Learn How To Setup a VPN, Tether With Your Phone and Sync Chrome

Set up a VPN

Securely connect to a work or home network

You can use the VPN feature in Android to securely connect to a work network or even a home LAN that you want to keep as secure as possible. Here’s how to do it…

Setting up

Go to Settings and tap the More option in the Wireless & networks section. Tap VPN. You will be prompted to set up a lockscreen PIN before you can use VPN.

The exact settings

Tap the ‘+’ icon at the top and enter the network name followed by the type of connection and server address. You need to be as exact as possible with this information

Time to connect

The account will be saved and when you tap it, you will be asked to enter a user name and password. You will then be able to connect securely without any worries

Tether with your phone

You can use your phone as a hotspot for laptops and other devices using a few simple settings. Make sure your mobile contract allows tethering though, because many do not.

Find the settings

Go to Settings and tap the More option in Wireless & networks. Select Tethering & portable hotspot to proceed. Some phones do not have the option, but most should show it as available.

Bluetooth or Wi-Fi

You can now choose if you want to allow other devices to connect via Wi-Fi, Bluetooth or both. On most occasions, Wi-Fi will work best as it is more powerful.

Time to connect

Tap Set up Wi-Fi hotspot and choose a name. Input the security type you want to use (WPA2 recommended) and then choose a password. Now tick the Portable Wi-Fi hotspot option to activate it.

Sync Chrome between PC and phone

You can easily sync your bookmarks and open tabs between a desktop and Android device which are both running Chrome. Once set up, it all happens automatically in the background

Android settings. Go to Settings>Data  usage on your Android device and tap the menu icon. A pop-up box appears – make sure the Auto-sync data option is ticked.

Chrome settings. When you have installed Chrome on your Android, hit the menu button and choose Settings. Select your Google account and tap Sync.

What to sync. Choose to sync everything or just your bookmarks and open tabs. Make sure you are signed in with your Google account on your desktop Chrome app.

The end result. You can select Bookmarks to view the desktop bookmarks or check the open tabs on your desktop via the Tab option. They’re always perfectly synced.

Source for these tips

Increase The Productivity On Your Smartphone

Organised folders

To be really productive, you will likely be using many apps and services on your Android device every day. If you drag one on top of another you can create a bespoke folder, but the real trick is to keep your most-used apps in a couple of folders on your opening home screen for quick and immediate access.

Stick with what works

If you fi nd a solution that works for you and your device, try to avoid spending lots of time searching for better apps that do the same job. If it isn’t broken, why fi x it?

Use Google Drive

Google Drive lets you share fi les with anyone you wish while retaining all of the security you

need. It is simple to use, free and very easy to set up. Head on over to the brilliant Google Play store

to pick it up.

Files are important

As you become more productive, fi les and documents will play an important part in your mobile life. File Manager, from Google Play, lets you explore every part of your device and enables you to move fi les or to share specific entries with anyone. It really does let you under the hood of your Android device.

Know what’s local to you

Whether you need to quickly find a venue for a meeting or a coffee shop to entertain clients, using the included Google Local app will ensure that you can find everything you need in seconds. A few taps and you will have directions and full contact details for each establishment.

Super-quick contacts

In the Contacts app, you can hit the menu icon when you have a contact selected and then choose ‘Place on Home screen’ to have shortcuts available for quick calls. This is a particularly useful function for important business contacts and close family members.

Quick settings

In Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean), you can pull down the notification bar and tap the top-right hand icon to bring up a series of quick settings. These let you adjust brightness, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi with single taps. It sounds simple, but is without doubt a productive time-saver.

Unique notifications

You can easily set unique ringtones for different contacts on your device. Simply upload some new sounds to your device or SD card and place them in the Ringtones folder. In the Contacts app you can now assign different tones to different people which lets you quickly decide who to take calls from

Setup Your Video Codecs, Streaming Data, File Transfers, Use Live Widgets and Calendar

Video codecs

Home-made videos and those available on the web can be formatted using various codecs and this can be problematic if you just want to load it up and play it straight away. There are tools available that let you convert your movies to different formats, but the quickest way around the problem is to look for apps that come with the ability to play all of the most popular codecs. MX Player is one among many that can help.

