Hot Gadget Hacks News Stories

News: 10 Free Icon Packs That'll Change the Look & Feel of Your Android

Being able to customize the look and feel of your device is the main reason a lot of folks choose Android over iOS. And perhaps the single biggest way to visually overhaul your phone or tablet's UI is to apply an icon pack, which can liven up your home screen with bright colors or make things look a bit more classy with a sleek, minimalist style, for instance.

News: The 12 Best Android Widgets for Getting Things Done

For people that like to get things done, Android's home screen widgets are almost indispensable. Rather than packing your launcher with a bunch of icons, you can utilize widgets to get quick information in a beautiful package or provide one-tap access to a particular functionality within your apps.

News: The Galaxy Note 20 & Note 20 Ultra Are IP68 Water-Resistant — Here's What That Really Means

Once again, Samsung has certified its flagship Note series with an IP68 rating. With this rating, the Galaxy Note 20 and 20 Ultra have some degree of dust and water resistance.

News: This Dongle Lets You Connect Wireless Headphones to Anything with an Aux Cable — Airplanes, Nintendo Switch, You Name It

In this post-3.5 mm world, Bluetooth is the most universal option. But a lot of older electronics still don't support wireless audio. Welp, now there's a dongle for that.

News: All the Phones That Work on T-Mobile's 600 MHz Band 71 Network

To combat their poor coverage in rural areas, T-Mobile spent nearly $8 billion on 600 MHz spectrum in 2017, which was converted to LTE Band 71. With such a low frequency, the signal can travel further, providing LTE speeds to more Americans. But your phone also has to support this frequency, and so far, only a handful do.

News: Keep Your AirPods Case from Getting Dirty in Your Pocket or Bag with This Dust-Tight Cover

We love our set of Apple AirPods. The battery could last a little longer, but overall, there's only one gripe we really have: the dirt that builds up inside the case. Whether you stick it in your pocket, a backpack, or your purse, the inside of the case's lid and main base will get dirty in a week, give or take. But there's a way to stop that from happening.

News: New iOS 13 Features — The 200+ Best, Hidden & Most Exciting New Changes for iPhone

Apple's iOS 13 has been available for beta testing since June, and the stable release pushed out to everyone on Thursday, Sept. 19. To help you make the most out of iOS 13 for iPhone, we've rounded up everything you'll want to know, whether a colossal feature, small settings change, interface update, or hidden improvement.

Netflix 101: How to Cast Shows & Movies from Your Phone to Your TV

Chromecast comes to mind when "casting" video from a smartphone to a big screen television, but it's not the only way to "cast" streaming content. This is especially true for Netflix, where you can cast movies and TV shows to not only a Chromecast-enabled TV, but to smart TVs, video game consoles, and other streaming media players so that you have complete control right from your smartphone.

News: Google Is Taking on Apple's iMessage with RCS — Here's How Android's New Texting Experience Stacks Up

You've probably heard of RCS messaging. The new standard has been promoted by Google as their answer to iMessage and is the backbone behind the new "Chat" features in Android Messages. With RCS, Android phones will now enjoy enhanced messaging like iPhone users have had for years — but is it really the same?

News: Everything You Need to Know About the Samsung Galaxy S10e

With Apple releasing the iPhone XR, it appears Samsung is looking to challenge this "budget flagship" option head-on. They brought their usual two phone releases this year, but also threw in another three for a total of five phones, including the Samsung Galaxy S10e. And for many, this might be the option to look at.

News: 100+ Coolest New iOS 12 Features You Didn't Know About

The next big iOS version for iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch was revealed by Apple at WWDC 2018 and dropped for everyone on Sept. 17, 2018, less than a week after Apple revealed the new iPhone lineup. We've rounded up all the big picture items and secret features and changes we could find so you know exactly what to expect when updating to iOS 12 on your iPhone.

News: 91 Cool New iOS 11 Features You Didn't Know About

Apple's iOS 11 is finally here, and while they showed off several of the new features it brings to your iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch back at WWDC 2017, they've only just touched the surface of what iOS 11 has to offer. There are a lot of cool new (and sometimes secret) features to explore, so we've collected them all here for you.

PSA: Unlocking Your Pixel's Bootloader Does NOT Void Your Warranty

As we first reported here on Gadget Hacks, Google's new Pixel and Pixel XL smartphones come with an unlockable bootloader, with the exception of models sold by Verizon.

