The top 8 things I love and 6 things I hate about Google Pixel 6a
There's a lot to like about the Pixel 6a, but some things just don't work in its favor
We can easily list a ton of reasons why the Google Pixel 6a won AP's best budget phone award in 2022. There are so many of them! While its price is one important factor, what helps it stand out among the best budget Android phones is its superb software and camera experience. There's simply no other smartphone in its price range that can claim to take better photos than the Pixel 6a or provide day-one Android updates.
Although Yahoo isn't as popular as Gmail or Outlook, many still use the company's service to exchange personal and business emails. Yahoo pales compared to Gmail and Outlook's AI features, integration with company apps, and other add-ons. Many have moved away from Yahoo due to security concerns, a lack of useful features, and growing ads on the platform. If you plan to move on from Yahoo, export your important emails on the desktop.
All Android phones come with the Google app and Google Assistant preinstalled. Ideally, that should be enough for your digital assistant needs, especially considering that the Big G's solution is one of the best around. However, budget and high-end Samsung Galaxy phones come with Bixby — bundled with One UI — on top of Google's defaults.
Despite the recent addition of the video downloading feature on Instagram, Meta's other app, Facebook, continues to fall behind. While you can download your video uploads, it doesn't offer a feature to download videos uploaded by other users on your Android device, computer, or top Chromebooks.
Google Photos comes preinstalled on most Android devices, including phones, tablets, and our favorite budget Chromebooks. It's simple to use and packed with tons of powerful features to manage your photo collection. However, whether you're looking to escape the Google ecosystem or want to try something new, there are plenty of excellent alternatives to Google Photos.
How to use the secret trackpad on your Android phone
Text editing on a small screen has never been easier!
The virtual keyboard is one of the essential parts of your smartphone experience. You rely on it for texting, creating to-do lists, drafting long LinkedIn posts and emails, and editing quick documents in Google Docs. While smartphone keyboards have evolved in recent years with auto-predictions, AI features, a clipboard, and more, you can't escape mistakes and errors while typing on a small keyboard on glass.
How to watch local channels on your Roku device
Cutting the cord with Roku doesn't mean losing access to local channels
Roku is among the best streaming devices you can buy. While on-demand TV shows and movie access on Roku are convenient, you prefer live TV channels to catch your favorite shows, news channels, and sports events. You don't lose access to local channels when you cut the cord in favor of a Roku streaming stick. It's easy to watch local channels on your Roku device.
Typos and grammar mistakes are common in conversations, especially when you are on the go or typing without autocorrection. While you can follow up with a correction or retrieve the message, editing the sent text is more convenient for both sides. Following the footsteps of iMessage and Telegram, WhatsApp, the world's biggest chat app, announced an option to edit text messages to take care of such typos.
The streaming services war is heating up in the U.S., and Google's YouTube TV easily stands out among the sea of streaming services offering live TV channels without cable. You can access 100+ live TV channels, record your favorite shows and sports events with unlimited DVR storage, and explore add-ons to elevate your cord-cutting experience. Cross-platform availability isn't an issue either. Google offers YouTube TV apps on Android, iPhone, smart TV platforms, and all the major streaming devices.
How to split text into columns in Google Sheets
Don't waste hours breaking text into columns in Google Sheets
While Microsoft Excel is popular among businesses and enterprises, most users stick with Google Sheets due to its ease of use, seamless sharing, and web-based cross-platform availability. Google Sheets is packed with advanced functions, and one such trick is the ability to split text into columns. Whether you use Google's spreadsheet software on a desktop, Mac, or a top Chromebook, use the steps below to split names, email addresses, website URLs, and any data into relevant columns in Google Sheets.
Announced in June 2014, Google's Android TV is slowly gaining momentum in the smart TV market. Besides Samsung and LG, most smart TV manufacturers prefer Android TV with their offerings. Plus, there is no drought of top Android TV boxes from the likes of Nvidia, Onn, and Xiaomi. If you bought a new smart TV or a streaming device with Android TV OS, check our dedicated guide to set it up and glance over the best tips to get the most out of it.
Although the iPhone's default keyboard is no match to Gboard on the top budget Android phones, the iOS keyboard has several tricks up its sleeve to fix typos on the go. You may sometimes run into typos when you write business emails or Twitter threads on your iPhone. Tapping an exact word in a long paragraph can be inconvenient and confusing. Instead, you can turn on your iPhone's secret trackpad and navigate the text cursor like a pro.
How to set up Emergency SOS on your Android phone
Setting up emergency SOS features only takes a minute, but they could be vital in a crisis
Although it's not one of the fancy features, settings up Emergency SOS features should be high on the priority list on your new budget Android phone. While the exact array of features varies between manufacturers, Emergency SOS provides a way to call your emergency contact without doing much more than pressing your power button a few times.
Spotify is one of the most popular music streaming services and offers a library of several million songs. It also doubles as a podcast hub, making it a go-to app for audio entertainment. The service works with virtually any smartphone, including Android devices and iPhones, PC and Mac computers, and Google Assistant and Alexa smart speakers.
These were the top 12 Reddit apps for Android and iOS
Not all third-party apps are gone, but the majority is
Third-party Reddit apps have long been the community-favorite way to browse the social network. The clients don't only get rid of advertisements in the feed, they often offer a better user experience, a sleeker appearance, and are usually less intense on your favorite phone's battery than the official Reddit app. However, the market for third-party apps has become a lot smaller, with many apps no longer functional.
How to resize an image in Photoshop on your phone or tablet
Shrink those Pro-mode photos and save yourself some storage space
With most budget Android phones offering a 48MP, 108MP, or 200MP camera on the back, it's easy to capture huge-size pictures in full-resolution mode. While these large pictures offer excellent details, they aren't suitable for sharing on social media or web services. Most websites limit the file upload size, and you may receive errors while uploading pictures. It's time to resize such heavy images on your phone or desktop.
How to restore deleted contacts on Gmail and Google Workspace
Turn back the hands of time and undo any changes or accidental deletions to your contacts
Not long ago, we used feature phones and stored our contacts on our SIM cards or directly on the phone, both of which had downsides. Most SIM cards only allowed you to save 200 to 250 numbers, which you lost if someone stole the line. The phones had more storage capacities, reaching 500 contacts, but would require a messy copying process if you wanted to change your device.
Not all movie streaming sites are created equal. While it may be easy to settle for the most popular options like Netflix and Hulu, they might be the best choices for you. If you're looking for an affordable option, the best value streaming services won't break the bank, but there is a cheaper way to stream movies.
Scammers can circumvent spam filters by sending you text messages from an email address. While this can be annoying and harmful to your digital privacy, it is easy to block them whether you have an Android or iOS device.
Cracked smartphone display? Here's how much you'll pay to replace it
Using your phone with a cracked screen is never a good idea
Even though you are extra cautious with your expensive smartphone, an accidental drop may crack its screen in no time. While phone companies go to great lengths to create a shatter-resistant display, it's hard to escape from a broken phone screen during an unfortunate incident. Instead of using your phone with a cracked screen (and further increasing the damage), you should get it fixed by the manufacturer or a third-party service.