… learn how to make better use of your mobile phone?
#4
My Samsung Galaxy Note 8 is two and a half years old and still going strong, but I’m conscious that I barely use any of its capabilities. It’s about time I put it to better use.
With the help of a selection of YouTube videos (I had no idea there would be so many to choose from) and an “instruction manual” I bought, oooo, about two and a half years ago but had never opened, I have now discovered all kinds of cool things my phone enables me to do. Here are a few of my revelations:
1. There is a heart rate, blood pressure and stress levels sensor/monitor on my phone (I thought it was just some fancy camera thing).
1a. I am now obsessed with monitoring my heart beat and stress levels. This could be deemed an unhealthy obsession. Apparently, I’m stressed. As this is an inevitable aspect of the Covid-19 world we are currently living through, I conclude that my phone is accurate thus anything it tells me must be believed. I foresee issues.
2. Within “Wallpaper and themes”, Galaxy has a catalogue of free (and very cheap, eg £1) themes. I now have a free scrunched-up paper theme which also makes some of my app logos into cool sketches rather than pristine logos.
2a. The colour scheme renders it almost impossible to see the PIN pad after I’ve turned my mobile off and need to key in the PIN rather than use my fingerprint. I do, fortunately, have a good understanding of the right area of the screen to touch to almost blindly key in my PIN. This could be a positive though … ha, but I’ve forgotten why I thought that!
3. There is a PenUp app which came with the phone and is for use with the pronger pen thing – what’s it called … S-pen stylus. I’ll go with “pen”. You’ll maybe be relieved to know that I did know I had a pen and have used it, but I didn’t know there was an app that enabled me to draw/trace over photos or make little drawings that I could easily transform into png files and use on websites.
3a. My screen time has increased dramatically and I have a slightly unhealthy obsession trying to draw myself with just a few lines. So far, my artistic skills seem to be foiling the image that I have of my cool-me line drawing. This could go part way to explaining my high stress levels (see point 1).
4. I can double click the on/off button to bring up my camera, ready for immediate use, even when the screen is locked.
4a. This has increased the likelihood of my capturing unfortunate moments (Chris [my partner], this mainly applies to you!!).
5. Using the pen, I can highlight text that I can’t otherwise select to copy (eg text on Instagram) and extract the text so I can actually copy it. The same kind of pen function also enables me to select text and translate it, seemingly slightly better than Google Translate, and significantly better than any guesswork on my part.
5a. This seemed very useful when I discovered I could do it. I have yet to put it into practice, but I am sure I will.
6. A load of general, simple, everyday things, like rearranging my screens, using subject folders and changing the screen that flicks to the fore on pressing the Home key to being the screen with all my most-used apps on it.
6a. By categorising apps, I now see that most non-home-page-apps are travel-related. This made me feel sad as I am not convinced I will be using them again in 2020 and some probably never again – I’m not being melodramatic, but a few airline apps from less-frequently-used airlines are unlikely to be used again, possibly because the airline won’t exist anymore. Who would have thought that rearranging apps could cause a bit of glumness?!
7. Split screens. I love being able to see two apps open at the same time. I knew the phone did that and I had done it before but I had forgotten how. It is now something I am using more frequently so it’s now easy to remember and do.
7a. Surely there are only pros to this feature. A happy learning experience, splitting the screen.
On a final note, having spent time (in a previous post on “going naked”/caseless) toying with not using a protective screen on my overpriced and, previously, underused phone with all its fabulous capabilities, I now use my lovely touchscreen without a protective film and just a basic case to cover the back and to which I have a wrist strap attached. Using the screen “naked” is so much better than through a protective film, I also haven’t scratched it AND I am looking after my mobile better than ever by carrying it around in a small bag. To add to the brilliance of the bag idea, it has a small pocket at the back, into which is constantly stored a glass/lens cloth, headphones and a £1 coin for use when I forget to have one to hand for supermarket trolleys.
If it weren’t for the reduced longevity of a battery charge, I would be happy with this phone for another two and a half years (probably). Thanks to learning some hacks, tips and even basic features of my mobile phone, I have genuinely never enjoyed having it for reasons beyond being a phone, map and provider of email and social media updates. Do it, go on, watch some YouTube videos, read some articles; find out what your mobile phone can do to keep you entertained and more efficient.