Develop Bugs

Honest review from a critical nerd (me)

I've has my Galaxy Nexus for a couple of days now, on the Three network in the UK.
I hate how most people in reviews rave about phones when they have just forked out for them, and fail to mention any real negatives - presumably because they refuse to accept that something they've spent £500 on might be less than perfect. When you buy one and it's missing features or isn't quite what you expected, it's very annoying.
Here are my thoughts so far. I consider myself a power-user, and have tested almost everything. Overall, people are right. This is the best phone I've touched. I think once devs start optimising their apps to work properly on ICS it'll be even better. Fingers crossed that Cyanogen will address lots of the annoyances below.
I hope this is useful for someone
The Good:
Feels much more complete and unified.
It's lightening fast.
Most of the best bits of Android have transferred.
Screen looks great.
Face unlock works much better than I thought. Even in low light.
I've only had one crash despite installing a tonne of apps and testing every feature. [EDIT: a few FCs today. Mainly from the pre-installed Google Earth).
Radio seems to work fine on Three UK, unlike the SGS II which has data issues due to fast dormancy. Data speeds are great.
Browser generally much better.
Text input much better, but editing is a little confusing and seems to vary depending on app. [EDIT: This is actually phenomenal. I've always had a hardware keyboard or Swype before so no practice on these keyboards. After only 48 hours, I can literally type without looking. It is very good at correcting mistakes.]
Screen size is great for me, as I use my phones as mini-tablets. Doesn't feel bulky in my pocket at all.
BLUETOOTH STEREO FINALLY DOESN'T DISTORT - I can hear hi-hats again instead of just distortion. There is a bit of constant crackling though.
Screen remains responsive when charging. I have had an issue where it wasn't registering touch properly when charging on my Milestone, Desire and SGSII so this is really nice.
The Bad:
EVEN THOUGH I'M SUPPOSEDLY IN AN UNAFFECTED BAND, IF MY PHONE DROPS TO 2G, AND SOMEONE WALKS NEAR ME MAKING A PHONECALL IT PUTS MY PHONE ON SILENT.
The 'menu' button is unpredictable. For example, in most apps it appears at the bottom with the softkeys. In Market it's up at the top, near the search button. In some apps, it has gone. Seems to vary and is confusing.
You're stuck with the Google search box on you home screen. I hate this.
Now the button has gone, if an app doesn't have a search icon, you've lost the ability to search.
Also means no long press search, so you have to go back to the home screen for voice commands. This also means that regardless of what launcher you use, if you want voice search, you NEED to have the Google search widget on your home screen.
No USB Mass Storage – they've opted for media device profile instead. My Xbox recognises it but can't play any content. It doesn't work with my car stereo. It doesn't work with my TV. My laptop will see it, but I can't see certain hidden folders. This has just removed a huge aspect of flexibility from Android. It's no longer universal, and more like an iPhone now in that respect.
Icons are as ugly in real life as everyone expected.
Blue theme clashes with everything except blue. Blue icons on blue background feels very bland.
There is a huge problem with speech to text, whereby it is very slow, and seems to just write a list of names out of my contacts directory rather than writing what I say! Video here: http://youtu.be/qHVptz2EtMk
No longer accepts certain file formats over Bluetooth.
Camera seems buggy when reviewing photos. It works confusingly.
Gallery is not very intuitive at all.
Browser doesn't display Javascript animations properly.
Dropped a few calls.
Wifi range isn't as good as my other Androids
Front facing camera doesn't aim inwards towards your face. It points straight forward at 90 degrees, but it's positioned on the right of the device, so your face isn't central unless you hold the phone at a bit of an angle facing away from you. [EDIT - this is getting very annoying now. You have to have the phone screen pointing almost away from you to video call]
Bluetooth calls don't seem to work. Caller can't hear what I'm saying. [EDIT - I'm told it works on newer kits. Mine is a Jabra stereo receiver]
Bluetooth music has a constant crackling behind it, but it's barely noticeable in loud music.
All albumart appears in the phone gallery.
Google Talk seems to sign out after a while. It's showing all of my contacts as away even though I know they're online. Signing out and in again fixes this temporarily, but I'm guessing I would miss video calls whilst offline.
Phone has gone to permanent sleep about 3 times in 2 and a half days now. Requires a battery pull to get it back on.
Apps - If you can't live without these, I'd recommend waiting to buy until they're fixed
No menu button is shown on Facebook, so there's no way to set it up to sync contacts or notifications. This means no contact photos for now.
Twitter on the other hand syncs all my contacts, despite me telling it not to.
Doesn't support Swype as yet.
Doesn't support MX Video Player.
iPlayer not available in the Market.
Grooveshark app doesn't work due to lack of flash player. You can use Dood's music streamer for a functional but unattractive alternative.

Thanks for the review and honesty. It would be nice if you kept this updated as either your opinion changes or things are fixed from either Google or app developers.

Is web browser as smooth (scrolling, pinch to zoom) as one on the galaxy s2?

I really beginning to wonder if Verizon is going to put these out there in two weeks without some fixes/improvements in place. I mean, if December 8 is real, these phones have got be in sealed boxes already. People will be returning them faster than they sell them.

hrcro said:
Is web browser as smooth (scrolling, pinch to zoom) as one on the galaxy s2?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It feels a lot smoother than my Galaxy S II did.
I'm about to test the bluetooth quality, as crackling audio was my biggest pet hate from previous Android versions.

Can you resize the search widget? If we are stuck with it maybe something smaller will help minimize that particular drawback.

have you got an otg usb cable? can you hook up a thumb drive?
Sent from my Google Nexus S using Tapatalk

suomaf said:
have you got an otg usb cable? can you hook up a thumb drive?
Sent from my Google Nexus S using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yes, please test it. whole forum with owners GN but nobody had test this opportunity yet

