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11 Mistakes That Are Killing Your Phone

11 Mistakes That Are Killing Your Phone

Jaatstuff


Small things we do on a regular day may affect our smartphones in a variety of ways with real consequences, like for example, the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 incident. In order for your phone not to explode on you, here are some simple rules you may want to remember.

We at Bright Side love our little smart devices as much as the next person, and we really want them to live long and be helpful in our day-to-day lives. Here are some things you’ll want to avoid in order to have just that.

Applying weird DIYs from weird sources



At least once, we’ve all believed we could do something after watching a video about it on YouTube. However, unreliable sources provide us over and over again with “life hacks” that are not proven to be helpful but can straight out damage your phone visually or otherwise.

Leaving it on the window or table to overheat



Yes, even sunlight through a window can make your phone overheat. While your device won’t change visibly, overheating hits hard on the phone’s battery and productivity — it can even damage the system’s chip.

Plugging it in carelessly



Have you ever found yourself plugging your phone in blindly before going to sleep, jamming the USB plug into it carelessly and with force? Well, that cuts the lifespan of your charger short. Electrical contacts are way more delicate than we perceive them to be.

Not updating the software and firmware when prompted by the phone itself



It’s the hardware that serves as the “body” of your phone, and the software that serves as its brain and soul. Downloading software from unreliable sources can make the phone malfunction, shut down, or can result in all of your personal information to be transferred to an unknown person.

Not cleaning the inside of your phone



Do not avoid cleaning your phone on the inside — tons of dust and small pieces of garbage and dirt from your pockets and bags can make their way into your phone and interrupt the inner workings of the device (like make it slow, for example). If you’re bad at dealing with technology, ask a professional for help.

Holding your phone in your hand on the street



Literally, 40% of stolen iPhones last year were stolen while their owner had them out on the street while talking on it via speakerphone. It is absolutely necessary for you to be cautious and use a headset to talk when you’re on a crowded street.

Putting it in a bag without a cover




The cover is not only a fashion statement, but it really helps protect your phone from being stuffed with dirt and particles that accumulate at the bottom of your bag. All of this, mixed with the insides of your phone, will make the device overheat and can cause it to malfunction.

Replacing the original battery with a cheap, phony one




The phone battery is the “heart” of the phone — it is its motor. Carefully check what type of battery the service will put in if you take your phone to get repaired — if it’s not the original part of the hardware, the lifespan of your phone will be shortened significantly.

Knock-off chargers and headphones




It’s been reported that due to a difference in the electrical power and the cheap makings of a charger, a device can sometimes catch fire. But not enough people know that when you use knockoff headphones it can damage the phone slot forever. This is because of the slight differences in the sizing of the jack and plug.

Cleaning out phone cavities yourself



Nobody wants their phones to have dusty insides — it slows down performance and makes the phone overheat. But please use professional help or conventional ways to clean out your phone (blow cleaner, etc.) since putting pretty much anything in it will ruin the slots and delicate parts of your phone.

Leaving it in a back pocket



Remember how the iPhone 6 release was spoiled by phones bending in the back pockets of their owners? This can happen to any slim smartphone. But in addition to that, keeping your phone in your back pocket elevates the possibility of it being stolen and damaged while you are visiting the powder room or simply sitting down.

Which one of these faulty actions are you most likely to do? Be sure to share other mistakes we might have forgotten about in the comments below or check out our other articles on the subject.

Google made mobile application for making money , now everyone will earn cash in dollars

Google made mobile application for making money , now everyone will earn cash in dollars


Today, everyone is with smartphones and today with the Internet, lakhs of people in our country are unemployed today, and so only one thing keeps going in the minds of such people, how they earn money online. There are so many ways to earn money online, this is just something right, but something that is wrong but that's right in Google is very important


With Google it means Google's addsence yes, that's the thing from which large eBay users earn money, because of this every ad gets in the website and people earn money from it, but getting this add-on activated is everyone. It's not just about the matter. That's why Google has created a mobile application that allows you to earn a little more money but not much.



Google Opinion Rewards: Google's application of Google Opinion Rewards is a great way to earn money and the special thing is that you do not seem to be hard at it, you have to give the correct answer to the survey and you can win it. You can make as much money as you can with 1 dollar of surveys and the number of surveys you do.