Streaming data

If you stream movies or music often, you will need to ensure that your data plan allows you to do this. Go to Settings> Data usage and you can set a data limit to make sure you do not receive any expensive overuse charges. You can also check to see what exactly is using all of your data in this screen and the general rule of thumb is to try to watch movies that are stored on your device if possible or use a connected Wi-Fi network when it is available. Keeping the Wi-Fi antenna on all of the time is not a huge battery drain.

Quick file transfers

When you are moving large selections of music, movies and photos to your Android device from a desktop Mac, you want the process to be easy and quick. Android File Transfer (available from here: http://www.android.com/filetransfer ) is an official tool that will immediately open when you connect your device and which acts like the Finder app software. Simply drag what you need over to the right directory and all of your installs will be done in one painless go. Windows users do not need a tool like this to transfer Android files, however.

Use live widgets

There are many live widgets available for Android devices that are constantly updated in the background. Whether you want to see your latest emails or calendar entries or anything else, there will be a solution available. They will enable you to quickly glance at your device and see what you need with no further interaction, which can be a huge time-saver if you are checking information many times a day. Remember that battery and performance can be affected if you use too many of these, as they will often continue to be updated even when they are not in the foreground.

One calendar

Try to set up just one calendar to synchronise with your Android device and use this one every day. The temptation to create multiple calendars and to have every entry colour-coded in the right category is great, but ultimately all it will do is slow you down when you enter new appointments, which no one wants. Sometimes a simple list of appointments in the same colour works best and will make the synchronisation process much quicker as well. Multiple calendars only work well if you have a ‘very’ busy schedule and need to be able to keep certain parts of it separate from one another.

Overclocking & Underclocking, Full Screen Movies, Closed Captions and Volume Boosts

Overclocking and underclocking

If you have rooted your phone or tablet you can overclock it to improve performance and underclock it to increase battery life. Experiment with which settings work for you, but don’t push things too far or performance will be hit.

Grab an app

Search for ‘Overclock’ on Google Play to find a suitable app. We are using No-frills CPU Control to demonstrate how clocking works – make sure you accept any permission requests before you continue.

Set your speed

Tap the ‘Max. clock freq.’ option and then choose the maximum allowable speed. The app is designed to not let it be overpowered which may cause damage. Do the same for the minimum speed.

Meet the governor

The Governor option lets you quickly change the profiles of the maximum and minimum speeds with just one tap. These are useful when trying to undertake specific tasks, but your mileage may vary.

This clip is also providing useful information on how to overclock/ underclock Android devices

Watch full screen movies

You can change the way movies are displayed on a mobile screen by tapping the small icon in the top-right hand corner when playing a movie. It will show widescreen by default, which highlights blank bars above and below the screen, but a quick tap will fi ll the screen and hide the edges. Different movies will suit different settings so find which is most comfortable for you, and your device, and try to stick with it.

Closed captions

The closed captions can be displayed during a movie by tapping the ‘CC’ icon in the bottom-left hand corner. A dialog will pop up which lets you choose the language and whether you want them on or off, but the display may not always be suitable for you if you are watching on a small screen. Tap the menu button and then select the ‘Caption font size’ option. Here you can change the captions from small to huge with one further tap. It’s a simple setup procedure and perfect for those of us that struggle with our eyesights.

Boost your device’s volume

Not all Android devices come with external speakers that make the most of the audio components inside. This is tricky to resolve because it is a hardware limitation, but there are apps that can help to get around the problem. Volume+, available from Google Play, is a good example and is known to work with the Galaxy Nexus, which does not have the best speaker in the world. It won’t solve the problem completely, but does provide a welcome boost in terms of the general speaker volume.

Instagram everywhere

The latest versions of the stock Android camera let you add various special effects to all of your photos as soon as you have snapped them. When you are in the default Gallery app, select one of your photos and the tap the three circles at the bottom of the screen. You will now be presented with a selection of varied effects to apply and one tap will do all of the work for you. Once complete, you can select the photo again and share it on any social network you care for. It’s like the popular Instagram service without using the actual app.

