Database Users

Become a G2 / Android Ninja with these Tips/Tricks

I thought I'd share everything I've learned regarding Android & the T-Mobile G2 over the past 2+ weeks (thanks XDA!). I'm amazed at how many people don't read these forums - they simply blurt out their questions. Well follks, here's what I've picked up by reading reading reading & exploring exploring exploring. Hope this helps n00bs and leets alike.
Android
Press & Hold HOME to see multitasking applications sorted by most recent
Press & Hold SEARCH to activate Google Voice Actions (or VLingo if installed)
Long Press keyboard keys to see alternate characters
Tap Dots near the Dock Bar (bottom set of icons) to shift screens
Assign your Power Button to 'End Calls' via Menu >Settings >Accessibility > Check "Power button ends call"
Add 'Power Control' Widget to easily enable/disable your WiFi/BlueTooth/GPS/Screen/Auto-Sync
Using Volume Control buttons, you can put the phone into Silent or Vibrate modes
You can add Shortcuts to your most used contacts & it will give an icon that lets you access Call/SMS/Email/GTalk/Facebook
Keyboard Tips
Double Press ALT for Num/Symbol Lock
Double Press SHIFT for Capitalization Lock
Hold ALT & Long Press physical keys to see alternative characters
Map Application Shortcuts such as Search + G to launch Gmail. Located under Settings >Applications >Quick Launch
Menu +A(Select All), +C(Copy), +V(Paste), +X(Paste)
Menu +F(Find), +S(Share)
(G2 Only?) Reboot, Press and hold Power + Volume Down + trackpad
(G2 Only?) Use LauncherPro to Assign 'Activities' to the Quick Keys such as Compose SMS or Tweet
(G2 Only?) Press & Hold the Camera Button to activate the Camera
(G2 Only?) While in Camera Mode, gently press the camera button to auto-focus
Miscellaneous
Install a custom launcher like ADW or LauncherPro
- Tip 1: If you get LauncherPro, I encourage you to explore the 'Swipe' feature by Long Pressing any icon in the Dock. Allows for two actions!
- Tip 2: My personal favorite is when you hide the status bar and set the HOME button to display notifications when you press it (Only possible if you make LauncherPro default launcher)
- Tip 3: Long Press an Application & when the Trash Can Appears, Hold over the Trashcan to get an Uninstall Option
Use Tasker to automate things on your phone
TeslaHD will turn your phone's LED into a Flash Light or Strobe Light
AppBrain + Fast Install is excellent for exploring apps from the comfort of a browser (also lets you set backgrounds)
- This App also makes it easy to restore apps if you didn't remember to set your 'backup' as automatic when configuring your phone
VLingo is a great alternative to Voice Actions if you're not on 2.2 OR you want deeper integration with Twitter/Facebook/Foursquare
Google Gestures is a great app to assign to a secondary swipe (see LauncherPro) & is handy when voice doesn't work and you can't easily type
DolphinHD is a great alternative browser that has three great features: Tweet a Page (with Title & Link), Desktop Mode, and Google Mobilizer View
Dial 611 to get to T-Mobile Customer Support (not always clear to new subscribers)
Best Keyboard for two-finger text input is SwiftKey. Swype is good if you practice with one finger.
Other Great Apps to Consider
Evernote (for note storage)
Dropbox (for access to files from your desktop)
Fast Reboot (for a heavy handed, kill all apps when you notice slow performance)
Dato GTasks (simple, easy to use app that integrates with Google Tasks)
NewsRob (elegant RSS reader for Google Reader)
Smooth Calendar (nice calendar widget that shows more than the default Calendar widget)
Xtremelabs Speedtest (helps you test for HSPA+ speeds)
Twicca (better than the standard Twitter App & very beautiful. Easy to map Tweet-Activity to a G2 Quick Key)
Chrome to Phone (possibly my favorite app once I learned how to use it. Great for a variety of needs so I encourage experimentation)
Optimize Your G2
Go to SETTINGS > APPLICATIONS > DEVELOPMENT and enable USB DEBUGGING
Search the Market for "Visionary" and Install (advice: Reboot & then run it for the first time) By default, it will run automatically on boot each time.
- Note: If you want to remove ROOT, visit APPLICATIONS > MANAGE APPLICATIONS > VISIONARY and press "Clear Data". Then re-run & turn off Root-on-Boot or just Uninstall.
Search the Market for "ConnectBot" & Install. Run Connectbot & press the down-arrow next to "ssh" to choose "local" & press Enter (no Nickname needed)
- You will be presented with a command line prompt of "$" & yes, it will be VERY TINY on your screen. Simply type "su" (no quotes) to gain super user.
- Read the first post to determine which items you want to permanently disable (essentially remove) from your phone: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=809231
Visit the market to download "Startup Cleaner 2.0" by Bright Wallace. It will allow you to prevent items from starting up. The software is buggy, but works better than anything else I've encountered.
- Tip: Use the 'Batch Prevent' to prevent all apps from starting, then exit the app. Run the app again & then toggle the apps you want to start by tapping them. Otherwise, the app is very unresponsive when trying to manage apps on an individual basis. You may need to re-run Visionary after you've allowed it to run on boot via Startup Cleaner.
Setup Wifi Tethering
Once you have Root & SuperUser, use your browser to visit http://code.google.com/p/android-wifi-tether/downloads/list & download the most recent version of "Wireless Tether".
- Once downloaded, run it to install. If you have trouble with this, I recommend using Chrome-to-Phone & simply right-click the file link to choose "Chrome-to-Phone"
After successful installation, run the Wireless Tether app. Recommend changing the SSID Name (name that appears).
- Note: Multiple people report issues with WiFi Encryption, so I recommend SETTINGS > ENABLE ACCESS-CONTROL. Your phone will log when something tries to connect to it & then you can "allow" by choosing MENU > ACCESS CONTROL and clicking the checkbox next to the device you want to allow.
{Update} If you're feeling adventurous, check out this article on how to use Tasker
http://androinica.com/2010/08/19/9-ways-to-make-android-automatic-with-tasker/
{Update 2} Long-press App & dragging over trashcan for uninstall is a LauncherPro feature, not android. Thanks to tekkaman_01 for the note!
{Update 3} Removed "When screen is locked but keyboard is open, you only have to press a key to unlock" because it isn't a consistent experience. Not sure what makes it work sometimes.
{Update 4} Added two sections: Optimize Your G2 & Setup WiFi Tethering. Small formatting changes to previous entries.

