Hot Gadget Hacks How-Tos
How To: Stay Updated on Anyone's Tweets Without Following Them
Following someone on Twitter is an investment. You virtually agree to have their opinions, tirades, and hot takes spewed across your timeline. It can get annoying real quick if they're known to post controversial comments periodically. However, there are other ways to stay updated on someone's tweets without you having to hit the follow button and go all in.
How To: Add Invisible Hashtags in Your Instagram Story to Show Up in Search Without Uglifying Your Content
Spreading your reach to new audiences on Instagram takes time and effort. It's not only about taking unique photos and curating an exciting feed. You should choose the time of day wisely, connect with popular brands, and take advantage of hashtags. Unfortunately, hashtags can make it seem like you're trying too hard, but you can make them invisible — in stories, at least.
How To: Steal Your Friends' Cool Instagram Stories Effects
When watching stories in your Instagram feed, there's a high probability that you'll come across an AR filter that you'll want to try out for yourself. A quick browse and search in the Effect Gallery will bring up nothing in most cases. But all of that unproductive work isn't necessary because there's a faster and simpler way to get the AR effect in Instagram Stories, and it works all of the time.
How To: Start Shooting a New TikTok in a Split Second with This Trick
If you have a great idea for a TikTok, you probably need to take your time to execute it perfectly. But what if something crazy and unexpected is happening in front of you, perfect for an impromptu video? You don't want to miss the action, but getting all the way to TikTok's camera might take too long — that is, if you don't know this trick.
How To: The Quickest Way to Start a New Instagram Post
Time is money, so there's profit to be had in tricks and shortcuts that make daily tasks faster on your iPhone. Take Instagram, for example. You can cut out a whole step in the posting process using this one, simple trick.
How To: The 5 Best Phones for Social Media Addicts & Influencers in 2020
The top five apps of the 2010s were all social media apps of some kind, and the fact that's not surprising to you says a lot. We may use them for other reasons here and there, but our phones are social media machines at their cores. The thing is, some make better machines than others.
How To: Remove & Disable Photo Tags on Twitter for Better Account Privacy
If you don't want to be found on Twitter, there are several ways to do that without making your account private. For instance, you can choose an obscure username, omit your real name, or pick a random avatar. But there are lesser-known features deep in your settings that can also protect your privacy online, including preventing photo tags.
How To: The Genius Way to Track Down the TikTok Song Stuck in Your Head
Songs new and old are given a fresh purpose through the TikTok meme machine, but it can be tricky to figure out where a track originally comes from. Sure, you can tap the name of the song to see the source on TikTok, but if it were a snippet uploaded by someone other than the track's creator, the song title likely wouldn't be listed. Luckily, there is an easy way to figure it out.
How To: Lock Down Your Social Media Accounts with These 7 Useful Security Tips
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.
How To: Everything You Need to Know About Pinning a Tweet
Pinning a tweet is a great way to get the point across because it's the first post people see when they visit your Twitter profile. When you pin a tweet, reply, or retweet, it sticks to the top of your profile, whether you create new tweets or not. It's the perfect spot to place one of your more popular tweets, a fantastic blog you wrote, or even just a joke that shows your personality.
How To: Use Incognito Mode in Google Maps to Keep Your Search & Location History Private
Google just recently added an incognito mode feature to Google Maps for iPhone and Android. With that, you can now use Maps in private at any time, which means you can browse and search with peace of mind.
How To: Leave a Facebook Group You're Not Interested in Anymore
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 much more.
How To: Master TikTok's Shuffle Dance in 4 Steps
What's the latest dance trend sweeping TikTok? The Shuffle Dance. If you just watch people doing the Shuffle Dance, especially the really good ones, you might think it's a bit complicated. In reality, it's really not that hard. It's just a handful of steps.
How To: View the Most Recent Stories on Facebook to Stay in the Know
Facebook is where a lot of people get their news. The problem, though? Your Facebook feed gets jumbled with random post times, which isn't useful for keeping up with new stories in real-time.
How To: Unlock Any Face or World Lens from Someone's Snapchat Story
You get a snap from a friend, per usual, but what's this? The lens they're using is actually really cool. Of course, you want to try it out for yourself, but don't bother searching Snapchat's enormous library of lenses to find the AR effect. Instead, there's a simple way to instantly test it out, right from the original snap itself.