Power Up Your Phone With These Smart Tips

Avoid live wallpapers

Try to avoid using live wallpapers. There are many available in Google Play and also a selection built-in to each Android device. But besides offering a more engaging experience on home screens, they offer little. Expect battery drain and slowed performance if you use one.

Turn off Location access

Location access is very useful for a number of apps and services, but if you are struggling with battery or general performance, you can temporarily turn it off in Settings>Location access to save some juice.

Selective sounds

You may not need all of the sounds that are set by default on your Android device. Go to Settings>Sound and choose only the ones you need. The benefits are minimal, but they will make a difference over time.

Speed up data entry

Performance can be down to you as well as a tablet or smartphone, and so speeding up your typing will have a dramatic effect. Apps like Swype let you input data without moving your finger from the screen and can greatly speed up your typing in text messages, emails and anywhere else.

Reduce the brightness

Automatic brightness is useful and shown in Settings>Display, but is not always ideal in every lighting situation. You can untick this setting and choose your own lower level which will have a positive effect on battery performance.

2G only

3G uses a huge amount of battery power and on many phones you can select to use 2G only. Data will be much slower, but battery performance will be greatly increased.

Cut the widgets

Widgets can be useful and provide a lot of useful information at a glance, but remember that they are technically background processes. If you use one rarely, you will be better off just jumping to the associated app instead and removing the widget from the home screen altogether.

Sync intervals

You can adjust the synchronisation intervals in many applications, such as your email, and lowering it to one-hour intervals will help performance and battery life markedly.

Quick locking

Try to use a quick security method such as pattern locking so that you can get into your device very quickly. The pattern lock is also extremely secure.

The correct time

The date and time must be fairly accurate or you may be barred from accessing the Google Play store. This is a common problem for many Android users across the ecosystem.

Clever notifications

The notifications that are accessible by tapping the top bar on the home screen are not merely designed to tell you what is happening. They can be used as shortcuts and to potentially let you spot problems. If you see a notification and are not sure which app it is from, hold your finger down on it and an ‘App info’ dialog box will appear. Tap this and you will be taken to the settings screen for that app where you can uninstall it immediately if required.

Enhance System Performance: Part 2

Boost your battery life

BetterBatteryStats is an app, available from Google Play, that is designed to help you understand exactly what is using your battery life. It includes multiple customisation options and a myriad of statistics and results that will lead you to varied and accurate conclusions. You will need to install the app and leave it running for some time for it to build up the necessary data, but once you have done this you can use the ‘Since’ options on the front screen to show how the battery is being used. You can also read the exact drain for a number of states such as CPU and Alarms using the top option. From these, you will be able to use the knowledge base to fi x any battery drainage problems you have.

Since when? You can view the battery drain since the screen has been turned off, since charged and for many other states.

Use the numbers. You can choose to hide the graphs and concentrate purely on the numbers for clarity.

Exact information. Ratios and times down to the second are measured and presented to you for accurate adjustments to be made.

Complete customisation. The views are fully customisable and are able to be set to your exacting Android preferences.

Make sense of the battery screen

1. Tap the graph at the top and you will be shown a more detailed screen with all the extra information included.

2. Behind each section below the graph is a lot more information such as exact timings and the specific services using the battery power.

3. The stats update automatically, but you can manually refresh them using the arrows icon at the top of the screen.

Wait to update

It is all too easy to hurriedly download the latest update for the Android OS as soon as it is available for your device, but sometimes it will make sense to wait. Check online to see what the feedback is from those who have already updated their devices to make sure it doesn’t have bugs that could affect your device’s performance. On the whole, these updates should improve performance, but they can use more memory as more features are packed in.

Change the launcher

Manufacturers often like to add their own software and launchers to devices, but these can sometimes slow down the overall performance. If you do not need all of the extras that are bundled, take a look on the Play store for a replacement launcher with less features. Some of these are designed to work efficiently, but still include a number of options and features that could be beneficial. You do not need to live with the manufacturer’s stock system.

Enhance System Performance: Part 1

Kill select background apps

One of the quickest ways to give your Android device an immediate performance boost is to kill some of the apps that are currently running in the background. You can either do this manually or enlist the help of a third-party app such as Task Manager which is available from the Google Play store.

