5 hidden Android options I want I knew about soone...

It is well-known that Android units supply a big selection of options and settings to discover. With Android 16 now accessible and Google regularly engaged on new options, it is easy to miss among the extra helpful and attention-grabbing options which were a part of Android for some time.

Though options like Live Updates and Adaptive Battery are spectacular, listed below are 5 helpful Android options that I imagine are sometimes missed and that I want I had found earlier.

I’ve examined all of those on each my Galaxy S25+ and Pixel 8a, so you possibly can strive them on any Android machine you personal. You do not want any further apps both, as all of those options are constructed immediately into Android’s settings menu.

1

Maintain your telephone unlocked at residence

Lengthen Lock retains your telephone unlocked in trusted locations

Certainly one of my favourite options on Android is known as Extend Lock (previously generally known as Sensible Lock). It has a quite simple premise, and what it does is maintain your telephone unlocked in trusted areas. For instance, you possibly can set Lengthen Lock to unlock your telephone once you’re at residence. This makes it simple to shortly choose up and use your machine at residence with out coming into a PIN or utilizing biometrics.

In fact, utilizing this characteristic requires trusting these you reside with, but when you do not have prying eyes at residence, it is a helpful instrument. As quickly as your telephone leaves the handle or map space you set on Lengthen Lock, it instantly requires a PIN or biometrics to unlock once more.

Lengthen Lock additionally presents two further choices: On-Physique Detection and Trusted Units. On-Physique Detection retains your telephone unlocked whilst you’re strolling with it, and Trusted Units unlocks it when linked to a close-by trusted machine, like your smartwatch. Personally, I solely use the trusted location setting, as I discover it extra dependable and safer.

To check out Lengthen Lock your self, observe the steps beneath:

1. Go to Settings > Safety and Privateness > Extra Safety and Privateness.

2. Scroll down and faucet Lengthen Unlock.

3. Enter your machine PIN.

4. Choose Trusted locations to arrange an space the place your telephone stays unlocked.

2

Always remember a notification

Notification historical past helps you recall notifications you’ve got dismissed

I’ve accomplished this about one million occasions on my telephone: I get a notification, I take a look at it, swipe it away, after which utterly neglect about it. Fortunately, that is why Notification historical past exists. Because the title of the characteristic implies, it retains a historical past of all of the notifications you might have acquired. So, should you unintentionally delete a notification you need to learn, you possibly can verify your Notification historical past to see what it was, somewhat than being left at nighttime.

The very best half is that enabling Notification historical past solely takes a couple of seconds and saves you lots of complications. Here is the way to allow it:

1. Go to Settings > Notifications.

2. Choose Notification historical past.

3. Toggle on Use notification historical past.

4. Your notifications will now be saved to this menu.

3

Pin an app to your display screen to guard your privateness

Cease prying eyes from seeing an excessive amount of in your telephone

One other helpful Android safety characteristic that I imagine is not talked about sufficient is App pinning. First launched with Android 5.0 Lollipop in 2014, this helpful characteristic lets you pin a single app to your display screen so it might probably’t be simply swiped away. So, should you’re handing your telephone over to a child, member of the family, or pal to have a look at, and you do not need them to pry into something in your machine, this prevents that by locking one app to the display screen.

Whenever you pin an app to the display screen, you possibly can solely exit it by swiping up and holding the house bar, or by holding down the triangle and sq. buttons for a couple of seconds (relying on the kind of gesture navigation you might have enabled). You can even allow PIN safety, so if the particular person taking a look at your telephone now is aware of the way to exit App pinning, your PIN is required as an extra step to flee it.

To check out App pinning, observe these steps:

1. Go to Settings > Safety and privateness > Extra safety and privateness.

2. Scroll down and choose App pinning.

3. Toggle on Use app pinning.

4. Moreover, on the identical display screen, you possibly can allow or disable Ask for PIN earlier than unpinning.

5. To pin an app, go to Overview, faucet the app icon, and select Pin.

4

Share Wi-Fi by way of QR code

By no means fear about typing your lengthy Wi-Fi password once more

It is the query everybody hears when family and friends go to their residence for a very long time: “What’s your Wi-Fi password?” Should you’re bored with handing out your Wi-Fi password like sweet on Halloween, this Android characteristic makes it very simple to share it shortly with out the effort of typing your lengthy and presumably complicated password on their telephone by sharing your Wi-Fi by way of a QR code. So, if somebody is visiting, they will scan the code in your telephone, and voilà, they’ve entry to your Wi-Fi.

The very best half is, you do not even have to allow something for this setting to work. Simply observe these steps, and you will be sharing your Wi-Fi by way of a QR code like a professional:

1. Go to Settings > Community and Web.

2. Choose your Wi-Fi connection, which brings up a Community particulars web page.

3. Below the title of your Wi-Fi, you may see three choices: Overlook, Disconnect, and Share.

4. Tapping Share will generate a QR code which you could share with others to connect with your Wi-Fi.

5

Open Google Pockets immediately

The ability button is extra helpful than you assume

Lastly, I discover this characteristic important on my Android machine: opening Google Wallet with a double-press of the facility button. Launched not too long ago in Android 16, it makes funds extra handy — no have to open your telephone and faucet Pockets in Fast Settings. Simply double-press the house button, and Google Pockets launches immediately for contactless funds after unlocking your telephone.

For Pixel customers, this can be a new characteristic with Android 16. Presently, it is restricted to Google Pockets and the digital camera app on Pixel units, however I hope Google will broaden this performance to all apps sooner or later. For Samsung Galaxy customers, the choice to pick any app to open with a double-press of the facility button has been accessible for some time. So, in case you have a Galaxy telephone, you possibly can select Google Pockets or every other app you like.

That mentioned, here is the way to open Google Pockets in seconds in your Android machine:

1. Go to Settings > System > Gestures.

2. Choose Double-press the facility button.

3. Toggle on Use double press.

4. Choose Pockets.