You will not find any more difficult questions in the survey. Just ask to show you the things you have seen, tell it is the logo of the company and you just have to give the correct answer. Doing so will give you as much money as you decided by Google. There are more such apps but I do not trust them all, so I will not tell you about them.



The information that has been told will not help you earn more money but just say that if you are earning money in the right way, then first learn some art and then you will start coming to the money. You have the greatest power in the world. You can do anything if you want. Just use it right. Thank you.

How to remove virus in Android Phones?

How To Remove Virus In Android Phones?


The more the smartphone gives us the convenience, it also becomes a problem for us, but it happens when you download too much, browsing or file sharing with your phone, the phone becomes a victim of the virus without your knowledge .

The result is that the phone becomes slow. Speed ​​never gets less and faster. Ed starts appearing when you open the app. Frequently your mobile seems to be pointing to updates but you still do not understand what the Manjra is. So let's tell you how to get rid of it.

After restarting the smartphone, go to Device Options opson. You will see apps that are installed in your phone as well as viruses will also run. If the virus is visible, then uninstall it. Some viruses are such that there is no opiate objection.


Reboot your smartphone to safe mode, doing so turns off the third-party apps running in your phone and the virus that is running the virus. In some phones, this opson comes from holding the power button for a while.

After deleting the unmanaged app from your phone, restart the phone once again at Normal mode, if you do this, then the phone will run faster and the virus will also go away. Many phones have low RAM, so users can install antivirus on their smartphone and scan the virus and unstablish it.


In such cases, delete them by going to the settings in Device administrator. By visiting Device Administrator, you will see a complete list of installed apps that are of your work. Uninstall those that are not of work. For this, you also have to select the option of the deactivation op on the window on the screen.

6 Pictures that will touch you with their deep meanings

6 Pictures that will touch you with their deep meanings


. Today I have brought a funny article about six pictures that will touch you with their deep meanings. Some of these pictures will touch your heart & make you emotional. Let me show those pictures to all of you here.

1. This shows the importance of a Father in our life.



2. This picture gives us an inspirational message of helping our parent's in every stage:



3. This picture illustrate a beautiful message about importance of Soldiers for us & also to our Country:


4. This illustrate that practice makes a man perfect:



5. This photo tells us about the circle of life:



 6. This picture depicts the spirit & zeal of learning:



Looking at this above picture what do you say about them guys? Isn't it the true spirit of learning?

Write down your answers & thoughts about this awesome post in the below box & share it with whosoever you know. Follow our Jaatstuff blog for getting such interesting articles being published everyday. Thank you & see you all in my next upcoming post which is coming soon.

How to Export Old Device Drivers to a New Windows Installation

How to Export Old Device Drivers to a New Windows Installation

Old Hardware, Bad Luck?
Finding drivers online for old hardware can range from difficult to impossible if the gear is outdated by a decade, was never widely circulated in the first place, and no longer receives support from the manufacturer. Such was the situation for a Rosewill-branded PCI wireless network adapter that we recently installed on Windows 10 without an original installation disc or traditional installer.

The device, a "Ralink RT61 Turbo," was purchased in 2009 and still performs well enough despite not having software updates since Windows Vista/7 and not being automatically recognized by newer versions of the operating system. Not having an Internet connection on a new OS can be particularly annoying because you can't get online to search for the drivers.



After trying to install the card on Windows 10 with many files from around the web (downloaded elsewhere), we discovered that you can export drivers for third-party devices from one copy of Windows to another -- great news seeing that we had a previous instance of Windows on another drive where the Wi-Fi card was installed and functional.

Generate and Save a List of Devices/Drivers

If you need to identify a specific piece of hardware or the location of a driver file, the easiest method may be from Windows' "System Information" application, which can be launched by searching Start or Run for msinfo32.exe.



The utility opens a window that lists system information including all devices, their drivers (with a full drive path for the location of each one so they're easy to find) among other details, and this information can be saved to a text file by going to File > Export (no actual drivers are exported).

Generate a list of drivers in the Command Prompt

You can also generate a list of drivers by entering any one of these lines into a Command Prompt (excluding the notes afterward). Some of the commands in this article may require administrator privileges and an elevated Command Prompt can be opened by right-clicking cmd.exe > Run as administrator.

