Smart Phone Tips Archives - Page 47 of 65

Samsung is going to ‘brick’ all remaining Galaxy Note 7 phones on December 19

Posted on December 14, 2016

As I mentioned in this post, Samsung has stopped making their ill-fated Galaxy Note 7 smart phones and issued a recall for all of the units that have already been sold.

According to the company, about 93% of all the Galaxy Note 7 devices that were sold have already been returned under the recall, and now Samsung is planning to use a special form of “tough-love” to spur the return of the remaining phones.

To that end, Samsung will be releasing an update on December 19 that will prevent the Galaxy Note 7’s battery from being recharged and cut off all access to cellular and Internet connections. In short, the phones will be effectively “bricked” on that date. [Read more…]

‘Flash On Call’ alerts you with a bright flash when you receive a voice call

Posted on October 28, 2016

Do you often miss incoming calls because your Android phone is on mute and you don’t realize that someone is trying to call you?

Sure, the screen will come on and let you know there’s a call coming in, but unless you’re relatively close to the phone (and happen to be looking at it), it’s very easy to miss the visual alert – and hence you miss the call.

Well, there’s a simple way to ensure that you never miss the visual alert for another incoming call. All you have to do is install a handy free app called Flash On Call. [Read more…]

How to control your mobile data usage when watching Netflix on your mobile device

Posted on May 13, 2016

The folks at Netflix recently changed the way they stream content to mobile devices over cellular data networks.

After spending considerable time testing various data rates, Netflix determined that a streaming rate of 600 Kbps per second provides the user with good video quality while consuming a smaller portion of your cellular plan’s monthly data allotment.

But what if Netflix’s interpretation of “good video quality” differs from yours?

Luckily, you can easily increase the video quality of the shows and movies you watch on your mobile device by increasing the streaming rate from Netflix’s new default rate of 600 Kbps per second. [Read more…]

Caution: Having your iPhone 6 repaired by an independent repair shop could permanently brick it

Posted on February 8, 2016

iphone-6-plus Do you own an iPhone 6? If so, I have a warning for you: Think twice before you decide to have it repaired by an independent repair shop.

If your iPhone 6 is running iOS 9, having anyone besides Apple make a repair involving the Home button assembly will likely cause the phone to lock up and display an “Error 53”. And let me tell you, Error 53 is bad.

In short, Error 53 will “brick” your phone, and your only recourse will be to buy a new one. And no, you won’t be able to retrieve your photos or other important files from the phone’s flash memory. [Read more…]