Root Apps

Samsung Experience isn't for everyone. While it's a far cry from the TouchWiz days, it is still too heavy of a skin for Android purists. But you shouldn't let that dissuade you from a powerful device that checks nearly all other boxes — there are ways to make the Galaxy Note 9 ...more

Not all threats to our privacy come from hackers thousands of miles away. Often, we just want to keep our data safe from those around us, who may snoop in our phones or demand we reveal our secrets. That's where BlackBerry Locker comes in. Starting with the BlackBerry KEYone, ...more

When you drive along the deceptively sedate streets of Silicon Valley, there are few hints that all those nondescript office parks and low-rise buildings contain the very future of the planet, but they really do. On a recent trip to tech's epicenter, I found that out firsthand ...more

It's no secret that Android has a messaging problem. iPhone users can turn to iMessage as a one-stop shop for all their messaging needs — features like read receipts and the ability to text from a computer have been standard with Apple products for quite some time. Android has ...more

For a while, YouTube Red original content was a joke, lagging behind other services like Netflix and Hulu in terms of quality, so breaking down the paywall didn't seem necessary. However, with series like Cobra Kai turning heads, it's a good time to start using Red. Luckily, A ...more

When you hear people say the iPhone "just works," it's because of all the finishing touches Apple adds to iOS. A perfect example of this is the new QR-scanning feature in iOS 12 — by tapping a single button in the iPhone's Control Center, you can scan a QR code within seconds. ...more

Since its introduction, the Bixby button has been a big point of contention among Galaxy fans. Many view the dedicated button as a wasted opportunity, which they argue could be put to better use if Samsung would let them use it for other commands. Thanks to an awesome app, you ...more

As of 2016, there are approximately 1.85 billion Android smartphones worldwide. This growing popularity has led to an increasing number hacks and cyber attacks against the OS. Unfortunately, Android users need more protection than what is offered by Google. The good thing is t ...more

For some of us, mornings are difficult. But if you can manage to start your morning right, you can trigger a chain reaction that leads to a more productive day. Fortunately, our phones have the tools to help us get off to a good start. Using a combination of different apps, w ...more

OnePlus is on track to deliver Android 8.0 Oreo to its flagship users by Q1 2018. Open Beta 1 was released for the 5T in late December, and we just received Open Beta 2. But this update isn't just tweaks and bug fixes, OnePlus has included a few new features to enhance the And ...more

Deep down inside, Android is really just a fork of Linux, the popular open source desktop OS. You can see traces of its roots everywhere, and this lineage still holds a certain appeal with many Android fans. If you're in that boat, you'll love the newest notes app we just foun ...more

Over the past month, we've spent significant time covering Samsung's Oreo Beta program, and the detailed list of features in Oreo is extensive for the Galaxy S8 and S8+. Many of you were upset when the Galaxy Note 8 was left out of the official Oreo beta program entirely, but ...more

Since the release of the T-Mobile G1, the Play Store has been flooded with apps that claim to improve performance by clearing cache and storage. These apps are typically useless, rarely providing more than a temporary fix which Android undoes immediately. As Android has contin ...more

If you own a Pixel or Nexus device, Project Fi is a great alternative for cellular service outside of the four major US carriers. Project Fi is a Google-managed MVNO, providing service primarily through the T-Mobile and Sprint networks. One of the biggest mysteries on Fi is wh ...more

Innovation Congress starts tomorrow, but its creator, Jason Keath, spoke to Next Reality today about the future of augmented reality. Innovation Congress is an event meant to discuss strategies for businesses to stay competitive in the future, with technology trends shifting ...more

The Galaxy S8's AMOLED display is prone to screen burn-in, particularly with the navigation and status bars. But hiding these bars would make it hard to navigate your phone — that's where Pie Controls come into play. By enabling full-time Immersive Mode, you can hide the on-s ...more

Deep down inside, Kindle Fires are actually Android tablets — the only trouble is, Amazon has layered so much of a skin on top of it all that you can't normally use Android's main app store, the Google Play Store. The Amazon Appstore, which comes bundled with Kindle Fire devic ...more

Everyone's been talking about Samsung's new Galaxy S8 and S8+, but not all of the chatter is positive. The fingerprint scanner is in an awkward location, the North American variant is simply not as smooth and fluid as the international model, and Samsung Experience is nothing ...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

