text:
How do you save an Instagram picture to the Android gallery?
How do you save Instagram picture to Android gallery?

Instagram does not provide any options to download images or videos to the phone. However, you can use third party applications like "Instasave for Instagram" for doing this.
App Link:  https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=dstudio.tool.instasave&hl=en

Go to Play Store and Install Instasave application
Open Instasave app
Press home button and open Instagram App
Find image that you want to download
Click on Menu button (three dots)
Copy Share URL
Open Instasave app and you will see your image/video
Click on Download icon.

IF you have a rooted device + xposed framework then check out the instaprefs xposed module which adds extra functionality including saving assets:

https://www.xda-developers.com/instaprefs-xposed-module-instagram-features/

❗❗❗ WARNING: If your device does not have root/magisk/xposed-framework already installed then be aware that trying to install them on incompatible hardware/software versions might BRICK your device and will most likely void your warranty! I would recommend NOT using your daily driver device for experimentation.


text:
Create sdcard0 symlink on 6.0.1 for WhatsApp compatibility
I recently switched from a Galaxy S2 running CM 10.2 (Android 4.3.1) to a Nexus 5 running 6.0.1 (stock rooted).
My goal was to migrate all my WhatsApp data (history, media, etc.) over to the new device. Restoring the history was no problem using WhatsApp's builtin backup/restore functionality.
I then proceeded to copy all the .../WhatsApp/Media/ folders over to the new phone, however, I still got an error message stating that the file could not be found when trying to open any (old) received images or videos from within WhatsApp.
Upon further investigation, it seems like WhatsApp is (or was?) storing the absolute path to every individual media file in its database, e.g. on my S2: /storage/sdcard0/WhatsApp/Media/WhatsApp Images/IMG-20140813-WA0020.jpg
It just so happens that the /storage/sdcard0 symlink doesn't exist on my Nexus 5 and hence WhatsApp can't access older files since the links are broken.
So I figured all I needed to do was create the /storage/sdcard0 symlink, like this:
ln -s /sdcard /storage/sdcard0

Confirmation:
root@hammerhead:/ # ls -l /storage
drwx--x--x root     sdcard_rw          1970-07-07 17:59 emulated
lrwxrwxrwx root     root              2015-12-30 16:26 sdcard0 -> /sdcard
drwxr-xr-x root     root              1970-07-09 08:57 self

Unfortunately, WhatsApp still couldn't access my old media files (not to mention that the symlink was gone after a reboot).
What am I doing wrong?
Thanks!
EDIT:
I did some more testing and noticed that the /storage/sdcard0 symlink is still there in versions prior to Marshmallow (I tested factory images of 5.0, 5.0.1 and 5.1.1 plus a friend's N5 running 4.4.4).
For now I have downgraded to 5.1.1 (with an intact /storage/sdcard0 symlink) and my old WhatsApp media now works as expected.
It's still very odd that the symlink didn't exist/work on 6.x though.

In my Android Lollipop: sdcard is a symlink to /sdcard/emulated/legacy && sdcard0 is a symlink to /sdcard/emulated/legacy && legacy is a symlink to /mnt/shell/emulated/0. There are other things to consider, such the group of the directories and the files.

source: Stack Exchange

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

sort: votes


text:
whatsapp code old number
How can I use my whatsapp with the older number.when I put my older number it requires a code and I don't have an idea how to get the code.I lost the simcard long time ago.what can I do?

Ryan bro..  This forum is strictly for Android related issues!  However, the only way I know you can get the code is by retrieving your lost sim card.

Kenny bro, this site is not a forum. :)

all_licenses: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/


text:
How do I use external web camera though USB OTG on Huawei Honor 6?
Built-in kernel does not come with USB Video support and when using sideloaded uvcvideo.ko the camera works very bad (image is distorted, the device often crash). I can barely get even single 160x120 frames.
FFmpeg says [video4linux2,v4l2 @ 0xa57320] The v4l2 frame is 32712 bytes, but 38400 bytes are expected (the bigger frame size, the sooner).
dmesg says something like [ 1610.497185] [7168.0, ffmpeg] cma: dma_alloc_from_contiguous(cma e44c14c0, count 10, align 4).
I tried various quirks parameters for the uvcvideo.ko module, but nothing helps.
How do I make use of external USB camera on my device? Are there any patches/hackes available?

Hello, did you find an answer to your question ? I'm facing the same one.

Other camera works better (i.e only in 320x240 mode with device slowing down and sometimes rebooting, but DashCam nonetheless showing the picture). Maybe that's because of it can stream less than 15 FPS...

Which "the same one" question do you face? "How to connect USB camera to Android"? or "How to fix USB OTG mode to make v4l2 work reliably on Huawei Honor 6"?

Workaround: use some single board computer (like C.H.I.P) that will capture from camera and re-stream on Wi-Fi for MXPlayer to consume (with the approriate delay). Not tested, I can try it...


text:
Change the swipe-up options on the Lollipop lockscreen?
I went back to Lollipop from Marshmallow recently and I miss having the ability to swipe up from the left of the screen to get right into Google Now voice search. Is there any way to change (with root perhaps?) the phone shortcut to the voice search shortcut on Lollipop?

Your Android device name? I'm not sure whether stock Android has this feature, but you can configure the lock screen in custom ROMs.

HTC One M8, stock ROM, rooted.


text:
Is it possible to enable 4G/LTE band 40 in Nexus 5 D820?
I have a LG Nexus 5 D820 model purchased in USA. Now I am in Chennai, India on Airtel network. As I understand Indian LTE/4G bands are 3 and 40 and unlucky me my service provider Airtel seems to be in band 40. D820 does not support both band 3 and 40.
I have seen few XDA posts that explain how to enable band 3 in D820. I could not see any posts for the same for band 40 and few comments then and there say it is not possible.
Has any one tried enabling band 40 on their D820? Even more better has anyone tried using their Nexus 5 D820 in India on LTE/4G with Airtel?

I followed the procedure said in a XDA forum (the very first post) and I got the LTE working in my phone.
I confirmed the same and added a confirmation to that thread as:

I am using Nexus 5 (D820) purchased in USA and being used in Chennai
  on Airtel network. I read through many resources about the LTE bands
  that the phones (D820 and D821) support, about the bands that
  different service providers support. After reading through the posts
  in this thread I was aware band 3 can be enabled on D820. Even at this
  moment of writing (after enabling the band 3 on D820) I believe from
  various links Airtel uses band 40 in Chennai.
To my surprise when I enabled band 3 (after few tensed moments) I saw
  LTE indicator in my mobile. The screen shot is as below:

The app LTE Discovery did report that my mobile is in LTE when I made
  it to work in "LTE mode only". However it does not report the band
  that is being used.

I tried Speed test, but it showed a disappointing speed as good as 2G
(1.5mbps download). I need to try this at other places and see whether
really 4G is enabled in my phone or not.
Edit: The download speed in other areas of Chennai are in par with 3G. However surprisingly, I could see the upload speed is as good as download speed in 4G.
In the following image, the middle entry is 2G and rest are 4G.
Also I used Nexus 5 Field Test Mode app and it says I am using band 3 - surprise.

Edit: This was performed in my Nexus 5 D820 running stock Android 6.0.1, stock kernel, rooted and with custom recovery TWRP.
**Edit2:**This change seems to be permanent. I had OTA updates installed and after a point of time reinstalled latest ROM and even tried locking boot loader. In spite of all these changes still LTE is working in my phone.

I actually expect to read how you enabled the LTE when reading this answer, instead of "reading through the posts in this thread" (it's 91 pages long.. or perhaps the first post on the first thread). I'd appreciate if you could edit this answer to accommodate the additional info. Thanks!

Sure I agree with you to avoid rotten links issue. However this means just reproducing the text that is explained in the XDA link. Still that does not going to completely help because that XDA page has few attachments without which this will not work.


text:
Cannot write to /storage/emulated/0 after nandroid restore (even as root)
On  my rooted Motorola Moto G 2014 LTE I can no longer access the directories under /storage/emulated/0/, such as Download, Documents, Ringtones.
Using a file explorer, without root access, I just get access denied when trying to open the folder; with root access, I can open the folder but I am unable to write in it. Folder permissions seems ok (770, owned by root and group sdcard_r).
Using a terminal emulator, trying to do an ll inside the folder (as root) returns opendir failed, Permission denied.
What I did prior to the problem was:

unlock the bootloader, install TRWP recovery
root
install various apps (including Link2SD to move some apps to the SD card)
perform a nandroid backup
trying to flash Xposed: I had some issues here after reboot, so I restored the nandroid backup

Another thing to notice: after the nandroid restore, an app installed before making the backup (FX File explorer) was missing.
EDIT: I solved with a full wipe (not just factory reset) and restoring again the previous backup.

