Out-of-sight Android shortcuts

Plus your personal inbox memo machine  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ # Brought to you by: ​ Nerd confession: Stumbling onto new out-of-sight shortcuts is one of my all-time favorite pastimes. It's just such a fun surprise — and it truly has the potential to shave tons of wasted time off each and every day, which is even more satisfying. Even dorkier nerd confession: I spend an absurd amount of energy swiping, tapping, and poking around my various devices to feed that insatiable hunger. (Yes, I really do lead a wild life. Please try to restrain your envy.) This week, I turned my obsessive attention to Android's Quick Settings section. And after a bit of blorping around, I realized some really interesting new options had appeared in that area in an off-by-default section and with no real fanfare around their arrival. Suffice it to say, this discovery has brought me endless delight. I hope it does the same for you — both with the revelation itself and then with the pleasure of putting those sweet, sweet shortcuts to use. Our adventure begins in this week's Things to Try section. JR Today's read: ⌚ 3 Things to Know: 1 minute 30 seconds ⌚ 3 Things to Try: 1 minute ⌚ Just for Funsies: 20 seconds ​ Diggin' these deliveries? 🤝 Writing this newsletter is the highlight of my week — but it's also my job. If you enjoy it, you can support my work and make this manner of independent journalism possible by upgrading to an [Android Intelligence Platinum membership](. You'll get access to oodles of advanced, premium resources along with a completely customizable (and optionally even ad-free!) version of this newsletter — and you'll help keep this setup sustainable as a completely independent operation. ➜ [Check it out here](, if you're so inclined. And thanks for inviting me into your inbox and being a part of this, regardless! [] ❱❱ 3 Things to Know This Week 1. Lock screen widgets could be making a comeback ➜ THE SHORT VERSION: In Hilarious Déjà Vu news, some new signs suggest Google might be resurrecting Android's lock screen widget system — just over a decade after it first appeared on the platform. 🔎 KNOW MORE: The signs here are subtle, but there's just enough smoke to make it seem like there could be some fire. - The clue comes from some inactive code in the latest Android 14 beta referencing widgets as part of the Android lock screen setup. - Google made a big deal about introducing lock screen widgets into Android back with 2012's Android 4.2 release, but it then quietly killed 'em off two years later. (Why? Because Google. That's why.) - This wouldn't be the first time Google's come out with some promising feature but then brushed it aside and forgotten about it only to bring it back to life when Apple "innovates" the same concept several years later. [Insert exaggerated eyeroll here.] 📌 READ MORE: You can [catch up on the clues around this here](=) — and for a deeper dive into how lock screen widgets worked when they last appeared on Android, [look back to this detailed 2012 review]() from some silly-lookin' schlub who's been writing about this stuff for way too long. --------------------------------------------------------------- 2. Your phone will soon be able to act as your webcam ➜ THE SHORT VERSION: Speaking of Android 14, here's a neat new twist: The software's latest beta includes an actual functioning system for letting your phone double as a webcam on any connected computer. 🔎 KNOW MORE: All surface-level coolness aside, this addition is interesting on a couple practical levels: - First and most simply, our phones have really good cameras these days — with far better quality than most run-of-the-mill computer webcams. So hooking up your phone and letting it take on that role will bring a very noticeable improvement to your computer-calling video quality. - That aside, the way Google's got this set up makes it super-easy to use on any kind of computer, so long as you can connect it to your phone via USB. - That's a noteworthy contrast from the way Apple approaches its equivalent option for iPhones, where compatibility is limited only to the company's own Mac products (naturally). And that speaks volumes about the philosophical differences between Android and iOS. 📌 READ MORE: See the still-under-development system for yourself in [this hands-on analysis](. --------------------------------------------------------------- 3. Google Podcasts is going kaput ➜ THE SHORT VERSION: Google's pulling the plug on its short-lived Google Podcasts service and shifting its focus toward YouTube Music as the place for all things audio instead. 🔎 KNOW MORE: This may be one of the least surprising Google app assassinations ever, but it's still plenty irksome for anyone using the service. - Google's flipped and flopped with its strategy around podcasting quite a bit over the years, with a barely mentioned app called Google Listen existing early on before podcasts shifted toward the (now-dead) Google Play Music service and ultimately then into Google Podcasts. - Google Podcasts never took off, though, and Google says far more people were simply turning to YouTube instead. - The all-in-one, YouTube-for-everything concept is a divisive one, and I'm already hearing plenty of well-warranted grumbling from folks who relied on Google Podcasts and don't want to keep doing this dance. 📌 READ MORE: For more on exactly what's changing and when, skim over [this official Google announcement]() — and if you aren't keen on the YouTube podcast transition, take a peek at an app called [Pocket Casts](=). After an awkward few years of ownership changes, it's now operated by the crew behind WordPress. And it's back to being a delight to use. #top SPONSORED MESSAGE Hire the top 3% of freelancers in the world Put down that stack of resumes and listen up! Q: What do KraftHeinz, Shopify, and Duolingo all have in common? A: When they need independent contractors, they skip the hiring headaches and instead [use Toptal](). The HR manager’s secret weapon, Toptal works on your behalf to find the best freelancer for your project needs, guaranteed — no matter how big or small the job. Find world-class programmers, engineers, and more in just 48 hours: ✍️ Submit your project or role requirements 🕵️‍♀️ Toptal selects from their ~exclusive~ talent pool 💪 Each candidate is screened rigorously for hard and soft skills 🤝 After the risk-free trial period, pay a simple, straightforward fee And if this wunderkind doesn’t work out? Toptal will replace them with someone who does, free of charge. No termination fees, no recruiting fees, no siree! ➜ [Ready to take your team into the stratosphere? Try Toptal today, hire a top performer tomorrow!]