Most people carry a phone that can do far more than they ask of it. Some of the most useful hidden smartphone tricks need nothing more than a button press or a quick visit to Settings, and they work on both iPhone and Android.
A roundup from lifestyle site Newsner pulls together a handful of these features, from silencing a call without hanging up to stretching a battery through a long day. None of them require a new app or a new phone.
They matter more than they look. Phones now handle our calls, calendars, entertainment and even fitness tracking, so a few seconds saved here and a few hours of battery there add up across a week.
Two button presses worth memorizing
Your phone starts ringing in a quiet waiting room, a movie theater or a meeting. The instinct is to grab it and stab at the screen. There is a faster fix: press the volume down button once.
That single press mutes the ringtone or alert straight away. The call keeps coming in, so you have not rejected it, and the notification stays put for you to deal with later.
The second shortcut is for the moments you would hate to miss. You do not need to unlock your phone to take a picture. On an iPhone, swipe left on the lock screen and the camera opens. On Android, a double press of the power button launches the camera instantly. For anyone who has watched a toddler’s first steps or a perfect sunset slip away while typing in a passcode, those are seconds well saved.
Hidden smartphone tricks that stretch your battery
Few things are as irritating as a phone that loses charge while it sits untouched on the table. Modern handsets come with tools built to stop that, and plenty of owners never switch them on.
Start with the obvious one. iPhones have Low Power Mode and Android phones have Battery Saver. Both cut back on non-essential processes and lower the demands the system makes, which buys extra hours when a charger is nowhere near.
The screen is one of the hungriest parts of any phone, so brightness matters. Turn it down by hand, or switch on auto-brightness and let the phone adjust to the room.
Then look at what runs when you are not watching. Many apps keep refreshing and syncing in the background, and limiting that activity saves a noticeable amount of power. Social media, games and streaming services tend to be the worst offenders. Close them when you are done, and think about deleting the ones you rarely open but which keep working out of sight anyway.
Easier on the eyes
Long stretches of screen time have given rise to a problem with its own name: digital eye strain, sometimes called computer vision syndrome. It brings discomfort and fatigue, and phones play a big part because we hold them so close.
Dark mode is one simple counter. Swapping white backgrounds for dark ones is gentler on the eyes, especially at night, and on phones with OLED screens it also saves battery. OLED panels light each pixel individually, so black areas draw very little power. Many popular apps offer their own dark setting too, which helps in dim rooms.
The other habit costs nothing. It is called the 20-20-20 rule: every 20 minutes, look at something 20 feet away for at least 20 seconds. That short break from close-up focus lowers the chance of tiredness building up through the day.
Widgets and a faster, tidier phone
Widgets started life as little information panels. Now they can do real work from the home screen, letting you check details or finish a task without digging through several menus. Calendar, email, weather, notes and health widgets are among the most popular. If your home runs on smart devices, a widget can act as the control panel for them.
Phones also slow down over time, through heavy use, a growing pile of apps and the weight of software updates. A few routine habits keep things running smoothly:
- Clear the cache. Apps store temporary data to load faster, but too much of it can drag the whole phone down.
- Rein in background apps. Fewer apps running out of sight means more free memory and longer battery life.
- Free up storage. A full phone tends to lag, and clearing space also lowers the risk of apps crashing.
- Install updates. New versions of apps and the operating system often bring bug fixes and optimizations that improve speed.
That last tip is the easiest to put off and one of the most effective. The next time your phone asks to update overnight, tap yes.
