Spy On Your Kid's Phone

Have you ever wondered as your kids grow up, the more secretive they become? They like to stay in their rooms most of the time. Annoying as it may seem but you do not see them often even when they are at home. They lock away themselves pretending to be busy with their lessons. But I bet they are busy with something else, with their phones! And most often they are chatting or texting with their friends.

This activity is not bothering me at all, because I know every number that my teen daughter calls, numbers that called her, numbers that she sent and received texts from. Even when she erases the call logs from her phone, still I can retrieve it. This is even without touching her phone, physically. Here's how.

1. Sign up to the network's account online.

The good thing about network providers is it is easy to set up an account with them. And they keep sensitive information about your call habits and everything is accessible online. Even sim cards on pay as you go tariff can be registered on the network's website. And if you do this, you can have an access on all communication traffic that occurred. This means even your kid erases the logs on her phone, you can trace the communication trail like calls, text messages and even data usage. Another benefit of this is you can see how much she has spent. On accounts with contract, you can see the call activities without waiting for the paper bill on the post by going to the unbilled usage tab.

2. Sign up to find my mobile account.

Check if your phone manufacturer has an extra service like finding your lost mobile. You can use google to search for this. I believe iCloud of Apple provides the same service. And if you have given your kid a samsung mobile, then you're in luck as samsung has this extra service.

What it does is it can trace back all calls that happened in the phone. Even if your kid changes sim cards. All forms of communication will be reflected on the account. And this can be accessed online whenever you need to see who she is calling or sending messages to.

If you have not set up a samsung account yet, you need to do that in her phone. Just get an excuse to set this up, 'say you need to install an anti theft software'. The samsung account is actually an anti theft service that will let you lock, erase the contents of your phone in case it gets lost. Or send a message to your phone even if the thief has taken out your sim or doesn't put any sim in it.

Here's how to set up.

1. Go to Accounts

• Settings>General>under Accounts and Backup choose Accounts)

2.  Tap add account(2) and choose Samsung account(3) from the list. Then set up an account by providing a gmail email and a password of your choice. Make sure your password consists of a number, alphabet and a special character.

• You may need to update samsung services if this is the first time you've accessed this feature

3. Activate remote control

Settings>General>Security>Remote Controls (under find my mobile)> and enter your Samsung Account password

4. You can confirm that it is activated by the green slider button(3) to the right.

Access samsung account online.

On your laptop goto

• http://findmymobile.samsung.com/login.do

You can check the call logs by clicking this button(4). And depending if the mobile is online and how fast the data connection is, you can see your kid's communication activity here.

On your mobile Settings>General>Security>go to find my mobile webpage (under find my mobile) then sign in. The same with the PC version, you can see the call logs as long as your kid's phone is online.

Do More With Samsung Note 3: Multi Window Tool

 The real meaning of multitasking is when you can do more than one task at the same time. But how can you say you are multi tasking when you have only one window opened at one time, specially when you are using a smart phone? It is more proper to say you are sequentially tasking, but if you insist you are, my next question is do your phone supports multi window? If not, then your device maybe capable of multi- task but you as the user is limited to tasking in sequence. With the Note 3, you are properly multi-tasking, and here how you can do most of it.

How to use it ?

The multi window mode on the Note 3 is not turned on on default. Users can access this on by swiping the top screen down(1) then to the left(2), and tapping the icon(3) until it turns green. This will bring on the drawer tab(3) at the middle of the left screen, it's default position. This drawer tab can be moved up(4) and down(5) or to the right side of the screen by keeping your fingers on it until the opposite side of the screen glows faint blue (6). This is a signal that you can place it to other position. The drawer tab does time out or disappear for sometime, and to bring this visible, touch the back button ( glow button at the right of the home button) for at least 2 seconds. Touch it again to hide the tab.

What to use it for ?

It might not be useful to everyone, but for the multitasker, it is. If you do two things at the same time online, like blogging, you can do more with two windows opened, one for the blog and one for resources. Or  searching for a destination online, you can open one window for the browser and another for the map application. You can make task combination to do things easier.

Applications that are compatible for this is already pre configured when you open up the drawer. Productivity applications like browser, note taking, music and video players are included. To open two applications at the same time, you can either tap or drag them out (7)from the tray one at a time. The active window is bordered with thin blue line. To make the other window active, just tap on it.

What you can do with the opened applications?