()​ [HOUSTON, WE HAVE LIFTOFF ➜]() #top [] ❱❱ 3 Things to Try This Week 1. Dig up some out-of-sight shortcuts for your phone Warning: The following information will change the way you use your favorite Android device — for the better. ➜ After spelunking around deep in the bowels of Android's Quick Settings, I noticed that Google had quietly added a bunch of useful step-savers into that area of the operating system over the past months. They're all off by default, though, and you'd never know they were available if you didn't happen to stumble onto 'em and then take the time to bring 'em to the surface. ⌚ But once you know, it'll take you all of 10 seconds to find and activate any of these snazzy shortcuts. 📌 [Gallop your way over to my glitzy new guide](=) to get going — and take note: Even though the article is framed primarily around Pixels, almost everything on the page will work on any Android device (and I've got specific info and instructions all throughout on that front). --------------------------------------------------------------- 2. Give yourself a nifty new screen control shortcut In addition to all of Android's oft-buried native Quick Settings shortcuts, lots of apps offer their own Quick Settings additions to make your life easier. It's tricky to know when such an option is available within an app, especially since those options tend to be off and hidden by default — and since some of the most interesting Quick-Settings-expanding apps aren't exactly household names, either. ➜ Case in point: An off-the-beaten-path app called [Wakey]( will give you a supremely useful one-tap Quick Settings tile for keeping your device's display on indefinitely. It's a handy way to override your standard screen timeout setting whenever you want the screen to stay lit even though you aren't actively caressing it. ⌚ It'll take you roughly one minute to set up: - First, [install the app]( (obviously, right?!). - Next, swipe down twice from the top of your screen to open your full Quick Settings panel. - Tap the pencil-shaped icon at the bottom of that panel, then scroll all the way to the bottom of the list to find the "Enable Wakey" button within the inactive tiles section. (If you're using a Samsung phone, you'll instead tap the three-dot menu icon in your Quick Settings area and select "Edit buttons" to get to that same area.) - Press and hold that icon and drag it into your active tiles area. ​ And that's it: Whenever you want to prevent your screen from timing out and turning off, you can just tap that spiffy new Wakey tile. Just be sure to tap it again when you're done with whatever you're doing and ready to have your standard screen timeout kick back in. 📌 Wakey is [available to download for free in the Play Store](, with an optional $2 upgrade to remove ads and enable some extra features. 🕶️ And it doesn't require any unusual or eyebrow-raising permissions. --------------------------------------------------------------- 3. Create your own Android inbox memo machine We've got no shortage of apps and services for saving memos, but the simplest note-to-self destination is your own musty ol' inbox. ➜ And a crafty little app called [InboxIt]() will empower you to create an easy on-demand memo anytime, right from your phone's Quick Settings, and have it land immediately in your email. ⌚ It'll take you one minute to get up and running on your phone. 📌 I've got all the info you need to make it happen in [this quick 'n' simple guide](=). #top [] ❱❱ And Just for Funsies... I don't know if you've heard, but El Googensplat officially turns 25 this week. Twenty-five! The little search engine that could is officially all grown up. Rather than bombard you with all sorts of articles about the early days of Google and how far the company's come, I thought it'd be fun to give you the key to a time machine so you can go back to Google's earliest days yourself. ➜ So here's a saucy little secret: If you search for the phrase Google in 1998 in any Google Search prompt, Google will magically transform itself back into its launch-year interface from 25 years ago. It'll work on your phone or your computer, though on the phone front, you'll have to switch over to a desktop view within your browser's main menu before it'll be present (since mobile interfaces weren't a thing back in 1998!). Once you get there, though, goodness gracious, is it ever a sight to see. 📌 [Check it out for yourself](=) — and if you want the full late-90s web nostalgia experience, be sure to fire up the old Netscape Navigator and call your old pal Jeeves soon after. #top Happy Trails to You The next time we talk, it'll be October — and that means we'll be getting ready to think about all kinds of zesty Android-associated happenings. It's gonna be an interesting month, my friend. Let the games begin! What'd you think of this issue? Pick a face to vote and let me know! [Loved it]([It was all right]([Coulda been better]( ​ ➜ Did you enjoy this issue? [Copy your custom referral link]( and share it with other people to spread the word and earn [all sorts of awesome rewards](=)! ➜ Hungry for even more? [Try a Platinum membership]( to gain access to three premium Android Intelligence publications along with oodles of other advanced resources. ➜ New here and not yet subscribed? Take two seconds to [sign up now](). ➜ Not feelin' it anymore? Sorry to see you go — but no worries: You can [unsubscribe or update your preferences here](=). [Get even more Android Intelligence. Upgrade to a Platinum membership today.](=)