Gadget Hacks How-Tos
How To: Stop Spammy Notifications on Your Phone
Have you ever had one of your Android games post a notification in a lame attempt to remind you to play? This is becoming a common practice these days, and to me, it's about as annoying as a Best Buy blue shirt when I'm just trying to check out the latest TVs.
How To: Share Paid Android Apps for Free (Legally)
Last year, Apple debuted a feature that allows families to share iTunes and App Store purchases across their various accounts. Us Android users, on the other hand, have to buy separate copies of apps for each of our accounts—well, at least from an official standpoint.
How To: Downgrade iOS 9 Back to iOS 8
If you couldn't wait to test drive iOS 9 before its official release this fall, you probably have the beta software on your iPhone right now. However, if you're not a fan of all the bugs and glitches that accompanies it, it's not too late—you can still downgrade back to the latest version of iOS 8.
How To: The Must-Have Keyboard Feature You Never Knew You Needed
In addition to sharing emojis and GIFs, most of us also probably share various types of links through email or text, whether it be for a Google Maps location, a bar or restaurant on Yelp, or an awesome song on Spotify.
How To: The 5 Coolest New Siri Features for iPhone in iOS 9
Apple has once again improved functionality of Siri, their personal voice assistant for iPad and iPhone, in iOS 9—and this update is a big one. You can now use Siri to find photos based on location and date, set up contextual reminders, find your friends and family, and more.
How To: Top 5 Android VoIP Apps for Making Free Phone Calls
The telecommunications industry has come a long way since Ma Bell opened the first telephone exchange in the late 1800s. With the advent of fiber optics and wireless broadband technology, we no longer have a need for a dedicated phone connection, as today's data networks can carry much more than a simple voice conversation.
NetEase Music: The Free Service That Will Get You to Leave Spotify
We recently lost Grooveshark, the free music streaming service that supplied users with a huge catalog of free music anytime, anywhere. Since its shutdown, I have been scrambling to find a half-decent alternative, and my expectations were more than exceeded when I found NetEase Music.
How To: Run Two Apps Side by Side on Your iPad in iOS 9
After rumors and mockups and all sorts of speculated features, Apple has finally brought true multitasking to the iPad in iOS 9, with the long-rumored split screen feature (which is also in El Capitan) that lets you use two apps at once. This feature is actually two different ones called Split View and Slider Over, and they both work differently.
How To: Get a Floating Video Window While Multitasking on Your iPad in iOS 9
Out of all the new features in iOS 9, the two most important ones specific to iPads are split screen multitasking and floating video windows. The latter is truly great, since you can watch movies or use FaceTime while you use different apps. The feature is called Picture in Picture, and here's what you need to know about it.
How To: What's Draining Your Android's Battery? Find Out & Fix It for Good
When it comes to smartphones, the biggest complaint voiced by most users is battery life. Sure, it's unrealistic to expect your Android device to run for weeks without a recharge, but many folks struggle to even make it through the day without having to top off their battery.
How To: Max Out Your Clash of Clans Village Faster on Android
It would be an understatement to say that Supercell hit it big with Clash of Clans. The game has topped both Google Play and the iOS App Store for years and shows no signs of ever slowing down.
How To: Install Firefox OS on Android Without Any Rooting or ROMs
As it stands, Firefox OS isn't a very popular third-party operating system for Android devices, especially when compared to others like CyanogenMod, but Mozilla developer Fabrice Desré is attempting to change that.
How To: Disable Proactive Search on Your iPhone or iPad in iOS 9
Apple certainly took a page from Google Now with its new "Proactive" search page in iOS 9. Located to the left of the home screen, the page provides quick access to contacts you've recently corresponded with, suggested applications, nearby places, and news articles based off of your Safari activity.
How To: Hide Photos & Other Files on Android Natively Using This Easy Trick
Have you ever noticed that some Android gallery apps display every last photo that you have stored on your device? This is particularly annoying when most stock gallery apps don't provide an option for hiding certain folders from your filmstrip view. Then there are music players that load up ringtones and video players that queue every video on your device, regardless of whether you want them there or not.
