Thursday, June 16, 2011

7 Things to Do First With Your New Android Phone

So, you got a new android phone this christmas. Migrating from a symbian or other OS to android for the very first time? Here are some things which you should do before going on to enjoy the android experience.


1. Set up your work email

Android has a built-in email app which is although a bare minimum but still serves the purpose. You can also install better email apps on your android. Setting up an email account of a email provider like google, yahoo etc. is quite simple and I believe you must have done it by now. But you can also add your work email account to the email app to regularly get updates of your work email.
You’ll have to get few technical details from your IT department in your office and then you can easily setup your work email account. You can alter settings to change the notification and message checking. It is very useful as most of the office email servers do not offer a version which is mobile friendly.
2. Make sure ‘Data Roaming’ is off
If you do not want to incur heavy charges for using data transmission while on roaming, adjust this option to be off. It can amount to huge charges if you are on an international trip. To adjust this setting :
-Tap on menu while on your home screen
-Choose Settings , then tap ‘Wireless and Networks’. Go to ‘Mobile Networks’
- See if data roaming is disabled. If not, disable it by taping the option.
3. Voicemail

Voicemail is also a feature which is missed by many android users. You can allow Google to handle your voicemail
Go to google.com/voice and register for the free service by Google 9but only for the voicemail feature)
You can now have computer generated transcripts of your voicemails delivered to your phone. You can also download mp3 version of your voicemails and explore all other options to integrate your voice mail with your android phone.
4. Install Dropbox

You might be using dropbox on your computer. Now, use it on your phone. Dropbox is a great service which provides you with 2 Gb of space on the cloud. Now you can install dropbox on your phone and now you can easily access the files from your computer. Just upload files from your computer to dropbox and using dropbox on your phone access them easily.
Go to Market app.
Search for dropbox and install it.
5. Add contacts to your home screen
You can easily add contacts to your home screen, so that with 1 tap you can call, sms, view facebook profile and do other task with your preferred contact.
- Press and hold your your finger on an empty spot on any of your home screens.
- Choose ‘Shortcuts’ from the pop up menu.
- Select ‘Contact’ and scroll to find you preferred contact.
Now you can get in tough with your contact with just 1 tap.
6. Install a better music player

Although android native music app is decent but there are wonderful apps in the market which you ought to try out. Some of them are : Tunewiki, doubletwist, etc.
You can search for the app in the market and install it. You’ll definitely prefer the new app over the native app. Another option could be to try out services like grooveshark, spotify etc. which stream music over the internet. (but these are paid apps)
7. Create a link for Directions Home
- Press and hold on a spot on your home screen.
- Choose ‘Shortcuts’.  Pick ‘Directions and Navigation’.
- Enter your home address in ‘destination field’.
- Name the shortcut as ‘Home’ or any other name you deem suitable
Now if you are lost and need directions back home, it is just 1 tap away.
For further exciting apps and tips and tricks for android , check out our android dedicated site androidhub

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