Hot Gadget Hacks How-Tos
How To: Remotely Silence Alarms, Messages, Calls, Notifications & Other Sounds on Your iPhone to Keep Others from Finding It
Imagine a scenario where you're nowhere near your iPhone, but it's on loud, and you really need to silence it. An alarm may be blaring, notifications could be spitting out sounds left and right, and calls may be ringing. Things can get annoying real quick for whoever's around it. Plus, all that attention makes it easy for someone to find and possibly steal your iPhone. Luckily, you can quiet it down.
How To: Root Your Pixel 3 on Android 10
When new Android versions come out, the modding community has to find new ways to root the OS. It's a fun cat and mouse game to follow, but it also means the process of rooting isn't exactly the same as it was the last time you did it. Android 10 changes how root works on a system level for some devices, but luckily, the developers are already on top of things.
How To: Turn Burst Photos into GIFs on Your iPhone
Creating GIFs of your own burst images has been possible for a while with third-party iOS apps, some of which cost money or include in-app purchases to utilize the full potential. Fortunately, with Shortcuts, Apple's automation workflow app, there's finally a native way to achieve this without spending any cash.
How To: Use Screen Pinning in Android 9.0 Pie to Lock Apps in the Foreground
Screen pinning is a fairly unknown feature despite the fact that it's been around since 2014. It's a helpful security tool that limits access to your device to only one app — perfect for those times when someone asks to borrow your phone. While previous versions kept this feature exactly the same, Android 9.0 Pie's new multitasking UI changes the way it works.
How To: Find Missing Apps on Your iPhone
Unlike on Android, you can't easily hide your iPhone apps. Sure, you can nestle them away in folders labeled "junk," but they're supposed to be omni-present somewhere on your home screen. That is, until one day they're just ... gone. The fact that some of your apps disappeared only makes it more frustrating because there's no logical reason why they should have, right?
How To: Stop Apps from Automatically Uninstalling Themselves on Your iPhone
If you've unlocked your iPhone lately and noticed some apps aren't fully installed anymore, you're not alone. After updating my device recently to a newer version of iOS 11, I didn't immediately understand what caused a few of my games to uninstall themselves. It turns out, there's a simple setting that explains what's going on.
How To: Make an Anonymous Facebook Profile to Keep Your Personal Data Private
Between the Cambridge Analytica scandal and the revelation that Facebook logs your calls and text history on Android, many are considering joining the #DeleteFacebook movement. But it can be difficult to leave the site, because so much of its content is only available to active users. If you want to keep in the loop without sacrificing your privacy, you'll want to follow the steps below.
How To: The Fastest Way to Transfer Photos & Videos from Your iPhone to Your Windows 10 PC
Thanks to iCloud and AirDrop, it's really easy to sync photos between an iPhone and a Mac. But if you have an Apple phone and a Windows computer, this process isn't quite as simple. Thankfully, Microsoft has just released a new iPhone app that makes it a breeze to move photos and videos from your iPhone to your PC.
VLC 101: How to Cast Any Video to Your TV Natively
When it comes to media players, few are more capable than VLC. With its extensive codec support, VLC is able to play almost any video file. Partly due to its open-source nature, features are constantly added. This trend has continued with a new update that added native Chromecast support.
ProtonMail 101: How to Make Images Show Up in Your Emails Automatically
By default, images embedded using external links will not automatically load in any emails that you get with ProtonMail. This is a security mechanism that can prevent malicious code from being executed on your system, but it can also be fairly annoying to have to manually load images in email after email.
How To: Block Ads in All Your Android Apps Without Root or Extra Battery Drain
If you're in the market for a non-root ad-blocker, developer Julian Klode has an app that you'll definitely want to check out. It uses Android's VPN system in a similar manner to alternative apps like NetGuard and AdGuard, but it's got a new twist that should save lots of battery life in the process.
How To: Remove the Lock Screen Camera Shortcut on Your iPhone in iOS 10
The new lock screen in iOS 10 is a lot different than previous versions, but one thing that stuck around is the quick access camera shortcut. The only real difference aside from aesthetics is that now you don't have to swipe up from the camera icon. Instead, you can simply swipe to the left from right side to quickly snap a picture.
How To: Get Google's Hidden Weather App on Your Home Screen
You can now access Google's slick Weather app without having to first open the Google or News & Weather apps. However, you will have to use Google to access the weather the old-fashioned way one more time, but you'll have the option to place a shortcut on your home screen to access the weather directly going forth.