While entering any of these commands should produce a list of drivers, each one outputs different information and formatting.

⦁ pnputil.exe /e
⦁ dism.exe /Online /Get-Drivers (generates a list of third-party drivers)
⦁ dism.exe /Online /Get-Drivers /All (generates list of all drivers in the Driver Store)
⦁ driverquery (includes basic information)
⦁ driverquery /FO list /v (includes more information)

Also note that you can copy one of those lines and then right-click anywhere in your Command Prompt window to paste the text. If that isn't working, right-click the Command Prompt's title bar (the Windows bar on top), go to Properties and enable "QuickEdit Mode."



Save that generated list of drivers as a text file

By adding another string of text to the end of those commands, the output can be saved to a new text file in a location of your choosing by changing directory path in the command that you enter. If you want the file saved to your desktop, still be sure to change the username from TechSpot to your own:

⦁ pnputil.exe /e > C:\Users\TechSpot\Desktop\driverlist.txt
⦁ dism.exe /Online /Get-Drivers > C:\Users\TechSpot\Desktop\driverlist.txt
⦁ dism.exe /Online /Get-Drivers /All > C:\Users\TechSpot\Desktop\driverlist.txt
⦁ driveryquery > C:\Users\TechSpot\Desktop\driverlist.txt
⦁ driverquery /FO list /v > C:\Users\TechSpot\Desktop\driverlist.txt

Third-party tools that display system information:SIW | HWiNFO64 | SIV

Export All Driver Files to a Backup Folder

For drivers to be installed on Windows, they must be located in the operating system's "DriverStore" folder (C:\Windows\System32\DriverStore\FileRepository), which contains all driver INFs and their associated files. This is where we'll be retrieving the drivers form

Before getting started, note that you may be able to skip the trouble of exporting and importing the drivers. From the Device Manager on the copy of Windows which needs the driver, if you can navigate to the DriverStore folder of another Windows installation where the driver is located, then the Device Manager should be able to search that destination for compatible driver files. Right-click the device, go to "Update driver," then follow the prompts until you can browse to DriverStore on the other OS (or wherever your drivers are).



Also, exporting the driver files from Windows won't include additional software that would typically be bundled with a driver package, such as a utility that accompanies the driver. However, in many cases Windows provides the given functionality natively to some extent (an interface for connecting to wireless networks for instance). That said, you may be able to copy the program files directly from one instance of Windows to another, or find the utility as a separate download from the driver, or a similar package with the same utility.

Export/backup Windows drivers via Command Prompt

Running either of the Command Prompt or PowerShell operations below will extract all of the drivers in System32\DriverStore from your active Windows installation and save them to a new folder (we manually created a folder in our desktop called "driverbackup"), from which you can import/install them to another instance of Windows.

Enter this command to begin exporting all of your driver files to that new folder:

dism /online /export-driver /destination:C:\Users\TechSpot\Desktop\driverbackup



Export/backup Windows drivers via PowerShell

Alternatively, you can perform the same action by entering this command into an elevated PowerShell.

Export-WindowsDriver -Online -Destination C:\Users\TechSpot\Desktop\driverbackup



"-Online" designates that the files are being exported from the currently active operating system. However, you can export drivers from an offline image with a separate command:

Export-WindowsDriver -Path C:\offline-image -Destination C:\Users\TechSpot\Desktop\driverbackup

If these commands aren't working, you may need to install the latest versions of Microsoft's ADK and/or .NET Framework.

How to Install Exported Windows Drivers

There are a few options for importing the driver to another installation of Windows, including one that only involves a few clicks from the GUI of File Explorer:

Boot into the copy of Windows where you want to install the exported drivers
Navigate to the backup folder and find the folder for the driver that you want added to Windows
Right-click the INF file and choose Install



You may also be able to have Windows Device Manager automatically search for a driver in the exported folder by right-clicking the device, going to "Update driver" and following the prompts for "Manually install a driver" until you can browse to your drivers. This didn't work for our Wi-Fi adapter, but the previous method did (manually installing directly from the INF file).

Other Tools to Backup/Install Drivers

Much of the free software that advertises the ability to "backup" drivers only saves a list of installed drivers like we described earlier in this article and in our testing it was difficult to find one that exports your actual driver files.