I hope yopu don't mind but I am going to hijack this thread and also post a quick review from a similar nerd is maybe over critical. Saves starting a new thread.
The Good
ICS is very polished, much more so than any other version of android, it tries to stay consistent through the whole phone where as in previous versions it was one of my main annoyances.
The device looks fantastic.
The speed is very good, I wouldn't say it is any faster than a SGS2 with a custom rom IMO but it is a lot smother in animation etc. so it feels a lot faster.
The screen is very nice, playing videos when the screen is set up to an acceptable brightness are amazing with colours a lot more natural than the SGS2 or the yellow tint of the iphone 4.
Radio is very good also, getting full signal in my house where as before i would only receive 2-3 bars.
Text input is a lot better although i have found it is unable to keep up with my typing, although it is putting the letters down it almost seems like there is a little delay in the animation of them magnifying.
Notification light is back and I am glad, as I missed that feature on my SGS2.
Has everything, NFC, noise cancelling mic, 720p display and ICS. Its pretty much future proof (in terms of the next few years)
Zero shutter lag is a very good feature
Bad Points
The screen although very nice on full or half brightness is not very good on auto brightness. It is so much lower compared to all my other smart phones it is almost unusable I find so I have had to manually set the brightness.
Auto rotate as I have mentioned in another thread is very inconsistent, very fast in some apps nearly non existent in others.
Sound quality is quiet, not poor quality but very quiet. My SGS2 and iPhone 4 over power it when playing videos.
The browser is fast but it is not as fast as my SGS2 running Check Rom Revolution HD. It is deffo faster than the iPhone 4.
The camera is not great, its not bad but the quality feels like it is from a year old device. Quite grainy, not as good as the SGS2 or the iphone 4s unfortunately.
And lastly a few quirks which I am sure will be sorted out with an over the air update, occasional stutter when opening app draw, gallery doesn't seem terribly smooth when going through photos and the auto rotate is just annoying me.
Other than the above I don't want people to read this and think it is doom and gloom because it isn't. This is a very very good device, I am glad I purchased it because it is still the best phone on the market in my opinion.
Every phone has its niggles but that is why this forum is so great, I am looking forward to the community baked roms which always make a device go from very good to just awesome.
To answer some question, you can't resize the search bar. Its not really a widget its sort of like the controls at the bottom, permanently there.

when typing does it type well, what I mean is it off when typing and you keep getting bad letters up, I had that problem with the SGS2 someone mentioned it was a screen problem that it kept jumping
thanks

bmstrong said:
Can you resize the search widget? If we are stuck with it maybe something smaller will help minimize that particular drawback.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nope, can't resize it. It's there permanently. You'd have to install another launcher.
Added a few more to the list, mainly to do with Bluetooth.

Is FM radio working with Spirit FM Radio app?

justabrake said:
when typing does it type well, what I mean is it off when typing and you keep getting bad letters up, I had that problem with the SGS2 someone mentioned it was a screen problem that it kept jumping
thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah it types really well, I don't think I have mistyped once on there and I type real fast.

Good lord. That's a lot of negatives. Thanks for the honest review for undecided minds like me. Just two questions. If you use a 3rd party launcher (for example adw) will the google search bar still be present? Secondly, how does the GPS perform in terms of fix time and accuracy? Does barometer really help GPS fix time? Thanks

luffyp said:
Secondly, how does the GPS perform in terms of fix time and accuracy? Does barometer really help GPS fix time? Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The GPS fix for me is very fast, easily within a second or so. Much faster than my Desire was, that's for sure.

A lot of those negatives either will be resolved soon by Google or they won't be a problem for the majority of people
Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk

OP > when typing does it type well, what I mean is it off when typing and you keep getting bad letters up, I had that problem with the SGS2 someone mentioned it was a screen problem that it kept jumping
thanks

mike freegan said:
You're stuck with the Google search box on you home screen. I hate this.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ugh.
This is going to be problematic with my live clock wallpaper that is displayed at the top of the screen. Anyone else use WP Clock?
Here's an example of the live wallpaper I'm talking about:

luffyp said:
Good lord. That's a lot of negatives. Thanks for the honest review for undecided minds like me. Just two questions. If you use a 3rd party launcher (for example adw) will the google search bar still be present? Secondly, how does the GPS perform in terms of fix time and accuracy? Does barometer really help GPS fix time? Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well you have to bare in mind that ICS is a big over haul, so if we were to list all the positives it would be a pretty big list. I am just venting my negatives of the device, but when you compare them to how good the device is they really are small and I would rather have this handset than any other. I forked out for both my SGS2 and the Galaxy Nexus sim free and i am not dissapointed with either. If you are undecided on whether to upgrade you have to look at the fact that this phone does have everything, is a developer phone and has ICS written specifically for it. I would say go for it.
If you use a 3rd party launcher the Google search will not be present, my GPS has been excellent, I have used it for a few car journeys and it is just as good as my SGS2 which was superb.

jms.flynn said:
Well you have to bare in mind that ICS is a big over haul, so if we were to list all the positives it would be a pretty big list. I am just venting my negatives of the device, but when you compare them to how good the device is they really are small and I would rather have this handset than any other. I forked out for both my SGS2 and the Galaxy Nexus sim free and i am not dissapointed with either. If you are undecided on whether to upgrade you have to look at the fact that this phone does have everything, is a developer phone and has ICS written specifically for it. I would say go for it.
If you use a 3rd party launcher the Google search will not be present, my GPS has been excellent, I have used it for a few car journeys and it is just as good as my SGS2 which was superb.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep I know, ICS seems to be the biggest change among the previous Android versions. Together with Google & developers' support, it's why I want to jump ship to the Nexus line. At the moment I'm leaning towards it, just wanna read more reviews. Although the volume adjusting problem that many people are having is a bit of a concern. Hopefully it will be fixed by a software update.

HOW do you show off your Galaxy Nexus Phone?

So I just received my Galaxy Nexus phone yesterday and I am very excited to be on the cutting edge again
So i'm just wondering.
When one of your buddies asks you if you could show them your phone, how do you show off your Galaxy Nexus phone to others?
I assume the way you show your phone off depends on the person you're showing it to.
for example, if I'm showing this phone off to my fellow android fans, then I'd probably just mention the key points such as NFC, and its on ICS.
but how would you WOW someone who's using a blackberry? Or using a windows phone? or using an iPhone?
I have a few ideas but wanted to hear feedback from users on this forum
Here's what some of you are posting:
1) Just show off the mere sight of a superior phone
2) Android ICS
3) Screen Size
4) face unlock
5) gallery picture widget
6) shutter speed
7) photo effects
8) android beam
9) multi-tasking, easy swipe to close apps
10) swipe notifications to remove them
11) re-sizable widgets
12) flick through album widgets photos
13) flick through subscribed videos youtube widget
14) panorama camera
15) speech to text on any text input field
16) "Grab the phone, press the mic, say "Navigate to <insert destination here>" and hand them the phone..." lol thanks BinkXDA
17) Using Google Wallet in front of friends
18) HD Youtube videos in fullscreen
19) CRT Lockscreen animation
20) "Scrolling in the app launcher (seeing the next page coming out from below the current one)."
21) "Scanning your friends' NFC debit cards and part of their card number showing on your screen."
22) Nova launcher 3d effect
23) notification light (light flow)
24) "plugging a USB cord and Mouse & essentially turning the phone into a computer which it already is and then showing it on the TV Monitor"
25) "Pull out your standard battery and replace with an extended. iPhone users would probably be amazed. "

You wouldn't have to even use your phone to impress someone using an I phone... They would be down at just the sight of a superior phone.

