Best apps for living an alternate life

We have all, at one time or another, wondered what it would be like to live the life of someone or something else. Thanks to the empowering benefits of technology, we can get closer than ever to realizing this fantasy. Whether you want to try being a big-shot venture capitalist or a simple cud-chewing goat, there's an app out there for you.
A famous philosophical thought experiment, called "what it's like to be a bat", poses that we can never truly know what it is like to have the consciousness of another. While this is still probably true, there a variety of apps that can get you really close to the mind of a man driving a train. Let's see what other things we can pretend to be through apps.

Goat Simulator

As I promised, it is indeed possible to live the life of a simple goat. In reality, there are over 300 distinct breeds of goat, so if it's a specific genus you're looking for, this simulator might disappoint you, as there are only a dozen or so different goats, and one of them is a penguin.

Despite this, Goat Simulator offers plenty of mindless fun as you storm around town, tongue flapping, your little goat form leaping and trampolining. The terrible physics engine only adds to the hilarity. Watch as your goat tumbles like a ruminant rag doll through the air after headbutting a gas pump; observe as a panic-stricken party-goer flails headlong into a barbecue following an innocent lick of your flailing goat tongue.

DB Train Simulator

We've all been on a train. I go on one every day. But how many of us have driven one? I'm guessing not many. It's a common childhood fantasy, but as this "game" will teach you, it's actually one of the dullest things someone can do. Deutsche Bahn has added an energy-saving element, in an attempt to make things more interesting, or teach us something – probably both – but it only paints the game a duller shade of gray.

The thing is, though, that all of this only serves to make DB Train Simulator a better train simulator. There's no glitz or glamour here, just you, two buttons and a lever. The thankless life of the train driver gains stark and unforgiving clarity as people stand on the platform waiting for you to miss the stop signal and have to restart the level. It's like magic dust, except it's just plain old dust that you have to vacuum up every weekend.

Best Brokers

The stock market is a very foreign place to most people, full of numbers, lines and arrows, and hypothetical things managed by robots. What could be a better environment to live out your alternate life in? The only problem is that to be a day trader requires money, lots of money.

Well, not any more! Because by downloading Best Brokers to your phone, you can instantly acquire $25,000 of pretend money to spend on stocks. There are over 50,000 real-time stocks for you to buy and sell. Build your portfolio and follow the latest stock market news in a bid to make more! Or lose everything. But you don't actually lose everything, because none of it's real.

I've been playing the game for almost a week, and, at the time of writing, I've managed to lose $601.23, but this figure fails to capture the scale of the drama that stalked every decision along the way.

Meetup

If you're confident enough to take your alternate life into reality, Meetup is a great way to find strange things that people are meeting to share their interest in. Whether it's pugs, oil or the paranormal, you can find out what's going on in your area and perhaps venture out to see what it's like to share an avid interest in Mediterranean pirates.


You don't even have to like soccer to get something out of a soccer management game. The sense of satisfaction you feel when your carefully selected players combine to place the ball in the back of the net is unparalleled. PES Club Manager, although a bit heavy on the freemium, is a great in-depth and varied soccer management game.

You can build up your team's home town, train your players, edit your squad, and then take them out onto the field and adjust your strategy while watching them fight it out in 2D or 3D.

The game, sadly, does not include expensive boats or a shady past; these you will have to provide yourself.



How do you escape the monotony your life through technology? Let us know in the comments.

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Best launchers of 2016: transform your Android

One of the most impressive ways to customize your smartphone is to install a launcher. Launchers allow you to take advantage of tons of custom Android themes and icons, as well as offering near complete control over how your phone performs when switching screens, launching apps and more. Here are the best launchers for your Android smartphone or tablet.

ZenUI

ZenUI is a launcher which bridges the gap between the bloatware-heavy, low-end launchers – brimming with ads and unwanted apps – and the more intricate, enthusiast launchers.

ZenUI not only has a pool of high-quality themes – and the expected dearth of shabby ones – to choose from, but it also includes advanced customization features for those who want to refine their Android experience.