Despite not having the most modern interface, Double Driver was an exception, offering a built-in driver backup feature that creates a folder of exported drivers similar to the one that is generated by the options built into Windows.

Quick navigation: Click Backup > Scan Current System or Scan Other System > Check the boxes next to the drivers you want to back up > Click Backup Now and follow the rest of the prompts



You can browse these extracted files from File Explorer and right-click the INFs to install a driver from the context menu like we mentioned earlier, or Double Driver has a driver installation GUI in the Restore tab where you canload the backup folder and select which drivers you want added to Windows.

How to improve battery life on Android phones? Google offers best tips

How to improve battery life on Android phones? Google offers best tips


Google accepted its blunder that may have cost Android phones users their precious battery life.
As smartphones get better and better with advanced specs, people's concerns about battery life continue to grow. Smartphone displays consume the highest battery power and lighter themes tend to draw more energy, which is why dark modes are gaining popularity. But for years, Google pushed for the use of white colour in its Material Theme, consuming higher than average amount of battery, only to realise it now and call for action.

Google did an extensive study and shared its findings at the 2018 Android Dev Summit. Everything from power draw difference between normal mode and "night mode" and studying each colour and its power draw at different brightness levels helped Google understand the importance of a darker theme in saving battery on phones.

In one of the slides presented at the summit, Google showed that maximum brightness in night mode on a Pixel AMOLED screen was 63 percent lower than the max brightness in normal mode (day). This finding was based on displaying a screenshot of Google Maps in both modes. By comparison, iPhone 7's LCD display had no change in power draw whether used in normal or night mode.

Similarly, Google also acknowledged the fact that white hue drew maximum power while black barely used any power at all. This study was a realisation point for Google, where it pushed the use of white colour as primary on all apps and interfaces since Material Design's inception.


Google's official Material Design information site shows the domination of colour white in the baseline Material colour theme. From Primary to Background and Surface and On Error, everything is power-draining white.

With this realisation, Google will likely bring Dark Mode to Android apps in the future, SlashGear reported. Until then, here are some apps that support the coveted dark mode and some tips on how to preserve the precious battery life on smartphones.

But before we get to that, let us stress upon the importance of having a dark (possibly all black) wallpaper for your home and lock screen. This is the first thing that appears on the phone when you unlock so it makes sense to have a dark wallpaper. In addition to that, some devices like OnePlus phones offer Dark Theme, which automatically uses black-dominating screens for home, settings and such. Google's stock Android also has a Dark theme setting under Display settings, so be sure to activate that.

Now switch to dark theme on these apps to further preserve your phone's battery.

Gboard

While most of us don't realise, keyboard app is extensively used while chatting or searching anything on the web or using social media apps. If you're using a third-party keyboard from Swiftkey or going with stock Gboard, you can instantly turn the keyboard to dark mode and save your phone from a significant power draw, especially when the screen brightness is at 100 percent.


Go to your phone's "keyboard and inputs" settings under "languages & input" then find Gboard and select theme. From a list of options, select the black theme or any darker shade to suit your preference.

Maps

Moving on, your Google Maps also has a dark theme. To activate the same, go to settings from the sidebar > Navigation settings > and select Night under color scheme. Remember, the dark theme will only kick during navigation while the overall app will continue to dominate the white background.

YouTube

If you're an entertainment buff, it is natural you spend a lot of time on YouTube. Well, Google has shown that using night mode on YouTube can consume 60 percent less power at max brightness. That's a good reason to make the switch.


Go to YouTube > General > Activate Dark theme.


Twitter

There aren't many popular third-party apps that support dark theme (are you listening Facebook?), but Twitter isn't one of them. Switch to dark mode on the micro-blogging platform by going into Settings and Privacy > Display and sound > Turn on Night Mode.



WhatsApp

WhatsApp is clearly a popular messaging app with over a billion users, but it lacks a dark mode. But the app partially allows you to experience a dark theme. Go to Settings > Chats > Wallpaper > Solid Color > Choose the dark colour from the options. It's worth noting that the wallpaper will only appear inside a chat window and the overall app will still appear in black and green colour combination.


SMS

SMS days are long gone, but you can still turn on dark theme for your messaging app by tapping the three dots on the top corner and enabling dark mode.

