10 cool tips and tricks for Jelly Bean

It has been a little over a month now since Google made its big announcement about the newest  flavour of Android. The search giant unveiled Android 4.1, codenamed as yet another sweet treat, Jelly Bean. Although the version number is only incrementally greater than the previous Ice Cream Sandwich (Android 4.0) and not a full-fledged version number improvement (we had expected it to be called Android 5.0), there are a few remarkable changes that one can look forward to. Google along with some partners have begun rolling out Jelly Bean updates. The lucky few who have managed to lay their hands on it can try these tips and tricks.

Launch 'Google Now'
When Google announced Jelly Bean, the new ‘Google Now’ was one of the most highlighted features. This unique feature has been designed to show you just the right information at the right time, be it weather, location, sports scores and so on. It negates all the digging otherwise required to get to a particular app for information, and presents it all in the form of cards. Jelly Bean users can quickly launch Google Now from the home page or while other apps are open too. Long press the main Home button on the home page and a white semicircle pops out with the Google logo printed on it. Now, just drag your finger towards the logo and it will instantly launch Google Now. The Google Now function can also be launched by pressing the Back button or the Apps Drawer button on the main page and then moving your finger towards the same semicircle and logo that appears on the screen.

Quick launch

Notifications
While Jelly Bean retains the familiar slide-down notifications bar, it has added some cool improvements that make it even more convenient to use. Android’s notification bar is something many Apple fiends may envy. The quick alerts, all in one place, add ease and convenience. With the new Jelly Bean version, you will notice that it lets you expand a few notifications, offering a sort of preview, especially for email notifications. To get rid of any of the notifications simply swipe it sideways. What we really liked is the Share option that pops up in the notifications bar.

Call out ‘Google’
The popularity of Apple's Siri seemed to have compelled Google to start its own Project Majel, and the result is its own voice commands feature—Google Assistant. Google has been placing a lot of emphasis on its voice-based features lately, but didn’t make much hullabaloo about about it during the Jelly Bean launch. Nevertheless, the search giant has come up with some nifty support for voice-based functions. Whether in Google Now or while typing in Google Search, simply call out ‘Google’ and your command is recognized as a Google Voice Search command. So, if you say 'Google' out loud , the Voice Search option pops up instantly. We tried some voice commands such as pulling up maps of cities and voice dialling and after a little struggle with the accent; it worked quite well. However, you will notice a dearth of local Indian search results.

Face Unlock with a Blink
We know that Ice Cream Sandwich introduced a face unlock option, but Jelly Bean certainly improves this feature. Now, with Face Unlock, Jelly Bean users can enable a ‘liveness check’ option. This has been added to avoid security issues that could be caused because the original Face Unlock system could be fooled by static images such as a photo of the rightful owner. With the liveness check option, the owner doesn’t just have to hold up his/her face to unlock the device but also has to blink. If the software doesn’t detect a blink, it will take the user to the Pattern Unlock screen as a fallback.

Screenshot and security

Screen Capture
Very simply, Jelly Bean comes with built-in screenshot functionality, something many Android fans have been waiting for. This ensures that the user doesn’t need to root the device or employ third-party apps just to take a photo of what's happening on screen. Taking a screenshot is simple, just press the volume down and power buttons together. The device will quickly take a snapshot of the screen and you will find it in your notifications. You then have options to edit, crop, delete, and share the photo. This makes sharing and even making changes to the captured screenshot much simpler than before.

Say it offline
Speech-to-text has been an underused Android feature for some time now. What might finally change that is the fact that you can now convert speech into text without a Wi-Fi or data connection. Yes, voice typing has gone offline with Jelly Bean, as the recognition can happen on the device itself rather than having to be uploaded to a remote server.

Smart Widgets
In Jelly Bean, widgets have become smarter. Google has given them some cool manners, as they can now automatically reposition themselves to make room for each other. You don’t have to manually move widgets to place another as they are now smart enough to move and make space. Try dragging an app icon from the main menu onto the homepage and you will see this in action.

For fun

Delete App
Earlier, deleting an app would need one to long-press on the icon till it becomes editable and then manually drag it onto the ‘trash bin’ that appears on the upper side of the screen. However, Google has simplified it further. One only needs to fling it upwards and the app is deleted—it's as simple as that.

Its raining Jelly Beans!
If you want to indulge in some fun while using your newly upgraded device, then head straight to the Settings screen. Under Settings, click on About Phone and then tap on the Android version a few times. This will take you to a screen that displays one big Jelly Bean. Keep tapping it and more Jelly Beans will start flying across the screen. You can fling and swipe them around for fun. This doesn't really add any convenience or benefit to your usage, but it’s fun to try.

Barrel Roll
As part of Google's regular antics, it had introduced a "barrel roll" trick for desktop browsers. Type "do a barrel roll" as a search term, and Google would demonstrate the power of modern browsers by flipping everything around on your screen. The company is trying hard to show off its voice-enabled capabilities, so your Android device can also do a barrel roll if you speak out the same command. Again, this is of no practical benefit, but it's great fun to show off.

If you have any more tips and tricks to add to this list, do let us know in the comments section below.