How To: Make a Thread on Twitter to Tweet Your Tweetstorms More Easily
The 280-character limit for tweets on Twitter is double what it used to be back in the day, but it's still not enough to express in-depth thoughts, ideas, commentary, rants, blogs, stories, and the like. These tweetstorms, as they're called, are the reason why Twitter created its threads feature.
How To: Change Your Twitter Timeline Back to Reverse-Chronological Order
If you're tired of the so-called "top" tweets appearing first in your Twitter timeline instead of only the latest from the people, companies, and bots you follow, there's a way to get rid of them.
How To: Instantly Share a Photo from Your Pixel's Camera App
The Google Pixel's camera is a status symbol of sorts. When someone sees you with one, you become the photographer of choice for social events. And where do those photos end up? Social media, of course. It's how we share our lives now, and the smartphone camera defines how we approach that.
How To: Enable Gaming Preferred Mode on Google Wifi or Nest Wifi for Smoother Stadia Streaming
Although not quite as common today with the always-connected world we live in, you still might be having bandwidth wars in your home right now. If the internet connection in your area is mediocre, you know the feeling well. Google Stadia recommends having a 25 Mbps connection for playing in 4K, so you can expect to need at least that much to maintain a smooth, high-quality gaming session.
How To: The One Hidden Feature Every iPhone Owner Can Benefit From
There's a whole world of hidden iPhone features you might be missing out on, but this little-known tool for iOS is something you should definitely enable so that it's ready when you need it.
How To: The Hidden Gesture for Switching Between Apps on Home Button iPhones
I love my iPhone 8 Plus, but the allure of modern iPhone gestures is sometimes more tempting than I care to admit. I imagine many of you with a home button iPhone feel the same. What if I told you, however, that your iPhone is capable of iPhone X-like gestures? In fact, you can use a gesture to switch between apps. Welcome to the future.
How To: Add a Bank Account, Debit Card, or Credit Card to Your PayPal
PayPal is one of the most popular payment systems across the globe. It makes payments fast, easy, and secure, and with 250+ million users, it's not going anywhere. If you're new to the online service, one of the first things you should learn is how to add your bank account, credit card, or debit card to PayPal, and make your life easier when it comes to online payments and withdrawals.
How To: Learn TikTok's 'Renegade' Dance in 20 Seconds
Two minutes on TikTok is all it takes to learn that Renegade is a huge deal. The song and the dance combined are a viral trend that shows no sign of stopping. Feeling left out? Let's change that. You can learn the entire dance in just 20 seconds.
How To: Customize Spark for Android Notifications with Lights, Sounds & Vibrations
Android is all about customization. That's why it's entirely appropriate that Spark for Android's newest update adds a ton of customization options for your out-of-control email alerts. Now, you can add lights, sounds, and vibrations to notifications, and you can even set specific settings for all of your email accounts.
How To: You Can Get WhatsApp's New Official Dark Mode on Android Right Now
After Android 10 added a system-wide dark mode, hordes of app developers rushed to add support for the feature. This even helped users on Android 9 and below since most apps could be manually set to a dark theme now. Emphasis on most — WhatsApp was conspicuously absent, for one. That changes today.
How To: Run a Reverse Image Search Quickly Using Any Photo on Your iPhone
Google Images, TinEye, and other reverse image search engines can help you find where images appear on the internet. You can discover what TV show or movie an image comes from, who took a photo, and if the profile picture of someone you're talking to online is really them, among many other uses. And there's a shortcut for iOS that makes running a reverse image search easy.
How To: Block All Robocallers & Telemarketers with Your Pixel's Call Screen Feature
When Google introduced the Call Screen feature with the Pixel 3, I had never been more excited to get a Pixel device. This AI feature provided real protection against rising spam and robocalls, which billions of people deal with each year. After a recent update to the feature, you can reduce robocalls and other spam calls to nearly zero.
How To: Jump To Any Gmail Folder in 1 Tap on Android
By default, Gmail organizes your inbox into multiple categories to make it easier for you to avoid spam and other unwanted mail, and get to the email that matters. But as it stands, to access these folders, you need to open Gmail, open its side menu, then select the inbox you want.