Selling your Android Phone? Don't forget to follow these steps

Selling your Android phone? Don't forget to follow these steps



As the festive season sets in, many of you would be thinking of selling or trading in your Android smartphone for a new one.

Normally, it is just about resetting the phone and giving it away, but before you do that, it is important to make sure that every bit of personal data is removed from the device.

To do that, follow these steps.

First up, remove SIM, microSD card

Step 1

Regardless of the manufacturer, the first step is to remove SIM and microSD cards from your device.

SIMs are required for answering, making calls, while microSD could be hosting a ton of your data.

However, before you remove microSD, try using its free space to move files that are not backed-up on cloud or are too massive to backup now (like 4K content).


Backup contacts, messages to cloud services

Step 2

After removing heavy files, check if your photos and videos are backed-up on Google Photos. If not, enable it and select target folders for backup (via Wi-Fi).

Next, upload offline music and other files (downloaded docs, PDFs) to Google Drive.

Finally, search 'backup' in Settings to enable Google's Backup service, which will backup apps, contacts, device settings, and calendar data to your Google account.

Step 3: Also, sync data from apps

Fact

While backing up data, make sure you've got sync enabled for all the apps. This will make sure that your data from different apps like Google Docs or Keep remains available on the new device.

Remove social accounts, clear app data

Step 3

After completing the backup and syncing process, remove all social media apps (WhatsApp, Facebook, Messenger) and email accounts and clear data from those apps by heading over the apps section from Settings.

Following this, disable any screen locks (passwords/pattern/fingerprint) and remove your main Google account - the one that has got all the backed-up data.

Also, remove the account associated with your phone manufacturer.

Removing accounts first is important

Fact

All latest Android phones come with factory reset protection, which means if you reset the phone without removing the Google account associated with it, you (or the next user) will be prompted to enter the password for a previously used Google account on that device.

Now, wipe the phone clean

Step 4

This is the final step. Head over to the Settings menu and search for 'reset' to find the option for factory data reset or hard reset on your device.

Next, tap on 'erase everything' or similar option depending on your device to start the wiping process.

Within minutes, all personal or app-related data and device settings will be wiped from the phone.

Backed-up data will be recovered on the new phone

Fact

Once you've got everything backed-up and synced, all you have to do is just log in with your Google account on the new device. All your data will be restored automatically, while apps will be installed one after the other.

The 7 Best Android Emulators for Windows 10

The 7 Best Android Emulators for Windows 10

Run Android apps on your computer with these Android emulators
You can run Android on Windows with an Android emulator. What this does is emulates  the Android operating system, or at least a portion of it, through a software program  that’s capable of running Android.

When you use an Android emulator, everything you do is contained within the emulation software. This means you can do things not normally possible on your computer, like install Android apps on Windows and test drive various versions of Android without needing an Android phone or tablet.

An Android emulator can be helpful if your favorite app only runs on your phone but you’d like to use it from your computer, too, or on a bigger screen. If you’re new to Android and want to test out the newest version before buying an Android phone, some emulators can do that for you.

01

of 07

BlueStacks



Unlike a whole-OS emulator, BlueStacks emulates just Android apps on Windows. It’s really easy to use, so you don’t need to know anything about emulators or even Android to get your apps up and running.

There’s an app store built in to BlueStacks, so to emulate Android apps on your computer, just install them and then launch them from the My Apps area of the program.

If you're looking for an emulator that lets you quickly install an Android app on your computer, you can't go wrong with this one.

What We Like:

Includes a built-in app store
Installing and opening apps is really easy
Emulates Android 7.1 Nougat
Lets you install other APK files that aren’t in the store
Advanced settings like RAM and CPU  allocation can be adjusted in the settings
You can earn BlueStacks Points to trade in for things like gift cards or a premium subscription
What We Don’t Like:

Big setup file, around 400 MB
Includes ads
BlueStacks is free but you can upgrade to BlueStacks Premium for no ads, daily wallpapers, app recommendations, premium support, and more.

02

of 07

Andy



The Andy emulator for Windows puts Android Nougat on your computer. You can run games and other apps by installing them through the Google Play Store.

Since this is a full Android emulator, you can also reposition the apps on the home screen and install widgets just like you can on a real Android device.

