Developer Options
In order to use most of the tips and tricks listed in this article, you will need to enable developer options on your Android device. To unlock the developer options menu, you will need to locate your phone’s build number. On most devices, you can type the build number into the search field. But there is another way to find it. To turn developer options on, go to the Settings app About Phone section, go down to the Build number, and tap on it until a notification pops out. Then head to Settings > System > Advanced > Developer Options. Now that you have enabled the secret menu, we can start with some useful tips every Android user should know.
Force GPU Rendering
To enable that feature, you’ll need to go into developer options again and from there turn on force GPU rendering. That option makes the graphics card on your phone render user interface elements instead of the CPU. It might lead to the UI feeling a bit choppier, but it comes with a big trade-off in regards to battery life. In most phones, the graphics card uses more power than the central processor, so having GPU rendering switched on can affect battery life by as much as 20%.
Animation Speed
Doing this is very easy. Go into developer options once more, then scroll down to the Window animation scale option and switch it off. Now head to the Transition animation scale and do the same. This feature has minimal effect on battery life but will make your phone faster and more responsive.
Use Voice Access
If you have any impairments or if you are just in cold weather the voice access feature is one of the most practical tools you can use. It can be downloaded from the Play store in literally seconds. From the accessibility menu in the settings, you just turn it on. What it allows you to do is to simply control all aspects of your phone by using your voice. Use Voice Access is made easy to understand and is practical for use.
Record Screen Activity
An amazing new feature that has been added to Android 11 is the ability to record your phone’s screen, without having to install any apps. To use Screen Record, all you have to do is pull down the top shade and tap the Screen Record option.
When you are finished with the video, use the top shade to end the recording, by tapping the red dot on the screen. The dot can be easily moved to a different part of the screen. Once the recording is finished, it will create an MP4 file that you can access in your phone’s photo gallery.
See Your Notification history
If you have Android 11 you can now see your past notifications. Some notifications are silent and don’t ding, or they won’t even appear on the notifications bar, so you may not pay attention to them. Now by just going to the settings menu, you can easily see if an app is currently working in the background or if someone has texted you, but you forgot to answer.
Use Battery Saver Mode
To turn on Battery Saver all you have to do is pull down the top shade on your phone’s screen and tap the Battery Saver icon, tap again to turn it off (it’s recommended that you turn off Battery Saver mode, while your device is charging). If you want to have Battery Saver mode turn on automatically, all you need to do is: Open your phone’s Settings app. Then tap Battery > Battery Saver > Set a schedule. And finally, pick a setting for when should Battery Saver turn on.
- No schedule: Only when you turn it on manually.
- Based on your routine: If your battery gets too low during certain hours
- Based on your battery’s charge percentage: If your phone’s charge goes below a certain point
If Battery Saver is still not enough for you, Android 11 equips you with their Extreme Battery Saver mode. This mode lets your phone turn off most of its features and applications and this in turn, will provide you with even more time before a recharge is needed. To activate Extreme Battery Saver: Firstly, you will have to go to your phone’s Settings app. Then tap Battery > Battery Saver > Extreme Battery Saver > When to use. And similarly to Battery Saver, you will be able to choose when Extreme Battery Saver would be activated. You can choose to always use Extreme Battery Saver, never use it, or have your phone ask you whether to turn it on every time you use Battery Saver.
Get App Suggestions
You can now get app suggestions for your home screen based on your daily activities and app uses. If you move one of the icons from the bottom row to the home screen, you will now get a recommendation about getting another app to fill the empty space. You can then determine whether to keep it or to get another app.
Give One-time Permission
The Android 11 comes with one-time permission for running apps. It gives your apps access for just one time to your permissions like your location, microphone, or camera. The user can allow the app to use your permissions just once. This is good because any apps running in the background won’t have access without your consent.
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