How To: Use Split View Mode in Mac OS X 10.11 El Capitan
Catching up with Windows 8, Apple has finally included a way in Mac OS X to use two apps side by side in full screen view. In the 10.11 El Capitan update, it's called Split View, and it works fairly well for the most part. It's not quite as intuitive as it should be, but easy enough once you get the hang of it.
How To: Identify Real Login Popups from Fake Phishing Attacks in iOS 8's Mail App
A recently discovered bug in iOS 8's Mail app by Jan Soucek can allow the maliciously-minded to quite easily phish your iCloud password without you ever thinking something has gone awry. Using a bug that allows remote HTML content to be loaded in place of the original email content, unsuspecting victims would be prompted for iCloud credentials in a popup that resembles the native one found on iOS.
How To: The 10 Best New Features in iOS 9's Notes App for iPad & iPhone
Notes on iOS has never been a particularly great app due to a lack of overall features compared to other note-taking apps like Evernote or Microsoft OneNote.
How To: Switch Apps with Just One Tap on Your iPhone in iOS 9
While the app switcher in iOS makes it easy to go from one open app to another fairly quickly, it's still not a great option if all you want to do is return to the previous app you were in.
How To: Test Your Samsung Phone by Using Secret Code *#0*#
Besides obvious features like a touchscreen and biometric sensors, the modern smartphone comes with an array of state-of-the-art hardware in the form of various sensors that help your device sense the environment around it. And if you have a Samsung handset, chances are, you have a handy feature built in that enables you to check if these sensors are functioning 100 percent.
How To: Enable or Disable the Wallet from Showing on Your iPhone's Lock Screen in iOS 9
To use Apple Pay in iOS 8, you had hold your iPhone to the card reader first, and then you could either switch to a different card or pay with your default one. Now, in iOS 9, you can access your Wallet (which replaces Passbook) on the lock screen before you get to the reader.
How To: Unlock the Hidden iCloud Drive App on Your iPhone in iOS 9
Previously, the only way to see files in iCloud Drive on an iPad or iPhone in iOS 8 was to view them in Safari, which was pretty messy overall. To make iCloud Drive a little less confusing for the average consumer, Apple has included a dedicated app in iOS 9, allowing you to conveniently view all your stored cloud-based files right from your home screen.
How To: Use the Ring/Silent Switch to Lock Screen Rotation on Your iPhone in iOS 9
The Ring/Silent switch on the side of the iPhone has always had one purpose—to toggle ring mode/silent mode. But in iOS 9, Apple gave us another choice, and that's locking the orientation of the screen.
How To: Get the OS X El Capitan & iOS 9 Wallpapers on Your iPad, iPhone, or Mac
Mac OS X 10.11 and iOS 9 won't be officially released until later this year, but that doesn't mean you can't get a taste of it today. And the easiest way to do that is to download the new El Capitan and iOS 9 wallpapers.
How To: Extend Your iPhone's Battery Life by 3 Hours Using Low Power Mode in iOS 9
One thing Apple users universally complain about is battery life, whether it's on an iPad, iPhone, or Apple Watch. Apple did include a Battery Usage feature in iOS 8 to help us monitor which apps suck up the most energy, but it's too big a pain to deal with. Now, in iOS 9, there gave us something that actually matters—Low Power Mode.
How To: Download OS X 10.11 El Capitan on Your Mac
For those unwilling to wait until the Fall for the official release of Apple's latest Mac OS X, El Capitan, you can sign up for the public beta today and get it sometime this summer. If that's still not soon enough for you, there is a way to get it on your Mac right now.
How To: The 55 Coolest New iOS 9 Features You Didn't Know About
Apple's latest mobile operating system, iOS 9, may not be the huge overhaul that iOS 8 was, but that doesn't mean there aren't plenty of new features. In fact, there are a ton of subtle changes that you may not notice right away. Here's a rundown of all the coolest new features you need to know about on the new iOS 9 for iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch.
How To: Dual Boot Mac OS X 10.11 El Capitan & 10.10 Yosemite
Since the new Mac OS X 10.11 El Capitan is brand new, I recommend installing it on a separate partition on your hard drive. This will keep your current Yosemite system safe from harm, and will let you easily switch back to it should El Capitan become unusable for any reason.
