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Coolest Feature,Tip,Trick or App you have found For the Note 2
- Thread starter peter7769
- Start date
Ok so we have had some very funny ones but here is a serious one, some of you may know already..
If you have a lots of apps, did you know that rather than scrolling through them all you can click on apps button on the home screen and then use 2 fingers to pinch the screen together, all of you apps will now be shown on mini home screens
In addition to preview of the app drawer tip from peter7769, you can also organize and customize your app drawer. Organize by using the Customizable Grid view, then Edit. You can also create Folder within the app drawer, and Hide apps.
This way you don't have to scroll through pages of apps.
JunBringer
Android Expert
That should be under language and keyboard under settings. Might need to be done for the exact keyboard you are using.
Kaleidosoph
Lurker
I can't get mine to do this! Is it something that needs to be turned on in settings?
- When the phone is asleep if you hold your finger over the camera and sensors on front the phone will display if you have any texts/missed calls and the battery %.
- When the phone is asleep if you hold your finger over the camera and sensors on front the phone will display if you have any texts/missed calls and the battery %.
JunBringer
Android Expert
Yeah that's in the settings, I can't quite remember where though. Maybe display?
Wiley_11
Android Enthusiast
TheOtherBill
Well-Known Member
This great thread needs a bump.
I discovered Smart Tools today. Most of it is available as individual apps (in both free and paid versions), but the whole set bundled (all the Pro versions) is only $2.50.
I'm playing with this thing more than most games! Lots of neat little tools and just plain old fun stuff.
I discovered Smart Tools today. Most of it is available as individual apps (in both free and paid versions), but the whole set bundled (all the Pro versions) is only $2.50.
I'm playing with this thing more than most games! Lots of neat little tools and just plain old fun stuff.
drexappeal
Extreme Android User
I feel like such a newb. Just figured out how to switch back and forth from 1 handed keyboard layout to full size keyboard without going through the settings.
It's as simple as pinching closed/pinching open (depending on which mode you have activated)! Every now and then, when i need to type a longer message, I've been wanting to switch to a bigger keyboard, just to type out the message (rather than swyping). I just couldn't remember how to quick toggle between the full keyboard and one-handed mode. Great tip for those that are just coming on board and even for those that have had the phone for a while.
It's as simple as pinching closed/pinching open (depending on which mode you have activated)! Every now and then, when i need to type a longer message, I've been wanting to switch to a bigger keyboard, just to type out the message (rather than swyping). I just couldn't remember how to quick toggle between the full keyboard and one-handed mode. Great tip for those that are just coming on board and even for those that have had the phone for a while.
Yes, in Settings, Motion, turn on Quick Glance.
Also, you don't need to hold your finger/hand over the sensors, just wave & it'll come up in a second or so.
edit: Just saw wiley_11's post (not sure how I missed it), sorry for the duplicate.
drexappeal
Extreme Android User
When I was using the stock text messaging app, I only remember it doing this whenever I would go into a shaky signal area, so it wouldn't download the picture or video right away.
drexappeal
Extreme Android User
Yeah, this too...Always count on you to fill in the blanks, ScandaLeX!
Funny part is in driving mode it only tell me I have a message and from who, it does not read the text message, and message is enabled, which is weird
Edit: I c why the wife unchecked show body of message in S Voice, she said it was annoying her when I was in the shower, LOL I said now you tell me, LOL
Edit: I c why the wife unchecked show body of message in S Voice, she said it was annoying her when I was in the shower, LOL I said now you tell me, LOL
evohicks
Android Expert
Took me a while to work this one out, basically use your S Note app to do this.
Copy your subjects face/head etc to clipboard (by tracing around it using your S Pen with button pressed in) then open S Note and find a body/subject to put your face on to.
You will get the hang of it after a while, its really good fun, great little app to use with lots of features.
I did a funny one of my Dad, typed 'superman' in google, searched images and found a body to put my Dad's head on, I think he really liked his new body when he opened his email and saw it lol.