Android ICS! Nuff said ;-)

Few ways...
1. Take the phone out. Insta-Jelousy!
2. Compare ANY phones screen size to the gnex and show it off.
3. If necessary, whip out face unlock.
4. Customization, try to show as much off as you can (ie:change button colors on the bottom bar)
5. optional-Screen pictures, shutter speed, photo effects...
As long as any person with an iphone uses the statements "i love my iphone" (general common backup iphoner defence statement" or "eh, does it do...". Then you won!
As for people with blackberries, apparantly a crappy keyboard that is hard to click, and bbm is enough for them to COMPLETELY be ignorant to everything around them. blackberry users could care less about screen size. Why? ignorancy!
I personally also use this - http://www.amazon.com/Green-Android..._1_2?s=wireless&ie=UTF8&qid=1333734122&sr=1-2 as well.

Loads of my friends have android phones but they have like htc sensation or htc sensation XE or htc sensation XL lol... You get the point.
Me and my buddy both have a Gnex so we like to beam **** to each other for funsies.
We be all like oh have you seen this video on youtube... Oh ok ill beam it to you.
Oh ive downloaded a sick app... Here ill beam it to you
They HTC crew no likey when we show off
Google chrome is also a nice app for ICS to flash around.
The new "task manager" is kinda nice to jump between apps and swipe to kill.
I like how you can swipe notifications away from the pull down shade too.
All these little things can really turn people green when you show them all in a row.
Re sizeable widgets on the default home launcher
Youtube widget to flick through your subscribed videos...
Album widget to flick through photos...
0 shutter lag when taking pictures...
Panorama mode...
You get the point.
Edit: oh yeah... 4.65 inch 720p screen is kinda sweet too... Just thought i'd throw that in too

Grab the phone, press the mic, say "Navigate to <insert destination here>" and hand them the phone...
Watch their eyes open as they realize how much their <insert make and model of any other phone here> sucks...

BinkXDA said:
Grab the phone, press the mic, say "Navigate to <insert destination here>" and hand them the phone...
Watch their eyes open as they realize how much their <insert make and model of any other phone here> sucks...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That won't impress an iPhone user. The beautiful huge screen and app switcher will, though.

doublea500 said:
I personally also use this - http://www.amazon.com/Green-Android..._1_2?s=wireless&ie=UTF8&qid=1333734122&sr=1-2 as well.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Im buying that!!!
That is sick!

Easy.
I just pull out my phone.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using XDA

jonnythan said:
That won't impress an iPhone user. The beautiful huge screen and app switcher will, though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Voice navigation is not built into the iPhone...

BinkXDA said:
Voice navigation is not built into the iPhone...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, but most have a navigation app that's pretty good and you're not going to impress any Siri user with voice command

Every time I just switch between portrait and landscape mode and show them how cool the soft keys are! No physical buttons on front of the phone = sweetness.

I just use my phone to pay for something using Google wallet. Instant envy everytime.

I dont
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium

I've found that it's the simple things that really wow people. Here are some of the things that I've gotten many comments about:
-The CRT lockscreen animation.
-YouTube videos in fullscreen HD (over WiFi) - this really gets people, they say "wow, it looks so HD" and then I say "it is HD - 720p".
-Paying for your food at McDonald's. Shocks your buddies as well as the people behind the till.
-Scrolling in the app launcher (seeing the next page coming out from below the current one).
-Scanning your friends' NFC debit cards and part of their card number showing on your screen.

Nothing. All my iphone friend don't feel jealous of my gn.

Anthonok said:
I dont
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What he said. Pretty sad to feel the need to show off your phone if you ask me.
*prepares to be flamed*

zolah said:
Im buying that!!!
That is sick!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah it is. I just bought one too. Its badass!
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk

Evangelion01 said:
I've found that it's the simple things that really wow people. Here are some of the things that I've gotten many comments about:
-The CRT lockscreen animation.
-YouTube videos in fullscreen HD (over WiFi) - this really gets people, they say "wow, it looks so HD" and then I say "it is HD - 720p".
-Paying for your food at McDonald's. Shocks your buddies as well as the people behind the till.
-Scrolling in the app launcher (seeing the next page coming out from below the current one).
-Scanning your friends' NFC debit cards and part of their card number showing on your screen.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Used NFC for the first time at McDonalds today and by the reaction, I am pretty sure I was the first one to use it at that one. The girl working the register told her friend working there that I just paid with my phone...she proceeded to say "the Iphone has an app for that too". I just shook my head and walked away. Poor misguided souls.

The only thing that's made an iPhone user jealous of any Android phone I've owned is being able to pull out my phone, scan a bar code and have the warranty and/or system information from any bit of Dell kit we have on site, from laptops to SAN's. Other than that we have completely different uses for our phones, and where my GNex is better for browsing the web or doing little random tasks, the iPhone is far better for gaming.

[Novice Guide] 50+ Tips and Tricks - Make phone faster - Better battery life & More!!