Ten iPad and iPhone Tips and Tricks You Likely Don't Yet

Am sure most of us already have an iPhone or iPad and chances are that we are not fully aware of the functions that comes with this beautiful smart devices.

I’ll be sharing 10 tips you might not know your iDevices can do. Tech followers might be aware of some, but ordinary users likely won’t.

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1. Directly Access Apps

If you're like most people, you have your iPhone set to show some pop-up notifications. They might show up on the home screen when you get a Facebook notification, or a text message, for instance, and even when the phone is locked and the screen is asleep. To open these messages, you don't have to first swipe to unlock your phone and then open the app. As long as your device isn't protected by a four-digit security code, swipe from left to right on the notification to open the app in which the message appeared. If you do use a code, you'll be prompted to enter it after swiping the notification.

2. Tap to Scroll Up

Give your pointer finger a rest from scrolling up, up, up to get back to the top of a page. Tap once on the status bar—where the time and battery life are displayed—at the top edge of the iPhone or iPad screen and you'll jump up to the top. This works for websites, email, Contacts and many other apps.

3. Keyboard Shortcuts

Tapping on a glass keyboard has its downsides, but a few shortcuts could ease the experience. Tap and hold the "Compose new message" button in Mail to automatically bring up all your saved email drafts. And rather than switching to the number keyboard and then switching back to the letter keyboard, tap and hold the "123" key, then drag it to a number to select it. When you lift your finger from the number, the letter keyboard will appear again.

When entering an email address, hold down the period key to see other address endings. Add emoticons to your keyboard by choosing: Settings, General, Keyboard, International Keyboards, Add New Keyboard, Emoji. When entering a Web address in the browser, hold down the .com key to see alternate URL endings, like .org and .edu.

You can split the iPad's on-screen keyboard in two so you can grasp the iPad with two hands and type with your thumbs. This is on by default, though you might not know it. (To check, go to Settings, General, Keyboard and Split Keyboard.) To see the split keyboard anytime you're using the regular keyboard, spread your two thumbs from the center of the keyboard out. Or just tap and hold the keyboard icon (bottom right corner) and select Split. An Undock option also appears and this lets you move the keyboard up or down.

4. Speed from App to App

The iPhone and iPad have many apps running in the background. There are shortcuts for jumping around apps without going to the home screen. Double tap the Home button (a physical button below the screen) to see a pop-up tray of apps and swipe to the left to scroll through them. Select one to jump to it. On the iPad, do this is by placing four fingers on the screen and swiping all of them up at once. This and other multitask gestures are on by default on the iPad 2 and newest iPad. But you have to turn them on with the first-generation iPad by going to Settings, General, Multitask Gestures.

5. Take Screenshots

Ever see something on your iPhone or iPad screen and wish you could save that image, but can't figure out how? Press the Home button and the On/Off button (top right edge) simultaneously to take a screenshot of whatever you see on the device. You'll hear the same sound as when you take a picture with the Camera app. You can find all of your screenshots stored in Camera Roll, along with your photos, and share them via email or social networks as you do regular photos.

6. Swipe to Search

Another way to quickly find apps on an iPhone or iPad is to swipe left-to-right from the home screen. This reveals a search box in which you can type the name of any app to jump right to it. This search also finds contacts, emails, calendar items and texts, as well as other things.

7. Read Websites More Easily

Stop struggling to read overcrowded Web pages on the iPhone's small screen. Instead, tap the Reader button, found in the URL bar at the top of a Web page, and you'll see a much clearer, predominantly text version of the page. Even better: This view hides advertisements. It doesn't work with all websites. This also works on the iPad.

8. A Smarter Camera (iPhone)

If you've ever wished your iPhone camera had a physical shutter button, look no further. The phone's volume up (+) button doubles as a shutter button whenever the Camera app is opened. This hard button feels sturdier all around, plus it makes it a cinch to take self-portraits or to tell strangers how to take a photo of you and your friends.

And speaking of handing your phone to strangers, don't forget about the lock-screen shortcut for opening the Camera: Slide up the camera icon (found at the bottom right of the home screen) to open Camera without unlocking the phone. You can do this with anyone's phone, regardless of whether or not you know their password because it only opens the Camera app, locking you out of all other apps—and other photos and videos—on the phone. Just the photos or videos you take at that moment will be visible to you.

9. Digital Picture Frame (iPad)

Put your iPad to work as a digital picture frame for a photo slide show. Tap the Picture Frame icon, which appears to the right of the slide-to-unlock bar on the lock screen.

If you own an iPad case, flip it into its stand-up position, place the iPad on a table, press the Picture Frame icon and walk away. Guests in your home will have to unlock the iPad to access other apps.

Photos can be pulled from all photos or specific albums, events or images of certain faces. Make these and other slide-show adjustments in Settings, Picture Frame.

10. Mute or Screen Lock (iPad)

The same button on the right edge of your iPad that locks the screen in portrait or landscape mode can double as a mute button. This comes in handy if you find yourself frequently muting the iPad. Change this button's default lock function by going into Settings, General, Use side switch to: Lock Rotation or Mute. By default, this button is on Lock Rotation. Another quick way to mute is by pulling up the multitask bar by double tapping Home (or using a four-finger swipe up), then swiping left-to-right to see a mute, as well as sliders for volume and screen brightness. 

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