Android has a lot of features, but not all of them are out of the box.With ever-increasing features, it's easy to miss those deeply buried Android settings that enhance your experience.
Whether you want to fine-tune your privacy and security, or improve performance, here are some changes you should make in the Android settings menu.
Note that depending on the phone manufacturer, some settings may be located in different paths and some menus may be named differently.An easy way to find the appropriate settings on any Android device is to use the search option in the settings.
1. Hide notifications from the lock screen
As you know, you can interact with notifications from different apps right from the lock screen.While that's convenient, it also means anyone can view your notifications -- even if your phone is locked.Fortunately, there is an option to hide notification content on the lock screen.
First, you need to protect your Android phone with a passcode, pattern or passcode.Once you've done that, here's how to hide the notification content:
1. Open Settings > Notifications (or Notification Center).
2. Select Lock screen under Notification style.
3. Tap Notification display, and select Show notifications but hide content.This setting will apply to all your applications.
4. To turn off lock screen notifications for individual apps, use the Toggle Off button.
Now, your notifications will only show the name of the app instead of the actual message.You need to unlock your device to view the information.
2. Stop seeing personalized ads
Google knows an astounding amount of things about you.Its massive tracking system is the reason you see ads so precisely tailored.For example, if you search for noise-canceling headphones on your desktop, you may soon see ads for them online.
If you're concerned about your privacy, there's an easy way to take more control over it.
1. Open Settings.
2. Navigate to Google > Advertising.
3. Click Delete Advertising ID, and click Delete Advertising ID on the next page.
Note that while you'll still see ads in ad-supported Android apps, these ads won't be based on your interests.
3. Configure screen timeout and lock behavior
By default, your Android phone's screen automatically turns off after a set period of inactivity to help extend your battery life.But the lock screen only kicks in after a few seconds.If you leave it unattended during this time, there is a chance that pranksters could gain access to your unlocked device.
It is recommended to lower your screen timeout.To do this, go to Settings > Display & Brightness > Screen Timeout.Choose the lowest acceptable number of seconds after which your screen will turn off.
By lowering the screen timeout, you can force the lock screen to start as soon as the screen is turned off.
1. To do this, navigate to Settings > Security, select the gear icon next to Screen Lock.
2. To lock the screen after timeout, select Immediately.
3. On the same page, enable Power Button Lock Now.
4. Change your phone's DNS server
DNS, or Domain Name System, is necessary to connect different websites on the Internet.It's like a phone book for the Internet.Adjusting your DNS can improve your internet speed and your overall browsing experience.Here's how you can change DNS in Android settings.
1. Navigate to Settings > More Connections.
2. Here, you will see an option to enter a private DNS.click it.
3. Enter the DNS hostname under Hostname of Private DNS Provider.
Two popular DNS servers are Google DNS and Cloudflare DNS.Below are the hostnames of these DNS servers.
Google DNS: dns.google
Cloudflare: one.one.one.one
5. Enable permanently numbered lines in Gboard
If your job involves working with numbers, switching your keyboard between numeric and alphabetic modes can be a hassle.
If you use Gboard, which we guess most of you are, you can enable a persistent row of numbers at the top of the keyboard.This is a great way to take advantage of the growing screen real estate on mobile devices.
1. Open Gboard and tap the gear icon to enter Gboard keyboard settings.
2. Click Preferences.
3. Enable the number row.
6. Enable night light or eye care
Long-term smartphone use can affect your vision and sleep.This may be due to the brightness and tint of your screen.So the best way to protect your eyes and sleep mode is to enable night light option in Android settings.
1. Navigate to Settings > Display & Brightness.
2. Select "Luminous", it may also be called "Eye Protection".
3. You can turn it on immediately, or schedule it to automatically activate from sunset to sunrise.
This option tints your screen amber, making it better for viewing and reading, and reducing glare in lower light conditions.It will most likely also help you fall asleep.
7. Disable and hide unwanted apps on your phone
Android phones from various manufacturers come pre-installed with a lot of apps that you probably don't even need.Some of these apps may also push annoying notifications from time to time.So let's see how you can handle all this bloatware from the setup.
1. Navigate to Settings > Apps.
2. Go to "View All Apps" to open the list of installed apps.
3. Tap the app you don't want to open its app settings.
4. If you just want to disable its notifications, tap the notification and turn it off.
5. You can also disable the app completely by tapping Force Stop, then Disable at the bottom of the screen.
You need to be careful when disabling an app completely, because disabling a system app can break your phone.Make sure you disable things that are not related to system functionality.
8. Adjust developer options
In addition to the general settings, Android Developer Options has some advanced settings that you can tinker with.Developer options may be for developers, but it's a gold mine of settings that even casual users can take advantage of.
For example, you can adjust the animation speed to make your phone feel snappier, set a mock location, fake your GPS location, or enable USB debugging to send commands from your computer to your Android device.
Get the most out of your Android phone
Adjusting these settings will help you get the most out of your Android device without drastically changing the way you use your favorite operating system.Whether you want to protect your privacy or enhance your everyday Android experience, just a few tweaks will do the trick.
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