[Novice Guide] 50+ Tips and Tricks - Make phone faster - Better battery life & More!!
Source by Andrew Williams :-> HERE
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!
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.:good:
If Developer Options is not enable go to SETTINGS->About Phone and tap BUILD NUMBER for 7 times.
***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 £25. The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 does not come bundled with one, though.
Mini home cinema? Tick the surround box
If you want to output surround sound, make sure you tick the Surround box within the Settings menu. This isn't within the Audio bit, which you might expect, but is actually in the Accessory submenu.
Battery life​
Keep battery life riding high with auto management
The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 has a massive 3100mAh battery. Stamina is good at the worst of times, but there's also an auto power management mode to make the most of the phone's juice. It's called Power Saving and has its own section within the main Settings menu. It can throttle the CPU, change the background of the web browser to conserve power (it turns the white background blue), and turns off haptic feedback. These are compromises, but they do work.
Switch off features for extra battery life
The best way to conserve power in any phone is to switch off features - most importantly 3G mobile internet. You can do this manually in the Samsung Galaxy Note 2, directly from the pull-down notifications menu, and apps such as MySettings let you do the same thing.
Reduce screen timeout time
Another dead simple trick is to reduce the screen timeout time. This is in the Display submenu within settings, and lets you choose between 15 sec and 10 minutes of time the screen stays lit after a screen press. It's hardly a secret, but it is something not enough people consider.
Grab a spare battery, live forever
In a time of non-removable batteries - the HTC One X and iPhone 5 to name but two - we love that the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 has a removable battery. You can swap it out within about 15 seconds. Spare batteries are available from eBay for well under £10. We recommend shopping around for a reliable brand though as some third-party batteries are as dodgy as Del Boy's VCRs.
Turn off S Pen
The S Pen digitser sucks away at the Note 2's battery life a little, so it's a good idea to switch off the detection feature entirely if you're unlikely to use it for an extended period. You'll find it within the S Pen sub-menu in Settings.
S Pen​
Quick commands let you launch… anything
An S Pen feature that's easy to miss is Quick Commands. This lets you launch any app on the phone with a quick flick of the S Pen. Just press the stylus button and swipe up the screen, and the Quick commands box will pop-up. Draw your pre-determined character or symbol and key-presto, the right app will launch.
OCR means you can forget the virtual keyboard
The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 features excellent OCR, optical character recognition, and it's built into the Samsung keyboard. Whip out the S Pen and the keyboard area will turn into a little box for you to write in, whether you're writing an email, text or searching the web. It's remarkably clever at working out your scribbles too although we haven't tested it on a doctor yet.
S Pen keeper - it's a keeper
We love the S Pen, but the thing is terribly easy to lose. Samsung has devised a way to make sure you don't leave home without it. It's called S Pen keeper. Using the accelerometer and the digitiser sensor of the Note 2, the phone can tell when you're walking away without the stylus in its little hole in the bottom of the device. Walk far enough and it bleats out an alarm tone.
Keep the kids happy with S Note
The stylus of the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 makes it an obvious choice for creative types, business types and a host of other busy folk. But it'll keep the kids entertained too. S Note has a feature called Idea Sketch, which lets you write the name of an object, only for it to appear in your sketch. It's a perfect educational tool, and a fun one too.
Air View - hover pen fun
Something that makes the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 S Pen so much more than a standard stylus is that it can be sensed without even touching the screen. Samsung makes great use of this with Air View. It's used throughout Samsung's apps, and makes info pop-up when the S Pen hovers over items. For example, you can read the first lines of emails, see previews of pictures and take a closer look at calendar events. It's fantastic.
You can scribble - on anything
The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 S Pen also let you scribble notes on anything. Just hold the button on the stylus down, press the nib down on the screen and hold it there until you see a flash around the screen edges. This is the phone taking a screenshot of what's on-screen, which you can then write notes on. This is further integrated into apps like S Planner, which have dedicated handwriting modes.
Other apps use S Pen pressure sensitivity
Now that the Note series is fairly established, a bunch of excellent apps already make use of the pressure sensitive S Pen stylus. Top picks include Sketchbook Pro and Infinite Painter. It's not just S Note that shows the S Pen off these days.
The S Pen takes screengrabs
Here's a really neat S Pen tool to show off to your "non stylus" friends. Press down the button on the Galaxy Note 2 stylus, draw a shape on the screen and whatever's on-screen within the shape will be saved as a screengrab.
For full S Pen compatibility, check out Samsung Apps
Samsung says that if you want full S Pen certified apps, you'll need to go to the Samsung Apps store. This comes built into the Note 2, and there's even an S Pen apps section. At present, you're still best off using the Play Store as well, though, as the Samsung Apps store isn't exactly rammed full of Note 2 apps yet.
Left handers need a tweak
The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 comes setup for right-handers as standard, but there's also a mode for lefties in the Settings menu. This offsets the digitiser sensor, to compensate for the way those strange left-handed types hold pens. A creepy bunch, aren't they?
Interface​
One for your grandma? Easy home screen mode
Here's one feature we were a little surprised to see in a device that's such a geek's dreamphone. The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 has a mode called Easy home screen, which simplifies the layout of the phone's home screens in a way that even your technophobe grandma might be able to get along with.
Full screenshot are easy
Like the Samsung Galaxy S3, the Note 2 makes it pretty easy to take screenshot of whatever's on the phone's display. Just hold down the home button and the power button at the same time, wait or a white flash and a screenshot will be taken and whisked over to the Gallery app.
A cooler/easier way to take screenshot is to swipe the palm of your hand from right to left. For this to work you need to enable "Motion" in Settings and check "Palm swipe capture".
Use one-handed operation mode for on-the-go use
The big screen is one of the main selling points of the Samsung Galaxy Note 2, but it doesn't half make it hard to use one-handed. Knowing this, Samsung as included a one-handed mode, which organises things like the keypad, virtual keyboard and the unlock pattern screen so that you can operate them with one mitt. You'll find it in the Settings menu.
Don't forget side-loading of apps
The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 is an Android device, with all the benefits that brings. You don't have to rely on the official Google Play app store for one, with APK installation files available for all sorts of other apps online. Be careful, though, as Android viruses are a real issue.
Customise your phone with non-Samsung widgets
Samsung supplied a nice handful of widgets with which you can customise your home screens, but far too few people try a new look with third-party widgets from Google Play. And there are loads out them out there. Some of our old faves include those of the Beautiful Widgets package.
