice cream aisle... or, you ca ...more

Many home cooks struggle to cook duck breast because they cook it as they would chicken. But not all poultry is created equal, and duck is definitely unlike chicken. For starters, the breast of the duck is a rich, dark meat, and the cut is covered by a thick slab of fat. When ...more

Dropping upwards of $60 on a new game can really break the bank, and being a struggling college student leaves me having to decide whether to pick up the latest title or, you know, eat. But often my more primitive urges win out, meaning the only way to enjoy the latest and gre ...more

Welcome back, my tenderfoot hackers! In this series, we are exploring the myriad of ways to hack web applications. As you know, web applications are those apps that run the websites of everything from your next door neighbor, to the all-powerful financial institutions that ru ...more

There are many reasons to root Android, but for me, the most important one is to have the Xposed Framework. Xposed gives you access to hundreds of modules, which take away the need to manually modify core system files to add new features and functionality to your Android devic ...more

Getting a new phone is exciting, but having access to its exclusive apps ahead of its release is what we're all about here on Gadget Hacks. If you have a Galaxy Note 3, you've probably only had it for a year or less, so upgrading to the Note 4 may not be a viable option when ...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

Apple definitely wasn't first to the widget game, but any iPhone running iOS 8 or higher can add widgets to their Today View found via a swipe down from the top of the screen when on the home screen or in any app. There's even access to widgets on the lock screen via the same ...more

Having a dust- and water-resistant phone is truly useful, but it comes with a price. In order to achieve this functionality, Samsung had to literally plug up any holes in the Galaxy S5, and this included the charging port. The small cover that keeps dust and water at bay, and ...more

The late, great writer Laurie Colwin once wrote that if she were allowed to have only one fruit in her kitchen, she would always choose lemons (or limes, since they can often be used interchangeably). Any dedicated home cook would agree wholeheartedly. Lemons add dimension t ...more

There are a lot of things your Samsung Galaxy Note 2 can do straight out of the box, but there's also a ton of things it can't, or simply could be better at. That's why most of us end up rooting—to enhance the mobile experience. Today, I'll be showing you some of my favorite ...more

Yes, you read that right—you can now get Google Maps back on your iPhone again. It may not be officially replacing Apple's notorious Maps app, but it sure is a sight for sore eyes. Video: . Following the release of iOS 6, it was hard to find a good word anywhere about Apple's ...more

While it's not usually the first thing everyone looks at after installing a new iOS software update, I'd give the new accessibility features on your iPhone priority attention because there are some highly valuable tools that even users without disabilities can enjoy. Of cours ...more

Apple just seeded developers and public beta testers the GM (golden master) for iOS 14 on Tuesday, Sept 15. The update (18A373) comes just after Apple's "Time Flies" event, and six days after Apple released iOS 14 beta 8 for both developers and public testers. Apple released ...more

Starting Sept. 13, you can preorder the iPhone 11, 11 Pro, or 11 Pro Max from Apple, wireless carriers, and various e-commerce websites. However, unlike with Android smartphones, there is only one set of iOS phones that come out each year, so they're pretty hot items. That mea ...more

Razer just released their first flagship Android smartphone, appropriately named the Razer Phone. While mobile gaming fans are sure to enjoy the Razer Phone, the buttery-smooth 120 Hz display makes this an appealing option for anyone in the market for a new phone. If you've ju ...more

The Galaxy S8 has finally touched down, and it's an absolutely gorgeous device. Samsung's brand new flagship comes jam-packed with new features — some refined, and some that aren't. Luckily, we've compiled some major features to help you get started as quickly as possible so y ...more

Today's smartphones and tablets offer a great way for children to learn through interactive sight, sound, and touch, but they can also provide hours of genuine fun. If you have a spare tablet laying around—or at least a nice, durable case—the only thing you need to get your ch ...more

It's been a while when the major web browsers first introduced HTTP Strict Transport Security, which made it more difficult to carry Man In The Middle (MITM) attacks (except IE, as always, which will support HSTS since Windows 10, surprised?). SSLStrip and the HSTS Chronicles ...more