@Firelord I've read from various sources that the "fix permission" tool is deprecated and actually does more harm than good on Lollipop. In the end I just solved with a full wipe and another nandroid restore, and the problem was gone.


text:
Problems with partition table
I have a Prestigio 5044 Duo (PAP5044) with MTK6589.
Basically, what I was trying to do was to resize /data partition, beacause it was only about 950Mb, by shrinking Internal SD card (/emmc) partition. For that I used Meteos MTK6589 Apllication.
After going all the steps I found out that Android OS was hanging during boot (like half-way to boot up, and it freezed with no error messages). Though, recovery (I have CWM) boots well.
After doing some research I found out, that partition table of the device was messed up after /cache partition. So, all system and recovery partititons are fine.
Here is fdisk output:
~ # fdisk -lu /dev/block/mmcblk0
Warning: ignoring extra data in partition table 5
Warning: ignoring extra data in partition table 5

Disk /dev/block/mmcblk0: 3853 MB, 3853516800 bytes
1 heads, 16 sectors/track, 470400 cylinders, total 7526400 sectors
Units = sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes

              Device Boot      Start         End      Blocks  Id System
/dev/block/mmcblk0p1            1024        1022  2147483647+  5 Extended
Partition 1 does not end on cylinder boundary
/dev/block/mmcblk0p2           26624       47103       10240  83 Linux
Partition 2 does not end on cylinder boundary
/dev/block/mmcblk0p3           47104       67583       10240  83 Linux
Partition 3 does not end on cylinder boundary
/dev/block/mmcblk0p4           93184      105471        6144  83 Linux
Partition 4 does not end on cylinder boundary
/dev/block/mmcblk0p5          134144     1465343      665600  83 Linux
/dev/block/mmcblk0p6         7556096        1022  2143706111+ 83 Linux

And here are /proc/partitions and fstab:
~ # cat /proc/partitions
major minor  #blocks  name

 179        0    3763200 mmcblk0
 179        1          1 mmcblk0p1
 179        2      10240 mmcblk0p2
 179        3      10240 mmcblk0p3
 179        4       6144 mmcblk0p4
 179        5     665600 mmcblk0p5
 179        6     129024 mmcblk0p6
 179        7    2901504 mmcblk0p7
 179       64       2048 mmcblk0boot1
 179       32       2048 mmcblk0boot0
 179       96   31338496 mmcblk1
 179       97   31334400 mmcblk1p1
~ # cat /etc/fstab
/dev/block/mmcblk0p6 /cache ext4 rw
/dev/block/mmcblk0p7 /data ext4 rw
/dev/block/mmcblk0p8 /emmc vfat rw
/dev/block/mmcblk0p5 /system ext4 rw
/dev/block/mmcblk1p1 /sdcard vfat rw
/dev/block/mmcblk1p2 /sd-ext auto rw

So, on mmcblk0 there must be 10 partitions, and now there are only 6, according to fdisk.
I have two ideas how it is possible to restore partitions:
1) manually with fdisk, though it doesn't seem like a very good idea
2) I've found some info about scatter file for MTK-based devices, seems like it contains all the partitioning info; I have no idea how to get and use that file, though.
What should I do to recover my device?

I don’t know the asked partition restore process, but there is a solution that works, and the phone will work again.
You will need
1.  1.0.42 full image ROM for Flashtool
2.  SP Flashtool
3.  EBRtweak
4.  CWM 6.0.4.4
Solution:
1.  Extract 1.0.42 ROM
2.  Copy the EBRtweak into the ROM folder, and run with the asked option (like 2,5 GB)
3.  Delete the EBR*.bak from the ROM folder
4.  Copy the CWM 6.0.4.4 recovery.img to the ROM folder
5.  Run CheckSum_Generate.exe
6.  Flash with SP Flashtool the MT6589_Android_scatter_emmc.txt file from the 1.0.42 ROM folder.
7.  Boot into recovery mode and go to mounts and storage: format /data, format/cache
8.  Reboot system.
If you need any of those files, write me and I'll send it to you.

Thanks for reply. How does " 1.0.42 full image ROM for Flashtool" differ from a typical ROMs I can get form different websites, if it even differs?

It's not differs from other ROMs, it's just a special one that you can flash with Flashtool. And with Flashtool, you can re-partitionate the data. But write me an email if you need it.

Yeah, looks like this way it would be easier. Can you see my email in profile?

Sorry, I can't see it.


text:
Sony Xperia M4 Start Screen almost black
After a reboot, my new xperia always starts with this screen:

I have the same problem in 'Safe Mode'.
What can I do? I want to fix this problem without a factory reset.
Edit:
I found more people with same problem on Sony's forum. I fixed reseting to factory using PC Companion: https://talk.sonymobile.com/t5/Xperia-M4-Aqua/M4-Aqua-won-t-start/m-p/1025996/thread-id/1311

When was the first time you encountered this issue? Do you remember what you were doing when the issue first appeared? Is the Android rooted? What is your Android version?

I'm using Sony's android 5.0. It's the first time i got this problem. Android isn't rooted.

I found more people with same problem on Sony's forum.
I fixed reseting to factory using PC Companion: https://talk.sonymobile.com/t5/Xperia-M4-Aqua/M4-Aqua-won-t-start/m-p/1025996/thread-id/1311


text:
Is it possible to programmatically disable TalkBack's *explore by touch* option?
Some applications cannot function properly when TalkBack's explore by touch option is active, but permanently disabling it isn't a viable alternative because not having it on would make using a touchscreen much more difficult for a blind person.
Temporarily disabling TalkBack through a short-cut is a decent work-around, but it becomes annoying pretty quickly when the problematic app is used often and for short periods of time, e.g. a braille keyboard.
Therefore I'm looking for a programmatic solution, for example a deamon configurable through a blacklist: whenever an application from the list is in foreground, the daemon disables explore by touch, and re-enables it as soon as an application not on the list comes to foreground. Disabling TalkBack tout court would do, too, if explore by touch cannot be disabled without restarting TalkBack.
So... does this exist already? If not, how hard would it be to implement it, if at all possible?

Welcome to the Android Enthusiasts! This site is for users of Android, which means that questions about development/programming are off-topic here (see the What topics can I ask about here?). You might also wish to consult Where can I ask questions that aren't Android Enthusiast questions? for a fitting place to your question. // If that feature can be addresses via an intent, apps like tasker might be helpful.

@Izzy Thanks for your comment. My question is mainly a about usage: first and foremost I want to know if such a thing exists already, and "tasker" does seem like a good candidate. Anyway, I flagged this question for migration to StackOverflow, as you (implicitly) suggested.

For programmatic approaches (as in "programming"), that should be the right site. Please check with their /help/on-topic for their "quality guidelines" though, you might need some editing after it's migrated (not sure, I'm not that active at SO). At least the android tag should be added then ;) Good luck! // Btw: If you're rather looking for "an app that can disable TalkBack automatically based on the app running in foreground", SR might be a possibility for that.


text:
Upgrade Sony Xperia M Dual C2005 to Lollipop CM12
want to upgrade my Android OS from Jellybean 4.3 to Lollipop but unfortunately Sony has ended it's support for my phone, Sony Xperia M Dual-SIM C2005. I've searched in google about Sony Xperia M upgrade to Lollipop but the result always for single-SIM. My question is can I still upgrade my phone (Sony Xperia M Dual C2005)? If I can, how? Do I have to format all internal memory and can't be backed up?
Thanks


text:
Google Play app won't open on Cyanogenmod
I am using a Samsung Galaxy S5 and I have just installed a Cyanogenmod 13 Nightly. I have TWRP and I have already installed the gaaps package. I have google play installed but it won't open when I press it, it would just pop back to the home screen. And I couldn't install any apps online right now because I am the default browser doesn't allow me to download anything. So when I tried download an apk, or anything, the browser simply closes and says "Unfortunately, Browser has stopped."
Please help!

Change the nightly or wait for another build. In the meantime, report the developers about the issue. Nightlies, by their very nature, are unstable builds, hence, they are not worth the effort for us to find solution for their issues since the next or upcoming build possibly would/should fix the issue.

I'm voting to close this question  because the consensus here  implies that a question directly related to nightly build of a ROM becomes obsolete quickly and are not helpful to site in long run.

You could try to download .apk to your computer and then use adb install your_package.apk command to install it to your device. Android SDK is required to do this.
UPD: Also, as Firelord mentioned in comment - do not use nightly builds. They are unstable. It could be a reason. Try some stable build.


text:
How can my applications be using a total of 1.44 TB?
I have a Samsung S4 16 GB with android 5.0 stock ROM, and when I check my user data it says that my programs are using up 1.44 TB. How can this even be possible?
Screen shot:

Can you add a screenshot of what happens if you click on apps?

If I press applications I'm taken to a list of all programs that are installed and how much memory they use.

I meant so you can see how much space they are using

But what good will that do? Either my applications are actually using that much memory which sounds pretty weird, or there is some bug in the output of how much memory that is actually used.

Then you can see if there is an individual app using this amount of space

No one is, it is the combined usage of all the applications.

So, all the applications seemingly report inflated usage?! Try the DiskUsage app to see how storage is really allocated. Do you have a (dodgy?!) external memory card?


text:
Exact same contact shown twice
I have a contact that is shown twice in the contacts list. The copies are not from different accounts (so they cannot be joined), they are not two different entries in the same account(so they cannot be merged in Google contacts online), it is exactly the same contact. If I edit one, the other gets also edited.

I have tried joining them on the phone, it says "contacts joined" but nothing happens. The two copies are still there.
I have tried deleting the contacts, but when I delete one of them then I cannot access the remaining copy in the list as tapping on it shows the message "the contact does not exist".
Another strange thing is that one of the copies does not belong to any account at all. When displaying one account contacts only (eg Google contacts, Whatsapp, etc.) it shows only one copy (the same for all accounts containing the contact, it is a joined contact).
Finally, it is worth mentioning that this happened after installing Whatsapp and this contact has two mobile numbers associated so it appears twice in contact list inside Whatsapp. I do not mind having the same person twice in Whatsapp, but I would like to have only one copy in my contacts list on the phone.

What can I do?
Edit: I have removed my Whatsapp account from Settings->Accounts and the duplicated contact has disappeared. As soon as Whatsapp synchronises again, it appears again.
I have also noticed that it is the only contact with two mobile numbers and each of them has its own Whatsapp account so that there are two different entries in the contact list inside Whatsapp. I have other contacts with two mobile numbers but only one of them is associated to a Whatsapp account and appears only once in both Whatsapp and Phone contact lists.
is it then a Whatsapp bug? is there someone else with the same problem?

My mother has the same problem on her Redmi 2. I used to have it too,but now I don't and I don't remember how I got rid of it

Did you find the answer useful?

check the format of the number, remove brackets and such, add country dialing code.

Somewhere in Settings you can see Contacts to display
Now it shows different options like Show All Contacts, Device Contacts, SIM Contacts, Whatsapp Contacts and of all accounts that you have. Simply select your desired option as mine was to show SIM Contacts.

can you offload device contacts somehow?

Due to the lack of details like screenshots, multiple apps I would be answering it as a what's app case
Principle: The basic principle is that every name has only one contact number storage space if you're storing it in sim card but if you're storing it in phone memory then only it would support multiple numbers to a single name.
What's app assigns every contact a single number just as in sim storage.
Now if under contact settings/display you select to show all contacts I.e Phone, sim,whats app, email, gtalk etc then you will end up with multiple name display so far that you need to choose a single location where would you Store your contacts (settings menu is standard on all Android phones but only the appearance may vary due to the OEM flavour on top of Android)
-Normally i save all new contacts in sim to have it safe just in case there's system failure and it's formatted and later copy it to the memory card.
-After that I hide the sim contacts display, all other's app contacts display in phone , merge duplicates with this I avoid duplicate display of contacts from each and every app installed and get a summarised display.
Note

While saving contacts with same name and multiple no on sim card just add a identifiable suffix like name.1 so on so forth.
Later once you hide and merge duplicates then you won't get multiple names to worry and what's app would take all the names from sim card so you will get the names as you saved.