Background syncing

By default, many of the Google apps and indeed many third-party services will attempt to synchronise in the background as often as they can. This is useful for some apps like email and calendar, but not for everything. Go to Settings> Accounts and select one of your accounts which will show how it is currently set up. You can then, for example, go to the Calendar app, hit the menu button and choose Settings. Here you will be able to define exactly which calendars will sync and when, and this process can be repeated for email and other syncing services.

Use the internal memory

If your device includes expansion card capability, it is very tempting to just move every app to the card to save on internal memory. This will offer some performance benefits thanks to the extra memory, but if you use an app stored on the external card a lot, you could be forgoing these improvements with reduced performance when opening the app each time. The general rule of thumb, if you have enough internal memory, is to try to keep your most often used apps stored away from an expansion card.

Optimise your RAM

Just like desktop PCs, Android smartphones and tablets will benefit from defragmentation from time to time. One quick way to clean things up is to simply turn your device off and back on, but for more serious tweaks an app like Memory Booster (available for free on the Google Play store), will do the trick. It will not offer significant improvements for the more powerful high-end devices, but for slower models the benefits will quickly become clear. This is something you should try to run every few days if you have regular performance problems.

Understanding developer options

Developer options let you access parts of Android you would otherwise be unaware of. In the latest version of Android they are hidden very well. You have to go to Settings>About phone and tap the Build number section seven times for them to appear. It will be worth the effort, however.

USB Debugging: This feature lets you connect an Android device to a desktop computer to transfer data between each device and to install apps directly without any standard notifications.

Show CPU usage: though this feature is designed for developers, you can also use it to show the current CPU usage at any time. Useful for finding apps that are using all of your processing power.

Stay awake performs an obvious task and that is to keep the screen awake when charging. This is useful if you need an onscreen clock or photo slideshow running.

Background process limit: if you own a device that is lacking in processing power, you can use this feature to limit the number of background process that can run between nought and four processes.

Allow mock locations: This clever feature allows you to fake your location and to not be stuck with your current GPS co-ordinates. You can then search for other areas quickly when planning trips.

Show touches: A simple option that will visually highlight each point on the screen as you touch it. It is designed for development, but is actually useful for normal day-to-day tasks.

McAfee: Best Security Solution for Android Platform?

Malware is a serious issue on Android, and there’s been countless stories on dodgy apps and links affecting devices. With that in mind, it’s no wonder why McAfee Antivirus & Security has rocketed in downloads in the past couple of years. The McAfee brand is a household name, with millions of desktop computers all over the world using the antivirus software. The mobile version includes the same variety of features, offering the ultimate package when it comes to keeping your phone safe from malicious content. But with so much choice on the market, why is McAfee Antivirus & Security a hit with users? Here’s why…

What makes McAfee a hit?

Any threats found?

McAfee includes a vast library of knowledge regarding malicious threats. If a threat is discovered on your device, the app will soon be able to tell you the name of the virus, as well as some crucial info.

Sync to your needs

One of the best features in McAfee is being able to tailor when your virus scans take place. Set the app to scan whenever you’re not busy.

Scanning far and wide

Your Android phone has millions of tiny elements that need to be fully scanned for malicious code, so the scanning process does take a while. The comprehensive nature of the scan can leave you with the peace of mind that if there are any gremlins, McAfee will find them.

Regular updates

To make sure the app is up to the task of dealing with all threats, the team behind McAfee do a good job at providing regular updates when they can.

Why do people choose McAfee over one of the other security-based apps available on the Play store?

McAfee Mobile Security stands apart because it offers the most comprehensive solution, especially when it comes to privacy. Risky apps or apps with loose privacy policies that leak data are the gateway into your phone for hackers. With the App Alert feature, McAfee closes these doors for hackers so that you can ensure your security is kept without having to understand complicated privacy policies.

It’s very rare to see an app on the Play store exceed a million paid downloads. What is the secret of a successful app?

From a protection standpoint, McAfee Mobile Security was the first mobile security app to combine antivirus, anti-theft, web and app protection, call/SMS filtering and protection from potentially unwanted programs. But McAfee Mobile Security is more than just a comprehensive and well-respected app. It’s designed to enhance the mobile experience for Android users, rather than interfere with it. The app, for example, optimises the mobile device battery life because it was built from the ground up rather than adapted from existing desktop solutions so that it would be light on resources.

