Hot Nexus How-Tos
How To: Get the Samsung Galaxy "Smart Alert" Feature on Your Nexus 5 or Other Android Phone
Samsung catches a lot of flak for all of the "bloatware" it preinstalls on its Galaxy line of devices. Many users complain that "TouchWiz," Samsung's custom Android skin, causes lag with its overabundance of features. But some of these features can actually be pretty handy, like Multi-Window Mode or Milk Music.
How To: Theme the Android System UI on Your Nexus 5
When it comes to theming your Android device, it's the little touches that count the most. That's why developer SArnab created the Android Theme Engine, an Xposed Module to theme those hard-to-reach corners of the Android System that often go untouched with other themes.
How To: Get the Android L Launcher on Your Nexus 5 or Other KitKat Device
As Matias Duarte and the team over at Google's Android Design department ready their wares, they've given us a preview version of the upcoming "L" release of Android to try out.
How To: Theme KitKat to Look Like Android L on Your Nexus 5
The new preview build of Android is out, and it looks good. But if you're not quite ready to install Android L on your phone, there's still another way to enjoy some of these new visual elements on your Nexus device.
How To: Draw & Send Messages to Your Friend's Lock Screen from Your Nexus 5
The level of customization that Android has to offer is insane. You can replace the stock keyboard and home screen with any third-party app of your choosing, allowing core experiences to be tailored to fit your needs.
How To: Add a “Define Word” Option to the Copy/Paste Menu on Your Nexus 5
Even as a writer by trade, I'm not intimately familiar with every word in the English language. When you're typing something out on your Nexus, sometimes you think to yourself, "Is that right? Am I using the correct word here?" Then, you have no choice but to bring up Google Now and do a search for that word to make sure you're using it correctly.
How To: Wake Up Faster with a Back-Talking, Snooze-Hating Alarm Clock on Your Nexus 5
I am not a morning person. This is a fact that has been proven with science. I need every bit of help to get me out of bed in the morning—multiple alarms, extremely loud tones, Pandora—I've tried everything.
How To: Add Extra Buttons to the Navigation Bar on Your Nexus 5
The debate between physical and virtual navigation buttons and their respective benefits has been going on for a few years now. It looks to finally be settled, with the Samsung Galaxy S5 being the only current-generation flagship Android phone that has yet make the switch to on-screen buttons.
How To: Install a Custom Recovery on Your Nexus Without Using a Computer
With Geohot's Towelroot allowing us to root our Nexus devices in under a minute without ever leaving Android, many of you are probably enjoying all of the Gadget Hacks that root access has unlocked.
How To: Theme Android Apps Any Way You Want Using Resflux
Resflux is an Xposed mod developed by Julian Paolo Dayag, aka WisdomSky, that provides users with a straightforward and functional way to customize and theme almost every aspect of the packages (apps and system components) installed on their Android device.
How To: Copy/Paste Multiple Items with Your Nexus 5's Clipboard
Text input on a touchscreen device is constantly evolving. From early beginnings of pecking out each individual character to today's predictive text and gesture keyboards, we've already come a long way.
How To: Add Event Overviews to the Google Calendar App on Your Nexus 5
Google's Calendar service is one of the best out there. Just because of Google's web presence, your Calendar is available to you on almost any platform, so you never miss an appointment.
How To: Enable "OK, Google" Hotword Detection on Any Screen in Android KitKat
When the Nexus 5 debuted, one of its coolest features was the fact that you could say "OK Google" any time you were on the home screen to launch a Google Voice Search. This feature was ultimately made available for other devices by way of the Google Now Launcher.
How To: Make Your Nexus Organize Itself & Dynamically Adapt to Your Daily Needs
Ask a thousand Nexus owners why they chose their device over an iPhone, and after getting an earful of Apple hate, you will likely hear a clear pattern in their responses, namely, the freedom to customize their phones.
How To: Root Android L—The Easy Way
While the preview images for Android's upcoming "L" release just came out yesterday, the new firmware has already been rooted, as is standard with its openness. So if you were feeling reluctant to try Android L because it didn't support existing root methods, then you might want to reconsider.
How To: Install the New Android 5.0 "Lollipop" Preview Build on Your Nexus 5 or Nexus 7
Update, November 12, 2014: Android 5.0 Lollipop is officially out now. If you haven't gotten the OTA yet, check out our new guide on installing the official Lollipop builds on any Nexus for download links and instructions, for Mac or Windows.
How To: Improve Wi-Fi Performance on Your Rooted Nexus 4
One of the most common complaints that people have about the Nexus 4 would have to be its intermittently poor Wi-Fi performance, a problem that for many, persists through the installation of updates and even custom ROMs.
How To: Automate Settings Changes on Your Nexus 5 for Different Locations
We live, work, and play in drastically different environments, so it only makes sense that we'd want our Nexus 5 smartphones to automatically adapt to our needs when in certain locales at certain times.
How To: Boost Audio Performance on Your Nexus 5
The Nexus line of devices consistently offer the most bang for your buck. It's why many of us purchased a Nexus 5—at a $350 entry price, it's half the cost of any other phone with similar specs.
How To: Get the New Android L "Heads Up" Notifications on Your Nexus 5 or Other Android Device
We got a fairly extensive look at the newest version of Android at Google I/O yesterday. The "L" version, which we're betting stands for "Lollipop", brings Google's new design philosophy to Android, and one of the main aspects of that design are new "heads up" notifications. Allowing you to continue using whatever app you're currently in without interuption, this new type of alert borrows from Apple's iOS, but does it the Android way. These notifications can be dismissed with a swipe away, ex...