How To: Create a Bootable Install USB Drive of Mac OS X 10.11 El Capitan
Apple's latest update to Mac OS X, 10.11 El Capitan, is currently available in the Mac App Store for everyone to download and install at no cost. The new OS features Split View mode for better multitasking, a cleaner Mission Control, smarter Spotlight, a way to mute Safari tabs playing audio, enhanced Mail and Notes apps, and more.
How To: Get watchOS 2 Beta on Your Apple Watch Right Now
Not to be outdone by the announcements of Mac OS X El Capitan and iOS 9, the Apple Watch is also getting a much needed software update. Some of the notable new features we can look forward to on watchOS 2 are Nightstand mode, additional screens for friends, email replies, and other improvements we probably should have already had.
How To: Get iOS 9 Beta on Your iPhone or iPad Right Now
Apple just showed off iOS 9 and its new features at WWDC 2015, including multitasking support for iPads (finally!), a new Low Power Mode to save battery, local area search and transit directions in Maps, a highly improved "Proactive" Siri, a better Spotlight search, new apps, and so much more.
How To: Sign Up for the iOS 9 Public Beta Preview for iPad or iPhone
Now that Apple's latest Worldwide Developer's Conference (WWDC) is over, you can sign up for the public beta version of iOS 9 for your iPad or iPhone. For the first time in their history, Apple made a beta version of their mobile OS available to the general public just a few months ago, in the form of iOS 8.3, and they'll continue that trend for the newest build.
How To: Get the Public Beta Preview of Mac OS X 10.11 El Capitan
Apple announced the release of their newest Mac OS X version at this year's Worldwide Developer's Conference, and it's called "El Capitan." Like the majestic rock formation it's named after (located within Yosemite National Park), El Capitan promises to emphasize and expand on some of the great features we used on 10.10 Yosemite.
How To: Use Samsung's Hidden Video Editor on Any Galaxy Device
Editing a video by trimming or adding audio is fairly simple on Galaxy devices, but if you want to include other clips or transition animations and really get those creative juices flowing, you might find the standard editing tools limited—unless you know how to unlock Samsung's hidden video editor.
How To: 10 Overlooked Extensions Every Chrome User Should Be Using
I've been a diehard Chrome user since its inception, and even more so since Android was released. The ability to sync bookmarks, passwords, and web history across all of my devices made the switch a no-brainer, but what really made me fall in love was the amount of extensions available for it.
How To: Create Your Own Free Personal Streaming Radio Service Online
The options for finding random or specific music to listen to are vast. Spotify is excellent for streaming popular music and new releases, while SoundCloud provides a healthy dose of user-generated remixes and originals. And then there's YouTube for everything else.
How To: Use Hound on Android Without an Activation Code
SoundHound's new virtual assistant application, Hound, is gaining a lot of buzz in the tech world—especially after a demo video showed just how awesome it works (it has amassed over 1.6 million views in under a week).
How To: 6 Tweaks You Should Be Using on Your Mac Right Now
All of Apple's products are praised for being extremely easy to use. So much so, that your grandma can pick one up and be a "pro" within a few hours. However, this isn't necessarily a good thing for us real power users who want more granular control of our devices.
How To: Reduce Lag & Boost Performance for Games on a Galaxy S6 or Note 4
Since the days of Android Jelly Bean, Samsung has implemented an energy preservation feature known as dynamic voltage and frequency scaling, or DVFS for short. What this essentially does is limit or adjust the frequency of the microprocessor to conserve power and prevent excessive heat from being generated.
How To: Use WhatsApp on Your Mac (A Guide for Both Android & iPhone Users)
Boasting over 800 million users a month, WhatsApp has quickly become one of the most popular messaging services available today. Thanks to its low price, ease of use, lack of ads, cross-platform functionality, and great features, its popularity is well-deserved.
How To: Get Android M's New Clock App on Any Device Right Now
Android M doesn't even have an official name yet, but that doesn't mean you can't test out of some of its new features today.