Post Your Tips for the Bionic Here

[RockyC33]

I'm new to this forum and I would just like to thank everyone for the awesome tips! They have really breathed new life into my Bionic. But I am looking forward to the Moto X!

 

[Thom]

If your Bionic (or any other Android phone) is registered with Google you can use ... Android Device Manager ... to locate it.

It can send a signal to your phone and it will ring for up to five minutes or to when the power button is pressed.

If GPS is enabled on your phone the webpage will show you where the phone is located.

If you have it pre enabled you can have your phone perform a Factory Data Reset.

... Thom

 

[doogald]

Excellent tip.

.If you have it pre enabled you can have your phone perform a Factory Data Reset.

To pre-enable wiping, on the Bionic, go to the app "Google Settings", then choose "Android Device Manager", then check "Allow remote factory reset." You must do this from the phone - you cannot enable that setting remotely.

 

[Thom]

I was using the stock launcher on my un-root-ed Bionic and after trying Nova Prime I am a convert.

I can hide the bloat apps in app drawer.

It always annoyed me that the stock launcher did not rotate the home screen and app drawer. Nova allows this and in addition I can hide the dock area and notification bar.

I leave the center panel of my home screen empty so it discloses nothing when I am in a meeting and can still check the time. The center panel of my home screen with Nova is shown below.

... Thom

 

[Thom]

You can make voice calls using Google Voice to make phone calls. It is supported on a WiFi connection. If you have a deactivated Bionic you could still make voice calls this way.

The initial assertion was that you could use Google Voice on a deactivated Bionic. This does not seem to be the case. Google Voice apparently checks to make sure your Bionic is activated.

... Thom

 

[Lars]

If your Bionic (or any other Android phone) is registered with Google you can use ... Android Device Manager ... to locate it.

It can send a signal to your phone and it will ring for up to five minutes or to when the power button is pressed.

If GPS is enabled on your phone the webpage will show you where the phone is located.

If you have it pre enabled you can have your phone perform a Factory Data Reset.

... Thom

This only works if you subscribe to Google apps.

You can make voice calls using Google Voice to make phone calls. It is supported on a WiFi connection. If you have a deactivated Bionic you could still make voice calls this way.

The initial assertion was that you could use Google Voice on a deactivated Bionic. This does not seem to be the case. Google Voice apparently checks to make sure your Bionic is activated.

... Thom

Voice changes your phone to dial a local access number and then Google routes the call. this way you can call internationally on googles system.
You can add an app like spare phone or talkatone to connect to Google chat over wifi and send receive calls via your voice number.

 

[goop factory]

OK I want to report that this is by far the easiest swap of phones I've ever done. I received the Verizon Droid Bionic from a family member who was done with it. I already had a Straight Talk BYOD account for my Sprint HTC Evo 4G phone. I called them up and told them I wanted to transfer my account to the Bionic device and they sent me a new sim card. I received the card and called them to activate the card, within 10 minutes they got it switched over. I have 4glte service, everything that the phone could do with Verizon, now with straight talk. I didn't have to use the GSM bands or this or that. just that freaking easy...