Ask Android

2180 readers
4 users here now

A place to ask your questions and seek help related to your Android device and the Android ecosystem.

Whether you're looking for app recommendations, phone buying advice, or want to explore rooting and tutorials, this is the place for you!

Rules
  1. Be descriptive: Help us help you by providing as many details as you can.
  2. Be patient: You're getting free help from Internet strangers, so you may have to wait for an answer.
  3. Be helpful: If someone asks you for more information, tell us what you can. If someone asks you for a screenshot, please provide one!
  4. Be nice: Treat others with respect, even if you don't agree with their advice. Accordingly, you should expect others to be nice to you as well. Report intentionally rude answers.
  5. No piracy: Sharing or discussing pirated content is strictly prohibited. Do not ask others for a paid app or about how to acquire one.
  6. No affiliate/marketing links: Posting affiliate links is not allowed.
  7. No URL shorteners: These can hide the true location of the page and lead people to malicious places.
  8. No lockscreen bypasses: Please do not comment, link, or assist with bypassing lock screens or factory reset protection.
  9. No cross-posting: Please take the time to make a proper post instead of cross-posting.
Other Communities

founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
51
 
 

I'm looking for an app that can convert flac to mp3 but also other formats to mp3. But a modern app please. Nothing that looks like a throwback to gingerbread. Any suggestions?

52
 
 

I searched around the web and the official answer seems to be no as Samsung doesn't provide a public API for connection.

I can manually sync my sleep times from the app. But, I would prefer the automated approach and flexibility of the Sleep app.

53
 
 

I feel like I'm encountering weird little tics and problems with my android devices, and those of family and friends. Just simple things where settings don't seem to be consistently applied, or the os switches something back repeatedly. For example, my apps are set to auto update, to use data as well as WiFi, etc, but every month or so I go into Play and see that some random app hasn't been updated in weeks.

Or my friend only gets Signal notifications when they open the app, despite giving full background data use, turning off adaptive battery, etc. My mother uses an alarm app that needs to display over the screen for a feature, but despite me setting that permission repeatedly Android keeps turning it off.

Is this just anecdotal bad luck? Or is all the work to preserve battery life, control background usage, etc led to an OS where the user can't control things reliably? It starting to feel a lot like MS Windows!

54
 
 

Hey folks,

I'm currently in the market for a new Android phone and I want to make sure I can seamlessly transfer all of my data from my old phone to the new one. I'm open to the idea of cloning the old phone to the new one if that's the most reliable way to ensure nothing gets left behind.

My current phone is Realme 5 running Android 13, and I'm still researching options for my new phone.

I'm particularly concerned about not missing any data - obscure files, contacts, photos, apps, messages, you name it. I've heard about methods like using Google's backup, third-party apps, or even manual transfer, but I'm leaning towards cloning for peace of mind.

Do any of you have experience with cloning Android phones? What tools or methods would you recommend for ensuring a smooth and complete transfer of all data? Any advice or insights would be greatly appreciated!

55
 
 

Hey everyone,

I just got my transit pass but unfortunately there is no option to add it on the phone so, I was wondering if there is any way I can clone my pass and store it on my phone and use my phone instead. Thanks!

Ps. My phone is rooted

56
 
 

I was trying to upvote a YouTube short and encountered this error.

resource has been exhausted (e.g. check quota)

Ironically, I'm using YouTube premium and I don't think i browsed too many videos.

Reminds me of this MRwhosetheboss video about subscription and enshitification. Not to mention the crackdown on 3rd party apps and adblockers.

https://youtu.be/wVYG1mu8Lg8?si=-kyJiOClz07FzpBM

Edit: It appears my friends are getting similar errors. I can comment so I think its some widespread YouTube issue.

57
 
 

(I've got a pixel watch 2 and moto edge 40 neo, and some jlab earbuds.)

I usually listen to music on my phone, but recently linked my earbuds to my watch, and the same music played on Spotify sounds massively better on the same earbuds when played via the watch.

I assumed it was because I had installed the jlab app, and it was doing a bad job of meddling with the eq. But after uninstalling it there wasn't a noticeable difference. Is there some other setting I can adjust? Any thoughts on whether it's something my moto is doing wrong or something my pixel watch is doing right?

Its a substantial difference (although I'm not enough of an audiophile to describe it) enough that I'm now mostly playing music via my watch. But it's hitting the battery hard, so I'd rather go back to using my phone!