Between the two applications is a blue button(8) that when tapped, it opens different menus for multi tasking. The most usefuI found  is the drag and drop button(9) that can copy an item and paste it on to the other window. It is useful in emails where you want  to attach a text or a photo file from another website. It does it automatically.  Just stick you fingers for a few seconds and it allows you to drag and drop(10) from the source to the email content.

Create a shortcut button for a frequently used pair

If you usually listen to music whilst reading your email, you can make a paired application button so it will launch the music player and email application at the same time. You can do this whilst the two applications are opened by tapping the triangular icon(11) at the bottom, then create(12), name the pair(13), and it will be added as an icon(14) at the apps drawer. You can access the pair by  tapping on the icon.

Do More With Samsung S5: Tips and Hidden Tricks

Android phones are not only popular because of more built in functions, but because they can be easily customized the way owners want. For the adventurous who like their phones to be unique from everyone else, this type of phone is their first choice. The Samsung S5, being an Android phone is no exception. And here are some tricks that owners might not yet heard about.

Change the User Interface

If you are tired of seeing the same interface, you can easily change it without rooting or jail breaking. The most common problem of rooting a phone is the tendency of making it useless as a brick! There are many beautiful user interfaces available to download, from the plain looking to 3D interfaces. To try one, just go to google play and search for launchers. Once downloaded, you can change the touchwiz interface with the downloaded launcher by going to Settings, General, Default Applications, Home and choose the new application. If you've opted for 3D launchers, Bear in mind that they use more battery, memory and computing power.

Show Hidden Functions

The Kitkat version of Android has disabled the Developer's Option menu. This is suppose to sit above the About Device  when you tap Settings and General. As the name suggests, this is mainly for developers but regular users can use it to limit the background processes to make the phone more responsive.  To enable this, tap Settings, General, About Device, then scroll down to Build Number(1) and tap it continuously until it says Developer Option is enabled. When you go back to the General menu,  the Developer Option(3) will appear.

If you are familiar about Easter Eggs on softwares and applications (some "virtual things" that pops up with a special code), this phone is no exemption. To view this, whilst at About Device, tap the Android Version (2) repeatedly at least 3 times a second until something(4,5) appears in the screen. 

No Need to Take Off  Gloves To Use It 

The problem in winter conditions is you need to take off your gloves to use the touch screen phone. Putting on and off on your gloves could be a hindrance of using the phone. With the Samsung S5, you can increase the sensitivity of the screen to respond to a glove touch. You can also use anything pointed like a pencil to use as a stylus. Go to Settings, Device then Display to change the sensitivity(6).

Disable Built-In Apps

Another way of making the phone run faster is to disable the built in apps that you do not use. Even if you do not use them, they are running in the background. This is the case with the My Magazine application that is by default turned on. Press the key left to the home button and open the home screen settings (7) to get to the on and off checkbox (8) of the My Magazine.

If you want to turn off other built in apps, head to Settings, Application Manager, All, then choose an application and touch the "turn off" button.

Samsung's Air View and Air Gesture Feature

It seems like the touchscreen phones manufacturers, Samsung in particular, are getting bored by the touch interface. They have added the "air" input to command the device. Is this a worth addition or is it just a burden to the processing power, battery life and the physical hardware of the device? Let's find out, at least from a regular user's point of view!

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Air Gesture.

What it can do?

This feature let's user perform a task without touching the screen, like flipping a page from left to right or the reverse, scrolling a page up or down by "waving" your palm over the "air", movement,  sensors.

How to activate?

To turn the feature on, go to settings, controls, motion control, air gesture(1). Do not worry that you do not see the air gesture icon(2) at the top as this does not show until a suitable situation where air gesture is compatible, like in an opened email(2) and whilst reviewing pictures. It can do four things.

• Quick glance function lets you see important information when you activate the sensor(encircled) whilst the device is lying on a flat surface. It shows the  call summary, messages received, battery life and other notifications. 

• Air jump lets you scroll opened email message. It doesn't work when you are with the list of email. You need to touch and open one to activate it.
• Air browse. The name has nothing to do with internet browsing. It flips forward or backward opened photos from a folder. Whilst it says it also support pages and music tracks, I could not make it work when  I am playing music and reading Metro digital magazine. I hope I am just doing it wrong.
• Air call accept. This feature could be helpful when you are driving. There's an option to put turn the device speaker phone function when it is activated by air gesture. If you do not have a bluetooth handsfree installed, then this is a good help.