Open WhatsApp, goto Settings and un-check "Show all contacts" check-box.

I was getting the same issue in my mobile.
Now I find the below solution for this issue. I am using Mi Note 3.

Go to setting.
  Go to System apps.
  Go to contacts.
  Click on Display preferences.
  Click on Configure contact list and select your google account. (If you want to see only whatsaap contacts then select whatsapp)

Did you take this from a website? If not, there's no need for quoting it like this, but if you did, you need to include the link to the website as well.


text:
Netflix keeps disappearing from the status/notification bar (S5)
I use the Netflix app on my phone to stream to chromecast. Ever since the update, Netflix doesn't stay open in the drag down status/notification bar so I can pause the show I'm watching, etc. The notifications are turned on in the app and in the  notification settings, even on the lock screen. But once the phone is locked, it disappears. I have uninstalled and reinstalled Netflix.

I have a GS7, and I was looking for this answer when I ended up figuring it out myself. Go into your phone settings and to notifications and make sure they are turned on for Netflix. Then the app will be able to show in your notification bar.


text:
Bottom portion of text & numbers are not showing my screen
I think I inadvertly deleted something in my device that now makes it only display the top 2/3's of text and numbers on some apps,settings and spec stuff.
I used various antivirus apps that may have allowed me to delete important OS files as junk files or something similar.
Can you please help with suggestion on returning my Ellipsis 10 back to normal? It is not rooted. It runs Android Lollipop 5.1.

Welcome to Android Stack Exchange. I'm not quite sure what you mean in your question. What do you mean you deleted the top 2/3s of text and numbers? Also, what did you delete? It shouldn't be possible to delete anything too crucial to the system without root access. Hope to get your issue solved.

Hi.Thank you. I meant that the bottom third portion of script has been erased on words all over my  tablet . Like half of the word on the bottom as in "B" you would only be able to see the top portion of that only that letter. The bottom part would be missing and that would be that way all across the word.One app let me delete "junk"  67 UI system files and I think that may be what caused it.Can I re-Rom or re-Firmware or something my Android tablet???Can I reload Lolipop 5.1?

Could you provide the screenshot to clarify the issue? Also, what is the name of the antivirus app that deleted the files? System files should not be able to be accessed if the device is not rooted.

This is a very strange issue. I've never heard of anything like this. If you could provide additional details as Andrew T. said, that would be great.

Yes.O.K.I think it might of been from a Battery Saver app.I

continued- I downloaded about 20 Battery Saver apps and Memory and Cache clean&boost apps to find the most suitable and effective ones and I think a Battery Saver App went into my UI system and wiped out a few essential!

Sorry I inexplicably keep hitting the post button!?!? But a few OS files or firmware or Bios or something or another got taken away by one of the fore mentioned apps and now part of my text is being omitted so its almost illegible in some places.I'll try to send a screen shot if I can.This app did a deep clean and removed some functional files for the basic normal operation of my Android Ellipsis tablet.How can I replace the removed part so that it will operate properly again so that I don't have missing parts on letters words and numbers?

Okay, I know this isn't really an answer (since I don't know what the problem is, screenshot would help), but anyway.
Firstly, try to turn your device off and then on again, it can be surprising how problems can be fixed with a simple reboot.
If a reboot does not solve the problem, what did you do before the problem appeared ? Did you install an app ? If so, uninstall it. Did you change a setting ? If so, change it back.
Try to go into the Settings, and if there is a "developer options" entry (at the bottom, under "System") go into it, and make sure the toggle at the top is set to "Off".
If nothing else works, you can always do a factory reset (which will wipe all your data), and that should fix it. (I'm not suggesting that a factory reset is necessary - it's very likely that your problem can be fixed in some other way.)
You say you installed 20 battery booster and cache cleaner apps ? That seems a bit excessive. Try to uninstall them, if you haven't already.

As a side note: these apps don't do anything which Android cannot do on it's own. (You should read this)In fact, they will probably slow down your device and cause battery drain, esp. If you have 20 of them installed.
If your battery life is less than what  you'd expect, there is a "battery" menu in the settings, which will tell you exactly what used how much battery. In my experience, this is a lot more helpful than some automagic all in one battery saver app.
If your device is slow, you probably have too many apps installed - installing a cache cleaner app isn't going to fix that.

OK Thanks that was helpful.l was only trying out the twenty apps to find a couple of good ones and the one named Cleaner Pro by Adwave found some UI system apps it considered junk so I permitted it's removing them and I kinda suspect now they may have been important to the operation of my tablet.So I may eventually try a factory reset as you recommend to see if returns it to normal.I would send a screenshot but I don't know the procedure of sending to here.How do I share it or email it?And to where?I'm not familiar with the transmission of a screen shot process to here.Care to explain?

Oh incidently will a factory reset obliterate all my 190 apps???

@stanwo Yes, factory reset will delete everything, including your apps. That's why it's called factory reset, it returns your device to the state it was in whein it was entirely new. To post a screenshot here, first take a screenshot on your device, and the edit your question to upload and include the screenshot in your question, I believe there's a button to add a screenshot / image in the editor. Check this: https://meta.stackexchange.com/questions/75491/how-to-upload-an-image-to-a-post

A factory reset may not reinstall system apps that were uninstalled if this is the case since I believe that a factory reset only wipes /data and /cache...

@LJD200, OP says his device is not rooted, so no way system apps could have been uninstalled.

@JonasCz That's exactly what I thought but OP also said that it removed UI system apps and it's certainly a strange issue if no system apps were removed. This should not be able to happen and I'm not quite sure how it did...


text:
Make the phone always-listening to "OK Google" with fingerprint sensor on Nexus 5X
I have a Nexus 5X running Android 6 Marshmallow, and I want "OK Google" trained to my voice to work when the device is on but the screen is off. I also use fingerprint scanner for "smart lock"/screen lock. When I say "OK Google", the device requests a fingerprint or PIN before it will do the action requested. This renders the feature pretty useless as it's mostly a hands-free tool. (Note: "OK Google" works perfectly with no screen lock activated.)
Given that OK Google is trained to my voice only and that it is a hands-free feature, I find it strange that I can't use it that way when using the fingerprint scanner or other screen lock feature. Is there a way to do it?
I'm happy to have no screen lock but just have the fingerprint scanner turn the screen on instead, if that's possible - I find it useful when taking the device out of my pocket.

Can you check the setting if the "Trusted voice" is enabled on Google Settings - Voice -  "Ok Google" detection - Trusted voice?

Yes its enabled and trained to my voice

Under Security and under Smart Lock, go to Trusted voice and check the option that says Always on. That's how I got "OK Google" to work when my phone is locked. I use the fingerprint lock as well.

Nope, still asks for pin/pattern, even with these settings


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Unlock Phone without the Screen (neither seeing anything nor touch is possible) or USB-Debugging
I have a problem with my mothers Samsung Galaxy S3. The Screen is completly dark and it seems like the phone doesn't react to touches.
There are pictures and contacts at the internal storage, wich are needed.
The Phone isn't rooted, the USB-Debugging is disabled, adb doesn't recognize the device and now i don't know what to do. I can't use a remote device like a mouse to unlock it, since i can't see where the mouse is.
I'm an IT student so feel free to use technical terms :)

Welcome to the Android Enthusiasts! While waiting for answers, have a look at our broken-screen tag-wiki – you might find your issue covered there already ;)


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Flash stock ROM on Amlogic Android Smart TV Box
I have a Amlogic S805 Quad Core TV Box - which went "south" on me during a ROM update. I tried to reset it, but then noticed the reset button had come away from the internals. I managed to get it to the flash screen via SD Card, but it says it - "cannot be mounted, as the folders do not exist".
How can I put the Android ROM onto the flash drive of this box - tried to connect via a USB lead - but my PC will not pick up the box at all.

I removed the specs since I don't think it will help solving the issue (you can still check the specs on the original revision). Also, this seems to be an XY problem. Please clarify the real question, instead of asking how to do your proposed approach.

I need to re-instate the original ROM on my TV Box, and need to know a way to connect to the box - or find out why the SD Card is failing to mount


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switching my google account
so I have two Gmail accounts. I made one of them my account on my cell phone and then now, a year later, I switched to my other account. has anything happened? anything changed? and also, why do I need to be signed in with a google account in the first place? to get apps?

Nothing will be affected. when you login to.Your account your Google account gets synced and gets its self updated and yeah definitely you will be having large number of unread e-mails.You can also have multiple Google accounts running at the same time.


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How to sync facebook events with my android 2.3.4 calendar?
I'm trying to sync my facebook events with my android calendar. The goal is to have an automatic sync between facebook events and 'some' account that is usable by android 2.3.4 account management. I choose google account as the most known to me.
My plan was to:
1. sync facebook calendar with google calendar using 'ical' (https://www.facebook.com/help/152652248136178 and https://support.google.com/calendar/answer/37100?hl=en)
2. sync the google account with my android device so I have access to the google's calendar.
Unfortunately the facebook > google sync doesn't work and I get "We could not parse the calendar at the URL requested." error message. Changing 'webcal' prefix into 'http' or 'https' doesn't help. I tried to import my facebook event into other calendar (thunderbird's lightning) and it worked without any problems. I also tried to export the calendar into ical file (.ics) and import it (from file, not from url like previously) and it worked. It displayed my facebook events in my google calendar, but as I understand this is on-time-action and this won't sync.
Some other information that might be useful:
- android 2.3.4 doesn't support google calendar app, I'm using the 'default' one
- I can't upgrade my android
- the default facebook app is too clunky and I'm using the lite version, but I can't find any calendar option there
- I'm ok with using other apps to make the sync working
- I'm not ok with daily manual sync.
Do you know how to sync facebook events with my android calendar?


