Your Android phone may not have the newest cameras or the thinnest design if it is a few years old. However, it’s probably still more than capable of meeting your daily requirements. You don’t need to buy a new phone right away to take advantage of new features and upgrades because Google and Samsung have guaranteed years of software updates for their smartphones.
It all comes down to the crucial adjustments you may make to your Android phone. Therefore, don’t panic and don’t pull out your wallet just yet. With a few easy tips and hacks, you might be able to improve your phone’s performance quickly.
It’s true: By making a few simple changes, you can probably extend the battery life and give your phone a new lease of life, regardless of whether you have a Samsung Galaxy, Motorola, or OnePlus phone.
Keep in mind that phone manufacturers sometimes install their own software on top of Android, and that there may be some changes across Android smartphones. Depending on the Android version you’re using and the manufacturer of your phone, some options can be absent or located in a different location.
Do you need more Android advice? Learn how to utilize Android’s AI circle to search features and get your Android feeling brand new again with these five recommendations.
Taking an Android phone
A display that is too bright may quickly deplete your battery.
Configurations to extend the life of your battery
It might be frustrating to live with a phone that has a short battery life, but there are certain things you can do to get the most of every charge from the start:
1. Set the brightness level slider to less than 50% and disable adaptive or auto screen brightness.
Your screen will use more battery power if it is brighter.
Pull down the shortcut menu from the top of the screen to access the setting, then use the slider to make any necessary adjustments. If your phone doesn’t have an auto brightness toggle in the shortcut panel, you’ll have to visit the settings app and search for “brightness” to locate and disable the option.
2. Make use of battery optimization and adaptive batteries.
Through learning how you use your phone, including which applications you use and when, these features aim to optimize both the apps and their battery usage.
While Samsung phones hide these settings, other Android phones offer a distinct Battery area in the Settings app. Every phone has a somewhat different process. I suggest going into your settings and looking up “battery” to locate the appropriate screen. In order to maintain the health of your phone, it can also feature an adaptive charging mode that tracks how fast the battery charges over night.
Reasons for using dark mode more frequently
Using Android’s specialized dark mode is another option to extend battery life and protect your eyes. There will be a distinct dark mode option on any Android phone running Android 10 or later.
Google claims that dark mode not only prolongs battery life but also lessens eye strain caused by smartphone screens since black backgrounds consume less power than white backgrounds on OLED screens, which are found in the majority of flagship phones.
You might need to go through the settings app for a dark mode, depending on the Android version and manufacturer of your phone. You may activate systemwide dark mode on your phone if it’s running Android 10 or later. Don’t give up if it is running Android 9. Whether or whether you have Android 10, you may use the dark mode option in the settings of many apps.
Search for Dark Mode, Dark Theme, or even Night Mode (as Samsung like to refer to it) in the Settings app to activate dark mode. I advise utilizing dark mode always, but if you’re unsure, you can always program it to activate automatically according to a schedule, such as 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. daily, or let it change automatically according to where you are at sunset and dawn.
Android phone settings for dark mode
Any phone may preserve battery life with ease and style by switching to dark mode.
Keep junk off of your home screen.
Are you planning to download a number of new Android apps from the Google Play Store? Every time you install something, shortcuts arrive on your home screen, so be ready for a lot of icon clutter there.
There is a straightforward solution if you don’t want that: To access Settings, use a long-press on a blank section of your home screen. Look for and disable the option that says “Add icon to Home Screen” or “Add new apps to Home Screen.”
Presto — When you install new apps, the home screen will no longer have any icons. The shortcuts will not show up on your home screen unless you wish them to, but you can still add shortcuts by dragging the icon of an app out of the app drawer.
See also: Top Android Smartphones for 2024
Put Do Not Disturb on so you can concentrate better.
You probably don’t want your phone to buzz or beep every time you receive a call, message, or Facebook alert if you frequently leave it on your nightstand at night, especially while you’re attempting to fall asleep. During specific hours, Android’s Do Not Disturb mode will essentially keep the phone silent. This is known as Quiet Time or even the Downtime setting on some phones.
To find Do Not Disturb or a similar moniker, navigate to Settings > Sounds (or Notifications). Use the built-in search function in your settings to look for it if you are unable to locate it.
You may use the capability to program a range of hours for when you wish to disable the digital noise. Rest assured that when you wake up, any notifications you received while Do Not Disturb is enabled will still be there. Additionally, you can usually create an exception that lets calls from favorite contacts and repeat callers pass through. Activate that. It’s likely that someone will try again if they are calling you in an emergency.
Android’s Find My Device feature
When you lock an Android phone using Find My Device, this is what someone who finds a lost or stolen phone will see.
Be ready at all times in case your phone is stolen or lost.
Is there a worse situation than having your phone stolen or lost? Only the awareness that if you had activated Google’s Find My Device function, you could have located it.
The following actions are necessary to position yourself for a successful recovery: Locate “Find My Device” by opening the Settings app. Usually, it can be found in the Settings app’s Security section.
You can also use Samsung’s Find My Mobile service, which can be accessed in Settings > Biometrics and security > Find My Mobile, if you own a Samsung device.
Once enabled, you can access your account by going to android.com/find from any computer or mobile device. To locate a misplaced phone, Samsung customers can go to findmymobile.samsung.com.
TCL 10 Pro Android phone
Losing a phone is never a good experience.
If you run into any difficulties putting any of this up, make sure to read through our comprehensive guide on discovering a misplaced Android phone.
You should be able to see the location of your phone on a map if it is turned on and connected to the internet. You can then set it to ring, lock it, leave a note on the lock screen instructing whoever is in possession of it how to return it to you, or, in the worst case, remotely erase the entire device.
Additionally, always keep your phone updated.
As simple as it may seem, a software update may be able to resolve bugs and other problems that are causing your Android device to lag.
Before you download and install the latest software update, make sure your device is connected to Wi-Fi, or else this won’t work.
Now, open the Settings application and type in Update. You’ll then either see Software update or System update — pick either one. Then just download the program, wait for a few minutes and install it when it’s ready. Your Android smartphone will reboot and install the newest software update available.
Software update on an Android smartphone
Always keep your phone updated to the newest software to avoid bugs and other concerns.
Of course, there is much more to learn about a new phone. Here is a head-to-head comparison of flagship phones and the best methods for boosting your mobile signal. Also, have a look at CNET’s ranking of the top Samsung phone covers. Are you more of an Apple fan? We also provide advice on how to improve the performance of your iPhone.