Gadgets and Gimmicks​
Motion control
Here's one we're not big fans of, but some of you may like it. The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 lets you control things like the photo gallery and the navigation of you home screens using the accelerometer - by tilting your phone, basically. You can turn it off, though, and it's set to "off" as standard. Phew.
Face unlock
A bit Minority Report, this one. The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 can scan your face to unlock your phone. It takes a picture of your mug, remembers the basic geometry of it and then scans your face whenever you try and unlock the phone. It works pretty well, but as a security measure is about as flimsy as the padlock on a filofax.
Smart Stay
The last user-facing camera gimmick is one that sounds kinda neat in principle. It scans for your eyes to check if you're reading, and if it spots them, Smart Stay stops the backlight from turning off. It's designed to make reading on the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 a good deal less frustrating. It's a feature you'll find in the Settings menu.
Jelly Bean easter egg
The Jelly Bean easter egg has made it in the Samsung Galaxy Note 2. Go to Settings menu > About device and tap on the Android version number entry. You'll be transported to a screen with a picture of a giant jelly bean on it. Hold your finger down on said jelly bean and the screen will fill up with dozens of the blighters, which you can flick around. Pure joy.
Arrange your music by moods
The music player of the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 features a fun little extra called Music square. This scans through your music library, arranging the tracks by mood - passionate, calm, exciting, joyful or a little in-between. Tap a block in the 5x5 square grid and you'll be greeted with a tune to match your mood.
Storage​
Expandable storage - where to get it cheap
If you're out to spend as little as possible (and the Note 2 doesn't come cheap as it is), your best bet is to buy the cheapest 16GB model, and supplement any other storage needs with a microSD card. Top retailers for bargain basement-price memory cards include 7DayShop and Ebuyer. A 32GB microSD card these days will set you back less than £15 if you shop hard enough.
Flush the cache for extra memory
If you find yourself running low on memory, you can easily delete the cache and temporary files of any apps you have installed. To do this, go to the Applications Manager section within settings and tap on an app to see how much memory it's leeching. There will be buttons to wipe the cache and data for the app here.
Comes with 50GB of dropbox storage
Cloud storage is the future - you may not like it, but you may as well embrace it. Samsung Galaxy Note 2 owners get to benefit from 50GB of free cloud storage from one of the best providers out there - Dropbox. There are Dropbox apps for mobiles, tablets and computers, and it honestly works like a dream. If this won't convert you, nothing will. You only normally get 2GB of free from Dropbox, making it a pretty sweet deal.
Don't sync, drag 'n' drop
If you chose to go Android rather than opting for an iPhone, there's a good chance that the open-ness of the platform had something to do with it. Samsung is keen on trying to make its users adopt the Kies desktop software, but it's actually completely unnecessary. Plug the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 into a computer with a microUSB cable and it'll show up as a media player drive, which you can drag and drop all kinds of files onto. Transfer speeds are impressively fast too.
Contacts​
Nab contacts from Facebook and Twitter
When we first got our Samsung Galaxy Note 2 in, it didn't have any of the usual social apps installed. Even if you're not a massive mobile Facebook-er, it's worth giving the app a download because it lets you harvest contacts from the network, making populating your contacts book a good deal easier.
Blocking Mode
Do you have a bug-a-boo stalking you? Is there a creep who keeps calling? The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 lets you keep them away with the blocking mode. It restricts notifications and calls from all but your approved contacts - and that can be at all times, or just during the hours you choose.
Camera and Video​
Use HDR mode in mixed lighting - or all the time
The 8-megapixel sensor of the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 is pretty good on its own, but the neat camera app ups its skills significantly. One of our favourite bonus bits is the HDR mode. This effectively combines multiple exposure in a single shot to bring out extra detail in shadows. Both the HDR and normal shots are saved, meaning there's very little downside - other than that taking shots is a little bit slower.
Check out slow and fast motion modes
Nestled within the menus of the video camera app are fast and slow motion modes, capturing either more or fewer frames per second than normal. It's not quite the 120fps mode you get in some dedicated cameras, but will come in handy if you're trying to video a sports event, for example.
Don't forget video effects
The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 doesn't have the fun face-distorting video effects you get with a vanilla Jelly Bean phone, but it does have a range of funky filters. There are colour pop modes, extracting all but certain shades from your videos, and the cartoon filter is perfect for some arty rotoscope-style vids.
Give the exposure longer time than the sound effect suggests
Each time you take a photo, a shutter sound plays in the Samsung Galaxy Note 2. However, we found that occasionally the phone needs a little bit longer to attain a solid focus. Hold still for an extra half-second for good measure.
Get vid previews with Air View
Using Air View, if you hold the pen over the transport bar of a movie clip in the media player, you'll be given a preview of what's going on in the film at that point. It makes finding the right part of a film or TV ep a doddle.
Connectivity​
Don't go over you allowance, with Data Usage
A staple Android feature is the Data Usage counter. This can be found within the Settings menu, and it monitors your data usage, showing it as a colourful graph. You can use it to cut off your mobile data connection once you reach a certain limit, to ensure you won't get charged by your carrier.
Wi-Fi sync with Kies
We've already endorsed drag 'n' drop file transfers over Kies sync'ing, but if you're a Kies fan, don't forget that you can also sync wirelessly. To set this feature up, scroll to the bottom of the More Settings sub-menu, where you'll find the Kies via Wi-Fi option.
S Beam
A feature introduced with the Samsung Galaxy S3, S Beam uses a mixture of NFC and Wi-Fi Direct to let you transfer files between compatible Samsung phones. You just need to tap the phones together to get them playing. S Beam needs to be switched on, though, from within the Wireless and Networks menu.
NFC lets you buy coffee
The NFC connectivity of the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 also let you buy small items such as cups of coffee, sandwiches and the like. Several big high street chains have taken the NFC plunge, including Starbucks and EAT, using apps to let you dump credit onto your phone.
Share screens with AllShare Cast
AllShare used to be just about sending a video file from, say, your phone to your Blu-ray player. But now it does a lot more. AllShare Cast lets you send your Galaxy Note 2's screen contents to another display, a bit like AirPlay Mirroring.
Forget Bluetooth, Wi-Fi Direct is better
Wi-Fi Direct is tied into the S Beam transfer feature, but you can also use it easily on its own. This is a version of Wi-Fi that doesn't need an internet connection, as it can hook-up directly with another compatible device. It some ways it's a successor to Bluetooth, letting you transfer files, and at a much greater speed than old Bluetooth could handle.
Watch your 4G
If you want to get a 4G-capable Note 2, be aware that the LTE edition is separate from the standard one. EE says it'll stock the LTE Galaxy Note 2 from October 15.
Enjoy!:good:
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.
<--Don' forget to hit THANKS if I helped