What We Like:

Supports both landscape and portrait mode
Lets you spoof your GPS location
Can remap keyboard keys
Supports full screen mode
Emulates Android 7.1 (most emulators use older versions)
What We Don’t Like:

Huge setup file, over 800 MB
Can’t install apps by their APK file
03

of 07

Remix OS Player


Remix OS is an operating system based on Android 6.0 Marshmallow, so it looks like your normal operating system with a desktop area, start menu, taskbar, and trash bin.

However, instead of installing the whole Remix OS, you can use the Remix OS Player emulator to run Android apps on your computer.

This free Android emulator is described as a game emulator for your computer because it lets you customize some of the shortcuts normally used for navigating games, but you can use Remix OS Player for other apps, too, like Snapchat, Facebook, etc.; everything is available through the Play Store.

What We Like:

Installing and using apps is really simple
You can run multiple apps at once
Lots of settings can be manually set, like the GPS location and the phone coverage and battery levels
The orientation of the emulator can be rotated
What We Don’t Like:

Setup file is over 700 MB
Unable to install APK files
04

of 07

NoxPlayer


Based on Android 4.4 KitKat, NoxPlayer is a free Android emulator that’s made with gaming in mind. Google Play is built in for easy access to games and other apps, and you get the whole Android experience, including the home screen, folders, the notification center, etc.

Nearly every option in this emulator makes playing games easier. For example, you can record macros, define keys for things like multiple strikes and weapon fires, adjust FPS settings, record the screen, and take screenshots, among other things.

What We Like:

It’s completely free
A great emulator for gamers
Emulates the entire OS
Nearly everything is accessible with a keyboard shortcut
Lots of customizable options, like one to root Android in one click
Google Play is built-in but you can open APK files, too
What We Don’t Like:

Android 4.4 is very outdated
05

of 07

Android Studio



Android Studio might be what you’d call the “official” Android emulator since it’s from Google. However, the core of the program is meant for app development and testing, there just happens to be an emulator built-in as well.

This program doesn’t have an easy to use interface like the other emulators in this list, so it isn’t the greatest if you just want to run some Android apps on your computer. However, if you plan to create your own apps and you want an easy way to test them throughout the creation process, then this might be all you need.

What We Like:

Emulates the entire Android OS, not just one app
Always supports the newest Android operating system
You can emulate old Android OSs, too
Lets you build Android apps
What We Don’t Like:

No built-in app store (see how to install apps)
Setup can get confusing
06

of 07

Genymotion


Another free Android emulator for Windows is Genymotion. It's a lot like Android Studio's emulator in that it emulates the entire OS, except that this one doesn't install all the other developer tools.

This free Android emulator can run up to Android 8.0. The way it works is you install virtual devices by selecting the Android version you want and the device model that should run that version of Android.

For example, you might select Android 8.0 and Google Pixel 2 XL to emulate that phone and OS on your computer. Or, maybe you want Motorola Xoom to run Android 4.3.

Use any mix of phone or tablet with Android 4.1–8.0. You can also make a custom phone or tablet by specifying the screen resolution.

What We Like:

Supports lots of Android versions
Easier to use than Android Studio
Emulates the whole Android device
Lets you adjust processor and memory settings
What We Don't Like:

The Play Store isn't included
You can use Genymotion for free only if it's for personal use. To do that, make a user account  and then activate your account through the link they send to your email, and then click the personal edition download link on the Fun Zone page.

Otherwise, this Android emulator is available in three paid editions.

07

of 07

ARC Welder



ARC Welder is a Chrome app that can open Android apps in your browser... kind of. It installs to your computer like any other app in Chrome, and opens Android apps in their own window by letting you choose an APK file on your computer.

Unfortunately, this Android emulator isn't the most reliable. Still, we've added it to this list because when it does manage to work, it's really handy and much simpler than the other emulators in this list (just don't make it your first choice).

