Hidden Android Features You Must Know

Hello friends and welcome again to your own tech guide i.e, TechAnalysia. Today, there is something special for every android lover out there. If you are currently using an android device or planning to buy one then you are onto the right address at right time. Today, I'm gonna share a bunch of hidden Android features that you must know for your upcoming and ongoing journey with android smartphones. And by the way, If you're planning to buy a new android smartphone then do check out our page and go through all the articles, that will surely help you out.

https://www.techanalysia.com/2020/07/top-battery-saving-tips-for-smartphones.html

https://www.techanalysia.com/2020/07/points-to-be-consider-while-buying-new.html

There are countless settings and tweaks in your android phone but not all settings are good for every user. In fact, there are many android settings that you should change right now, and for a good reason. For example, you can't risk your privacy by leaking your searching behavior or device usage behavior. Well, this is just one example, there are many more including the ones that will improve your Android phone's battery life. So make sure you watch until the end of this page. In this article, I'll show you 10 android hidden settings that you should change right now. 

Now without further delay, Let's get started!

10 Hidden Android Features You must know

1. Power Button Instant Lock Insecurity & location settings, there are device security settings where you can set your device lock preferences. Simply tap on this settings cog icon and check your settings for an automatic lock. By default, your device locks down 5 seconds or more after sleep, so if someone snatches your phone from your hand, he can still access your phone completely as your phone takes 5 seconds or more to get locked. Thus making your device more vulnerable. Simply change this setting and set the automatic lock to immediately after sleep. Now if someone snatches your phone from your hand, simply press the power button and your device will not only sleep but also automatically lock. Personally, I would also turn this setting off because if I keep this enabled, this will keep my phone unlocked based upon certain environments or conditions offered by Android's smart lock functionality. I have tested Android smart lock multiple times and it has failed to meet up to my expectations. So, personally, I don't trust the smart lock and hence, I prefer not to use Android's smart lock functionality. 

2. Opt-Out of Personalized Ads You shouldn't be surprised if I say, your android device is leaking lots of data. Google is tracking you everywhere and based upon your search behavior, Google shows you personalized interest-based ads. You might be thinking, what are personalized interest-based ads, right? Let me explain. If you search for iPhone in Google, Google tracks you and knows that you are interested in iPhone. So whichever website you visit on the web, Google is more likely to show you ads for iPhone. It's because Google thinks that since you are interested in iPhone, you are more likely to purchase iPhone. These are personalized interested-based ads. You can change settings on your Android phone to stop Google from using your search behavior for ad personalization. Go to Google settings and in services, tap on ads. Now, turn on the settings to opt out of ad personalization. Also, you might like to reset the advertising ID so that any previously built ad profiles on your device can be deleted. 

3. Hide Sensitive Content from the Lock Screen Third one is hiding sensitive content from the lock screen. By default, Android shows you sensitive content from the notifications on the lock screen. This can be helpful for many as you can see what's inside the notification without unlocking your phone. But if you are a privacy buff, you can't risk your privacy by showing sensitive content. Go to apps and notifications settings, tap on notifications, then on the lock screen. By default, it is showing all notifications, but here you can set it to hide sensitive content or don't show notifications at all. Simply hide sensitive content and you are good to go. 

4. Turn off Settings to Unlock with Google Assistant Trusted Voice Match Google Assistant is a powerful tool as you can even unlock your phone with your voice simply by saying "OK Google" but this is often less secure as anyone else having a voice similar to yours can unlock your device if his voice matches your voice model. If you want better security for your device, you need to instantly turn this setting off. To do so, go to security and location, under device security, tap on smart lock. Now, input your password or pattern for unlocking your phone. Then tap on voice match, and turn off the settings to unlock with voice match. 

5. Enable Android Device Manager I don't know about your preferences but I personally don't like to share my location constantly as this not only helps Google track me everywhere but also consumes battery juice. However, you might want to enable Android Device Manager from Find My Device settings. Go to Security & location settings and tap on Find My Device. Now turn it on. This is crucial because if you ever lost your phone, you might be able to track it later. 

6. Enable SIM Card Lock Settings Before I talk about SIM Card lock, make sure you contact your cellular network provider and get the PUK code for your SIM card so that if something goes wrong, you might easily fix it. If you enable SIM Card lock functionality, you'll require a PIN to use your SIM when you restart your phone. It's a nice security enhancement and saves you from the risk of unauthorized use of your SIM card. 

7. Keyboard Settings to Get Number Row in Keyboard Now let's talk about some keyboard settings that you should change right now on your Android phone. If you are typing something you need to frequently deal with texts as well as numbers, you might want to bring a number row on the keyboard so that you may quickly access both. To enable number rows on the keyboard, long press on comma button and it'll take you to keyboard settings. I'm using Google's default keyboard that is Gboard, but the process is similar in case you are using other third-party keyboards as well. Under preferences, turn on Number Row. This will always show number row - no matter what orientation of keyboard you are using.

8. Keyboard Settings to Turn Off Auto-correct While typing anything, it often slows down my speed when I type something and G-board automatically corrects it to something else which wasn't my intention. If you have ever been in a similar situation, you need to turn off auto-correct settings. From the keyboard settings page, tap on text correction and scroll all the way down to auto-correction. Turn off auto-correction and now it'll never slow down your typing speed. 

9. Android Settings to getting Rid of New App Shortcuts I don't know why Android automatically adds new app shortcuts on the home screen whenever users download new apps. Because this is annoying for many, including me. You can turn this off simply by long pressing on the home screen, then tapping home settings, followed by toggling the left Add icon to Home Screen. This will stop adding shortcuts for new apps on the home screen.

10. Android Settings to Turn Off NFC Mode If you go to settings, then connected devices, then connection preferences, this will show you all the connection modes your phone has got like Bluetooth, Android Beam, NFC, etc. NFC stands for Near Field Communication allows you to exchange data when your phone touches another device. NFC is a very powerful tool to easily share data with your friends and coworkers, but there are not many people who use NFC. And the bad thing is Android phone has NFC enabled by default. You need to change this Android setting right now and turn off NFC as this will not only make your device less vulnerable but also improve your battery performance.

Conclusion

So these were the few android features that I believe you should change right now as these will not only enhance your android experience but also make your android device more secure. Hope you found this helpful. If you liked this, please let me know in the comment section below and share it with your friends to help them learn. Also, if you want more cool tips, tricks, and tutorials, please let me know.

So again I'm looking forward to hearing from you, so thanks for your patience I'll see you next time, have a good one.