How To: Change Your iPhone's Name with Just a Couple Clicks
Your iPhone's name matters more than you might think. It shows up when AirDropping files to other Apple devices, when keeping tabs on your devices' locations via Find My, and when syncing with your computer. While "Jake Peterson's iPhone" gets the job done, I'd rather give the phone I spend all my time with a proper name.
How To: Why You Should Open the Wallet App Before You Tap & Pay with Your iPhone
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 result in using your rewardless debit card to buy groceries when you could've snagged 2% back by using your Apple Card.
How To: Create Your Own Augmented Reality Filter for Instagram Stories Using Spark AR on Mac or Windows
There's a new trend on Instagram Stories: People are making viral AR filters where images of popular characters from TV shows, movies, and other mediums shuffle above your head until one sticks. The filters range from Disney and Pokémon characters to Harry Potter and Friends, but you're not limited to just that because you can create your own "which are you?" filter.
How To: The Fastest Way to Find an App on Your Cluttered iPhone
Confession time: I hardly ever leave the first page of my iPhone's home screen. No, my iPhone isn't super organized and, no, I don't limit the number of apps I download as well (trust me, this phone is a mess). The truth is that you don't need to rely on your iPhone's home screen pages to find and open an app. In most cases, there's simply a much faster way.
How To: Remove the 30 FPS Cap for Black Desert Mobile on Android
Black Desert Mobile is one of the hottest new smartphone games around, but there seems to be something missing in the frame rate department. Gamers quickly noticed many Android phones are stuck on a 30 FPS cap when it comes to performance. It's not that the phones are too weak to handle higher frame rates, but that there is a particular list of approved devices that can achieve this.
How To: Choose Who Gets to Reply to Your Tweets for Improved Twitter Conversations
Twitter replies have traditionally acted like public spaces. Once a tweet is out there, pretty much anyone can reply to it. In some cases, that makes for good discussion. In others, it can lead to disaster, abuse, and harassment. Twitter's looking to change that by giving you more control over who can reply to tweets.
How To: Add & Remove Debit & Credit Cards for Apple Pay on Your iPhone
Estimates say that there are roughly 441 million Apple Pay users in the world, but with almost a billion active iPhones in the world, some of you have yet to jump on board the digital payment method. But once you're ready — or if you just need a refresher — adding your debit and credit cards to Apple Wallet is simple.
How To: How Your Smartphone Can Get You Fit in Just 7 Minutes a Day
We all want to be healthy, but in practice, it can be tricky, especially from the fitness angle. Our lives seem busier and busier, which makes hitting the gym quite the challenge. What if we told you there was a real way to work on your fitness in the comfort of your own home — in just seven minutes a day? All you need is a chair, a wall, and a 7-minute workout app.
How To: Trouble Staying Focused at the Gym? Here Are 4 Ways Your Phone Can Help You Get Locked In
New year, new me. You finally committed to working on the best physical you by going to the gym multiple days a week. Except about an hour in, you start getting really tired of it all. Before you run to the exit, pick up your phone.
How To: 7 Ways to Use Android's Digital Wellbeing Feature to Improve Your Stress Levels
It seems like each day our phones become more integrated into our lives. School, work, shopping — so many tasks either require a phone or heavily benefit from one. But our phones are a double-edged sword that can easily distract us and harm our mental health as well.
How To: Add an Emergency Medical Card to Your iPhone's Lock Screen with Important Health Information for First Responders
You can't predict the future, but you can prepare for it. On the off chance that you get hurt in a car accident, take a nasty tumble, fall down a cliff, have a seizure, or get struck by lightning, it's always good to carry up-to-date information about your health in case you can't speak for yourself. A physical medical ID wallet card or bracelet can provide the information, but so can your iPhone.
How To: Check Which Apps Have Access to Your Google Fit Data
There's definitely some malware-ridden apps on the Play Store. When it comes to the third-party apps you've connected to your Google Fit account, some have a crazy amount of permissions they have no business accessing. For example, you probably don't want a heart monitor app having access to your personal location data.