What We Like:

Installation is very easy
You can choose the orientation and form factor of the emulator
Apps can go full screen
Lets you [attempt] to install any Android app available as an APK file

Google Android 9.0 Pie Features

Google Android 9.0 Pie




The time of a new Android operating system is now upon us, with the venerable Android 8 (aka Oreo) setting in the west and the sparkling, new Android 9 (aka Pie) rising in the east. This latest iteration of the world's most popular mobile operating system tackles screen addiction and reimagines how we interact with Android with new gestures. It also refreshes the look and feel of Android to be more Google-like. While Google's Digital Wellbeing features are still in Beta, the overall experience is excellent. Android 9.0 is an Editors' Choice, along with Apple's iOS 12.
Apples and Androids

The full name of Android 9.0 was revealed on Aug. 6, 2018, ignoring Peeps and Popsicle and going with the gooey and delicious Pie. Keep in mind that, depending on your device, it may be some time before it's available for you; if you have an older device, you may not get it at all. Google's Pixel devices are the first in line, with a handful of partners lined up for early rollout.
Reviewing operating systems can sometimes feel like trying to write a review about the sky or the ocean. They are so large, encompassing so many features, that even trying to sum them up is a daunting experience. In the case of mobile operating systems, it's even stranger, since consumers don't really have a choice. You either buy an iPhone with iOS or another phone with Android. You can't run iOS on a Samsung phone.
While it's easy to say that Apple is the closed-and-pretty-one and Android is the open-and-messy-one, that's also enormously reductive. Both Google and Apple are designing for human users and, as such, use a lot of the same tools and tactics in their mobile operating systems. In fact, if you read the comments of any review of either OS, you'll find fans pointing out the extent to which each "copies" from the other. Still, I find it useful to compare the two occasionally, since they highlight different approaches to the same issues.
This year, Google and Apple both tackled the problem of people spending too much time on their phones. Apple, I believe, delivered the more comprehensive solution, while Google's still feels unfinished (and is still in beta). Apple also introduced an incredibly powerful tool with its Shortcuts app, that allows determined users to create little scripts to automate activities on their iPhones and iPads. It's mindblowing on iOS, but Google has relied on developers to create tools like Tasker to fill that niche. Apple pushed hard on AR features, which, strangely, were mostly absent from Google with Android 9.0. With Android Pie, Google quietly delivers an overhaul of Android's visual design, along with some truly wonderful quality of life improvements. It's not a dramatic change, but it will make your phone feel fresh, new, and more functional.
Apple still, however, succeeds enormously in delivering updates to users. It's sobering to see Google's own statistics on OS adoption, which reflect the fact that, despite enormous strides with the operating system, getting the upgrade to users is still a challenge. As of September of 2018, only 5.87 percent of Android users were on the latest version of the OS, 8.1 Oreo, and only 13.4 percent using its predecessor 8.0. The other 80.8 percent of users were on older versions, some as far back as version 2.3.3. Pixel owners, who get their phones and software directly from Google, tend to have higher rates of adoption, however. The graphic below shows very similar figures from May 2018.
The Look of Android

For years, I felt like little thought was given to the actual look of the Android OS. I presumed this was because Google felt like it was making the foundation that OEMs and others would build upon. That seemed to change with the last generation of Nexus devices, which felt decidedly more unique and more consumer-focused. The Pixel devices (and the Pixel Launcher) cemented this idea: there's now a unique look to Android.
The latest twist in this tale of aesthetics is that Google is pushing out a unified look to more and more of its properties, from Android to Gmail.
The bigger, more rounded look seen in Google Drive and others is seeping into Android. The Notifications pull-down pane has distinct, white cards with rounded corners that feel much more substantial than the previous design. There's also a setting for a Light or Dark theme in Android now, which recolors these cards as either black or white. You can also opt for Android to choose which theme to use based on your background image.
Some of these new design elements are best seen in the Settings app. The larger search fields and suggestions at the top of the app are far more inviting, and the bolder icon colors more eye-catching. It feels much cleaner, and more like a cohesive statement.
A final thought on aesthetics. Google seems to be consciously shifting attention away from Android and toward Google itself. Case in point: when I reboot my Pixel it doesn't say Android in bright letters anymore. It says Google with the words "powered by Android" in smaller letters at the bottom. Using Android is now, really, the experience of using Google on your phone.
That doesn't mean that Android's days are numbered. But it is significant that Google has spent much more time talking up its new flavor of Chrome OS. There are currently two tablets that run Chrome OS and support Android apps. Perhaps more will be coming, or perhaps not. What's clear is that something is shifting with Google and that the future of Android and Chrome OS are in flux.
Tackling Screen Addiction