When it comes to customization, you just can't beat Android. Not only can you replace your home screen, switch your default apps, and apply icon packs, but you can even replace your entire lock screen by installing a simple app. Considering that the lock screen is the first in ...more

A strange thing is happening: there are people, groups of people even, walking the streets day and night staring wide-eyed at their mobile phones and laughing like manic children. What are these people doing? Are they taking pictures? Are they participating in some new social ...more

The only knock on Samsung's last round of flagship devices is that TouchWiz is still alive and kicking. Aside from this overbearing skin that's been applied on top of Android, the Galaxy S6, S6 edge, Note 5, and this year's Galaxy S7 models are some of the best phones money ca ...more

A lot of times, you'll come across an app, a game, or even a cool root mod that requires a certain Android version. The description will say Android 4.3 or higher required, or something to that extent, but not much help is offered beyond that. So to clear things up a bit, I'll ...more

Fewer and fewer Android phones are being released with SD card slots, so it's always a struggle to make sure you have enough free storage space for your photos, videos, and music. Things like app data and cache slowly build up as you use your device, which means your available ...more

Amazon thinks that by simply removing an app from their Appstore, that they will stop users from accessing it. But with Android OS powering their Fire TV Stick and Fire TV, there really isn't anything they can do to prevent us from sideloading an APK onto the streaming media d ...more

In response to the success of Apple Pay and an attempt to stave off the appealing Samsung Pay service, Google is completely revamping Android's mobile payments system. Instead of just using Google Wallet as an app to make payments with your phone, a new service called Android ...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

As Android's de facto virtual assistant, Google Now lets us speak directly to our phones in plain English to answer our questions and perform many basic tasks. With the app open, just say "Okay Google," then wait for the beep, and ask almost any question. But several Google N ...more

Out of all the questions that we receive from our readers and viewers here at Gadget Hacks, the most frequently asked one is "What wallpaper is that?" On occasion, our wallpapers may be personal or images from the web, but for the most part, they come from dedicated wallpaper ...more

Deep down at the core of Android lies the system kernel, which serves as a bridge between software and hardware. Custom kernels can be installed in place of the stock offering, and these are generally optimized for better performance or increased battery efficiency. If you've ...more

HTC's Sense UI is generally regarded as one of the best manufacturer-skinned versions of Android. This is mainly due to the subtle and classy styling of the interface, as well as some unique features that are added in here and there. One of the most central features of Sense ...more

UPDATE 11/17/15 The Xposed Framework now officially supports Android 5.1 through 5.1.1 Lollipop devices as well. Everything will still work the way it has with Android 5.0 through 5.0.2, but there are a separate set of files for the newer Android version. I'll cover both belo ...more

Many modern Android devices use a display technology called AMOLED. These screens differ from traditional LCD displays in that each pixel emits its own light, so a backlight is not required. Even better, when rendering a black element on the screen, AMOLED displays simply don' ...more

When you're actively using your phone, a certain amount of battery drain is to be expected. But, if your device is just sitting in your pocket draining its battery, that's when you need to take action. Among the biggest screen-off battery draws are the various connections tha ...more

Many Android games use large, storage-heavy OBB files to store supplemental data. Generally, games with high-end graphics download these extra files when you install them from the Google Play Store. Most OBB files take up more than a gigabyte of space on your internal storage ...more

When people first learn that their Android device is capable of dual-booting different operating systems, e.g. Linux, they almost universally respond with, "That's so cool." And for those of us ambitious enough to actually try one out, we are typically filled with glee as we s ...more

Surely you've heard of the wildly-popular custom ROM CyanogenMod, right? As the longest-tenured third-party firmware for Android devices, CM has been able to maintain its popularity by supporting a wide array of devices and offering many customization options. One such custom ...more

If you're like me, you spend a lot of time on your computer, which can be damaging to your eyes in the long run. Studies have shown that staring at a computer screen or television up close for extended periods of time can have harmful effects on your vision. An application ca ...more

When it comes to theming your Android device, it's the little touches that count the most. That's why developer SArnab created the Android Theme Engine, an Xposed Module to theme those hard-to-reach corners of the Android System that often go untouched with other themes. So, ...more

Resflux is an Xposed mod developed by Julian Paolo Dayag, aka WisdomSky, that provides users with a straightforward and functional way to customize and theme almost every aspect of the packages (apps and system components) installed on their Android device. From within an eas ...more