Living in Los Angeles has given me the opportunity to attend a bunch of really cool events. I've been to Dodgers, Lakers, and Clippers games, a few concerts at the Staples Center, and a plethora of smaller joints. In all of these places, I've found a consistent annoyance—I wa ...more

Apple's iOS 14 is here. With it, you'll see over 200 new features and changes hit your iPhone, including home screen widgets, inline replies in Messages, and cycling routes in Maps. Here's how you can get your hands on the brand new update. Apple released iOS 14 to compatible ...more

It's open season on Zoom, the video conferencing platform that has grown in popularity during the COVID-19 pandemic but has come under fire due to privacy issues. First, Google has opened up Meet, its video conferencing services for G-Suite subscribers, as a free service for ...more

It's finally here. After years of rumors and speculation, Apple unveiled the new iPhone SE on April 15. While it doesn't have a 4-inch display like the original SE, it's the smallest new iPhone you can buy today, with the chipset of the iPhone 11, 11 Pro, and 11 Pro Max. So, w ...more

With every new Galaxy flagship release comes the age-old dilemma: do I choose great hardware or great software? For years, Samsung has given users the best components available on any smartphone. The problem is the software is an acquired taste. But there is something you can ...more

As long as you're on the internet, you can be hacked. With an estimated 2.65 billion social media users, these apps are prime targets for hackers. While companies like Facebook, Snap, and Twitter do a formidable job against the waves of attacks they receive daily, they are no ...more

When you're gaming on your Android phone, does it sometimes feel "slow" and you can't figure out why? That means a drop in performance, which is when the frame rate dips, causing some noticeable stutters and lag. There's not really a way to know what's wrong unless you made th ...more

Planning a vacation overseas can sometimes feel overwhelming with the number of things you need to remember before heading out. Since smartphones keep us connected at all times, it's essential that you have everything you need here as well. Unexpected events can arise while on ...more

Your iPhone is just that — yours. Why should your home screen look like everyone else's? While iOS, and by extension, Apple, famously locks its users into its way of doing things, there's a lot more room for customization than you'd think. Before you make the switch to Android ...more

So, you rooted your Pixel 2 or 2 XL and everything seems to be working quite well. However, a month passes, and you get a notification to install the monthly security update. Like clockwork, Google has been pushing out OTA security patches every single month for a while, but t ...more

With new iPhone models out, you'll have updated cameras to try out, a faster processor, and new colors to choose from. The only thing that could stop you from picking one up yourself is, well, your current iPhone. Here's how to check if you're eligible to upgrade to iPhone 11, ...more

In a surprise twist, Apple released iOS 12 public beta 8 to software testers on Thursday, Aug. 23, right alongside iOS 12 dev beta 10. The release comes as a bit of a shock, as the company released iOS 12 public beta 7 just three days earlier. The official build of iOS 12 now ...more

We're nearly there — Apple released the seventh iOS 12 beta to developers Monday, August 13. While not totally unexpected, beta testers understand the struggle of predicting the next update, as Apple has switched haphazardly between two-week, one-week, and irregular release sc ...more

For the second time in a row, Apple pushed out a new iOS 12 developer beta on a Monday, and for the first time this round, they've done it only one week after the last one. While the August 6 release of iOS 12 developer beta 6 doesn't contain a wealth of updates, there are sti ...more

Apple released the fifth developer beta for iOS 12 on Monday, July 30, only 13 days after the release of dev beta 4 and 12 days after public beta 3. Until this release, Apple kept a consistent two-week schedule for developer beta updates, so we were a little surprised to see t ...more

As the official release of iOS 12 nears closer each day, Apple continues to update its betas. The company released the fourth beta of the upcoming software to developers Tuesday, July 17, exactly two weeks after the release of the third developer beta which came out just a few ...more