Frisco
=Luceat Lux Vestra=
Hi All
As a new Note 2 owner i thought i would start a thread so that people can add what they have found out about all the cool stuff the Note 2 can do, also any great apps that you have found, inc ones that use the s-pen.
Please post away so that we can help all new owners get the most from their Phones
Pete
Great idea for a thread here, Pete.
I'd like to offer one of my fave tips (one of the glaring, out in the open features of the device):
I like how the Galaxy Note 2 camera shoots as is but you can get a bit more out of the camera with HDR mode or with Panorama. To use these features, open the camera and then touch the Shooting mode button. Along with HDR and Panorama, this allows you to access things like Buddy photo share, Smile shot and more.
peter7769
Android Enthusiast
Great idea for a thread here, Pete.
Thanks, the thread is quite old now but it still helps all new owners of this wonderful phone
Thanks, the thread is quite old now but it still helps all new owners of this wonderful phone
I have read the reviews of the S4 and there don't seem to be enough improvements to tempt me away from the Note 2. The HTC One looks like a 1950s American fridge.
vosg
Android Expert
The following was copied from XDA forums:
50 Samsung Galaxy Note 2 Tips and Tricks
For novice users
Hi everybody
So you decided to join the ranks of Android and the millions of happy Note2 owners. But It can be troublesome to setup your phone at the begining. So I decided to search for you some little tricks you can use to better know and use your phone. I found this excellent article by Andrew Williams. I modified some content to better fit XDA's forum format but the info are the same. I also add a touchwiz tweaks that was not in the aticle, Here are 50 useful tips and tricks for new(even less new) Note2 users to pull out the best of your phone. Enjoy!
PS: Without comments this thread will fall in the abyss of the system(unless it becomes a sticky, which would be good). So please keep it alive with a little reply. thanks.
50 Samsung Galaxy Note 2 Tips and Tricks
For novice users
Hi everybody
So you decided to join the ranks of Android and the millions of happy Note2 owners. But It can be troublesome to setup your phone at the begining. So I decided to search for you some little tricks you can use to better know and use your phone. I found this excellent article by Andrew Williams. I modified some content to better fit XDA's forum format but the info are the same. I also add a touchwiz tweaks that was not in the aticle, Here are 50 useful tips and tricks for new(even less new) Note2 users to pull out the best of your phone. Enjoy!
PS: Without comments this thread will fall in the abyss of the system(unless it becomes a sticky, which would be good). So please keep it alive with a little reply. thanks.
Touchwiz
Make Touchwiz go faster.
To make Touchwiz look good, Samsung created some animations to transit between screens. These animations take some times and can make your phone seems slow. The solution is to go in your phone Settings-> Developer options and turn off -> "Windows animation scale", "Transition animation scale" and "Animator duration scale". Now check how much snappier your phone is.
***You can also turn on "Force GPU rendering" but SOME applications don't like that, so you can try it, but if you find you start having problem with some of your aplications, turn it off.
Ringtones - Alarms - Notifications
Put your Sounds in the system.
The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 allows us to use mp3 as ringtones, alarms or notifications. But if like me you have over 16G of music on your phone it might be anoying to "Go To Files" and search for them. Another way to do it is by creating a folder where Android will automatically look in and put the files in the "Ringtones". To do this just create a folder called "Media" on your sd-card. Inside the Media folders create 3 more folders "Ringtones", "Alarms" and "Notifications". It should look like this.
Media..
--------Alarms
--------Notifications
--------Ringtones
Now move/copy your mp3 files in the according folders. Now if you go on your phone settings->sounds->device ringtones you should see your mp3 files in the list.(Phone restart might be needed)
Screen and video
Get AMOLED colours in check
OLED-based screens like the Samsung Galaxy Note 2's tend to bring oversaturated colours that make skin tones look unnatural. They pop, but they pop a little too much. There's a solution, though. In the settings menu is a Display Setting submenu that lets you choose how vivid the colours are. We recommend the "natural" or "movie" settings.