How To: Tether Your Nexus 5 Without Your Carrier Knowing
It used to be easy to hack tethering—root your device and install a third-party or modded tethering app. But snuck in amongst the changes in Android 4.3, a new data-monitoring service of sorts made its debut. There used to be a time when your data connection was yours. You paid for it, so you were free to use it for whatever you wanted. Unfortunately, those days are long gone.
How To: Get Custom Hotword Detection to Launch Any App on Your Nexus 5
The release of the Nexus 5 marked the debut of the Google Now Launcher. Even with an integrated Google Now page on your home screen, the most talked-about feature was actually the always-listening functionality.
How To: Root a Nexus 4 or Nexus 5 in Under a Minute
One of the best things about the Nexus line of devices is the ease with which one can achieve root. Plug your phone into your PC, download a couple files, type a few commands, and you can be rooted within 30 minutes. No muss, no fuss, no carrier-locked bootloaders.
How To: Replace All Remaining Holo Blue Elements on Your Nexus 5 with KitKat White
Android has come a long way in a very short period of time. One of its largest leaps, at least in terms of aesthetic value, was a design pattern called Holo UI. Originally debuting in Android 4.0, many of these design elements are still in place today.
How To: Breathe New Life into an Older Nexus Device (Without Rooting)
Remember the feeling you had the moment you removed your shiny new Nexus device from its packaging and booted it up for the first time? You swiped through the app drawer at lightning speed and thought to yourself, "This is the last Android phone I will ever need, they just aren't going to get any better than this."
How To: Quickly Search the Web & Your Nexus from Within Any App or Screen
Prior to the release of Android 4.0, most devices had a dedicated search button. This functionality allowed you to search Google from your home screen and app-specific content from within any app. Eventually, though, this dedicated search button was ditched in favor of an icon in the action bar of apps, and a search bar on the home screen.
How To: Stream Movies, Music, & Pictures from Your Nexus 5 to Your Computer
Koushik Dutta, the developer behind the Android app AllCast, has made the leap over to the realm of personal computers with his latest offering.
How To: New Android Logo? Install the LG G Watch Boot Animation on Your Nexus 5 & See for Yourself
When we look back on it, 2014 may be remembered as the Summer of Android Wear. With two new flagship smartwatches due out soon, Google's been readying its mobile OS for the wearables sector.
How To: Get Samsung's Multi-Window Mode on Your Nexus 5
Multitasking has traditionally been one of Android's strengths. As the first mobile operating system to introduce true multi-process management, it even took things a step further after version 4.0 by dedicating a button to your recently-used apps.
How To: Show Live Wallpapers in the Recent Apps Menu on Your Nexus 5 or Other Nexus Device
When Google first introduced Android 4.4, the most glaring user-facing change was a new trend towards transparency. The stock launcher, originally exclusive to the Nexus 5, had transparent status and navigation bars and its app drawer added a touch of transparency.
How To: Turn Your Own Photos into 3D Wallpapers for Android
Google's new camera app has a highly innovative and unique feature dubbed Lens Blur, and the most interesting thing about it is not necessarily what it does, so much as how it does it.
How To: Monitor Your Kid's App Usage on Android
As a parent, navigating smartphone usage with your children can be a perilous journey as you hand them that new device they've always wanted, or even your older hand-me-down phone or tablet.
How To: Get Custom Screen-Off Effects for Your Nexus 5 or Other Android Device
When theming Android, it's the little touches that complete the look, making your device yours. If you're rooted, you probably know by now that there's virtually nothing you can't change the look of on Android.
How To: The Easiest Way to Transfer Files Between Different Cloud Service Accounts on Android
With limited storage options available on the Nexus 5, cloud storage can definitely come in handy. But sometimes, with the seemingly endless options of cloud services for us to choose from, our online data can get a bit disorganized.
How To: Fix the Yellow Tint on Your Nexus 5's Display
The Nexus 5 has a known issue with its display. Affecting all models from the first manufacturing run and most models thereafter, this display issue is easiest to notice on something with a white background. A yellowish tint, most noticeable when compared to other devices, seems to emanate from the Nexus 5's screen.
How To: Save Webpages for Offline Viewing in Chrome for Android
You may not always be connected to the internet, but if you're anything like me, your thirst for web content is insatiable. Whether you're on an airplane or stuck in an area with no reception, having some offline content stored on your Nexus can definitely save the day.
How To: Theme the Nav Bar on Your Nexus 5 for a Fresh Look
The fact that we own a Nexus means we get to experience the Android interface exactly as Google intended it. But that doesn't mean we can't make a UI tweak here and there, does it?
How To: Control Your Nexus 5 Without Touching the Screen
If you've ever seen one of those Samsung commercials from about a year back, you know that the Galaxy S series of phones come with a feature that allows you to do certain things by making gestures in front of your screen. They call this feature Air Gesture, and it enables you to perform certain functions without even touching your phone.
How To: Show Battery Percentage in Your Nexus 6's Status Bar Without Rooting
Keeping track of your phone's battery life can quickly become a chore. Since no one wants to get stuck without a charge, we constantly find ourselves checking to see exactly what percentage remains.
How To: Get the New Sony Xperia Z2 Launcher on Your Nexus 5
Sony has been hard at work refining its Xperia line of flagship phones. With a 6-month release cycle, they've managed to slim bezels, increase viewing angles, and boost processing power in the 1.5-year span between the original Xperia Z and the Z2.