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Is there a way to always open Google Drive shortcuts from the same account?
I have 3 accounts attached to my Galaxy S6. I have a Google Drive shortcut to a spreadsheet on my home screen, but every time I click it, a popup asks me which account I want to view it from. The sheet is only shared with one of my accounts.
Is there any way to set a default account to a document? My goal is to reach the sheet in 1 click, and the shortcut currently requires 2, which is the same as if I opened it directly through the Drive app. This defeats the purpose of having a shortcut at all.
Alternatively: If I sync the file to my phone for offline storage, is there a way to create a shortcut widget there directly?

If you sync for off line access, you can easily create a shortcut using file explorer like ES File Explorer. You would need to long press the file in the explorer view and select more >Add to desktop. If this is good enough for you can post as an answer

Try deleting the shortcut and re-creating it. When you create a shortcut it should ask you which account to use before you select which file the shortcut should point to.
I had a similar issue on my LG G4 where it always asked which account to use. I think it is because I created the shortcut using a Google account that I subsequently removed and then added back on to the device.


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Home Automation Apps for Android - what is important to consider?
I want to start using my Android phone for home automation. As a starting point, I want set a lamp to turn-on shortly after my alarm-clock goes off. Having heard that there are outlets that can be controlled from your phone, I stumbled across this page which lists a bunch of them and now I am overwhelmed by the multitude of options. From this question, I see that there is also a multitude of software options.
I looked a little more closely at Belkin's WeMo which seemed a good harmony of cheap and functional but was discouraged when I noticed that there are so many negative reviews. There seem to be a number of independent apps for controlling WeMo and most have better reviews than the official one.
My question is this: what should I consider when choosing an app for home automation? Obviously, its important that the app can successfully interact with the hardware and its nice when apps don't mine your data but I am not at all clear on other considerations that are important for choosing one. I am pretty new to Android (and smart phones in general) so general-purpose considerations are welcome but I am primarily interested in home-automation specific considerations.
Any feedback on hardware is also appreciated - I am thinking of getting a WeMo outlet or a cheap Chinese knock-off; as long as it will let me control an outlet remotely as well as based on the time of day.
My phone is a Samsung Galaxy S6 running Android 5.1.1

The usual stuff I'd say: well supported/maintained (updates), good rating. And of course supporting your hardware. Good choice is multi-protocol, in case you switch to another system / add hardware from another system. FHEM/andFHEM is a good example for that. As for the "multitude of software options": See my list on Home Automation :)


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Moto G auto lock issue
I have set the auto lock for my Moto G if it stays idle for 15 seconds.unfortunately this is feature is not working. I have tired changing the idle time as well, like 5 seconds ,30 secs etc, but nothing works.

Have you checked the Smart Lock settings?


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upgrading to an unofficial rom
I have lg prada 3.0 running android 2.3.7.
Inspite of all my attempts to update to the official ICS (4.0) rom I faced alote of errors , And finally I decided not to update!
now I want to know if I can install Cyanogenmod 10.2 rom on android 2.3.7 without upgrading to the last official rom? I mean ,will I face any errors doing this?

According to

Initial install
Make sure you are updated to stock LG ICS update (v20d) prior flashing the first time.
And remember to wipe data/cache
(These steps need only to be done once. Later updates can be just flashed over an existing installation without the need of a wipe)
From:[ROM][P940][JB][4.3.1] CyanogenMod 10.2 for LG Prada 3.0

please check which LG ICS update you've already had> If your update name is different than that, please don't do it or you would brick your device.
Check if there are any similar ICS update issue, if not create a new topic.
Hope it help


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How can I have the old CRT effect run properly on Kitkat?
I'm using a rooted MT6592 phone, running Android 4.4.2 (Kitkat). It's loaded with the Xposed Framework along with Gravitybox. In Gravitybox there's a setting to have a CRT effect when the screen is locked:
Gravitybox → Display tweaks → CRT screen off effect → CRT
I used this effect back in the days when I had a Gingerbread device. It used to be very smooth. The CRT effect I have right now is a bit disappointing though. It's not as smooth and there seems to be a small delay after locking the screen before the CRT off effect is activated. Moreover, there's a black screen before activating the CRT effect. So, what happens is:

I press the lock screen button
The screen goes black, waits a couple of ms
The CRT effect starts.

I recorded a video to clarify this behaviour.
It's very subtle but there's definitely a difference. For comparison, this is what it used to look like. You can see that the screen does not go black before activating the CRT effect; it's activated instantly.
I followed the steps written in this post, but that didn't help.

There seems to be an issue with fade effect triggering CRT and vice versa see this http://forum.xda-developers.com/xposed/modules/app-gravitybox-v3-1-5-tweak-box-android-t2554049/page127 Ads and github documentation https://github.com/GravityBox/GravityBox/issues/1139. Maybe you can fiddle around with fade effect to see if it helps

Thank you, but that does not seem to be the issue.


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How to download an app from another region/country?
I've found duplicate posts, but they are outdated.  The solutions no longer work as some of the apps have been deprecated, and things have changed since 2013.  My phone is NOT rooted, I have a HTC ONE M8, running Android 6.0.
I'm in the Middle East (but my Google account is based in the USA since I live there), and I'm trying to download an app that is only available here in the Middle East.  However, when I search for the app in my play store, I'm finding only the USA equivalent, which doesn't have the features I need while I'm here.  I'm physically not in the USA though, and my sim card is a local one from the Middle East so when I access the play store its weird how I'm still getting US based apps.
I've tried changing my country in payments.google.com > settings, and erased all data of my play store and play services, went back in and its still showing me results for the USA.  The only thing that makes sense to me is that somewhere in my google account it still has my country/region as USA.  How can I change this?  Would creating another account be a good idea?  I just don't want to have to sign out of my google account, but if its the only way I guess I'll try that.
If the best solution is creating a google account, I've actually gone ahead and done that, but how do I switch accounts?  I don't want to lose any data in the process of switching accounts.

The VPN solution mentioned in How can I circumvent regional restrictions in Google's Play Store? doesn't work either?Or the "Hola app" mentioned in How do I download an app from another country?

I don't see how a VPN will help.  I'm physically in the country, and I'm using a SIM card from within that country.  I tried downloading HOLA, I'm able to search for and find the app, but not install it because when it asks for my credentials it tells me the app is incompatible with my device.

Can you check the CSC code here and find a way to change it if it is still showing USA http://www.droidtutorials.com/tutorials/all-htc-one-m8-secret-codes.html

Your comment contradicts with your question then, giyad: you ask how to download an app from another region/country, but your issue is that app doesn't install because it's not compatible with your device. The two are not even remotely related.See:Why are some apps on the market incompatible with my device? / How does Google Play work out if an app is compatible with my device?

No I don't contradict myself I just seem to have not written the question out clearly.  I've included updates, hope that clears it up.  The issue is that I have a USA gmail account because I live in the US.  But I'm traveling right now, I have a local sim card (not the USA one), and I'm trying to download an app in the country where I am, but it keeps showing me the USA equivalent.  I'll look into the incompatibility though.

Got it working by installing the APK.  Its definitely an account region issue.

@giyad Maybe you write up an answer with the steps performed, and then accept it? It's absolutely legit to answer your own question ;)

Thanks @Izzy, went ahead and did that, wanted to give the credit to Matt_Roberts though since he suggested it.

There were two ways I was able to solve this.  I preferred to use the APK method, but the other method was to create a google account in that country and add it.  APK method was cleaner.

The best solution I found for this issue which also works for things like getting Netflix content for other regions, is to use a VPN service.
I personally use VPN Unlimited at the moment though there are plenty of others available. However, for the vast majority of these you are required to pay some sort of subscription (luckily I got mine on an offer of lifetime usage for $29.99).
I am in the UK and all I need to do with this app is open it, select a server in the region of choice and then turn on the VPN service and for all intents and purposes any website or app that looks for a region thinks I am in the same region as my chosen server (I usually use one in the US).
I am sure there may be cost free versions available but I suspect they will be at some performance cost such as limited download usage or bandwidth but its worth looking into.

How does the VPN help?  I'm in the country physically, and I have a local sim card, but my google account is not letting e download the app.  The issue as I understand it is coming from my account itslef no?  I'm testing out HOLA right now, which is a free VPN

Most apps and internet pages look at the origin of your IP address. A VPN masks your originating IP address and makes it appear as though you are using the one in the servers location, hence the app or web page thinks that is the location you are in. I say most as some apps may indeed look at your account settings but I have successfully used VPN to get apps that are available in the US before or not at all available the UK (which is sadly a few). If you don't like this solution or can't get it to work, you may be able to download the APK file for the app separately and manually install it.

I just used the APK like you suggested, can't accept your answer because its not the VPN thats the issue.  I'm able to use the app fine once installed, the issue was getting google to let me install it via the play store.  I'm sure its an account thing, not sure where that setting would be though. By adding another google account created in the Middle East, I was able to find and install the app.  I preferred to use the APK in the end though because I don't want to have multiple accounts.

VPN is absolutely useless...  I have the exact same issue.  Account is a US Google account but I actually live in South Korea right now.  For various reasons I don't want to change regions because I would lose access to some things (music for example).  I am unable to download Korean region apps off the play store.  I both live in South Korea and have a South Korean SIM card (and I have for several years now)

@Goblinlord this is almost certainly useless now, however for some apps I have had this method work in the now distant past though also having to set the locale too thinking about it. Side loading seems to be the best way to do it in any case.

You could try just downloading the APK file and try installing the app that way.

OP got it to work by intsalling the APK


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Is accessing Google Play Music subscription files legal?
From Where does Google Play Music v5 store music locally? I can see that if I am rooted, I can access the .mp3 files which I have downloaded to play offline from my Google Play Music subscription and move it to (say) my computer.
Now I know(?) that rooting is legal, but is retrieving music that I have downloaded to my Nexus 5 as part of my Play Music subscription also legal? I'm not planning on sharing the files, but only playing the music on my computer and home media player (which is not an Android TV).

I'm not sure if this is the correct site to ask for legal advice. Maybe http://law.stackexchange.com is better?