Developed by Asus, this Launcher does feature some of the trappings of the more spam-y, bloatware-y launchers, such as the awkward search menu, accessed with an upward swipe, setup by default with trending search suggestions. But, like the three Zen-specific shortcuts, it adds to the home screen, this can easily be removed.

You can adjust the home screen grid size, transitional animations for moving between home screens (the ‘accordion’ one is particularly nice) – you can even theme the folders.

What’s more, ZenUI includes a security tool for apps, CM Applock for Asus (provided by Clean Master developer Cheetah Mobile) to prevent unwanted users from accessing certain content

The applock works similarly to a screen lock. However, this component can be used with an ‘intruder-selfie’ function which employs your phone's front-facing camera to snap a picture of a person trying to enter the app. This only works if the person has a failed attempt at opening the app first, before getting inside. It would be far more interesting if it just snapped users trying to access your apps. Still, it might be fun to show a few friends.

Finally, ZenUI supplies an ‘unread counts badge’ so you can see how many unread messages or notifications you have for each app: it’s considered a premium feature in some launchers. It’s functional, and support for this does extend to WhatsApp, which is probably where most people would want it.

It’s intuitive, customizable and has possibly the most impressive selection of icon packs and themes of any product on the list. This could be your best entry point into the world of launchers.

Price: Free
Size: 22 MB
Android requirement: 4.3 and above
Version tested: 2.2.2.17_16051

Smart Launcher Pro 3

Smart Launcher Pro 3 has its own distinct flavor and is unlike any launcher on the list. It begins with a short setup procedure where you are asked for your preferred dialer app, music app, and photo app from those you have installed (if you have any installed).

Select them, hit start, and you’ll be dropped into a single home screen populated by six apps, some of which were determined in the previous steps. A swipe left brings up an organized app drawer (Smart Launcher organizes it automatically, you can't change the order) and swiping to the right brings up several screens designed for widgets.

That’s it. A single home screen with six apps. You can increase the number of these apps or remove existing ones, as well as customize what they do. But, crucially, you can’t add more home screens.

It’s a minimalist setup and an interesting design decision. One might ask why there is only one home screen for apps but three screens for widgets when they’re typically fewer in number?

This, I presume, is to force users to create a manageable single space. If you’re aiming for a less cluttered home screen, Smart Launcher Pro 3 necessitates it.

Smart Launcher Pro 3 implements a handful of functions to make single home screen usage easier. Chief among these is the extra function that each app button can make use of. You can use a single tap for one action or a double tap for another. This is a great way to save space on the home screen because each app button has the potential to open two apps.

How about making your dialer app open in one tap, and making contacts appear with a double tap? Or you might consider launching WhatsApp with one tap, and Facebook Messenger with a double? Maybe a single touch on the camera icon will launch your camera app, while tapping twice could start Instagram?

You don’t have to make use of this feature, but it works, and highlights what the developers have done to support the core goal of singular home screen use, rather than spamming the app with hundreds of incongruous features.

You can also customize how the app drawer looks in several interesting ways. It defaults to a flower-petal setup: six apps in a circle. But you can change it to a simple grid, like on a standard home screen, Honeycomb style, or – my favorite – Arch. This gathers apps in a non-linear format which climbs up the side of your display. It looks organic and very cool.

Smart Launcher Pro 3 supports free and premium themes that compliment its already sophisticated look. But I’d say its focus is more on usability than style. If you want to redefine the way you use your phone and optimize it for ease-of-use, give this one a try.

Price: $3.99
Size: Varies with device
Android requirement: Varies with device
Version tested: 3.16

Arrow Launcher

This is a Microsoft product and it feels like a work in progress. But wait, before you run and hide, hear me out. Arrow is a very interesting launcher for several reasons. Firstly, it doesn't look like any other launcher and lacks bloatware apps and boosters, so it’s already noteworthy.