How To: Secretly Record Videos on Android
Past video recording apps we've covered made it easy to turn your Android device into a hidden spy camera, even allowing you to inconspicuously record videos using your volume buttons. While both are viable options that can secretly capture video, today we're going over an additional method that will let you both schedule recordings or discretely trigger them without anyone around you noticing a thing.
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: Get Dolby Atmos Surround Sound on Any Android
Dolby may have made a lot of Android users angry by only offering their Atmos surround sound equalizer to Lenovo and Amazon, but we all know that exclusivity is only temporary in the Android world. Thanks to worstenbrood, we now have a ported version that can be installed on any device running Android 4.3 and above.
How To: Manage App Permissions on Android (No Root Required)
When it comes to app permissions, Android takes an "all or nothing" approach. You have no granular control over what data apps can access, so the only way to prevent an app from seeing your location or starting up on boot, for instance, is to not install the app in the first place.
How To: Automatically Change Keyboards for Specific Apps on Android
There's no such thing as a perfect Android keyboard. Some, like Swype, have gesture typing down to a science, but lack in predictive technology. SwiftKey, on the other hand, boasts awesome next-word prediction, but less than stellar gesture typing. Many others are optimized for multiple languages, space saving, or emojis, but none are without their flaws.
How To: Disable the Photo Auto-Enhance Feature in Facebook's Mobile Apps
Facebook is really good at two things: connecting people all over the world and force-feeding changes to its users (ahem...Facebook Messenger).
How To: Schedule Bluetooth, Data, Wi-Fi & Other System Settings on Android
Before you head to class, work, or sleep, you're probably doing the same thing over and over again—toggling off system settings like Wi-Fi, sound, data, or brightness, depending on the circumstances. Schedules and routines can help increase efficiency, so while you abide to a particular schedule, so should your Android.
How to Root Android: Our Always-Updated Rooting Guide for Major Phone Models
Without a comprehensive root method for all Android phones and tablets, a device-specific approach is needed. And since we always cover new rooting methods for all the popular phones here at Gadget Hacks, we've built this always-updated guide to rooting many mainstream Android devices.
How To: SIM-Unlock Your HTC One for Free
Mobile carriers have been the bane of my existence for as long as I've had a phone. First, they take away unlimited data, and then when you try and switch carriers, they hold your phone hostage for a up to a week before unlocking it from their network.
How To: Make a Super Cheap One-Way Check Valve
If you're going to build yourself a water gun to cool down this summer, or maybe just a useful water pump, you'll need some check valves. However, the most expensive parts of a water pump or DIY super soaker are usually the check valves. So, let's make some from scratch for as little as $0.35 each.
How To: Put Music on Your iPhone Without Using iTunes
There are quite a few flaws with Apple's mobile products, and one that drives me crazy is their reliance upon iTunes for all your music syncing needs. If you want a song on your iPhone, you pretty much have to use iTunes to get it on there. Either that or buy it directly from the iTunes app on your device.
How To: Tired of Chess? Here's How You Find the Secret Games Hidden on Your Mac
I can definitely say that my MacBook is one of my best friends, but I was still very disappointed when I realized that the only game my laptop came with was chess. For starters, I'm not very good at chess. I haven't even beat the computer once, which really grinds my gears. But, it has come to my attention that chess isn't the only pre-installed game on my Mac—there seems to be some hidden gems that I simply wasn't cool enough to know about. For some of you, this may be old news, but for me, ...
How To: Change Your Android Device's Wi-Fi Country Code to Access Wireless Networks Abroad
Ever found yourself not able to connect to a Wi-Fi network on your Android device that you know damn well was there? The worst part is that you know it's your device, because you can see everyone else around you on that network! WHAT GIVES?!? Well, maybe it has something to do with your phone’s Wi-Fi country code!
How To: Download and install the Firesheep Mozilla Firefox browser add-on
Eager to try the Firesheep Firefox extension yourself? It stands to reason that you'll need to download and install it from its official GitHub page first. You'll find all the details, including easy-to-follow, step-by-step instructions on how to find and run the Firesheep XPI installer, in the clip. Get started capturing your friends' Facebook passwords with this video guide.
How To: Download and install BlackBerry's App World
This is a Wirefly video tutorial on how to download BlackBerry's App World directly to your BlackBerry. To get started, make sure your BlackBerry is running at least BlackBerry operating system 4.2.