Other than @GiantTree I'm pretty sure it is not the correct site, as our [help/on-topic] clearly states it as off-topic: Legal questions. In short, you could also ask whether circumventing DRM is legal. In both cases, answers might depend on what country you live in, and even considering that might be difficult to answer. The site GiantTree referred to might indeed be better suited – but check their /help/on-topic page first to make sure.

I'm voting to close this question as off-topic because it's about legal advice, which is explicitly stated off-topic by our [help/on-topic].

Form the Google Play Terms of Use

Capturing of Streams. You may not use Google Play or any Content in conjunction with any stream-ripping, stream capture or similar software to record or create a copy of any Content that is presented to you in streaming format.
Sharing. You may not use Content as part of any service for sharing, lending or multi-person use, or for the purpose of any other institution, except as specifically permitted and only in the exact manner specified and enabled by Google (for example, through “Social Recommendations”).
Security Features. You may not attempt to, nor assist, authorise or encourage others to circumvent, disable or defeat any of the security features or components, such as digital rights management software or encryption, that protect, obfuscate or otherwise restrict access to any Content or Google Play. If you violate any security feature, you may incur civil or criminal liability.


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Accessing the top bar in Android Google docs without scrolling to top
When editing a Google document on Android using the Google Drive app, there is a bar which contains a number of touch buttons for formatting, sharing, comments, etc.
However this bar only seems to display by default when at the very top of the document, or after scrolling up (away from the thing I am editing), which becomes a pain as a document gets larger. Is there some way to access these options from anywhere within the document?


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Getting BT Notifier application to link U8 Smart Watch with No Carrier Nexus 7
I have a Google Nexus 7, no SIM card, tablet. I recently acquired a U8 Smart Watch. The app that the watch recommends to download to link the two devices, "BT Notifier", apparently no longer exists. The replacement app, as found here, is marked as incompatible with my tablet, with some poking around online suggesting that they've labeled it as only able to be used with Android phones.
How do I get this application to work? Since I don't do phone calls, I have no real need for things like viewing call logs on my phone, but it would be nice to be able to use my watch to change things on my tablet, such as the currently playing song, when jogging (as otherwise, I'd have to pull my backpack around, unearth the tablet, etc).
I am working on a rooted Nexus 7 with OS of 5.1.1.

I just got the V8 Plus.  I couldn't get it to pair to my Nexus 5 stock with the BT Notifier.  However, it did pair with both of these applications
MediaTek Smart Device
FunDo Smart Device
Both those applications look very similar once they're installed.
Once it paired I could make calls from the watch, remotely trigger the phone camera, see text messages, etc.

Unfortunately, neither work for me with my U8, but thank you for trying.


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Can I make the weather widget depend on wifi rather than location?
I upgraded from Galaxy Mega to Galaxy S6 Edge +.
The weather widget seems to depend on me turning on 'location' (which I'm guessing is the renaming of GPS). In Mega, I need only Wifi. Now, I have to turn on location.
Is there a way I can still use the weather widget to see temperature without turning location? If not, what can I use to see temperature and time using a widget way without turning on location?

Check Settings->Privacy and Security->Location->Search method->Select WiFi and mobile networks.
It's there, just named differently because you don't need GPS for location and may choose to disable that feature completely.


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How can I make incremental nandroid backups?
I'm using PhilZ Touch 6.57.9 with ClockworkMod 6.0.5.1 on a MT6592 device. I'm creating backups every once in a while from my phone to my 16-GB SD card.
These SD cards tend to get full pretty fast, so I'm wondering if there's a way to create incremental backups. It would be nice if it's possible using PhilZ .

Does it take too long for the device to make full backup? Because I do not see benefit in having incremental backup.

It would be nice to be able to have multiple backups without moving them to my PC every so many weeks.

Are you familiar with sh/bash scripting? You can use find to list all the files/directories which have changed or created since last backup time and them copy them into a tar file. Put that script into a flashable zip and there you go. Incremental backups for you.


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Dual active LTE + multipath tcp + VPN
I travel a lot and having a constantly reliable Internet connection is high on my priority list.  Tethering from my phone is often times spotty.  Different carriers are good in some areas and poor in others.  To further complicate things, sometimes even a good connection can randomly hike packet loss rates and response times.
I'm searching for a solution.  Something with much more reliability and consistency to tether my laptop to.  I'm willing to pay for multiple carriers.  I figure I can set something up with multiple sims that supports multipath tcp and then use a VPN connection to a AWS EC2 instance I setup and control.
So what I'm looking for is a dual active sim device that supports simultaneous LTE on both sims.  So the first part of the question is what hardware device supports this?
According to Wikipedia there's a multipath TCP networking layer for Android.  Is this standard in the latest version of Android or is this something I have to manually install?
I figure Android is a good way to accomplish this goal, but in the event that the hardware just isn't available, is there a non-Android solution that would accomplish the same thing while being as portable as a phone?  I've seen professional units that accomplish this but they're bulky and have external power requirements that wouldn't fit in my pocket.

Consider also using speedify for combining wifi hotspots generated from 2 phones, also see this answer: http://superuser.com/questions/606307/is-it-possible-to-use-multiple-3g-dongles-simultaneously

Hey there Daniel, you've got two answers to this question now! Does either one help? Could you accept the one that's the best?

Android's multipath TCP networking layer is only able to use WiFi and Cellular concurrently and can't use multiple of the same connections at once (as far as I know).
However. You can use a mobile WiFi Router from Huawei for example. To get a seamless LTE and WiFi over LTE connection. The Huawei router is very fast and as big as my phone so very easy to carry. It offers about 8 hours of coverage but they have models that are slightly bigger that offer 20 hours.
This way you can use for example Samsung's download boost to use LTE and Wifi at the same time to get double the speeds/reliability. I would suggest you get sim cards from 2 major different providers for extra reliability so if one is under maintenance/has low coverage you can rely on the other.
I hope this helped if you have more questions feel free to ask.
*If you want to double your speed you might also want to look into NIC teaming I think this only works on windows / pc's though

Is the download boost (LTE+wifi simultaneous) only available on Samsung phones or is it available on other modules, such as the Moto G 3rd gen (4g)? 2) Would it be available in future releases?

As far as I know Samsung is the only one to preload it on its devices but it can be installed manually from the google play store have a look at "SuperBoost". - Root may be required

I dont know if the app is still on the google play store but multipath TCP is required for it to work. If you do not have multipath TCP you can try flashing a kernel that does support it if you meet the hardware requirements.

is this it? It's called Super Download: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=it.opbyte.superdownload_lite

Yes that's it worked out for me although according to other people (My dad's S6) it does not work. So I'd say try it out first and if it does not work with the apps you need you might need to look for an alternative.

+1 I've upvoted your answer @Joost Blok. I'll keep the question open in case anyone else wants to add an answer, if that's OK. Your answer is helpful so far, thank you.  Can you suggest a setup for tethering to a PC using dual sims?

Let us continue this discussion in chat.

bounty awarded as it answers original posters question. However, I think speedify is the best option for them.

Google's Project Fi is a carrier tailor-made for traveling so you don't need an additional hotspot. It's basically what you're describing above. Fi is less expensive than almost any other US carrier you'll find, aggregates signal from 4 different carriers, doesn't charge extra for international data, and supports voice calling and LTE data in 135 countries. For Project Fi, you'll need a Nexus 5X, Nexus 6P, or Pixel; the Nexus 5X is the cheapest (you can pick one up from Fi for $250 unlocked, with no contract).
Calling & texting is cheap and works from almost anywhere in the world—see the list of 135 countries here—and data comes from US carriers T-Mobile, Sprint, and US Cellular & UK network Three for $10 per GB. Using your phone as a hotspot is free (data costs the same $10/GB), and they'll even send you up to 10 free data-only SIM cards for your tablets (Android or iPad) and phones (Android or iPhone).
All in all, you might want to consider picking up a Nexus 5X for your travels; my 6P with Fi worked great during a recent trip to Canada.
Project Fi Website.

+1 that's a promising option, thank you.  At the moment you have to be a US customer to use it (as a UK resident, I just tried to sign up with my Google account but the page responded "Project Fi is available only for accounts in the US.") Maybe it will come to the UK in the future. For some, there is the privacy issue with Google. I recognise this concern but overcoming the frustration of patchy mobile internet is more important to me.

@therobyouknow Pretty sure if you set your address to something in the US, it'll work just fine (weird that they have that restriction, especially since they include signal from UK carrier Three). Also pretty sure that Google won't actually get any more of your data, it only goes to their carrier partners (and besides, can't they just spy through Android if they want?).

@owlswipe Android is open source so any data backdoors would probably have been found by now. The data can of course be taken from apps like gmail, google play store etc. Even if you search on google they can know your IP, Location if you allow it and more. Also the project fi is good because it has multiple carriers to switch between. If it only has one in the UK its kind of useless for the OP.

I'm inclined to think that getting 2 (cheap) 4G phones and using speedify to combine their wifi hotspots is the best option for most flexibility albeit cumbersome with more devices 1) you can choose which carriers you want to use 2) it can work in any country 3) you can choose the tariffs offered

@therobyouknow You can manually switch carriers in Fi: http://android.stackexchange.com/questions/154320/manually-switch-carriers-project-fi. But yeah, 2 phones would do the trick too, maybe even better.

2 phones would probably guarantee good speeds but they would also need charging because 2 phones providing AP for lets say 8 hours a day drains the battery superfast.

@JoostBlok True, there are a lot of factors at play here. No matter which route you take, bring along a portable battery pack.

Thanks for your encouraging comments owlswipe and Joost Block

@therobyouknow Thanks, let us know what you determine the best method is.

If you buy one Vodafone Smart prime 7 and connect it to your phone. Has 2.450mAh and you could buy a battery pack for about 10 so I'd say around 90 for the entire connection package. You could connect them together using connectify. A 4G LTE router costs about 100 but might offer better connection speeds since it is "made" for those kinds of usage. you can put the second sim in your phone. Then you can use something like superboost or Samsung's speed boost to combine wifi and LTE together for double speed. One of the routers can last up to 20 hours on battery according to the specifications.

Thanks owlswipe for  your input. I have given the bounty to JoostBlok as they answer the original question about Android multiple TCP connections. However thanks for your input on Project Fi as this could be a possible solution for the original poster.