But also unlike many other launchers, its focus is not on fancy looks and dazzling transitions; Arrow Launcher appears to be aimed at business-type users. This is evident from the use of its relatively plain wallpaper and home screen headings like People (a contacts list) and Reminders.

I currently make use of several Android apps for notes and planning: Reminders is an entire home screen dedicated to this. It's perfect for the type of user it targets and this page also integrates with to-do list app Wunderlist. It's a good idea, but it would great if it supported other apps like Evernote or Google Keep (though admittedly I don’t even know how this would work).
Another of Arrow’s strengths is its Recent menu. I don’t use the native Android recent apps menu because I think it's clumsy – I have dozens of thumbnails of every previously used app, so finding what I want can be difficult.

Arrow Launcher, by contrast, displays recent items not by app but by content. It begins with recent pictures and then is followed by other content, such as downloads, videos or recently contacted people. It might not be there with a single button press like Google's recent apps and it's function isn't exactly the same, but it’s nonetheless intuitive and useful.

Arrow is a light and simple launcher compared to most others but because of this it does have fewer customization options: you can't change app icon sizes and font styles here (though you can use custom icons).

Regardless, it's still one of the best launchers in my recent tests. It’s a dry Microsoft product that lacks some versatility, but it's nonetheless fresh, unique and something which I'm sure could serve a certain type of user better than its stock launcher.

Price: Free
Size: 9.1 MB
Android requirement: 4.0.3 and above
Version tested: 1.4.0.23967

Nova Launcher Prime

We have written extensively about Nova Launcher Prime, with a whole bunch of tips and tricks. Many say this app is the reason to buy an Android phone rather than an iPhone and it's easy to understand why.

Nova doesn’t look like much when you first open it. You won’t see 3D floating clocks or animated weather apps like in some launchers: it includes just three folders labeled Google, Create and Play, a Google Search Bar and a Gmail widget on the left home screen.

But open up the settings menu and you'll find a trove of options for customizing a whole range of features: from app margins and sizes, to font colors and appearance, to your app drawer layout and animation effects, to screen gestures, to dock settings to unread badges; the list goes on.

Essentially, as far as customizing Android without Root goes, Nova Launcher offers about as many options as you’re likely to find.

This launcher is filled with small but impressive details like the possibility to add a colored dock bar to the background of the bottom shortcuts area (where you normally find your Camera, Dialer and Contacts apps). It’s purely an aesthetic option, but the fact that you have options like this makes Nova so interesting.

You can also alter the number of app icons which appear in the dock, from one to seven – a feature you won’t find in most other launchers which optimizes the space at the bottom screen. Like Apex Launcher, it even lets you increase the number of these dock pages (in this case up to five).

The overall performance is buttery smooth and Nova supports a slew of gestures. I can’t help but find it incredibly cool when I use the clockwise two finger gesture to open my banking app – as if cracking open a safe. It’s the potential that Nova Launcher offers a smartphone that makes it so worthwhile.

Disappointingly, TeslaCoil hasn’t updated the app since December last year, but hopefully when Android 7.0 Nougat is released some additional content will be added. For now, we’ll just have to settle with one of the most user-friendly and varied launchers on Android.

Price: $0.99 (currently sale, free version also available)
Size: 49 KB
Android requirement: 4.0 and above

Apex Launcher

Apex Launcher is a feature-packed launcher with free and premium versions, but even the non-paid version offers a huge amount of customization and doesn't contain ads or bloatware apps.

Apex Launcher is in many ways very similar to Nova, offering a wealth of options for the app drawer, dock bar, folders and home screen and it even includes a backup option for transferring the same settings to other devices.

So it's dense, but unlike Nova it also supports a huge selection of themes. These custom-made icon packs and wallpapers can be very impressive and show off what's great about Apex.