The latest Star Wars movie, Solo: A Star Wars Story, has grossed almost $350 million worldwide during its first month in theaters. This is a good opportunity to discuss how hackers can use media hype (in this case, Hollywood movie hype) to disarm an unsuspecting Windows user i ...more

Apple removed the Wish List feature from the App Store when iOS 11 was released, which was a huge disappointment, to say the least. While the Wish List still remains in the iTunes Store, it seems gone for good for apps, but that doesn't mean you can't still keep a wish list of ...more

When you don't want somebody you're calling to know the real phone number associated with your iPhone, whether it's for privacy reasons, to avoid being called back, or to prevent being ignored, there are multiple things you can do to block it on their caller ID. Some of the b ...more

There are plenty of third-party apps for scanning documents on your iPhone, but they can all be tossed out the door since iOS 11 includes one by default now. Instead of a dedicated app, it's included as part of the Notes app, and it's fairly easy to use. After scanning, you ca ...more

Your home has walls for privacy, but Wi-Fi signals passing through them and can be detected up to a mile away with a directional Wi-Fi antenna and a direct line of sight. An amazing amount of information can be learned from this data, including when residents come and go, the ...more

While there aren't as many ways to customize your iPhone like there is on Android, there are still a lot of apps out there that can help streamline and enhance your experience beyond Apple's own default options — and we've hand-picked over 100 essentials. No matter if you've ...more

The holidays are stressful. Between traveling, family, and dinner, Thanksgiving weekend can feel like weeks. Many families have traditions that make the days long, but some of us would rather curl up somewhere and watch our favorite shows. But all is not lost — our phones do s ...more

Word games fit perfectly with the on-the-go nature of mobile gaming. They're easy to pick up whenever you feel like exercising your brain, but they're also fairly easy to put down when you need to get back to the real world. The main draw of word games is that they're great f ...more

The '90s were a great decade to be alive. Before the internet became a high-availability service, we were untethered from the bombardment of media present in today's culture. Children ran through the streets with levels of physical exertion beyond what's required to capture fi ...more

Bitcoin continues to make chaotic waves in the finance industry, with one bitcoin currently worth about $1,250 as of this writing. What's great about bitcoin is that you don't need to shell out rent money to get in the game, because bitcoins can be bought in increments—basical ...more

Pokémon GO made waves as the first augmented reality game to gain popular adoption. In fact, it was so popular that it only took a few days to uncover some the benefits and serious issues with combining physical and digital worlds. The Good The game always aimed to get playe ...more

When shopping for a new smartphone, you'll encounter comparisons and spec sheets that are filled to the brim with values like mAh, GB, and GHz. To the average consumer, however, these values are meaningless, so we end up looking at which device has the specs with the highest a ...more

These days, there are Android apps for every budget—forgive me if that sounds like a car commercial, but that's just the way things are in the age of the smartphone and tablet. You've got apps that require monthly subscriptions, paid apps that will run you a $30 one-time insta ...more

Make delicious candy for Easter from the comfort of your kitchen with copycat versions of your favorite classics: Marshmallow Peeps, Cadbury Creme Eggs, Reese's Peanut Butter eggs, Almond Joy bars, and chocolate bunnies. The best part is that you get your sugar fix without the ...more

If I could only eat one food for the rest of my life, it would definitely be potatoes. In fact, when I recently saw The Martian, I didn't feel that badly for Matt Damon. I mean, sure... he was stranded on a hostile planet, millions of miles from home. But he got to eat potatoe ...more

If you're having a "Netflix and chill" night, the last thing you want to worry about is finding something to watch—after all, you have better things planned for the night. With so much streaming content now available for cord cutters, settling on just one title to watch can b ...more

Texting has become the king of communication—gone are the days where everyone called each other. These days, it's down-right weird when someone calls first. Whether it be on a phone or on a computer, SMS and MMS messages are the most common way people keep in contact, so why n ...more

When it comes to security, there are usually only a handful of things that you want protected from prying eyes on your iPhone—private photos, scandalous videos, and important text, such as credit card and social security numbers. Protecting your iPhone with a lock screen pass ...more