News: These Android Phones Could Be Affected by Adups' Chinese Spyware

Kryptowire, a company specializing in mobile security solutions, released a report on Tuesday, November 15 that exposed firmware in a number of Android devices that was collecting personally identifying information (PII) and uploading it to third-party servers without users' knowledge.

Hot or Not: The Original Ego Scaler Is Now on Android, iOS, & Windows

Mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the fairest of them all? Besides being one of the most notorious misquotes of all time (the line is "Magic Mirror on the wall, who is the fairest of them all"), it's a question that men and women probably have asked themselves more than once.

News: Yahoo's Aviate Launcher Is Now Open to All & Better Than Ever

When Yahoo! purchased the home screen replacement app Aviate back in January, many were wondering if the internet giant intended to continue development of the launcher or if the transaction was just another acqui-hire.

News: Apple Rereleases iOS 17.6.1 for iPhone with Important Bug Fixes

While Apple is full steam ahead on iOS 18, which is expected to drop sometime next month, it hasn't forgotten about iOS 17, which still dominates most users' iPhones. On Aug. 19, Apple issued a rerelease of its iOS 17.6.1 software for iPhone.

News: PlayStation's Remote Play App Now Compatible with DualSense Controllers on Android 12

Those of you lucky enough to snag a PlayStation 5 can pair your DualSense controller to Sony's PS Remote Play mobile app to stream and play your PS5 games from anywhere you want. DualSense support for Remote Play has been available on iOS since May 2021, and it's just now arrived on Android.

News: Convert Your Furniture into a Wireless Charging Surface for Less Than $50 with This Ikea Product

Wireless charging is pretty much ubiquitous among modern iPhones and Android smartphones, but the technology has brought a lot of clutter with it.

News: Full Galaxy Note 20 & Note 20 Ultra Specifications — Price, Dates, Box Contents & More

Samsung's lineup of Galaxy Note devices for 2020 include the specs-behemoth Galaxy Note 20 Ultra and the slightly more cost-effective Galaxy Note 20. Excuse the pun, but there's a lot to unpack here in terms of unique features and hardware.

News: Get Dinner Delivered to You from Almost Any Restaurant with These Apps

Whether you were exposed to the COVID-19 virus or just taking precautionary measures, self-quarantining is a tremendous disruption for anyone. Still, we all have to eat, pandemic or not. But unless you like eating canned food for two weeks, you're going to want to explore other options. That's why food delivery apps are going to be so necessary during such a hectic and uncertain time.

News: 10 Best Apps for Improving & Maintaining Your Mental Health

If you made a resolution for 2020 to get healthier, it's essential to concentrate on your mental health just as much as you do on physical fitness. Running and exercising is great, but a sound mind is integral to a healthy and balanced life, and you can improve your emotional and physiological well-being with your smartphone.

News: The Best Thermos to Get You Through Winter Is from Japan

Decades ago, Japan rocked the automobile industry with its revolutionary manufacturing and car quality, but today that title seems to be moving over to Elon Musk's electric car company Tesla. Nevertheless, Japan isn't done innovating mass-produced hardware.

Gift Guide: Must-Have Phone Accessories for Movie Lovers

There's never been a better time for streaming movies and TV shows on the go. With so many services available, the only limitation to your enjoyment is your phone's accessories. Whether you're buying for yourself or someone else, here are some of the best gifts that improve the movie-watching experience on mobile.

News: Always-Updated List of Android 10 Custom ROMs for Every Major Phone

One of the coolest things about Android is the massive development community behind it. These developers keep on cooking up new things even after official support has stopped for an older device. It breathes new life into somewhat forgotten devices, which is always great news. With Android 10 out, it's time to see what phones will get the custom ROM treatment.

News: Make Your Smart Home Smarter with a Truly Universal Remote

True home automation doesn't require interaction from the user. But let's be real, no system is going to be 100% autonomous. You'll always need a manual override for situations programming can't account for. So what's the best manual override system? I'll tell you right now, it doesn't involve yelling at Alexa or Google.

News: Get Fast Charging on the iPhone 11 Without Paying Top Dollar for Apple's 18-Watt Power Adapter & USB-C Cable

If you just got a new iPhone, chances are you picked up the iPhone 11, successor to the iPhone XR, the most popular device in Apple's 2018 series. Since the XR did so well, it was predicted that the iPhone 11 would too, and so far, it has lived up to that prediction, beating the 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max in sales in 2019.

