These Android settings are each underappreciated a...

As a cellular software program platform, Android has been round since 2008. The working system has quickly advanced over the course of just some brief years, and right this moment it is a feature-rich and mature OS that stands toe-to-toe with the likes of Apple’s iOS and iPadOS choices.

One in all Android’s greatest strengths is its customizability and its general mantra of ‘openness.’ On most builds of the OS, you’ll be able to spend hours tinkering and toggling via choices upon choices. A few of these settings are well-known and appreciated, whereas others are extra obscure or just underutilized.

Listed here are 5 lesser-known settings I at all times benefit from when every day driving any Android handset. I’ve grown fond of every of those settings over time, and so they stay a giant a part of what retains me tied to the Android-based smartphone scene.

1 System animations might be sped up for a zippier UI expertise

The choice is tucked away inside Android’s developer choices menu

I am typically a fan of the default pace of Android’s varied inventory interface components, however I discover sure producer skins to tug on within the animation division. Whereas unknown to most, it is truly fairly simple to hurry up (or decelerate) animations at a system-wide degree.

To regulate the pace of system animations on Android, you may first must allow developer options. This may be completed by navigating to Settings > About cellphone and tapping on the construct quantity seven occasions. From right here, navigate to Developer choices > Window animation scale / Transition animation scale / Animator period scale and swap to the .5x possibility.

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2 Setting a customized lock display message is a pleasant contact

This considerably obscure Android setting brings me additional peace of thoughts

Because the starting, Android has allowed you to put a brief block of textual content instantly onto your cellphone’s lock display. In my case, I usually set this up with a secondary cellphone quantity, within the occasion that I misplace my cellphone, and it is stumbled upon by a Good Sameritan. Typically, this message reads some variant of: “if discovered, please contact xxx.xxx.xxxx.”

So as to add your personal customized lock display message, navigate to Settings > Show & Contact > Lock display > Add textual content to lock display. From right here, you’ll be able to enter your required textual content.

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3 Double-tapping on the app switcher is a serious time saver

The function features very like alt+tab on a PC

Whereas most Android telephones now ship with gesture-based navigation by default, the normal 3-button software program navigation stays accessible for individuals who want it. One profit of selecting buttons over gestures is the entry it offers to a little-known shortcut: you’ll be able to double faucet on the multitasking key to swap between your two most lately operating apps shortly. The function is simple to overlook, however it allows a desktop PC-like navigation software on cellular that I at all times make use of.

To benefit from Android’s built-in fast app switching operate, you may must first allow the software program button navigation possibility. Navigate to Settings > System > Navigation mode > 3-button navigation. As soon as toggled on, merely double-tap on the devoted multitasking (square-shaped) key to shortly swap between lately opened apps.

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4 App pinning is each handy and ingenious

For one purpose or one other, the setting is obscured on most flavors of Android

One of the vital underappreciated Android settings of all of them is a little-known possibility referred to as app pinning. When enabled, the function lets you lock a selected app to run within the foreground in your cellphone, whereas quickly denying entry to the remainder of the working system. This software is useful when passing your cellphone over to somebody to make a fast cellphone name, offering an added layer of safety.

For one purpose or one other, most flavors of Android ship with the function toggled off by default. To allow Android’s app pinning function, head to Settings > Safety & privateness > Extra safety settings > App pinning and toggle the choice on. As soon as enabled, it is simple to pin apps instantly through your cellphone’s multitasking display. Merely faucet on a operating app’s icon, after which hit the Pin button.

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5 Third-party launchers maintain the smartphone expertise recent

App launchers present numerous advantages, however hardly anybody is aware of of their existence

Android launchers are apps that function residence display replacements for the OS, and so they supply up a ton of customization choices. Certain, the existence of launchers is well-known inside most Android circles, however they continue to be a largely area of interest possibility on a broader scale. There are a ton of fantastic third-party launchers accessible for obtain — some of my current favorites embody Niagara Launcher, Lawnchair, and Olauncher.

To swap between put in residence launchers, merely navigate to Settings > Apps > Default apps > Residence app and choose from the listing offered. Word that you’re going to must obtain and set up launcher apps from the Google Play Retailer or from different sources to have them populate on display.

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