You can also customize the home button to house more than one action. One press will bring you to your home screen, as usual, but a second press could be used for any number of shortcuts, like opening another app, taking you to your notifications, or launching the Apex Settings menu.
One of the coolest features of Apex is that you can make use of several dock bars. This is traditionally comprised of four to five fixed buttons, but, like home screens, Apex Launcher allows you to make use of a few of these. This means that you can optimize toolbars for certain tasks. You might want to have a toolbar for calendars and diary info or a toolbar just for media viewing. Perhaps you could set one up with shortcuts to your favorite websites?

This is a strong alternative to Nova Launcher and definitely its closest competitor, there really isn't all that much daylight between the two; if you glance at their settings menus they almost identical.

But Apex hasn’t been updated in more than a year now: it’s not really optimized for the latest Android versions. It’s light on transition effects and lacks a transition effects animation preview, which would be nice. It's also light on gestures, though more of these can be added to if you purchase the pro version.

This may swing it for you, but if you're tied between these two launchers, try the free versions of both out first before you decide if you want to spend any cash.

Price: Free
Size: 4.7 MB
Android requirement: 4.0.3 and above

Are you rocking a custom launcher that we've missed? What do you think is the best Android launcher? Let us know in the comments.

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What is a VPN app and why do I need one?

If you worry about online safety and haven’t thought about getting a VPN, it might be to time to consider it. VPN subscription prices are dropping and VPN apps are getting better all the time, so, in this article, we're going to discuss what a VPN is, how it works and why should you get one.

What is a VPN?

VPN stands for virtual private network and is a service that provides a secure internet connection by using private networks in remote locations. Using a VPN service can make it seem as if you are accessing the internet from an entirely different location, helping you to maintain security and privacy while online, among other things.

What is a VPN app?

A VPN app brings the aforementioned service to your smartphone. Simply install a VPN app and select a location and your online activity will appear to be taking place in that region.

Why would I want a VPN?

First and foremost, for increased privacy. VPNs can help control the information that companies or the government attempt to gather from you. It can also encrypt data so that your online activity isn't visible.

If you’ve ever tried to access a coffee shop Wi-Fi network, only to be warned that the connection is not secure, then you should think about a VPN: you never know who's watching.
Regardless of how concerned you are about online privacy, there is one key takeaway: your activity online is logged in many places, by many services, and it will be less visible if you use a VPN.

The second reason you might want a VPN is to access video streaming websites that you otherwise couldn’t. Say you’re on holiday in Bangkok, but want to continue watching that TV series you were enjoying on Netflix back home. Typically you wouldn’t be able to access this in a different country, but a VPN app would allow you to do that.

A VPN can also be used to avoid price discrimination, by masking your location and making it more difficult to track you.

Is using a VPN illegal?

In some countries, such as China, North Korea and Iran, it is illegal to use a VPN, but in most western territories (including the US and UK) it’s perfectly legal. VPNs are often used by businesses, schools and universities to give people access to their resources when they're not on the premises.

However, while using a VPN is perfectly legal, using it for certain purposes is not. The same applies to use of the internet in general.

We are often asked whether it is legal to stream region-locked movies and TV shows in other countries. This is something that is in a state of flux, but the (somewhat disappointing) current answer is, not really.

I reached out to Netflix regarding this matter, and a member of its support team told me: "Customers that use services to change the IP location of their computers to watch content available in other regions [are acting] against our terms of use."

Hulu's Terms page explicitly states: "Using technologies to access the Content from territories where Hulu does not have rights or does not offer services is prohibited. Your subscription is not accessible through any devices from outside the United States."

Other streaming services may not enforce this so stringently and these laws are being questioned because they don't allow for certain exceptional circumstances, such as when people are traveling. You should always check a service's terms and conditions before trying to access it with a VPN.

What a VPN app won't do

There are VPNs that claim they can improve download and browsing speed. However, VPNs actually reduce these things, because there is an extra step involved in re-routing your connection.

Also, some suggest they can make you completely anonymous: this is almost always untrue. You can certainly gain a more private connection but complete anonymity is really hard to achieve online.

How much does a VPN cost?