What are our favourite features in McAfee?

Our favourite features include backing up our personal data – We’ve lost too many phones in the past to risk not having my photos, videos and contacts backed up; app protection, so we know which apps are potentially mining my data and might be sharing our information with third parties; and remote lock and alarm of phone. If your phone is stolen, you can remotely lock it and then have it sound a screaming alarm. Aside from the screaming sound being hilarious, it will draw attention to or startle the thief just as a car alarm would.

Are there any areas of the app you’d like to improve?

In the future we’re hoping we can develop a way to reduce mobile device theft before or right as the device is lost or stolen. Nearly half of all robberies in San Francisco this year are mobile phone-related and the New York City Police reported that more than 40 per cent of all robberies now involve mobile phones. These brazen incidents are part of a ubiquitous crime wave striking coast to coast – it’s modern day purse snatching. We’re looking for ways to stay one step ahead of the thieves.

Is Samsung Unstoppable on Android Market?

With Samsung dominating sales, we ask ourselves whether Android is in danger of becoming a one horse race?

On the face of it, all is rosy in the Android garden.  According to analysts  Gartner, Android increased its  market share by almost 20 per cent  in the last quarter, compared to the  same period in 2011, to  122,480,000 units sold, capturing a worldwide market share of 72.4 per  cent. Market leader within the pack of attendant manufacturers is Samsung, selling almost 987 million devices in the same period to effect 22.9 per cent of the worldwide market, gaining the number one spot in the market share league table.

If you dig a little deeper into the fi gures, however, there are worrying concerns. To begin, Samsung also holds 40 per cent of the Android market with its nearest competitors taking around 10 per cent, while even on a national level, analysts uSwitch has five Android Samsung mobile phones occupying the top ten smartphone seller slots in the UK.

Check out the revenue streams from other Android manufacturers and it seems that, despite the general  Android success, the only company actually making money from the operating system is Samsung. Francisco Jeronimo, research manager for European mobile devices at IDC, confirmed that view:

“For the next couple of years it will be Samsung dominating growth, unless Google does something with Android and focuses more on Motorola. For the time being, I don’t see any other vendors with such strong investment and capacity to push Android. ”Does this translate to a problem lurking on the horizon? Is Samsung becoming too big for Android? More to the point, does Samsung’s dominance place Android under threat? Geoff Blaber, director of devices and platforms at CCS Insight argues Samsung’s dominance of Android could end up a problem if, for example, the Korean manufacturer’s attention moves elsewhere.

“Samsung accounts for around 40 per cent of Android’s volume. There’s a huge reliance on one player and if you take the S III out of the equation, Android is not as strong at the top end as Google would want it to be. Apple still dominates the premium market. Should Samsung start to switch allegiances, it would have serious implications for Android.” The relatively low revenue streams from Android has certainly pushed  HTC towards greater investment in the Windows Phone operating system alongside Nokia, while LG and now Sony have announced Windows phone developments – as has Samsung. This leaves Samsung in an odd situation. It is already a dominant player within the Android universe and, by licensing the free Android OS from Google, Samsung saves itself millions of dollars in software development costs and license fees but, then again, leaves itself dependent on Google. “It comes down to this sense of what it is Samsung wants to be,” said Tony Cripps, principal analyst at Ovum.

“Do they really want to be one of the power players or are they happy enabling someone else’s system?” The difference between it and the likes of HTC, for example, is that Samsung is not just a phone maker,  it does have, “the potential to create platforms which deliver content and web services to TVs, PC, phones and  media players and connect them,” said Caroline Gabriel, research director at Rethink Technology Research. This is Samsung’s competitive advantage, said Gabriel, as the world shifts more to web-based technologies like HTML5, which reduce the relevance of individual operating systems and platforms like Apple’s iOS and Android. Instead, applications will be more like webpages, which can run on any device. Samsung can draw on its extensive supply chain, manufacturing capability and research and development facilities to make this happen. For now, no one denies Samsung’s pre-eminence and it is believed that Samsung is more than happy to reap the Android benefits, but in five years’ time, it is conceivable that we may see Samsung picking up its ball and going it all alone.