58
25
submitted 7 months ago* (last edited 7 months ago) by [email protected] to c/[email protected]
 
 

Hey all!

I have been playing around with Universal Android Debloater a bit after getting my new S24+ but was wondering to see if there is a noticeable change when getting rid of things like Bixby, AR apps, and mobile carrier bloat (I hate you, Verizon).

Has anyone noticed an increase to battery life or snappiness or is it simply placebo? I never use the apps such as Samsung Smart Call because I use Google's alternative so having it there would cause SOME sort of power/battery usage, no? I am only touching the "recommended" apps but scared to remove too many things to not completely wreak my install. I don't wanna select something to have it crash and make things completely unusable.

https://github.com/Universal-Debloater-Alliance/universal-android-debloater-next-generation

59
 
 

I need to get a second phone for work. I’m set on a galaxy as I’m really interested in dex mode.

How is getting an s22 used these days? Are there any common problems I should be on the lookout for? Also, the battery health in some screenshots shows 32%, etc. does that mean the battery needs to be replaced right away? This will be my first Android.

60
 
 

Thx in advice.

Edit: Nevermind done it with "fastboot flashing unlock" command trough fastboot with "OEM Unlock" option enabled in dev settings.

61
 
 

cross-posted from: https://iusearchlinux.fyi/post/5157907

Hi Lemmy,

I'm in the market for a new phone as my galaxy S10+ that I've had for ~5 years has a dying screen. I haven't really been paying attention to the market in the same number of years, so I"m not sure what to go for and I would really appreciate your recommendations!

Some info:

  • My budget is definitely no more than 700 EUR (preferably under 500, but I'm willing to make concessions)
  • I'm expecting to buy refurbished to save money, so the device need not be from this generation
  • I prioritize:
    • a high quality panel with high refresh rate, could be nice with LTPO
    • Hardware that is at least as capable as the S10+
    • All-day battery life
    • Preferably flat screen

I don't really care about the camera, I'm sure most these days are serviceable for the few pictures I take.

I'm very interested in the Nothing phone 2, but it's just at the edge of my price range so I'm trying to see if I can find something that scratches the same itch, both in specs and form factor (but I'm sure that's too much to ask). Any advice would be appreciated!

62
63
 
 

I've talked trash about Bluetooth for years (and rightfully so, often) but I finally did some detailed testing and determined that it appears to be my Android phone causing this particular effect. Android 10, Sonim XP8.

The best track I found to replicate the effect was Griz - Wicked due to the massive bass hits that come in around 1:00 really exaggerating it.

When the bass hits on Android, some sort of compressor kicks in and vocals and everything else get crushed FLAT, resulting in an awful effect where the volume fluctuates, the bass is weak, everything is garbage. This has resulted in crap audio in my vehicles for a couple years now unless I'm listening to the FM radio.

I paired several BT devices that I had blamed for the effect to my PC, and they sound fine playing this track. Both PC and Android are using the same codec, "High Fidelity" A2DP with SBC.

It doesn't matter which player I use on the phone, Ultrasonic and BubbleUPNP playing local copies or Youtube Music Vanced streaming, the compression is present on all of them.

Anyone know what's going on here or want to try to replicate it?

64
 
 

Basically topic. I've tried using some generic "catch all" widgets for music and they can see all other sources of audio and the associated album art, except for Spotify.

The app has its option to let other apps monitor it set, all permissions are granted to both the widget and Spotify. I've cleared cache, data, reinstalled, restarted, and nothing is working. It feels like some kind of specific permission I'm missing somewhere, because the music player apps can still read Spotifys track info and time and control it, etc. The official Spotify app works fine, but I don't only use Spotify...

I've tried using Kustom Widget (KWGT), Widget Lab, and Widgeet. Any ideas? Anything I can try?

65
 
 

I'm basically looking for an app that takes my contacts information (all my friend's phone numbers, etc) and puts it into a text file. I like to have my contacts on a piece of paper just in case I need numbers and my phone isn't available. Any suggestions?

66
 
 

I’ve been looking around, and with every vnc cliend I can find, when I press for example super+return, the vnc client gets backgrounded and the android “desktop” is shown.

Does anyone know of a client that actually captures the keyboard?

67
 
 

i am using nova launcher because i can change icons of apps and i was using lynx launcher before that just for the sake of using a custom launcher

68
 
 

Hi guys.