This thread is a great addition. I am a seasoned note 2 owner and found a few things I didn't know of. Thank you for this.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I317 using xda premium

If Developer Options is not enable go to SETTINGS->About Phone and tap BUILD NUMBER for 7 times.
OP Updated!

This is great! I learned and relearned a few things.
Under the Spen settings you can set it to turn off the Spen sensor when it is attached...Not sure if that's what it meant or not.
Loved taking off the transitions!

This is great for the gn2 community for reference thanks
Sent from my SGH-I317 using xda premium

I have sent a message to a moderator requesting this be stickied.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I317 using xda premium

Liquidmetal6 said:
This is great! I learned and relearned a few things.
Under the Spen settings you can set it to turn off the Spen sensor when it is attached...Not sure if that's what it meant or not.
Loved taking off the transitions!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah I axe the transitions everytime.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I317 using xda app-developers app

Intub8 said:
I have sent a message to a moderator requesting this be stickied.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I317 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks

I want to add, instead of pressing the power and home buttons for taking a screenshot, you can swipe your hand across the face of the device and it will take a screenshot. Definetely WOW when i show it to people.
Download some gopro demo videos to show off the screen. Recommend the Gopro hero 3 video

Thanks for these tips

[Novice Guide] 50+ Tips and Tricks - Make phone faster - Better battery life & More!!