The costs of VPNs vary, but the vast majority are subscription-based services, which cost between US$5 and $15 per month. If you're interesting in picking one up, our AndroidPIT deals store has regular deals on all kinds of VPNs for every purpose, including some great lifetime subscription offers. Head over there now to check them out.

How to set up a VPN on Android

Outside of apps, you can still make use of web-based VPNs on Android if you have the IDs, make sure you know what they are or can access them before beginning.

As always, the steps in the settings and the names for each section might vary depending on your Android device. On stock Android, the procedure is as follows:

• Go to settings > more > VPN and hit the plus button at the top right.
• Tap on the Name box and choose a name for the VPN network.
• In the Type box, choose a VPN type that corresponds to your VPN server.
• Enter the server address.
• Leave the PPP encryption box ticked.
• Hit Save and you will be returned to the original VPN menu.
• Tap on your new VPN and enter the username you’ve chosen as well as your password.

Final thoughts

Aside from the financial burden, there aren't a lot of negatives involved in using a VPN, even if you want your IP to remain in roughly the same location (or within the same country) as you.

VPN apps will mean your smartphone uses slightly more data that it otherwise would when they are enabled, but it's up to you how much that matters. 

Ultimately, online threats are real, and because we use our smartphones to access the internet in many locations, it makes sense to make them as secure as possible. 

What are your thoughts on VPNs and VPN apps? Are you worried about the online dangers your smartphone can lead to? Let us know in the comments. 

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The best Chinese smartphones you should know about

Chinese smartphones have emerged from a murky past of iPhone clones and shady software to become a new force on the global market. Chinese phones tend to be a lot cheaper than phones sold in the West but often have equally good build quality and features. Here are the best Chinese smartphones.

OnePlus 3

The third model in the OnePlus flagship series, the OnePlus 3 was launched on June 14, 2016. It ditched the invite system that generated a lot of buzz for previous models but mostly served to annoy customers. This device ushered in a new era for OnePlus and demonstrated a newfound maturity in the Android market.

The thing that stood out the most for us was the performance of the OnePlus 3. It comes with a quad-core Snapdragon 820 backed with 6 GB of RAM. This device outdid every phone we have in the office with an AnTuTu benchmark of 140,573. If you’re looking for a Chinese phone that performs well then this is your best bet.

The performance was not the only part of the phone that impressed us. The design is minimalist and in the same class as the Galaxy S7. And although the display was not as good as we had hoped, OnePlus made up for it with a quality camera. And the value cannot be beaten.

Huawei P9

The fourth model of the Huawei P series is dubbed the 'Pocket DSLR'. That's because the company partnered with German camera manufacturer Leica to make a device focused around photo capabilities. The smartphone has a dual camera system with two rear cameras.

Despite having a better camera and taking higher quality photos the device is still priced under its competitors. It's not a cheap Chinese phone but in general is not expensive at $559. And unlike other Chinese manufacturers, Huawei has a strong presence in the US.

The Huawei P9 comes with Android Marshmallow right out of the box. The HiSilicon Kirin 955 chipset is backed up with 3 GB RAM. The device has an internal memory capacity of 32 GB and can be expanded with the microSD capabilities. The phone runs on a 3,000 mAh battery.

Xiaomi Mi 5 and Mi 5 Pro

Xiaomi made a big splash at MWC 2016 with its new flagship Mi 5 series. These long awaited devices are currently confirmed for the Indian and Chinese markets but Xiaomi's Global VP said in an interview that Xiaomi has "other markets on their radar screen."

The design and specs of these two devices are impressive. The normal Mi 5 version has a 3D glass rear panel, 32 GB or 64 GB of internal storage and 3 GB of RAM. The Pro version comes with a ceramic back, 128 GB of internal storage and 4 GB RAM. Both come with a Snapdragon 820 processor and a new 4-axis optical image stabilization system that wowed at MWC 2016.

The incredible prices of these devices is perhaps the most remarkable thing about them. The lowest cost (32 GB) version is set to be released at $407.99. The 64 GB Mi 5 version is going to come in at $459.99 and the Mi 5 Pro at $515.99.