How To: Trace Any IP Address
Using a simple trace trick, you can easily look up the IP address and its location for any website. This method uses a command line command to first find the IP address of a given website, and then uses a free online tool to get that IP's location.
Home Screen Customization: How to Hide and Show Specific Home Screen Pages on Your iPhone
Sure, you can remove apps from your iPhone's Home Screen without deleting them. But there's something satisfying about seeing them laid out and well-organized on the Home Screen, just a tap away, especially if you use user-selectable or custom icons for all your apps. Still, there may be days or situations when you want to hide apps without removing them entirely from the Home Screen.
How To: Get the Time Without Looking Using Apple Watch's Hidden Time-Telling Features
Our everyday lives are inundated with displays from smartphones, computers, tablets, TVs, and other devices, so it's important to find ways to limit your screen use wherever possible to improve your overall digital well-being. One simple thing you can do if you have an Apple Watch is make your watch tell you the time so you don't have to look yourself — and this little-known feature is easy to unlock.
How To: Unlock Themed Icons on Android 12 for Colors That Dynamically Shift with Your Wallpaper
Google's new Material You theming engine in Android 12 adds a personal touch to your user interface. The main colors of your wallpaper dynamically affect the colors in menus and apps, essentially putting you in control of the overall theme. But there's another new design element for app icons that's hiding in your settings.
How To: Mute Notifications for Everything but Your Favorite Contacts in iOS 15
Your iPhone is full of apps that are all vying for your attention. Notifications from Facebook, Instagram, and even Apple Messages can get out of hand fast. With iOS 15, Apple gives you the tools to choose exactly who can contact you and when. Keep reading to see how to take control of your iPhone's notifications so that you only receive the most important alerts.
How To: 32 Things You Didn't Know About Your iPhone's Keyboard
Apple's stock keyboard for iPhone has gone through many changes over the years. Some have been significant, and others more subtle. Overall, most of these updates have been fairly obvious, so you're probably already using them — but there are more than a few interesting features that were slipped in under the radar that you may not know about.
How To: Quickly Generate a Strong Password on Your iPhone When iCloud Keychain Won't Work
Apple's password manager, iCloud Keychain, lets you securely save important login credentials for apps, websites, and services that sync up across all of your Apple devices — iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, and Mac. One of its biggest highlights is that it can create strong passwords for you. Unfortunately, it doesn't always work, and in those cases, there are other ways to generate random, strong passwords.
How To: Stop Your iPhone from Automatically Sharing Audio to Your HomePod or HomePod Mini
Pushing music from your iPhone to your HomePod or HomePod mini by just moving the devices close to each other is certainly a great party trick. But if Handoff is too easily triggered, you might not think it's worth the wow factor. Thankfully, there's an easy way to stop your iPhone from sharing audio to your HomePod or HomePod mini (and vice versa) if you're finding it happens way too often.
How To: Take Screenshots on Your iPhone 12, 12 Pro, 12 Pro Max, or 12 Mini in 6 Different Ways
If you just got an iPhone 12, 12 Pro, 12 Pro Max, or 12 mini, and you've never owned an iPhone before, some of the most basic tasks can be baffling. Shutting it down, force-restarting it, quitting apps, and even viewing the percentage of battery remaining sound simple but aren't very intuitive for new iPhone owners. Another big question mark is screenshots, and there are several ways to take them.
How To: Stop Notification Banners from Popping Up for Custom App Icon Shortcuts on Your Home Screen
Users on Android could customize their app icons for some time, but it's a relatively new addition to the iPhone. You could change icons since iOS 12, but it really took off in iOS 14 and got even better in iOS 14.3. Still, it's not as easy as on Android, and you'll see a notification every time you open an app with your custom icon. However, there is a workaround to stop those annoying notifications.
How To: Skip Intros, End Screens & Other Annoying in-Video YouTube Distractions on Android
Even if you pay for YouTube Premium, you are not exempt from ads. YouTube will stop adding pre-roll and interstitial ads, but content creators still have their own advertisements baked into videos. These product placements can be even worse than ads, and they're not the only annoyance embedded into videos. To put it nicely, YouTube is starting to have a problem with distractions.
How To: 8 Useful New Camera Features in the Pixel 4a
You may be wondering what exactly makes the Pixel 4a's camera so great. Compared to its predecessor, it has the same Sony IMX363 sensor and no additional hardware. Well, beyond stellar image processing, it also has several great new features that Google has added since they released the Pixel 3a last year.