I have a Samsung s24U, and JBL Tune Beam. For whatever reason, it is not picked up by the phone audio players. Activating the Google assistant works fine. But if I want to play/pause audio it doesn't work. I tried this with podcast republic (a poscatcher), youtube and the audio player. I'm not even sure how to track this.

Any of you have an idea?

69
 
 

I uninstalled an app and checked the box to save app data. Now I need the app again and it will not download from play store. Upon clicking "install" it throws an error "something went wrong on our end. please try again." and just a "got it" button.. tried to clear play services and play store cache and storage, rebooting the device, and combinations in between those steps... still cannot download.

Anyone have experienced this before? any additional troubleshooting steps or ways to resolve? wondering if the data from that checkbox when uninstalling is preventing the reinstall but am lost otherwise as to what could be causing the problem.

70
 
 

I've been using gboard for a very long time and I use it in four total languages. English is my second language, and my second keyboard setting, one which I use very rarely because I usually type in English using my native Polish setting (with multilanguage input enabled).

Since last week gboard has started automatically switching to English input between apps. This happens for all apps and seemingly on random. I would use the PL+EN keyboard in Sync, then switch to Signal and it would be English (making me unable to type in Polish). I then change it manually to PL+EN, go to Messenger and it would be English again.

Any thoughts? This is especially weird because I have yet another two language settings which it never goes to, so it's not like it cycles through, but rather switches precisely to English.

And before anyone says there are alternative keyboards: yes, there are, but none of them allows swipe typing, mixed multilanguage input and Chinese zhuyin at the same time :/

71
12
submitted 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) by [email protected] to c/[email protected]
 
 

Hello everyone! I have a big battery drain problem on Lineage where the media storage service is eating my battery as hell. The phone is a Oneplus 8T. Screenshot_20240213-155539_Paramètres

Do you have any idea what could be the cause of this?

72
 
 

Hi there,

Only 2 weeks ago, I was on a jailbroken iOS device and got fed up with it (and everything that Apple produces - mostly because it's closed down and some proprietary crap like iTunes). And the reason I jailbroke my phone, was mostly for the theming options (place a .png with a specific app name in the folder, select it and that's it)...

Switched to a Oneplus12 last week, loving it, so easy to tweak things out of the box and installed some free icon packs but I can't seem to figure out how to proceed in creating my own icon pack (for personal use). Had a look inside an apk and I have now a basic understanding of the resources inside but swapping out files in an apk isn't the way to go (CRC check done by Android?). Had a look around and installed Android Studio but are there any up-to-date tutorials out there?

thanks! /d

73
 
 

Looking to upgrade my family member's old redmi note 7 with a Samsung A25 but am concern for the OLED causing eyestrain and other issues with PWM. Is PWM a real problem for some or should I perhaps play it safe and get a LCD phone like a Samsung A05s or Redmi note 13 with 1920Hz PWM dimming?

74
9
submitted 9 months ago* (last edited 9 months ago) by [email protected] to c/[email protected]
 
 
  • Device: Oneplus 6 (enchilada)
  • Android version: 10
  • ROM: LineageOS for MicroG v17.1
  • Rooted with Magisk

Apparently the latest Magisk update somehow crippled my WiFi. AFAICT this mainly affects Android 10, and since I probably need to go into ADB anyway to fix the WiFi issue, I might as well perform a long overdue OS upgrade.

So clearly I don't routinely do maintenance on my phone via CLI. LineageOS used to have fairly involved instructions on how to upgrade between major versions, some including unpacking Oxygen OS updates and selectively installing firmware modules through a terminal... That's not a trivial series of operations for a dappler like myself. Let me just run another idea by you all, please let me know if it'll work:

Suppose I flash an Android 10 OOS to my phone. Dirty flash preferred, I want to preserve my apps and settings. Could I feasibly let the official ROM perform as many kernel and firmware updates as possible via OTA to get to the latest (presumably last/end of life) supported Android version?

After that I would flash the latest LOS/mG back on the device, probably rooting with KernelSU this time.

I appreciate any comments and advice! Thanks in advance 🙏

75
 
 

I've only made one system change to my phone today, allowing the Magisk app to update to v27.0 — and now my WiFi returns "IP configuration failure" to all networks.

Maybe I'm seeing a correlation where there isn't one, but I'm curious if others have similar experiences and — more to the point — have any suggestions for fixes.

view more: ‹ prev next ›