[Novice Guide] 50+ Tips and Tricks - Make phone faster - Better battery life & More!!
Source by Andrew Williams :-> HERE
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!
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.:good:
***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 £25. The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 does not come bundled with one, though.
Mini home cinema? Tick the surround box
If you want to output surround sound, make sure you tick the Surround box within the Settings menu. This isn't within the Audio bit, which you might expect, but is actually in the Accessory submenu.
Battery life​
Keep battery life riding high with auto management
The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 has a massive 3100mAh battery. Stamina is good at the worst of times, but there's also an auto power management mode to make the most of the phone's juice. It's called Power Saving and has its own section within the main Settings menu. It can throttle the CPU, change the background of the web browser to conserve power (it turns the white background blue), and turns off haptic feedback. These are compromises, but they do work.
Switch off features for extra battery life
The best way to conserve power in any phone is to switch off features - most importantly 3G mobile internet. You can do this manually in the Samsung Galaxy Note 2, directly from the pull-down notifications menu, and apps such as MySettings let you do the same thing.
Reduce screen timeout time
Another dead simple trick is to reduce the screen timeout time. This is in the Display submenu within settings, and lets you choose between 15 sec and 10 minutes of time the screen stays lit after a screen press. It's hardly a secret, but it is something not enough people consider.
Grab a spare battery, live forever
In a time of non-removable batteries - the HTC One X and iPhone 5 to name but two - we love that the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 has a removable battery. You can swap it out within about 15 seconds. Spare batteries are available from eBay for well under £10. We recommend shopping around for a reliable brand though as some third-party batteries are as dodgy as Del Boy's VCRs.
Turn off S Pen
The S Pen digitser sucks away at the Note 2's battery life a little, so it's a good idea to switch off the detection feature entirely if you're unlikely to use it for an extended period. You'll find it within the S Pen sub-menu in Settings.
S Pen​
Quick commands let you launch… anything
An S Pen feature that's easy to miss is Quick Commands. This lets you launch any app on the phone with a quick flick of the S Pen. Just press the stylus button and swipe up the screen, and the Quick commands box will pop-up. Draw your pre-determined character or symbol and key-presto, the right app will launch.
OCR means you can forget the virtual keyboard
The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 features excellent OCR, optical character recognition, and it's built into the Samsung keyboard. Whip out the S Pen and the keyboard area will turn into a little box for you to write in, whether you're writing an email, text or searching the web. It's remarkably clever at working out your scribbles too although we haven't tested it on a doctor yet.
S Pen keeper - it's a keeper
We love the S Pen, but the thing is terribly easy to lose. Samsung has devised a way to make sure you don't leave home without it. It's called S Pen keeper. Using the accelerometer and the digitiser sensor of the Note 2, the phone can tell when you're walking away without the stylus in its little hole in the bottom of the device. Walk far enough and it bleats out an alarm tone.
Keep the kids happy with S Note
The stylus of the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 makes it an obvious choice for creative types, business types and a host of other busy folk. But it'll keep the kids entertained too. S Note has a feature called Idea Sketch, which lets you write the name of an object, only for it to appear in your sketch. It's a perfect educational tool, and a fun one too.
Air View - hover pen fun
Something that makes the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 S Pen so much more than a standard stylus is that it can be sensed without even touching the screen. Samsung makes great use of this with Air View. It's used throughout Samsung's apps, and makes info pop-up when the S Pen hovers over items. For example, you can read the first lines of emails, see previews of pictures and take a closer look at calendar events. It's fantastic.
You can scribble - on anything
The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 S Pen also let you scribble notes on anything. Just hold the button on the stylus down, press the nib down on the screen and hold it there until you see a flash around the screen edges. This is the phone taking a screenshot of what's on-screen, which you can then write notes on. This is further integrated into apps like S Planner, which have dedicated handwriting modes.
Other apps use S Pen pressure sensitivity
Now that the Note series is fairly established, a bunch of excellent apps already make use of the pressure sensitive S Pen stylus. Top picks include Sketchbook Pro and Infinite Painter. It's not just S Note that shows the S Pen off these days.
The S Pen takes screengrabs
Here's a really neat S Pen tool to show off to your "non stylus" friends. Press down the button on the Galaxy Note 2 stylus, draw a shape on the screen and whatever's on-screen within the shape will be saved as a screengrab.
For full S Pen compatibility, check out Samsung Apps
Samsung says that if you want full S Pen certified apps, you'll need to go to the Samsung Apps store. This comes built into the Note 2, and there's even an S Pen apps section. At present, you're still best off using the Play Store as well, though, as the Samsung Apps store isn't exactly rammed full of Note 2 apps yet.
Left handers need a tweak
The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 comes setup for right-handers as standard, but there's also a mode for lefties in the Settings menu. This offsets the digitiser sensor, to compensate for the way those strange left-handed types hold pens. A creepy bunch, aren't they?
Interface​
One for your grandma? Easy home screen mode
Here's one feature we were a little surprised to see in a device that's such a geek's dreamphone. The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 has a mode called Easy home screen, which simplifies the layout of the phone's home screens in a way that even your technophobe grandma might be able to get along with.
Full screenshots are easy
Like the Samsung Galaxy S3, the Galaxy Note II makes it pretty easy to take screenshots of whatever's on the phone's display. Just hold down the home button and the power button at the same time, wait or a white flash and a screenshot will be taken and whisked over to the Gallery app.
A cooler/easier way to take screenshot is to swipe the palm of your hand from right to left. For this to work you need to enable "Motion" in Settings and check "Palm swipe capture".
Use one-handed operation mode for on-the-go use
The big screen is one of the main selling points of the Samsung Galaxy Note 2, but it doesn't half make it hard to use one-handed. Knowing this, Samsung as included a one-handed mode, which organises things like the keypad, virtual keyboard and the unlock pattern screen so that you can operate them with one mitt. You'll find it in the Settings menu.
Don't forget side-loading of apps
The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 is an Android device, with all the benefits that brings. You don't have to rely on the official Google Play app store for one, with APK installation files available for all sorts of other apps online. Be careful, though, as Android viruses are a real issue.
Customise your phone with non-Samsung widgets
Samsung supplied a nice handful of widgets with which you can customise your home screens, but far too few people try a new look with third-party widgets from Google Play. And there are loads out them out there. Some of our old faves include those of the Beautiful Widgets package.
Gadgets and Gimmicks​
Motion control
Here's one we're not big fans of, but some of you may like it. The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 lets you control things like the photo gallery and the navigation of you home screens using the accelerometer - by tilting your phone, basically. You can turn it off, though, and it's set to "off" as standard. Phew.
Face unlock
A bit Minority Report, this one. The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 can scan your face to unlock your phone. It takes a picture of your mug, remembers the basic geometry of it and then scans your face whenever you try and unlock the phone. It works pretty well, but as a security measure is about as flimsy as the padlock on a filofax.
Smart Stay
The last user-facing camera gimmick is one that sounds kinda neat in principle. It scans for your eyes to check if you're reading, and if it spots them, Smart Stay stops the backlight from turning off. It's designed to make reading on the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 a good deal less frustrating. It's a feature you'll find in the Settings menu.
Jelly Bean easter egg
The Jelly Bean easter egg has made it in the Samsung Galaxy Note 2. Go to Settings menu > About device and tap on the Android version number entry. You'll be transported to a screen with a picture of a giant jelly bean on it. Hold your finger down on said jelly bean and the screen will fill up with dozens of the blighters, which you can flick around. Pure joy.
Arrange your music by moods
The music player of the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 features a fun little extra called Music square. This scans through your music library, arranging the tracks by mood - passionate, calm, exciting, joyful or a little in-between. Tap a block in the 5x5 square grid and you'll be greeted with a tune to match your mood.
Storage​
Expandable storage - where to get it cheap
If you're out to spend as little as possible (and the Note 2 doesn't come cheap as it is), your best bet is to buy the cheapest 16GB model, and supplement any other storage needs with a microSD card. Top retailers for bargain basement-price memory cards include 7DayShop and Ebuyer. A 32GB microSD card these days will set you back less than £15 if you shop hard enough.
Flush the cache for extra memory
If you find yourself running low on memory, you can easily delete the cache and temporary files of any apps you have installed. To do this, go to the Applications Manager section within settings and tap on an app to see how much memory it's leeching. There will be buttons to wipe the cache and data for the app here.
Comes with 50GB of dropbox storage
Cloud storage is the future - you may not like it, but you may as well embrace it. Samsung Galaxy Note 2 owners get to benefit from 50GB of free cloud storage from one of the best providers out there - Dropbox. There are Dropbox apps for mobiles, tablets and computers, and it honestly works like a dream. If this won't convert you, nothing will. You only normally get 2GB of free from Dropbox, making it a pretty sweet deal.
Don't sync, drag 'n' drop
If you chose to go Android rather than opting for an iPhone, there's a good chance that the open-ness of the platform had something to do with it. Samsung is keen on trying to make its users adopt the Kies desktop software, but it's actually completely unnecessary. Plug the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 into a computer with a microUSB cable and it'll show up as a media player drive, which you can drag and drop all kinds of files onto. Transfer speeds are impressively fast too.
Contacts​
Nab contacts from Facebook and Twitter
When we first got our Samsung Galaxy Note 2 in, it didn't have any of the usual social apps installed. Even if you're not a massive mobile Facebook-er, it's worth giving the app a download because it lets you harvest contacts from the network, making populating your contacts book a good deal easier.
Blocking Mode
Do you have a bug-a-boo stalking you? Is there a creep who keeps calling? The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 lets you keep them away with the blocking mode. It restricts notifications and calls from all but your approved contacts - and that can be at all times, or just during the hours you choose.
Camera and Video​
Use HDR mode in mixed lighting - or all the time
The 8-megapixel sensor of the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 is pretty good on its own, but the neat camera app ups its skills significantly. One of our favourite bonus bits is the HDR mode. This effectively combines multiple exposure in a single shot to bring out extra detail in shadows. Both the HDR and normal shots are saved, meaning there's very little downside - other than that taking shots is a little bit slower.
Check out slow and fast motion modes
Nestled within the menus of the video camera app are fast and slow motion modes, capturing either more or fewer frames per second than normal. It's not quite the 120fps mode you get in some dedicated cameras, but will come in handy if you're trying to video a sports event, for example.
Don't forget video effects
The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 doesn't have the fun face-distorting video effects you get with a vanilla Jelly Bean phone, but it does have a range of funky filters. There are colour pop modes, extracting all but certain shades from your videos, and the cartoon filter is perfect for some arty rotoscope-style vids.
Give the exposure longer time than the sound effect suggests
Each time you take a photo, a shutter sound plays in the Samsung Galaxy Note 2. However, we found that occasionally the phone needs a little bit longer to attain a solid focus. Hold still for an extra half-second for good measure.
Get vid previews with Air View
Using Air View, if you hold the pen over the transport bar of a movie clip in the media player, you'll be given a preview of what's going on in the film at that point. It makes finding the right part of a film or TV ep a doddle.
Connectivity​
Don't go over you allowance, with Data Usage
A staple Android feature is the Data Usage counter. This can be found within the Settings menu, and it monitors your data usage, showing it as a colourful graph. You can use it to cut off your mobile data connection once you reach a certain limit, to ensure you won't get charged by your carrier.
Wi-Fi sync with Kies
We've already endorsed drag 'n' drop file transfers over Kies sync'ing, but if you're a Kies fan, don't forget that you can also sync wirelessly. To set this feature up, scroll to the bottom of the More Settings sub-menu, where you'll find the Kies via Wi-Fi option.
S Beam
A feature introduced with the Samsung Galaxy S3, S Beam uses a mixture of NFC and Wi-Fi Direct to let you transfer files between compatible Samsung phones. You just need to tap the phones together to get them playing. S Beam needs to be switched on, though, from within the Wireless and Networks menu.
NFC lets you buy coffee
The NFC connectivity of the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 also let you buy small items such as cups of coffee, sandwiches and the like. Several big high street chains have taken the NFC plunge, including Starbucks and EAT, using apps to let you dump credit onto your phone.
Share screens with AllShare Cast
AllShare used to be just about sending a video file from, say, your phone to your Blu-ray player. But now it does a lot more. AllShare Cast lets you send your Galaxy Note 2's screen contents to another display, a bit like AirPlay Mirroring.
Forget Bluetooth, Wi-Fi Direct is better
Wi-Fi Direct is tied into the S Beam transfer feature, but you can also use it easily on its own. This is a version of Wi-Fi that doesn't need an internet connection, as it can hook-up directly with another compatible device. It some ways it's a successor to Bluetooth, letting you transfer files, and at a much greater speed than old Bluetooth could handle.
Watch your 4G
If you want to get a 4G-capable Note 2, be aware that the LTE edition is separate from the standard one. EE says it'll stock the LTE Galaxy Note 2 from October 15.
Enjoy!:good:
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.
<--Don't forget to hit THANKS if I helped