If hearing the names of classic PC games like Commander Keen, Fallout, Master of Orion, and Wolfenstein 3D send you into a fit of nostalgia, then DosBox Turbo is the perfect app for your Android device. DosBox Turbo is a highly optimized and feature-enhanced Android port of D ...more

We live, work, and play in drastically different environments, so it only makes sense that we'd want our Nexus 5 smartphones to automatically adapt to our needs when in certain locales at certain times. If you're at home, you want Wi-Fi enabled so that it will connect automat ...more

The Nexus line of devices consistently offer the most bang for your buck. It's why many of us purchased a Nexus 5—at a $350 entry price, it's half the cost of any other phone with similar specs. Google manages to sell these devices at that insanely low price point by cutting ...more

The Moto X introduced tons of cool features that have slowly been ported over to other phones, like Peek notifications and always listening "OK, Google" detection. Another such feature allows you to twist your wrist to bring up the camera app from any screen—even with the disp ...more

LG's arsenal of screen-off and screen-on tap gestures recently expanded into lock screen territory. Dubbed "Knock Code", this feature allows owners of various LG phones, like the G2 and upcoming G3 to unlock their phone with a series of taps on the screen. The most impressive ...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

Your Nexus 5 comes with a pretty cool feature baked in called Android Beam. Using NFC, or Near Field Communication, this functionality allows you to send information to another compatible device by simply touching the two together. Most flagship devices have NFC built into the ...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

Changing an app's name on your home screen is not something you can do on stock Android or TouchWiz, but it should be. If you think of it merely from a customization angle, sure, it's not a big deal, but having the ability to alter an app shortcut's name can do wonders for cle ...more

Once you unlock your bootloader and root, you're left with one more hurdle to overcome, and that's getting S-Off. By default, HTC has included security measures into the HTC One's bootloader, which prevents you from installing custom firmwares or other tweaks. By obtaining S- ...more

If you're as bad at locking your Nexus up as I am, you have the "slide" option set for your screen lock. It may not be the most secure option, but it's definitely the easiest way to unlock your device while being able to utilize lock screen widgets. Now look at your lock scre ...more

One feature of Samsung devices that's less useful than I had expected is S Voice, the voice assistant that ships with all new Galaxy devices. The voice is annoying, the features are lacking, and it's an all around subpar product. With Google Now, Siri, and now Microsoft's Cort ...more

HTC's recent release of a new flagship phone brought tons of fanfare along with it. Dubbed The All New HTC One, the M8 edition of the popular One series phone also marked an update to the HTC Sense UI. Manufacturer skins like Sense can be a bit of a polarizing subject, especia ...more

You did it! You got your hands on the much coveted all new HTC One (M8). Last year's M7 model, also named the One, was very well received critically, and HTC continues its smashing design here with stereo speakers that kick and curves that don't quit. Simply put, there's a lo ...more

After all the leaks and peeks of the HTC One M8, it has finally been officially introduced to the public, available for purchase at most U.S. carriers. HTC also unveiled Sense 6 during the launch event, the newest iteration of its operating system, and thanks to their new Adva ...more

Nokia's recent foray into the world of Android brought a plethora of goodies along with it. The Finnish smartphone manufacturer offers a slightly different take on our favorite mobile operating system, with customizations ranging from ringtones to its very own app store. Much ...more

KitKats? Toast? Sorry if that headline made you hungry, but no I'm not talking about Nestlé's chocolatey wafer treat, nor the crunchy slices of bread you have with your eggs in the morning. If you haven't caught on by now, Android names each major release after some sort of c ...more

The launch of Android 4.4 KitKat alongside the Nexus 5 was met with much fanfare from Android enthusiasts. Unfortunately, if you don't have a Nexus device or are still awaiting the 4.4 update, you may feel a bit left behind. If you have a carrier version of the HTC One, 2013' ...more

Netflix is more popular now than ever, but it still has a ways to go before satisfying everyone. Whether it's a lack of availability, buggy or unattractive apps, or just not being able to find anything to watch, lots of people have their complaints. But there is a way to make ...more

The biggest complaint I have with my Nexus 7 is the lack of support for different types of media files. I have a lot of movies and music that I've downloaded off the web, in many different formats, and I want them on my tablet. Want to play that 1080p MKV file of your favorit ...more