Android: 7 hidden features you need to be using on your phone right now

• Android phones have features many users are unaware of.
• From blocking spam texts to making it easier to use one-handed.
• Here’s our pick of seven hidden features Android users need to try.

The vast majority of people on the planet who own a smartphone, own an Android. So you would think that collectively we would all know everything there possibly is to know about them. 

Obviously each specific smartphone maker and brand will have their own quirks, but if you’ve owned an Android you will be familiar with how they work. I recently put together a piece on the nifty hidden features iPhone users probably weren’t aware of - and unsurprisingly there are similar tips and tricks for all the Android owners out there. 

If you are unsure whether your phone is an Android, a good rule of thumb is if you don’t own one of Apple’s iPhone models, it probably is an Android. However, to make sure you can go to the settings tab in your phone, tap About Phone or About Device, depending on what your phone says, and then from there you can tap Android Version to display your version information. 

But what are the hidden features you may be missing out on? Let’s find out: 

Delete your cookies 

Cookies have become an increasingly invasive part of life in the modern world. Unfortunately, I’m not talking about the chocolate chip (or even better salted caramel) variety but instead mean the digital kind that are used to track you and how you use the internet, so targeted ads can then bombard you. 

Fortunately, you are able to delete your cookies on your Android phone. When you open up your Chrome browser, go to the three dots in the top right hand corner, go to your history page and click clear browsing data - it will zap those cookies away. 

If you want to purge even further back you can select the Time range box and hit All Time. It will get rid of all that data and stop those annoying occasions where you look at one item on Amazon and it follows you to every web page afterwards. 

Get your Split Screen on

Bet you didn’t realise you could set up a split screen feature on your Android phone - I most certainly didn’t before researching this article (mea culpa I have owned an iPhone for the best part of a decade now so not exactly up to date on Android features). You can turn your phone into a multitasking beast with just a few simple steps. 

First thing you have to do is swipe up while using Chrome or Instagram or the like to bring up your app tray, find your way to the menu button, tap split screen. Now you get to open a second app and have them on your screen at the same time, it is also fully adjustable so you can get the balance just right. 

Use your phone in one-hand mode 

As phones have become more and more powerful it has seen smartphones balloon in size. Who remembers the days of the Nokia 3310, your pockets certainly will do. 

While that brings lots of fantastic features, like turning your device into essentially a portable computer, it does mean that it can be quite hard to use the phone in just one hand. Especially if you have a family and kids and have to multi-task regularly. 

But did you realise that to make it easier, Android phones have a one-hand mode just waiting to be set up. Simply go to your settings, head to the system settings tab and find the option for one-handed mode, clicking to turn it on. 

As for what it does, it means that with the swipe you can make your whole interface drop down to the lower half of the screen, so it's much easier to access with just one hand. 

Quick way to share your Wi-Fi password 

Are you sick of having to read out your Wi-Fi password each time a new person visits and tries to get connected to your network? It can be a real pain, especially since passwords are often a mix of lower and upper case letters, numbers and symbols, making it laborious. 

However for Android users, there is a simple hack that can save you all that pain. If you go to your network settings, find your Wi-Fi and click you can generate a QR Code for your guests to scan. 

Android phones have a Live Transcribe feature 

Your Android phone may just be hiding a brilliant accessibility feature that many will not be aware of. It can actually provide a live transcription of conversations for you, which is a game-changer for people who are deaf or hard-of-hearing - but also could be great for taking notes in a meeting/ lecture and recording conversations. 

It is simple to set up, simply head to accessibility in your settings and tap Live Transcribe to turn it on. There is also an option to toggle on a Live Transcribe shortcut, if you are going to use it often. 

You can block spam texts! 

Have you noticed an uptick in scam/ phishing texts trying to trick you by pretending to be your bank or the Royal Mail or Amazon recently? It is becoming an increasingly bothersome phenomenon and could risk leaving you out of pocket if you do fall prey to one. 

Android phones have the ability to block spam texts, all you have to do is open up your messages app (not WhatsApp) and go to the settings by clicking the three dots at the top. Inside the settings you’ll find an option to enable spam protection - and keep your inbox in order. 

Smart Lock lets you customise your lockscreen 

You may not realise it but Android phones have the ability to turn your lock screen on and off. Making sure your phone can’t just be opened up by anyone is an important security measure, but if you are not in a scenario where you are worried about that it can be a bit of a pain going through the rigamarole of opening up your phone. 

With the Smart Lock feature, it gives you the flexibility to have the lock screen be lifted when you are in trusted locations. Go to the settings on your phone, go to password and security, head to system security and you can find the Smart Lock feature. 

It lets you add trusted places, where the lock screen will not long operate. So for example you can set your house as a trusted place.