Fill video codec gaps with third-party players
The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 has an excellent inbuilt media player, but there are some files it can't handle. We found that high-quality 1080p MKVs were too much for it. Snag a third-party media player like MX Player from the Google Play app store, though, and you'll be flying. These can use software encoding to fill gaps in natuve video support.
Video multi-tasking is in
One of the neatest additional features of the Samsung Galaxy S3 and Galaxy Note 2 is that you can overlay a video playback screen on top of any part of the phone. Just press a button in the nav bar of the media player and a little window will pop-up on the homescreen, playing the vid. Watch an episode of Peep Show while browsing the web? Don't mind if I do.
Free games to show off the screen
One of the best ways to show off the Sasmung Galaxy Note 2's screen is with a fancy 3D game. Top free picks to try include Dead Trigger.
Not bright enough? Turn off auto
The standard setting of the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 uses automatic brightness, which judges the intensity of screen brightness using an ambient light sensor on the front. If it's still not bright enough at the max slider point, switch off the auto mode for real searing intensity. But it will affect battery life.
The microUSB port can output video
The Samsung Galaxy Note 2's microUSB port is more special than you might guess. It has MHL capabilities when used with a special Samsung cable, letting it output HD video and surround audio. The Samsung adapter, which is essentially an MHL-to-HDMI converter costs around
Make Touchwiz go faster.
To make Touchwiz look good, Samsung created some animations to transit between screens. These animations take some times and can make your phone seems slow. The solution is to go in your phone Settings-> Developer options and turn off -> "Windows animation scale", "Transition animation scale" and "Animator duration scale". Now check how much snappier your phone is.
***You can also turn on "Force GPU rendering" but SOME applications don't like that, so you can try it, but if you find you start having problem with some of your aplications, turn it off.
Ringtones - Alarms - Notifications
Put your Sounds in the system.
The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 allows us to use mp3 as ringtones, alarms or notifications. But if like me you have over 16G of music on your phone it might be anoying to "Go To Files" and search for them. Another way to do it is by creating a folder where Android will automatically look in and put the files in the "Ringtones". To do this just create a folder called "Media" on your sd-card. Inside the Media folders create 3 more folders "Ringtones", "Alarms" and "Notifications". It should look like this.
Media..
--------Alarms
--------Notifications
--------Ringtones
Now move/copy your mp3 files in the according folders. Now if you go on your phone settings->sounds->device ringtones you should see your mp3 files in the list.(Phone restart might be needed)
Screen and video
Get AMOLED colours in check
OLED-based screens like the Samsung Galaxy Note 2's tend to bring oversaturated colours that make skin tones look unnatural. They pop, but they pop a little too much. There's a solution, though. In the settings menu is a Display Setting submenu that lets you choose how vivid the colours are. We recommend the "natural" or "movie" settings.
Fill video codec gaps with third-party players
The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 has an excellent inbuilt media player, but there are some files it can't handle. We found that high-quality 1080p MKVs were too much for it. Snag a third-party media player like MX Player from the Google Play app store, though, and you'll be flying. These can use software encoding to fill gaps in natuve video support.
Video multi-tasking is in
One of the neatest additional features of the Samsung Galaxy S3 and Galaxy Note 2 is that you can overlay a video playback screen on top of any part of the phone. Just press a button in the nav bar of the media player and a little window will pop-up on the homescreen, playing the vid. Watch an episode of Peep Show while browsing the web? Don't mind if I do.
Free games to show off the screen
One of the best ways to show off the Sasmung Galaxy Note 2's screen is with a fancy 3D game. Top free picks to try include Dead Trigger.
Not bright enough? Turn off auto
The standard setting of the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 uses automatic brightness, which judges the intensity of screen brightness using an ambient light sensor on the front. If it's still not bright enough at the max slider point, switch off the auto mode for real searing intensity. But it will affect battery life.
The microUSB port can output video
The Samsung Galaxy Note 2's microUSB port is more special than you might guess. It has MHL capabilities when used with a special Samsung cable, letting it output HD video and surround audio. The Samsung adapter, which is essentially an MHL-to-HDMI converter costs around
vosg
Android Expert
Great, thanks a lot!