This past year has seen mounting concern about screen addiction; the social and health consequences that come from staring at screens all day. At Google I/O 2018, this topic received a lot of time. Google even offered an antidote to Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) with the Joy of Missing Out (JOMO). To that end, Android Pie includes a series of powerful new Digital Wellbeing tools to give users more insight into how they use their phones and hopefully curb their usage.
The idea of Google trying to get customers to use their phones less might, at first, seem laughable or even disingenuous. After all, the company presumably wants as many people using Android apps and Google services as often as possible. But there seems to be an unspoken fear that if consumers get fatigued by the modern smartphone experience, or overly concerned about screen addiction, they might stop using their phones altogether. Better, perhaps, to encourage healthier and sustainable long-term usage.
If you've got Android Pie on your phone, you probably don't have any Digital Wellbeing options. The features are still in beta, but you can try them out by downloading a special app from the Play Store. Once you do, a new option for Digital Wellbeing appears in your Settings menu. You have the option to add it as an app in the app drawer, if you're into that.
At the center of the Digital Wellbeing effort is a circular chart breaking down of how much time you spend on your phone and in which apps that time was spent. Stats for the number of unlocks and notifications are less useful, but the former does drive home to me how many times I look pointlessly at my phone and do nothing.
Note that you can opt-out of usage statistics by tapping the Overflow menu (aka Three Dot or Hamburger menu) in the upper corner.
Fine-grained information about time spent in apps, unlocks, and notifications is in the Dashboard section. This shows a day-by-day breakdown over the course of a week. You can swipe backwards to see historical information, too. A list of apps at the bottom can be ordered a few ways, such as the apps you use the most or sent the apps that produced the most notifications, with the invitation to set a timer for those apps. Once set, the timer temporarily locks you out of the app when it expires. You can also tap each app to see even more usage stats, adjust timers

How to charge your phone fast when you're in a hurry

How to charge your phone fast when you're in a hurry




For most people, charging their smartphones has become a part of their regular routine. But, how many times have you been heading out the door only to notice that your phone battery is going to die? Then you make your mad dash to find your charger. But, what if you don't have the time to wait for it to charge all the way. Here are 7 mistakes that prevent you from doing this as fast as possible.

1. Not charging your smartphone from a wall socket





Charging a smartphone from a laptop by using USB is undoubtedly super convenient. After all, you can keep surfing the internet while simultaneously feeding your phone's battery. But, that's a wrong thing to do if you need to charge your cell phone fast. It will take as much as 1 hour longer than when you use a wall socket.

2. Don't use wireless charging




Wireless charging is certainly very convenient. After all, you don't need to worry about all these cables. At the same time, wireless chargers still can't fill the battery of your phone as rapidly as conventional wired chargers. So, if you're in a hurry, the best thing you can do is use a good wall charger.

3. Not charging your portable power bank





If you don't have a portable power bank, consider buying one, since that's a great investment. This device will be extremely helpful if you need to leave home in a hurry but suddenly discover that your cell phone's battery is critically low. Not to mention, these things charge a whole lot faster than smartphones do. Charge your portable power bank 10-15 minutes before you have to run off. Throw it in your bag and connect your smartphone to it for a quick battery boost.

4. Use a proper USB adaptor







If you have chosen a wrong adaptor and it's too low power, your smartphone may refuse to charge or will do this extremely slowly. Besides, if your phone has an option of quick charging, you should check if the adapter you're using supports this function. If you figure out that your adaptor is unsuitable, find the necessary one. You'll spend some money, but this will save you a lot of time.

5. Remove the case






Surprisingly, many phones start to charge faster and more effectively if you take off the case. When you keep certain types of cases on when you charge your phone, this may lead to excess heating of your device. That's why if you feel that your smartphone is getting too hot when you're charging it, try removing its case.

6. Use a battery saving mode





This mode comes in handy when you need to make your phone last for as long as possible. But, few people know that switching this mode on can also make the process of charging their gadgets much faster.

7. Switch off features you don't need at the moment





Now, if you're in a hurry, it may slip your mind to check if you have some unnecessary applications open and running on your smartphone. Wi-Fi, GPS, Bluetooth just uses your phone's battery power and slows down the charging process.

Do you know any other means to charge your smartphone fast and effectively? Don't hesitate to leave your recommendations in the comments.