Air gesture seems to be an impressive feature but it is not practical because of it's compatibility to only a handful of programs. And I think the sensors need polishing as well as sometimes your gesture is not recognized when you move it too slowly or too swiftly, or too far off from the screen. I noticed that to get the best result for this feature is to keep the palm distance about half an inch away from the screen and about 1/2 to 1 second speed.

Air View

What it can do?

If Harry Potter has a magic wand to control object's movement and turn them into something, you can do that do, with a stylet or with your finger tips and one of the latest Samsung smartphones. You can  see the content of a text message, see thumbnails of photos in a folder, see the elapsed scene whilst watching a video, or magnify a part of the screen whilst reading.

How to activate?

Go to settings, controls, motion control, airview. You can choose which one to use, either your finger or the supplied stylet depending on your preference, but I do recommend to choose auto switch(3). I use primarily my finger to do this trick although the pen option has more functionality with it.

• For the finger option, the information preview shows  the content of a text message(4) whilst in the list view, or a glimpse of a message whilst using the email application. This doesn't work when you use your browser to view your email. This is a useful feature when you usually receive bulk emails or text messages and need to get a quick look.
• The progress preview lets you go to a specific part of a scene whilst watching a movie by showing a preview of a scene whilst hovering your finger over the progress bar. It can make your video editing faster.
• The webpage magnifier(5) is a real treat for me, with my eyes failing to focus, I do not need to use an eyeglass or squint to read a page. These feature is only active when you are using your browser. The magnifier does not work in documents, text messages or emails read using the email application.
• It can also preview the assigned speed dial numbers whilst you are at the phone's keypad. Though I have not tested this feature yet.

The previews and magnifier are quite useful to me. Specially now that I need to wear eyeglasses when reading small texts. But still, the only let down of these features is the compatibility issues with most of the existing programs. I would like to magnify everything in my screen, but at the moment it is only available with the browser function. Even the built in digital magazine is not supported. With this limitations, the air features are not really a big selling point or either a thrill factor for me to like Samsung products more!

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Why You Need To Factory Reset Second Hand Samsung Smartphones

I was eating my late afternoon snack at a supermarket when a man in his mid twenties approached me with an S4. He asked me if I am a samsung fan and started showing off his phone. He showed me his google play paid for downloaded applications. Then he told me he is selling it for a low price and he is ready to download other paid application free of charge if I would buy it at that moment. I said I do not have money and walked away.

I could not determine if this man is the legitimate owner of the device. The fact that he can log in into google account connected with it is not the definitive proof of ownership. His offer of a paid application might look generous but if you look closely, this might be dodgy. And here are the reasons why.

Google play account is different from samsung account, they are separate identities. Google account is only applicable with play, gmail, you tube, maps and other third party apps located at play marketplace.  Whilst the samsung account is more intimate, in terms of samsung devices, and more discreet. This is because most samsung mobile owners are more familiar with their google accounts rarther than their account on samsung. And this is where the problem arises.

Possible Problems

If you have bought a second hand samsung device and it is not set into  factory setting, the previous owner can lock your device at will. Or they could play with your phone like wiping out the whole content of your SIM card, memory card and the phones memory. They can even track your location, your calls, messages and can even send you messages or even ring you in the middle of the night. And if the seller is a real annoyance, he might black mail you and ask money in exchange to leave you some peace.

How can they do that? This is by using the original samsung account and a piece of application on the device.

Samsung Account Find My Mobile

When you turn on your samsung phone for the first time, you are required to create, for new users, or sign in to your existing samsung account. The email you can use here is not necessarily from google or gmail. After signing in, your samsung account will be able to have an access to exclusive samsung mobile enhancements and findmymobile is one of them.

You can use your mobile phone or computer to access the site at 

http://findmymobile.samsung.com/dm/main.do

From the site, rogue traders can do the following:

Lock your device. Once they lock (1) your device, you will not be able to unlock it unless you come into terms with the one who locked it remotely. You will need the unlock PIN(3) they set., which is different to the lock screen you have set. They might send you a threatening message (2). They can also have access to your call logs(4) and annoy you more by wiping data (5) on your phone's memory, sim card or memory card. They can also track the device's where abouts, once you are connected into the internet.