And what happens if in the meantime the other main players decide their Android businesses are no longer viable, and decide to turn their attentions elsewhere? For Android competition is not only healthy, it’s essential to the future of the world’s most popular OS.

Personalising Your Android Home Screen

Get a funky new look and added functionality for your phone by installing an app launcher

Aside from changing the wallpaper of your phone, another great way to dramatically alter the appearance and tailor your device to your own specific needs is through an app launcher. There is a decent selection of these available through the Google Play service, and you download and install them as you would any other app. Once installed , you will then be given the option of switching to the new system, after which you can go about tailoring the appearance and functionality of your machine to suit your needs. What app launchers do is provide a basic operating system, allowing easy access to the apps that you use the most, while allowing you to arrange your other apps exactly the way you want them. So you can place the apps you use frequently on one screen and the lesser-used ones on another, all the while creating new folders for storing them in. For this tutorial we will be using a really good app launcher by the name of GO Launcher EX, which is free to download from the Google Play service.

Tailor your phone: get a new launcher

Download an app launcher Launch your Google Play app and then browse for app launchers, one we would recommend is called GO Launcher EX, which is what we will be using for the purpose of this tutorial. Download and install this app on your device.

Run the launcher

Choose Go Launcher EX as your default and then start using it to customise your home screen. When you first start using the launcher , you will see your home screens at the bottom of the window. Drag app icons onto these screens to tailor your layout.

Instant app access

This app launcher conveniently represents all of the services that you use the most as original icons at the bottom of the Home screen, such as phone, contacts, apps, messaging and internet. Tap on an icon to instantly launch the service.

Organising your apps

Tap on the app grid icon from the bottom of the home screen and then tap on the dot menu. Here you will be able to organize everything: re-arrange your apps, create new folders and access all of the settings that relate to the app launcher.

Check app usage

If you tap on the 'Running, icon in the top-right corner of your app grid, then you’ll be able to see which apps are currently running and the memory that is being used to power them. You can refresh and lock this selection if you wish.

Change the Background of Your Android Device & Add Keyboard Shortcuts

Changing the background

How to instantly change the whole appearance of your phone

Changing the wallpaper on your phone is probably the most direct method of personalising your device. Most Android phones come preloaded with a wide range of wallpapers, both animated and static, that you can set to form attractive backdrops to the home and lock screens for your device. But don't forget that you can also use pictures that you have taken on your phone or images that you have downloaded from the internet. In this tutorial we'll show you how.

Add wallpaper: give your home screen a new look

Go to Settings

On your device, locate the Settings app and give it a tap. Listed amongst the extensive list of options available here will be one called 'Display', which has a little sun symbol. Simply tap on this to start exploring the incredibly varied visual options that are available for your device.

Tap on Screen Display

Tap on the 'Screen Display' option and you will see options for your home and lock screens. Tap on the home screen option and you will be able to select wallpaper from your photo gallery, select a live wallpaper or choose an existing wallpaper from those on your phone.

Choosing your own pictures

If you wish to use one of the photos that you have already taken on your phone as wallpaper, then choose the 'Gallery' option and just navigate through to the image that you want to use. Once selected, move the orange guide around to resize the image to exactly what you want.

Choosing other wallpapers

Your phone should also come preloaded with “live wallpapers”, which are fully animated, and give a bit of life to your phone. There will also be a selection of attractive backgrounds that have already been resized to fit your screen. Simply pick one from the respective gallery and then choose 'Set wallpaper'.

Using keyboard shortcuts

Discover just how you can speed up your typing

Access your Settings app and you will find a 'Language and keyboard" option. Once there, select the settings that relate to your preferred keyboard. Here you may wish to activate predictive text to make typing faster.

You can add your own words to your phone’s  dictionary.

Under “Advanced Settings", tap on the 'My words' option and then input the words that you would like to add. There are plenty of shortcuts built into your phone’s keyboard to help save you time. For example, hold the 'E' key to access accented 'e's, and hold the full stop key to access a range of emotives.

Another excellent method is presented here: