Get more out of your Android smartphone with these 5 great features
Third-Party Home Launchers
Customization is synonymous with Android smartphones. One of the first things that an average user wants to do is change the themes and other related features on their device. This calls for a custom home launcher that can enable the display on your cell phone to change according to your choice.
Commonly called third-party launchers, these apps can help users add many different kinds of features that do not come pre-installed on your phone. Once installed, the app allows you to play around with various aspects of the home screen, such as changing the background images, fonts, icons and adding shortcuts. Add loads of configuration is made simpler and faster with LauncherPro and also the famous ADWLauncher.
Variety of Keyboard options
Do you love texting family and friends often, but are fed up of the tiny keypad on your smartphone? Fret no more! You can bid goodbye to the built-in text keyboard that comes pre-installed on your phone. There are a variety of interesting and user-friendly options available in the market that can make your life as a texter easier.
You could download popular text predictors such as Swiftkey, or try the exciting Swype software. The keyboard app choices for Android smartphones are limitless. To add to all these excellent features, you can even choose to type by swiping. What’s more, installation is a breeze!
Widgets the Way to go
There are almost no smartphone users who don’t love a great widget on their home screen to remind them of the weather conditions, time, to-do list for the day and so on. Android widgets come in all shapes and sizes and range from the utilitarian, to full-page widgets that blow us away with outstanding designs and features. It’s quite simple really; Android widgets throw the field wide open so that users can exploit the full potential of their Android smartphones and tablets.
While some widgets are clunky and tend to occupy considerable amount of screen space, they are a fabulous way to get instant information about the things you care about. For example, the Google Play store offers a trove of amazing widgets that enable users to gain access to all of their Play books, magazines, music and media.
Leader of Automation
Ever dreamt of transforming your regular smartphone into a super phone? Well, if that’s your desire, help is at hand. Tasker, a popular Android app is basically an automation program that allows users to do more with their cell phones. It gives you power to do as you please with the numerous downloaded applications.
For example, you can choose to turn settings on and off for apps, depending on the time of day or location. If you manage to get the commands correctly Tasker can open up a world of possibilities in terms of accessing hitherto unexplored smartphone settings. Additionally, you could download AutomateIt which is designed to make life easier by automating various tasks on your Android smartphone or tablet.
Lock Screen Security
With smartphone security being a prime concern, lock screen apps are some of the most sought-after by Android device users. After all, nobody would like their personal data to fall into the wrong hands, or be open to the prying eyes of others.
There are hundreds of lock screen apps that claim to do more than provide security on your phone. But users ought to be careful as some of these apps not only consume a lot of space, but end up disrupting the smooth working of your smartphone. And then there are those apps that perform just as they promise, such as the successful Next Lock Screen, Echo Notification and AcDisplay. These apps complement the Android ecosystem and are sleek, minimally-designed and visually pleasing, thanks to their elegant and simple interfaces.
Users can customize their smartphones in many ways, such as entering a numerical code, or utilizing the swipe feature to open the device with a set pattern. Alternate methods of protecting your device with a lock screen include the use of the following features: slide, password and even face unlock, which by the way is not believed to be foolproof.
