When it comes to modern technology, every second counts.
It may sound silly, but it’s true: A second is the difference between an interaction on your phone feeling instantaneous and feeling just a touch too slow. And particularly with how frequently we tend to repeat common mobile tech tasks — switching apps, opening menus, firing up our cameras, and so on — all of those seconds can add up fast.
The good news: Android has no shortage of hidden shortcuts that can help you save time and get stuff done more efficiently. All you have to do is learn how to use ’em.
Ready?
1. Snap between apps
Cut out delays in toggling between apps by putting Android’s semi-secret fast-snap function to use: If your device runs Android 10 or higher and has Android’s gesture navigation system enabled, simply flick your finger toward the right along the bottom edge of the screen to snap back to your most recently used app.
If you then decide you want to return to the app you came from, you can flick your finger to the left in that same area.
JR Raphael / IDG
With Android’s current gesture system, flicking your finger along the bottom edge of the screen will let you snap between recently used apps.
If your device runs an older Android version — or simply doesn’t have gesture navigation enabled — you can achieve a similar effect with Android’s traditional three-button navigation system: Simply double-tap the Overview key (the square-shaped icon — or three-vertical-line icon, in the case of Samsung’s software) to flip back and forth endlessly between your two most recently opened apps.
Both commands will work from your home screen, too, for a zippy return to whatever process you had open last.
2. Slide into Quick Settings
Android’s Quick Settings panel is a shortcut in and of itself — a single place with one-tap toggles to some of your device’s most commonly used functions, from Bluetooth to the flashlight and beyond.
But take note: You can add your own custom shortcuts into that area, too, both with buttons built into your phone and waiting to be uncovered (particularly if you’re using a Pixel) and with third-party add-ons that’ll expand your list of available options.
And best of all, you can double your pleasure and get a little meta by using a shortcut to this shortcut mecca: Just swipe down from the top of your screen with two fingers together, side by side. That’ll skip past the standard notification panel and take you directly to the fully expanded Quick Settings section.
On many Android devices, you can also swipe down with a single finger from anywhere on your home screen — not just the top — to summon your Quick Settings panel without having to reach.
3. Open menus like a pro
Not many folks know it, but there’s a faster way to open those three-dot overflow menus in a lot of apps — including core Google titles like Messages, Chrome, Gmail, Drive, Contacts, and Phone (which comes preinstalled on Pixel devices but can be…
2024-01-05 17:00:03
Original from www.computerworld.com rnrn