@therobyouknow Understood, you're welcome :)

I would suggest the best solution is speedify for the original poster as this service enables multiple internet connections, including LTE/4G, 3G, Wifi etc to be combined.
The original question caught my interest as I had the same issue with variable mobile coverage whilst on the move. In my example, I'm travelling up and down from Southampton to London Waterloo in the UK daily, I wanted better internet than one operator can provide. South West Trains do offer a free WiFi service which I am told bonds the 4 UK operators, however this is shared among all the passenger so can be unusable at peak times but is OK off peak.
I have awarded the bounty to Joost as they directly answer the original poster's question however I would believe that my answer provides the most flexible solution.
Update
For my solution, I'm actually now using Speedify (speedify) - see my write up here: https://apple.stackexchange.com/questions/235813/how-to-use-bluetooth-pan-and-wifi-simultaneously-in-osx/272551#272551

Support for the Multipath TCP (RFC8684) is available for some slightly older Android phones, but it requires that the device be rooted. It allows for simultaneous use of WiFi and Celllular connections by TCP connections.

all_licenses: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/


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How to prevent brightness when battery reaches high?
I leave my phone (Samsung Galaxy 4 GT-I9506, Android 5.0.1 lollipop) charging on my table when going to sleep. It reaches full after some hours often. It is so annoying when the display becomes bright after battery reaching full, awakening me.
I know the thread How to prevent brightness from going to full when the battery low popup appears? about the prevention of bright display when the battery goes low. The rooted device seems to be the only choice to change the default behavior. I have unsuccessfully installed CyanogenMod in the device a few times. I am open about other ways to root this device and change its default behavior.
Settings > Display does not have any features by which you can alter the brightness mode. It would be great to customize the brightness in different modes, etc when the battery is low. In the link, the user did not want to consume extra battery with display when the battery was extremely low.
I installed Firelord proposed, Tasker, where I am working the automation. I probably need to root my phone for sufficient change.

How can you prevent brightness when battery reaches full in Android?

I can't say whether it would work but in Tasker, you can setup a profile to decrease the brightness the moment battery charges to full. Profile: Event -> Power -> Battery  Full -> Highest. Action: Display -> Display Brightness. Use this in context of time so that this happens only when you sleep. This can be achieved using MacroDroid also.

You may come close but cannot prevent that behavior unless there is a setting unbeknownst to you or the device is rooted. No matter what automation app you use, the brightness would be set to maximum whenever the battery level reaches 100% and in a matter of few milliseconds, it would revert to whatsoever you want it to be. My solution takes care of that problem. Originally posted here.
The file named max_brightness, a file under /sys, hence a part of Linux kernel and directly managed by it, appears to be the key to the solution. I found that setting the brightness limit in that file is one of the best ways to tackle the issue.
I noticed that once your custom maximum brightness is set, neither Android nor an app was able to set brightness beyond that custom level unless they changed the content of that file, which often an app has no reason to and none of them changed either. Besides, the file is owned by root and is part of group root, so any app or even system_server would require root privilege to make changes into that file.
Finding that file is bit tricky. In my MTK device with Android 4.2, that file appears to be under /sys/devices/platform/leds-mt65xx/leds/lcd-backlight/.
In my Qualcomm device with Android 5.0.2 and above, the file appeared to be in /sys/devices/mdp.0/qcom,mdss_fb_primary.168/leds/lcd-backlight/.
I assume that the best way to find that file is to run a search query (setup adb for that), such as:
(Requires busybox)
adb shell su -c 'find /sys/ -type f -iname "max_brightness"'

In my Qualcomm device, the output it gives is:

/sys/devices/f9924000.i2c/i2c-2/2-0068/leds/red/max_brightness
/sys/devices/f9924000.i2c/i2c-2/2-0068/leds/blue/max_brightness
/sys/devices/f9924000.i2c/i2c-2/2-0068/leds/green/max_brightness
/sys/devices/mdp.0/qcom,mdss_fb_primary.168/leds/lcd-backlight/max_brightness
/sys/devices/qcom,camera-led-flash.81/leds/torch-light/max_brightness
/sys/devices/msm_sdcc.1/leds/mmc0::/max_brightness
/sys/devices/msm_sdcc.2/leds/mmc1::/max_brightness
/sys/devices/01-qcom,leds-d300/leds/led:flash_torch/max_brightness
/sys/devices/01-qcom,leds-d300/leds/led:flash_0/max_brightness
/sys/devices/01-qcom,leds-d300/leds/led:flash_1/max_brightness
/sys/devices/01-qcom,leds-e200/leds/kpdbl-lut-2/max_brightness
/sys/devices/01-qcom,leds-e200/leds/kpdbl-pwm-3/max_brightness
/sys/devices/01-qcom,leds-e200/leds/kpdbl-pwm-4/max_brightness
/sys/devices/01-qcom,leds-e200/leds/button-backlight/max_brightness

The location where lcd-backlight is mentioned was the only one that made sense to me and this is how I found the file in my device. Don't you worry asking about others. I attempted changing the brightness of the screen and looked for the changes in the file named brightness (also located under those said locations). None of them reflected the correct output other than the one at /sys/devices/mdp.0/qcom,mdss_fb_primary.168/leds/lcd-backlight.
Only for demonstration, try setting a limit in max_brightness
adb shell su -c 'echo LIMIT > PATH_TO_MAX_BRIGHTNESS'   # in my case PATH_TO_MAX_BRIGHTNESS is /sys/devices/mdp.0/qcom,mdss_fb_primary.168/leds/lcd-backlight/ and set LIMIT to a value less than 30 (not limited to).

Now try maxing the brightness by using brightness slider or a third party app and you would notice that the brightness of your screen doesn't exceed beyond a certain point even when slider or the app's configuration appears to be at maximum. The brightness for that "certain point" would certainly be less than the default one you are used to.
Note that the maximum value in max_brightness is often found to be 255 and the brightness ranges from 0-255. Often, not always true, that is. And fear not from setting the limit to 0. It would cause the screen not to lit until you revert the changes or restart the device.
Find a limit which would not disturb you in your sleep.

Automation
For automation, use any automation app that can run a command with root privilege and when the context of your preferred trigger is met. I recommend a time based trigger.
Some working examples:

In Tasker, setup a profile with your preferred context, create a task and use the action: Code → Run Shell:

Command: echo LIMIT > PATH_TO_MAX_BRIGHTNESS
check Use Root

In MacroDroid, setup your preferred trigger and for action install Secure Settings, choose it → Actions → Run Command:

Command: echo LIMIT > PATH_TO_MAX_BRIGHTNESS
check Use Root

In Automate, as part of your flow, when setting up an action for your trigger, select Shell command superuser under Apps and do:

Command Line: echo LIMIT > PATH_TO_MAX_BRIGHTNESS

Make sure to install all the permissions the flow require.
In DroidAutomation, setup your trigger and under task, select Root → Execute a command line and type: echo LIMIT > PATH_TO_MAX_BRIGHTNESS

As you would've guessed, you would have to setup two profiles for every app. One to setup a limit and the other to set the maximum brightness to the default you're used to.

I would like you to keep this under consideration (even though you got a hint at the beginning) that using a 100% battery trigger would defeat the purpose of this answer, which is to override the changes Android want to make. As an example, if you setup LIMIT to 0 whenever the battery reaches 100%, what would happen is your Android would lit the screen to maximum as usual and in few milliseconds (you read correctly) your automation app would run and set the limit. Your sleep may get interrupted in those milliseconds.
The workaround is to set up the battery level to 99 or less for full battery charge.
That said, I wouldn't be surprised if you avoid rooting considering that that the biggest compromise you would be making in using an answer with non-root approach is of not accounting those pesky but only milliseconds.

As suggested by @Firelord, you could try with tasker or use MacroDroid
Automation is the preferred option, or rather only option in this case. Many apps are available. I prefer using MacroDroid , since it is free (upto 5 macros) and easy to learn. To understand how MacroDroid works and the settings required for your Android version, see  my answer
Note  This is not tested on Lollipop  as I am on KitKat but should work. Ensure appropriate settings for lollipop are made
Your macro would look like this
Trigger:
Battery Level → increases to → (choose percentage preferred by you on sliding scale or 100 %)
Actions:

Brightness →0 (Choose On sliding scale- doesn't require root)
Wait before next action → set to 10 seconds (recommended to separate previous and next actions ensuring both happen)
Dim Screen →Dimmer On → 10% (Choose On sliding scale- doesn't require root, if the earlier action is not good enough for you -    this is akin to "screen filter" apps like Darker)

Constraints:
Time of Day →Start Time 2200 →End Time 0600 (assuming that's your sleep time)

Have you been able to test out please?

There is brightness for a few milliseconds when using this approach. Firelord's approach ensures no such brightness.

Actually, I am testing to find such a feature by CyanogenMod 12.1 by its default settings. It is much more customizable but I have not yet succeeded. I will let you know if I succeed.

I have posted anyway..May appeal to some


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Why can't my contacts see photos I send via SMS?
Trying to download SMS programs, tried a few, so to have better customizable color options as the new Samsung Galaxy sucks for that. Everything I have tried, whatsapp, GO SMS Pro, Viber, Hangouts, none of them let me send photos to my contacts unless they have the same SMS program. Why?  My basic SMS on the LG Android had all these basic properties and I never had issues.

Images are not actually sent via SMS, but instead use the MMS protocol. For this to work, you must have your MMS access point configured properly (this usually happens automatically):

Check with your contractors website for their MMS access point details. If they are not listed on their website, contact them.
Go to Settings -> Mobile Networks -> Access Point Names (or APNs on some devices) and add a
ProviderName MMS

where ProviderName is the name of your provider, e.g. Verizon.
Set all the values to what you got from Step 1. Some values might be missing, you can probably safely ignore them.


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How to automate Android by code and GUI in Tasker?
I have Samsung Galaxy S4 GT-I9506, Android 5.0.1 Lollipop. I am using the application, Tasker. I feel it is too visual. I would like to write its profiles and events by code such that I could easily communicate about them with my friends. For instance, how you can write the following process from their homepage in code?

during the night, turn on airplane mode to conserve battery/reduce radiation, but turn it off every 15 minutes to check for SMS/voicemail.