Honor 7 

The Honor 7 is boss. A $300 all-aluminum smartphone with looks to rival the HTC One M9 or Huawei Mate S, the Honor 7 also packs a punch in the specs department.

Packing a Huawei-made finger scanner, Kirin 935 chipset, 3 GB of RAM, Android Lollipop, microSD expansion, a massive 20 MP primary camera with OIS, and an 8 MP front-facing camera complete with LED flash, the Honor 7 is unbeatable. Check out our Honor 7 review for more details.

Meizu Pro 5 

The Meizu Pro 5 ups the price point to just under the $500 mark, but it is a very capable smartphone.

Packing Samsung's excellent Exynos 7420 chipset – the same as the Galaxy S6 – clocked at 2.5 GHz, a 21 MP camera, 3 GB or 4 GB of RAM, front-mounted fingerprint scanner, 5.7-inch Full HD display, Android Lollipop and solid 3,000 mAh battery, the Meizu Pro 5 is one to look out for.

ZUK Z1 

You may not have heard of the ZUK Z1, but you'll wish you had. Backed by Lenovo, the ZUK Z1 has outstanding battery life, a rock-solid fingerprint scanner, good performance and a very decent camera, all for the low price of $220.

The ZUK Z1 also features a 5.5-inch Full HD display, Snapdragon 801, CyanogenMod OS 12 (based on Lollipop), 64 GB internal storage, 3 GB of RAM, a 4,100 mAh battery and 13 MP Sony sensor. Not bad at all.

Lenovo Vibe P1

Lenovo's Vibe P1 has one feature that will absolutely destroy what you thought was possible for a £160 phone: a 4,900 mAh battery. That's not a typo, the Vibe P1 has a battery that's double the size of many other smartphone batteries right now.

But that's not all – the Vibe P1 also delivers super fast-charging technology to get that monster battery charged pronto, as well as a fingerprint scanner, 5.5-inch Full HD display and Android Lollipop. Did we mention this thing only costs $160?

How do I get one of these phones?

Where there's a will, there's a way. In our device reviews, we always provide info on the best price for a device and share links for where you can buy one (just make sure you check the phone's LTE frequencies to ensure they will work with your carrier before you buy).

There is also a bunch of excellent online retailers in China willing to ship a device globally. So what do you think of these amazing devices ? worth buying ? Let us know in the comments.

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How to find out if an app is using too much battery

The battery life of our Android phones is one of our biggest concerns. We want to use our smartphones throughout the day without charging and we often take drastic steps to achieve this. But the culprit of excess battery consumption could be an application – like Pokémon Go. Because it's not always easy to identify these battery-draining apps, this article explains the best way to detect them and what to do once you have.

Detecting a problematic app

Occasionally, applications that we consider useful or that we use frequently during the day, consume too much battery. Maybe you have a high-end device and this does not alter its performance, or goes unnoticed. But given that smartphone batteries decrease in effectiveness over time, efforts to reduce battery consumption will pay off in the long run.

To discover which apps are consuming most battery, go to your Android Settings menu and hit Power Management (or just Battery, depending on your device) and you will see a list of apps and features.

What to do after detecting battery drainer

Once you've found an application which consumes a lot of battery, you can decide what to do with it. Go to Settings hit Applications, find the app in question and tap it. You can opt for a less aggressive solution like deleting some of the data or clearing the cache of the app to solve the problem. But often the most effective solution is to force-stop the app and restart it. After you've done this, monitor the application like a policeman stalking a suspect.

Alternatively, you may be fed up with the application and seek a lighter, more stable equivalent in Google Play. Or you may simply decide that you don't want to use it anymore. In any case, from the same app screen you can uninstall the app and be safe in the knowledge that it won't be consuming any more battery unnecessarily.

What if an app is not responsible?