wow, thank you so much!

Excelent write up.
Sent from my SGH-T889 using xda premium

The reminders are always good. Thanks.

It's not really a write up just copy and paste an article. Done beat info, but I'm pretty sure there isn't a nob lte version so may want to proof read some of it.
Sent from my SGH-T889 using xda app-developers app

Good job
Sent from my SGH-T889 using xda app-developers app

Excellent post! :good:

Great tips
My note Will be here Tuesday so fed-ex tracking says.. Cant wait.. But i have a note 10.1 so not alot to get used to other then the size and having a phone that can keep up with my tablet..
ohh by the way GRRRRR I am left handed. We are much more creative and intelligent just so you know.. OHH And they say are Quite crazy ..
quote from above---
Left handers need a tweak
The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 comes setup for right-handers as standard, but there's also a mode for lefties in the Settings menu. This offsets the digitiser sensor, to compensate for the way those strange left-handed types hold pens. A creepy bunch, aren't they?
End quote from aboive ------
Thanks for the Post Awesome people on xda .. :crying:

I was under the assumption that all the Note 2 (Tmobile at least) had LTE capabilities. It's just dormant- after new 4.2 update, LTE is now active.

You_got_owned123 said:
I was under the assumption that all the Note 2 (Tmobile at least) had LTE capabilities. It's just dormant- after new 4.2 update, LTE is now active.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They do and it is now active in all notes. By the way it's 4.1.2, but I'm guessing that was a typo
Sent from my SGH-T889 using xda app-developers app

Wow! I had this phone since October of last year and surprised that I still dont know a lot of those written above.
Thanks!
Actually deserve sticky

Boink

Thanks
Sent from my SGH-T889 using xda app-developers app

thanks really helped me to know that information to my device

[First impression]Finally my S4 works like vanilla

Got my T-mobile S4 this afternoon, wow the t-mobile use plastic bag to ship a $600 phone, hmmm.
Once I powered up the phone, it is ****ty with "this and that" function, laggy like a hell, although I could not tell, but I do not expect battery will perform well in this case. So I decided using two hours to make it works like a vanilla rom (most people upgrade from Galaxy Nexus will have this feeling).
First thing first, root using the motochopper function, there is nothing easier than this.
Second thing, turn off any function start with "Air...", whether air view, or air gesture, can not care less about that.
Third thing, the bloat removal fun, install TiBU, remove those app
"Lookout", I do not need anti-virus on a phone now
"Samsung Text to Speech Engine" or "Speech to Text Engine", most of people will notice this because it crashed every once a while, besides the phone has "Google Text to Speech Engine", so who need Sammy one?
"Caller Name", a paid service, tons of 3rd party app can replace this function
"Mobile hot spot". same from above
Anything start with "Samsung" is up to you, I actually found one or two good ones, like "watchon", it actually work with my COX box and TV, although I have to align it perfectly to get the IR works.
"tripadvisor", no thanks sir!
Fourth thing, turn off any animation scales (they have three), I do not see the ****ty "transition"
Almost there, the weather widget from accuweather, any widget works better and customizable than the stock one.
Oh yeah, after remove about 30 bloatware, my phone start to fly, so lets see if the battery will perform well. I will have a report tomorrow.
Also Kudos to diztronic matte black case, really like it, best $9 case.

Thanks for the list. While I'll definitely keep as many functions with Samsung as I can because I like having the option to use the air/smart/S-stuff when it does come in handy, I will be removing things you mentioned like Caller name/Trip Adviser, and maybe S-translator among other things. Some have said that turning off transitional animations solves the lag, is that true? Or does it only help in one small aspect?

That's the same case I'm using for my s4

Force gpu rendering. That helps quite a bit. Could be placebo, since I can't quantify the change (besides quadrant advanced boost on 2d score), but I doubt it.. Things are visibly quicker, or rather not as laggy.
I'm debating switching back to my OC'd SGS3.

Thanks for the info. I get mine tomorrow and I want to make it as fast and simple as possible. I'm going to keep the stock ROM for a while, but I really couldn't care less about all the gesture stuff. It's much more important to me that the phone run with absolutely no lag, which is more than possible with this hardware.

Btw, after much debloating, I got a few FCs saying samsung text to speech stopped stopped working. If that happens to you, simply change the input method to Google text to speech.
Otherwise, I can confirm that my S4 has become much snappier after removing some of the bloatware. I suppose Lookout was the biggest offender, but who knows.

plexwang said:
Got my T-mobile S4 this afternoon, wow the t-mobile use plastic bag to ship a $600 phone, hmmm.
Once I powered up the phone, it is ****ty with "this and that" function, laggy like a hell, although I could not tell, but I do not expect battery will perform well in this case. So I decided using two hours to make it works like a vanilla rom (most people upgrade from Galaxy Nexus will have this feeling).
First thing first, root using the motochopper function, there is nothing easier than this.
Second thing, turn off any function start with "Air...", whether air view, or air gesture, can not care less about that.
Third thing, the bloat removal fun, install TiBU, remove those app
"Lookout", I do not need anti-virus on a phone now
"Samsung Text to Speech Engine" or "Speech to Text Engine", most of people will notice this because it crashed every once a while, besides the phone has "Google Text to Speech Engine", so who need Sammy one?
"Caller Name", a paid service, tons of 3rd party app can replace this function
"Mobile hot spot". same from above
Anything start with "Samsung" is up to you, I actually found one or two good ones, like "watchon", it actually work with my COX box and TV, although I have to align it perfectly to get the IR works.
"tripadvisor", no thanks sir!
Fourth thing, turn off any animation scales (they have three), I do not see the ****ty "transition"
Almost there, the weather widget from accuweather, any widget works better and customizable than the stock one.
Oh yeah, after remove about 30 bloatware, my phone start to fly, so lets see if the battery will perform well. I will have a report tomorrow.
Also Kudos to diztronic matte black case, really like it, best $9 case.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What do you use in place of caller name?

Blades said:
Force gpu rendering. That helps quite a bit. Could be placebo, since I can't quantify the change (besides quadrant advanced boost on 2d score), but I doubt it.. Things are visibly quicker, or rather not as laggy.
I'm debating switching back to my OC'd SGS3.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Force GPU rendering is not a placebo. There are not much differences in benchmarks such as quadrant because they already use GPU to render. But for apps such as Lucky Patcher or Evernote, the fluidity increase is significant because those apps originally use CPU to render. So far the CPU doesn't render the S4's 1080p screen very smoothly (especially when system is using the A7 cores), but the GPU does.

Of course, hardware rendering is faster than software. I'm just wondering why this is not the default behavior. Legacy app compatibility?

For some reason I cant find mobile hotspot.
Sent from my SGH-M919 using xda premium

pinoycrusader said:
For some reason I cant find mobile hotspot.
Sent from my SGH-M919 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's under :
System settings - connection - more networks - tethering & mobile hotspot
Sent from my SGH-M919 using xda premium

about 12 hour moderate to heavy use, so far so good
Sent from my SGH-M919 using Tapatalk 2

How did you remove hotspot?
If you get samsung text to speech just set the default back to google.
Settings > my device > accessability > text to speech option >"GOOGLE TEXT TO SPEECH"