It would be so great to have a better control of Android's UI by functions. I think the GUI is not enough. I studied the case further. Tasker can do airplane mode only in Android 2.2-4.0. The application recommends to use Secure settings plugin and rooted device to get the feature. It would be great to understand why Tasker fails with such a feature in later versions of Android.
Any applications (MacroDroid) are ok for solutions but their solutions must be stable with explanation why they work. Like pointed above for Tasker, the change of the Android version may make the program not working. I think this kind of situation can be avoided by using APIs or designing APIs i.e. understanding which API we need for such communication. Much Android is hidden but still something can be thought through.

How can you automate by code and GUI in Android?

To close-voter: I don't think this is specifically developer-related because there's a "code" on the question. I read this question having 2 different problems: 1) writing Tasker data in code, and 2) Tasker GUI doesn't have full control on Android. While (1) is, uh, possible since it supports Tasker XML data, it's.. impractical, and still limited to Tasker functionality....

(cnt'd) As for (2), using Tasker itself (regardless of GUI or XML) is limited to its functionality, so you have to ask their developer to add another function, or install 3rd-party plugins. So, I'm not quite sure what you're asking. Tasker itself support custom variable for profile and task, but I'm not so sure how extensive it is since I don't have any experience with that.

@AndrewT. Tasker fails in the problem with Android >=5.0. That is the problem with GUI only applications that robust support cannot be maintained because no APIs exist between critical components of the software and the OS.

@Masi I acknowledged the issue with Android >=5.0 (I faced that before), and after did some research, I now know the reason. Now I see 2 questions on this revision: "It would be great to understand why Tasker fails with such a feature in later versions of Android" and "How can you automate by code and GUI in Android?". I can explain the former, but I'm still not sure about the latter, so is it okay to answer just the former?

Yes, of course.

Tasker can do Airplane mode only in Android 2.2 - 4.0. The application recommends to use Secure Settings plugin and rooted device to get the feature. It would be great to understand why Tasker fails with such a feature in later versions of Android.

The biggest reason why some Tasker tasks are broken on different Android versions is, because it doesn't require root access. From their website,

This simple concept profoundly extends your control of your Android device and it's capabilities, without the need for 'root' or a special home screen

Note that Secure Settings needs root access for Airplane mode. From its Play Store description,

Actions:

Airplane Mode [System+ required 4.2+]
Airplane Mode Radios [System+ required 4.2+].

The System+ indicates that the app needs to be installed as system app, which requires root.

.. the change of the Android version may make the program (i.e. Tasker) not working. I think this kind of situation can be avoided by using APIs or designing APIs i.e. understanding which API we need for such communication

Partially right. The change of the Android version also affects Android API, and since Tasker only uses the API, it becomes its weakness. Take an example of Airplane mode on Android 4.2+ (on Stack Overflow). The code for Airplane mode is working for Android 4.1, but then it's broken since Android 4.2. It's due to change in system's settings structure. CommonsWare explains it better on his website,

Lots of people have already chimed in on StackOverflow about Settings.Global, notably the fact that AIRPLANE_MODE is no longer available to be modified in Settings.System. Now, only signature|system apps will be able to toggle on and off airplane mode, which will wipe out many an app widget.

Due to the fact that Tasker doesn't require root access, combined with the change in Android API, some of Tasker tasks did and may fail in the future. Finally, that's the reason why there are many 3rd-party plugins that require root access to workaround with Tasker's limitation.

This is a great point The biggest reason why some Tasker tasks are broken on different Android versions is, because it doesn't require root access. From their website. It would be great to find a workaround here.


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How to change the thumbs up icon in Facebook Messenger chat?
In Facebook Messenger in the web browser or the messenger app, there is a thumbs up sticker button out by default. People I know changed it to some other icons by default, but I can't ask them how.
I don't see any option for it, yet somehow it was changed. After you change it, it will say

<person name> set the emoji to <emoji here>.

Can anyone tell me how to change it?

Mine doesn't show the option of the I either - you have to go into a chat and click the persons name at the top - there it will give you the option to change color text and emoji :)

Using Facebook Messenger, at the conversation window, go to:
Details (top-right) --> Emoji --> Pick your Emoji.
There's no option to change Emoji using the web version yet.

I don't see that option on the app

@omega Facebook Messenger, not Facebook app. Check again, it should be there.

Yep I did, those options are not there for me

is it android or ios specific? I am on android

@omega I'm on android too. My Facebook Messenger version is 53.0.0.17.308 if that helps.

I'm on 52.0.0.19.66 on note4. When I check for updates on play store, messenger app is not there.

i finally got the update to do this now


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Brightness level stuck at minimum after upgrading to Android 5.1.1
I have Sony Xperia Z (C6603, 10.7.A.0.222) and the brightness level is stuck at minimum after update to 5.1.1.
I have tried:

sensor test - light sensor is OK.
set brightness via ADB (settings put system screen_brightness 200) - didn't work.
using brightness control apps (like LUX for example) - didn't work.

Using stock ROM without root, any apps or functions that could set brightness to low for saving battery are either uninstalled or turned off? Any suggestions?

This is probably one of the oddest problems I've seen here. Have you tried a factory reset? Not really ideal, but worth a shot.

Tried it, my thoughts are it must be either hardware problem or this ROM problem.. Any suggestions?

you can flash the rom but chances are that there is hardware damage.

This happened to me on my galaxy note20 3 weeks ago.  My screen went pretty dark.  After a hour or so i saw on settings blue light filter was on.  I did not turn it on. I had to shut it off then reset the phone.


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Fix SELinux labels after restoring /data on CM 12.1
I restored an automatic backup on Cyanogenmod 12.1 created with rsync of my /data partition, but now SELinux is denying apps access to their data.
Disabling SELinux "fixes" this problem, but can I repair the SELinux labels once after restoring and keep SELinux enforced?

I've never tried this. Android provide tools to change SELinux context for a file. See http://selinuxproject.org/page/NB_SEforAndroid_1#SELinux_Commands and this for understanding: http://www.all-things-android.com/content/understanding-se-android-policy-files


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How do I change timer alarm tone in Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge +?
I upgraded from Galaxy Mega to Galaxy S6 Edge +.
There is no menu button. In Galaxy Mega, part of the menu contains changing the timer alarm tone.
How do I do that in S6 Edge +?

Galaxy mega has option in timer to change tone. This does not seem to be allowed in s6e+

Screenshots (click images for larger variants)

@beeshyams Thanks but seriously? I have to download an app just for something that simple that was even in an old model? :|

There may be a way- I can't comment since I don't own the device. Hence offered a universal solution. But then, automation is not preferred by many, hence clarified before answering :)


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Open current video in YouTube app from Firefox
From a youtube.com page open in Firefox, is there a straight-forward way to open the video using the YouTube app?
Firefox version 43.0

This may be a solution. You can make the video open in the YouTube app when you press the little Android icon in the right corner of the address bar while you're on the site!

Is there any way to not have to go through this extra step and just have Firefox open the native app when you click on the YouTube link like the Chrome browser does?

Well I have another answer. There's an extension on Firefox called Open Native App, which as the name suggests, opens things in their native apps.
From its "About this add-on"

A simple extension I created after getting frustrated with my device opening native links in Firefox rather than it's native app. Creates a menu option in your Firefox menu called "Open in Native App" which will trigger the Android intent app chooser for the link currently open.
This is confirmed working for the following:

Play Store (play.google.com)
YouTube (youtube.com)
IMDB (imdb.com)
Wikipedia (wikipedia.org)
Foursquare (foursquare.com)

Not working for:

Tumblr (tumblr.com)
Google+ (plus.google.com)
Facebook (facebook.com)


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How do I allow countdown timer alarm to go off while phone is in vibrate?
I upgraded from Galaxy Mega to Galaxy S6 Edge +.
There is no menu button. In Galaxy Mega, part of the menu contains changing the settings of the countdown timer alarm.
One setting I had was that I could set my phone to vibrate while the countdown timer alarm rings when the countdown finishes.
So texts and notifications from apps make my phone only vibrate, but my countdown timer rings.
In Galaxy S6 Edge +, it seems like my phone vibrates iff my countdown timer alarm vibrates.
How can I allow the countdown timer to ring while my phone is set to vibrate mode?

Galaxy mega has option in timer to change volume. The timer indeed goes off even when the phone is in vibrate. This does not seem to be allowed in s6e+

 Click on picture for larger version
Bounty note: I think there's something in sounds and notifications, but I can't seem to find it.

On most (or, at least on Nexus) devices, the volume for alarm is separated from phone & media/notification usually on the Android Settings... or were you talking about countdown timer? A bit confused between countdown timer and alarm clock.

Are you open to third-party app based solutions? It is possible that a third-party countdown timer apps can do what you want, i.e. countdown timer alarm to go off while phone is in vibration mode.

@Firelord Thanks for pointing that out. I can't believe I didn't think of that before. Anyway, I would like to know if or how this can be done in new Samsung without installing new apps

Click on the volume button, you will see your ringer volume slider, drag that to vibrate, then click the arrow pointing down then you will see app volume and alarm alarm volume...
Set alarm volume to whatever you want, that is what you are looking for...
Hope I helped,
Sid

I don't see an "alarm" volume on mine. I only have "Media", "Notifications", and "System".


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Xperia L C2105: Wifi not turning on after installing Android 5.1.1
I have installed latest Android 5.1.1 from the website https://download.cyanogenmod.org/?device=taoshan. I have done this with the help of the following steps.

Unlocked the phone and root it with the help of flash tool before it I have latest stock ROM installed on my phone.
Using flash tool I flashes the CWD recovery.
Downloaded the ROM from the website mentioned before and copied to SD Card.
Rebooted the phone and by press volume + goes to CWD recovery.
From recovery menu I did "Wipe data/factory reset", "Wipe Cache partition" and "Wipe delvik cache".
From recovery menu I select "install from zip"->"install zip from SD Card" and then selected the ROM zip file.
I Also installed gapps zip file after. Both are installed successfully.
Rebooted the phone and the apps installation completed.

