The Definitive Guide to Android

If you watch a lot of TV shows and movies, you could be forgiven for thinking that the only smartphones and tablets that people ever use are ones sporting a big Apple logo on the back. But the truth is that the vast majority of mobile devices in use today aren’t iPhones or iPads at all – they’re tablets and handsets from other manufacturers, unified by one key element – the Android operating system (OS) that powers them all. From reasonably humble beginnings, Google’s OS has now become the most dominant mobile platform on the planet, running on literally billions of devices around the world. And it’s not hard to see why. It’s elegantly designed, yet incredibly simple to use. It’s flexible and easy to personalise. And there are millions…

If you’re reading this guide, then you’re probably wanting to know more about how your phone or tablet works. Well, we’ve got some good news for you; the Android software that powers your device is simple, flexible and sophisticated. In fact, it’s the single most successful mobile operating system of all time. But what exactly is Android and what makes it so great? In the first chapter of our guide, we’ll uncover Android’s origins, explain its advantages and show you how to get started with the very latest versions of the OS.…

Imagine a world where phones were just for making phone calls and where touch-screen tablet devices didn’t exist. In this world, there can be no access to email or the web while you’re out and about, there are no map apps to help guide you to your destination, no music or movie collection in your pocket and no games to keep you occupied when things get dull. Sounds pretty bleak, doesn’t it? What’s even more amazing is just how quickly we’ve all got used to the abilities these devices provide us. It’s easy to forget that the imaginary world we’ve just described was how the actual world was less than a decade ago, when smartphones and tablets were barely a twinkle in their manufacturers’ eyes. And it’s amazing to think…

Over its relatively short lifetime, Android has evolved into a highly sophisticated, yet instantly accessible operating system, adding brilliant new features with every update. The version of Android you’ll find on your tablet or smartphone will depend on a number of different factors, including the age of the device and the manufacturer that built it. Most recent devices come with Android 5.0 Lollipop installed – it’s a great OS that brings with it a beautiful redesign as well as big improvements to the way the interface works. A handful of the very latest phones and tablets, however, come with an even newer version of Android installed – 6.0 Marshmallow, which adds a further layer of polish to proceedings and provides even more new features. Over the coming months, more devices…

One of the best things about Android is that you can expand your device’s abilities and usefulness in an instant by downloading new apps from the Google Play store. The choice is enormous and a great many of the best apps can be installed for free. The flip side of this is that the sheer volume of apps available can be overwhelming – and not all apps are great. If you’re not careful, you can quickly find yourself with a device that’s clogged up with rubbish. In this chapter, our aim is to get you straight to the apps that matter – the ones you’ll actually use.…

Like computers, Android phones and tablets get noticeably slower over time, as they fill up with junk and start creaking under the strain of day-to-day activities. Fortunately, it’s much easier to give your mobile device a new lease of life than it is to revitalise your computer or find the fountain of youth. Pay a visit to the Google Play store and you’ll find tens of thousands of free tools that claim to speed up your phone and tablet by clearing out rubbish, boosting your battery and optimising your internet connection. The trouble is that many of them are – quite frankly – useless, despite the plethora of ‘reviews’ that try to convince you they’re anything but snake oil. Ironically, the more of these apps you download, the more cluttered…