The most alarming is when they call and message (6) you with threats. You do not know where they are coming from and once they are able to lock your mobile, they can send you messages anytime they like and the only solution to this at this point is to power off the phone.

See video on how easy to do this whilst logged on to find my mobile.

To avoid this potential problem completely, make sure that the second hand unit is reset to factory default. You will know that it is on factory reset when you turn it on and you will be shown to log in or create a samsung account. Otherwise just click the settings, general , under accounts and back up, click back up and reset. 

Samsung S3's New Tricks

Just woke up with the OTA (over the air) update of my S3 GT-I9300 model yesterday. The baseband version of the update is I9300XXELL4 and has a build number JZ054K.I9300XXELL4. If you have the same model as mine, you can check if you have the latest firmware by going to settings and tapping about device. If you have not got it, connect to wifi and whilst still at the about device page, tap software update.  Depending on the server's traffic, the download should be straightaway or you might need to try again . I recommend to leave it on auto update and connected to wifi and mains plug over night.

Multi Window 

One of the impressive new changes is the addition of the multi window function. This is a native feature of the Samsung Galaxy Note II that displays two separate applications in it's screen when multitasking. Not all applications are supported though. The applications that can be run on the multitasking window is shown at the left side folder when multi tasking is turned on. The list includes, google maps, chat, talk, email, gallery, chat, internet browsers, video player, and social networks. This means it is now easier to attach a photo by opening both the gallery and email applications together in one window and without going back and forth. 

Paper Artist

This another interesting native application for note 2 is now included with the update on the S3. You can transform any photo into work of art easily in a matter of seconds. There are cool effects to choose like pencil art, for real effect and many more. Put a frame to brighten up a dull photo and share it straight away with email, to social networks,  bluetooth  and even to skype contacts. The application can access the camera function to take photos with these cool effects at real time, making you feel like a pro at no time. There's a button you can tap to save your work, and you can retrieve your saved project at the gallery's paper artist folder.

New Gallery

Tired of viewing your photo in a boring stamp grid  like arrangements? The new gallery has 3 ways of viewing it, either by grid, by two's, where you can make the files move forward or backwards like marching side by side, or like in a carousel where you can turn them around in a sweep of a finger. The later is mesmerizing fun especially when your phone is streamed in a bigger screen monitor. It is a must try feature. To help you easily organise your photos or help you find the picture you want to see, the sort by date or time is quite useful.

Samsung Keyboard Continuous Input

This reminds me of the swiftflow beta application I joined to test 3 weeks ago. The concept of this is, instead of typing the word by tapping each letter key, just glide your fingers across the letters that make up the word you want to write without lifting your fingers up from the screen. This makes you type faster and create messages easier than the traditional tapping.

Internet Not Working After ICS update

A day after ICS update, my Samsung S2's native internet browser does not launch up. After pressing the internet button, the phone's screen splashes blank white screen, then followed by blank black screen. The left and right buttons do not do anything either. This means I won't be able to go to the native internet settings to clear the cache. Afterwards, it flashes a quick message I could not catch up, too quick to make a screen shot!

Alternative Browser

Luckily, everything that connects and uses the internet still worked, it was just the native internet browser that had a problem loading. I downloaded opera browser from the play market and the new browser works. I am convinced that something happened with the native application. At that point, with the alternative browser working, I was tempted to stop, but I need to get a solution for the native internet not working.

TWLauncher

I did the following one at a time, restarted the phone, soft reset it (press volume up and power button for at least 5 seconds until it restarts), took off the battery and started the device, nothing happened. The native internet still gives a blank black screen, and an additional error message saying "twlauncher not responding".

I closed it and went to twlauncher by pressing settings, applications, all, and scrolled down to twlauncher. Pressed force stop and clear data, then restarted the device.

Tried to launch the native internet again but still not working. The good news is the error message on twlauncher did not showed up. The bad news is, all of the personalised screen I did on the home screen were gone. They were replaced by the factory home screen settings. No worries as it's easy to personalise!

Clear Internet Data Through Applications

This has given me an idea to find the internet application and do the same, clear and delete all of it's data, hoping to revert it back to working condition.  Once I found it, I forced quit, cleared data and cache.

Restarted the device and the native internet worked like nothing happened!

I really do not know why this happened after an update. It might be because some files has been erased or overwritten or misplaced to different locations that programs using these files become clueless  where these files are and that's causing the confusion and coming up to an error message!