Blue-tooth, Camera, mobile data and all others apps working good. Also the speed of my phone greatly improves and the phone memory shortage issue solved. The only issue I have is the Wifi and hotspot is not turning on at all.
I have tried 5.0 and previous versions of 5.1.1 also some unofficial versions by repeating the same steps (2-8) but having the same issue. Any idea what I done wrong?

Thanks! Time for comment-cleanup then. Good luck with your question – unfortunately, I've got no idea there.

Two things you need to do: 1) go back to stock ROM and verify that your device can enable Wi-Fi/ connect to it and create hotspot. I'm just excluding any possibility of hardware issue. When confirmed that there is no failure, flash custom ROM and when enabling the Wi-Fi or hotspot, log your actions using [tag:logcat] (see this, if you're new to logcat) and post us your results using an online text/code paste service.

As @Firelord said, Flash the appropriate stock ROM using a flash tool.

@Firelord I will try logcat and will let you know the results

With Stock ROM, Wifi was working. I just checked with Catlog it give me error msg "WifiService Machine:E:Failed to load driver".


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"Google Play Services which some of your applications rely on is not supported by your device"
My mobile is Micromax Canvas Fun A63 (rooted using framaroot). After 1 month of rooting, one day it showed me this:

Google Play Services which some of your applications rely on is not supported by your devices, please contact manufacturer for assistance.

Steps I have taken:

Format my mobile
Change my custom ROM to Cyanogen x invinity (from XDA website)
Installed Gapps version 20130812, but now it's showing me that I don't have the Play Services installed.
Tried to install it from Google Play Store but it never got installed
Manually tried to install with Lucky Patcher, but it says there are some files remain which have to be deleted.

How to fix this issue?

I removed the last question since it seems not related to this issue. If you have another question, please ask on separate post.

Have you made sure the GApps package you flashed matches your Android version? 20130812 sounds a bit old to be anything newer than for Kitkat (I'd rather guess JellyBean here, as Kitkat was released 20131031). What Android version are you running?


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Why is Marshmallow 6.0 and not 5.2?
Jellybean to KitKat was 4.3 to 4.4.
KitKat to Lollipop was 4.4 to 5.0, which is understandable because there were huge changes in runtime as well as interface.
But why is Marshmallow not 5.2? It doesn't seem to have wholesale changes from Lollipop.

While it's an interesting question, I'm not sure if there's an official answer for this question, and any answers from this community will be opinion-based. Also, it seems to be a trivial info without any usefulness. I'd be happy to be proven false though. Otherwise, refer to the same Quora question

@AndrewT. Thanks for the link! I'll still wait for some time in case somebody here has a suitable answer.

There's no official answer for this question as always. This might help: Why is Marshmallow dubbed Android 6.0? Is it worthy of such a big version jump? I don't think there'll be a proper answer for this question. Better paste that link as Answer and mark this question as Solved ;-)

@GokulNC If you post it as an answer, upvote the question, I'll mark it as solved lol :)

There's no official answer for this question from Google.
Here's an answer from the Android Authority Website:

We finally have the gooey answer to the Android M conundrum and it’s Marshmallow. Not a major shock, it was always a front-runner, but some people have been surprised by the fact that Marshmallow will be version 6.0 of Android and not 5.2 or 5.5. Should a whole number leap imply some major overhaul? Why is Google jumping straight to 6.0? There are various possible reasons.
It never made sense
Did Google’s version system ever really make sense? Anyone who has worked with programmers will understand the often arbitrary nature of version numbers. Traditionally, the first number is supposed to mark a major version and the second number a minor version, but that’s just a general convention, it’s not an unbreakable rule. In practice, version numbers often just mark the point that something was pushed out the door. They’re useful because they make it possible to track down problems later, but they don’t really tell the end user anything, and they’re not really meant to.
Let’s take a brief look at the historical line-up of Android versions:
Android 1.0
  Android 1.1
  Android 1.5 Cupcake
  Android 1.6 Donut
  Android 2.0 Éclair
  Android 2.2 Froyo
  Android 2.3 Gingerbread
  Android 3.0 Honeycomb
  Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich
  Android 4.1 (4.2, 4.3) Jelly Bean
  Android 4.4 Kitkat
  Android 5.0 (5.1) Lollipop
Take a look through the versions and try to find a pattern that establishes consistently why some versions are whole number leaps and others aren’t. The closest you could argue is probably that whole numbers indicate an aesthetic leap, but Éclair didn’t really and Marshmallow won’t either. What does it matter when the system never really made sense anyway?
The dessert names are for users, marking larger leaps of style and function, but even the incremental updates within names have sometimes delivered more than just bug fixes. There’s no real consistency there.
Maybe it is a major version
Perhaps you could argue that Marshmallow is a major update, even if there isn’t an aesthetic overhaul. We’re getting a much improved, granular app permission system, a revamped payment system in Android Pay, contextual data with Now on Tap, support for fingerprint sensors, seamless custom Chrome tabs for apps, deep linking directly into apps, better cut and paste, support for USB Type C, a battery life boost with Doze, and the list goes on.
That sounds like a lot. But then Froyo, Gingerbread, and Jelly Bean all delivered long lists of improvements without getting a number bump. Push notifications, Wi-Fi hotspot functionality, NFC, Google Now, IR blaster support, Bluetooth LE, and many other things came without whole number updates. What makes Marshmallow different?
Leaving Lollipop behind
It could be just as much to do with distancing Android from version 5.0 Lollipop as it is with reaching version 6.0. It’s no secret that Lollipop has negative associations for some people. There have been serious battery life issues for a lot of devices, Wi-Fi problems, lagging, stuttering, and frequent crashes, not to mention a host of smaller bugs. Version 5.1 doesn’t seem to have solved everyone’s issues, either.
It has also been far from a smooth roll out. Google’s latest figures suggest 5.0 adoption is at 15.5% with 5.1 accounting for another 2.6%. Bugs galore will ensure that Lollipop isn’t as fondly remembered as it might have been, but it’s not just the problems, it’s also the design changes. The Priority Mode has not been popular with people who want a simple silent option, widget support disappeared from the lock screen, and not everyone likes the new Material Design aesthetic.
Microsoft was so keen to distance itself from the unpopular Windows 8 that it skipped a whole number to land on Windows 10. Maybe Google is trying to make a similar break and show clearly that Marshmallow has moved on from Lollipop. If you didn’t like 5.0 then try 6.0.
Switching to the annual release cycle
We were discussing how a yearly release cycle could improve the Android experience a while back. Predictability and stability makes it easier for everyone to plan. It will help tackle the fragmentation issue and introduce a bit more clarity. OEMs, carriers, and developers can work with an established schedule far more easily than a series of random updates. It also means one big exciting release with the attendant fanfare each year, instead of a steady dribble of smaller improvements. That’s something that the media and consumers are more likely to get excited about.
It makes a lot of sense to assign a new name and number to the annual update and to save those .x releases for minor changes and bug fixes. It’s nice and neat. It’s a system that makes logical sense. Everyone can grasp what’s going on and that can only be a good thing.

Upvote or close?

It's your wish. You're the one who asked the question.. If you feel this answers all your questions, mark it as solved; else wait for some other answer from someone else :)

I'll wait for a day, and then do it. Thanks again.


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Rooted Android device and more regular updates?
My current Android phone Samsung Galaxy S4 (GT-I9506, Android 5.0) has much outdated software and OS. I would like to get much faster update cycle. The current Android and Samsung support cannot provide it. Therefore, I am thinking about rooting my device and possibly this way speeding up the update cycle.
I have installed CyanogenMod in my unrooted device unsuccessfully a few times. I think the failure may be due to the unrooted device. I think you cannot get the full control of the device without the rooting and thus insufficient updates in your device.
Can a rooted Android device have more regular update cycle? However, I am not sure if rooting can make the update cycle worser because of possible loss of the main developers' support in the device and OS.

Yes, if you go on and install an actively developed custom ROM for your device such as Cyanogenmod. You might even get updates every day. Also, when you say that Android 5.0 is outdated, spare a thought for the devices which still retail with Android 4.2

Further to Tamoghna's point on the version of Android, most flagship devices currently retailing are only version 5.1, possibly 5.1.1 so 5.0 is hardly much outdated at this stage.

"I have installed CyanogenMod in my unrooted device unsuccessfully" – resulting in a rooted device. CM offers OTA AFAIK, by the way.

Generally, if you're talking about updates for any ROM, then you should know that it doesn't matter if you're rooted or not to get regular updates.
Moreover, rooting modifies your /system partition, due to which OTAs (for stock ROM) will fail to install, because nowadays most updates are Block-based OTAs.
So, for successfully installing official OTAs, it's better not to root your phone or use systemless root.
You're not getting regular updates because maybe Samsung hasn't yet released any updates for your device.
But if your phone is rooted and if you have flashed a custom recovery, then, as you said, you can install any custom ROMs with active developers which might be getting regular updates.
As @Tamoghna said, you can install ROMs like CyanogenMod which might provide daily updates.
You can also check for CM daily updates using apps like CyanDelta Updater (as said by @Firelord) which provides delta updates of minimal size.

For build updates, perhaps CyanDelta Updater or CM Downloader can help to download incremental updates instead of full updates.

@Firelord Oh okay. I thought those apps just provide the full update. I've never used any of these apps

Neither did I. But I thought to mention them, in case somebody finds them helpful in context of your answer.

Yes. Root it -> Install custom recovery -> Flash CyanogenMod.
Currently the S4 supports CM13 which is already on 6.0.1 with latest security patches. Nightlies are always stable enough regarding hardware, the software may crash here and there, but from my experiance, those nightlies are as stable as any other ROM.
You can also check how is the S4 standing regarding GPE software, because you can maybe just convert it to GPE and use vanilla Android.

This doesn't clearly address "Can a rooted Android device have more regular update cycle?" unlike other answer. You've not accounted stock ROMs here.

As I said, the CM is already on 6.0.1 for his device, meaning that it does get updated regulary. As the OP said he already tried installing CM on his device, I presumed that he is aware that custom ROMs get updated much more frequently.

If OP already knew about that, the question wouldn't have been asked at first place since rooting has nothing to do with increasing the update cycle. So the assumption here appears to be far-fetched.