It often happens that it's not a specific application that's draining your battery, but rather is another smartphone function. If it's the screen, the solution is simple: set it to a lower brightness level. You won't always need it to be bright enough to see in sunlight. Also, consider shortening the length of time it stays active for.

It's normal for the screen to be at the top of the list of functions that are draining battery. But if you see an excessive percentage, heed the advice I've given above. I cannot give you a precise percentage you should consider alarming because it depends on your own usage. Just try to adjust the screen brightness according to the situation.

Hopefully, the tips above will help you get through the day without having to charge your device. Do you have problems battery-draining apps? How did you solve it? Let me know in the comments.

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5 Easy Ways to Prevent Android Malware

Malware is a malicious software that is designed to damage or disrupt the system of your computer or mobile device. They include virus, spyware, Trojan horses and more. Once the malware enters the mobile phones, it can perform a variety of unwanted activities like stealing your important data or contact list, disrupt the operation of your phone, and even steal your money by making unwanted calls or sending SMS messages.

Among the mobile phones malware attacks, Android is the most targeted mobile operating system by malware developers and hackers. Fortunately, there are several steps that you can take to prevent the malware from infiltrating your Android device.

         1. Don’t install apps from unknown sources unless you are sure it is safe

Many apps from unknown sources contain malware that once installed can steal information and cause harm to your device. So never download and install apps from outside of Google play and Amazon App store for Android unless you’re sure that the site is safe for download.

         2. Check the reviews and ratings of the app by other users

Before downloading an app, read the reviews from other users as people will give a negative review and low rating if the app contains malware.

         3. Understand app permissions before accepting them

Permissions are a key to any mobile application. These permissions are crucial to the overall security of your system. If any of the permissions seem a little odd, such as a wallpaper app wanting to make phone calls or send SMS messages, then it’s best to not install the app.

         4. Install an Antivirus app on your device
Make sure that you have an antivirus app installed on your Android device. The tools can detect potential phishing websites, provides information about the kind of permissions other apps are requesting, and have anti-loss tool that can help to locate your lost or stolen device.

         5. Don’t root the device
Rooting an Android device does has some advantages. However, this break the security model and allowing all apps, including malicious app, to access the data owned by other applications.

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4 Things You Must Do Before Selling Your Old Android Device

Are you about to sell your old Android device so you can get a new high-end smartphone? If the answer is Yes, then it’s important to take certain precautions before you hand over your old phone to its new owner. You need to ensure that you have no important data left on the device so that the buyer could not misuse it and you have a copy of all your important data that is on that device.

So if you’re about to pull the trigger on selling your Android phone or tablet, here are few simple steps you should take before selling your Android device to make sure that none of that bad thing happens to you.

Backup All Your Phone Data

The first thing you should do before selling your smartphone is to back it up. Sure, you don’t want to lose some important data that you had on your old handset. You may copy all your data to your PC by connecting it through a USB cable or you may upload all the files to a cloud service like Dropbox, Google+, and OneDrive.

The easiest way to back up your Android phone data is to use your Google Drive account. You can back up everything like photos, app data, bookmarks, calendar, contacts, and even your Wi-Fi network settings. To do it, head to Settings > Accounts > Google account and select all the data you want to sync for backup.

Factory Reset

After backing up all the important data, you need to wipe them off. This to prevent its new owner from getting your important data. Factory resetting your device will erase all data on your phone, including photos, music, documents, installed apps, contacts, calendar, and messages. To do this, go to Settings > Backup & reset > Factory data reset.

Remove Memory Card

Don’t forget to remove your memory card. You’re probably going to want to continue using it on your new device. If you do plan to give away your microSD card, be sure to back up the contents and thoroughly wipe the card. You can erase your SD card by navigating to Settings > Storage, then tap ‘Format SD card’.

Clean It

This is a small thing, but it’s quite important. Cleaning your device can help you sell your device at a better price. Wiping of the screen, removing any dust, and cleaning inside the ports are great ways to keep your device clean and looking brand new.

How about you? what do you do when you're about to sell your smartphone ? share it with us in the comments.

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