News: Why EIS Is Actually Better Than OIS for Videos

If cameras are a priority, one of the first specs to check on a new phone is the image stabilization. You've probably been told optical image stabilization (OIS) reigns supreme, but this isn't the case if you're taking a lot of videos. Instead, we would argue, electronic image stabilization (EIS) actually works better for video.

News: The 5 Best Reddit Apps for iPhone

These days, using Reddit on your iPhone is just as good, if not better, than Redditing on a desktop browser. While there's an official Reddit app for iOS, there are plenty of third-party clients that have similar features as well as custom perks to enhance the experience. But figuring out which Reddit client is best for your daily use can be a lot of work — work that we can make easier on you.

News: One of the Best Android File Managers Is Finally on the Play Store

When we reviewed the best file managers on Android, MiXplorer easily topped our list with its abundance of features, including tabbed browsing, support for up to 19 different cloud services, file and folder encryption, and much more. The only major complaint we had was the fact it couldn't be installed from the Play Store, but now, that is no longer the case.

News: Here's How Apple's Stopping Police from Breaking into iPhones

Since the San Bernardino shooting in 2014, Apple's been engaged in a game of cat and mouse with law enforcement. Authorities want access to evidence on criminals' iPhones, but Apple wants to protect all of its customers' personal data equally. The latest installment in this saga has Apple outright disabling the Lightning port.

Galaxy S8 Oreo Update: You Can Now Make Lock Screen Notifications Transparent — Here's How

Samsung kicked off their Android Oreo rollout earlier this week. The update already improved the lock screen significantly with new wallpaper color-matching for the clock. With the newest update, we also get the ability to tweak the transparency of lock screen notifications.

Snapseed 101: Use Portrait Mode & Head Pose to Get the Perfect Selfie

Google's Snapseed app has a plethora of editing tools to help make your photos even better. But did you know it has specific tools designed to edit your face? Not that it needs any help, of course!

PSA: TrueCaller Is Sharing Your Phone Activity

TrueCaller is sharing your phone activity by revealing the last time your phone was used to contacts. The application used to identify unknown callers launched in 2009 and has faced a wealth of privacy concerns before.

News: Everything You Need to Know About the Google Pixel 2 — Specs, Features & More

After months of leaks and rumors, Google has finally unveiled the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL. If there were such a thing, the Pixel would be the one "true" Android flagship — so even if you don't plan on buying a Pixel 2, you'll want you learn more about this milestone device.

News: Google Pixel Speaker Sound Distorted, Popping, or Staticky? Here's How to Fix It

The brand new Pixel and Pixel XL, Google's first direct attempts at taking on the iPhone, haven't rolled out exactly how Google would have liked. The devices have already had more than their fair share of issues, starting with the camera, and now extending to the built-in speaker. The camera issues were marked as "solved" by Google, but the lens flare is still very much there, just not as prominent.

News: 10 Awesome Android Apps You Won't Find on Google Play

As Android's official app provider, the Google Play Store is packed with thousands of useful programs. But Google's terms of service is extremely restrictive, which means that countless apps simply don't qualify to be hosted on the Google Play Store.

News: How to Use Speech-to-Text & Other Voice Commands in Google Docs

Google launched voice typing for Google Docs last Fall, and followed that up about six months later with voice commands that let you format and edit text as well. You can do things like select text, apply format settings like alignment and headings, and add and edit tables—all with your voice.

News: Download All the New Samsung Galaxy S7 Wallpapers Right Now

The leaks keep trickling out for Samsung's new Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge handsets. Hot on the heels of the first images of the S7 Edge, 13 of the wallpapers for the new flagships have surfaced online (courtesy of J.K. Shine from the SamMobile forum), and are here for you to download if you'd like to get a head start on the action. If you like any of these wallpapers, just long-press on the image and hit "Save," and you'll be able to set it as your home screen background (on your computer, click o...

News: Best Apps for Hiding Android's Soft Keys to Reclaim Precious Screen Real Estate

If your Android device wasn't manufactured by Samsung, chances are it uses on-screen navigation buttons. Colloquially referred to as "Soft keys," these have become commonplace due to their flexibility, as well as the fact that manufacturers don't have to include extra hardware buttons with a propensity to fail.