Long Press an Application & when the Trash Can Appears, Hold over the Trashcan to get an Uninstall Option is a feature of LauncherPro not stock android...

Updated - much thanks!

No problem
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App

Great job, OP.

Great job, OP. I'm sure many people will appreciate this.

Does this merit a sticky?
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App

Ghostcreamy said:
I'm amazed at how many people don't read these forums - they simply blurt out their questions.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're right....people who don't read the forums and just blurt stuff out are horrible. Oh wait....what's this?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=804439
Ghostcreamy said:
[*]When screen is locked but keyboard is open, you only have to press a key to unlock
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've heard this before but this hasn't worked for me on two different G2s.

great, thanks

aedv said:
You're right....people who don't read the forums and just blurt stuff out are horrible. Oh wait....what's this?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=804439
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thank you
<10 chars>

The cheat sheet of all cheet sheets!
Another good one is to:
HOLD Dots near the Dock Bar to see all screens in a mini navigation look.
Thanks!

Snap!
aedv said:
You're right....people who don't read the forums and just blurt stuff out are horrible. Oh wait....what's this?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=804439
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
SNAP!
I read that thread, but it was fragmented and I already had all of this in Evernote. Regardless, I appreciate the response & I'll continue to monitor that thread for any other tips that I can compile into this one.
Side note: You don't have to be mean to make a point Put a little love in your heart!
GC

Ghostcreamy said:
SNAP!
Side note: You don't have to be mean to make a point Put a little love in your heart!
GC
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1!! Great post OP!
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App

Updated original post (OP) with a section on optimizing your G2 & setting up Wifi Tethering. Hope it helps!

awesome tips. i was wondering if theres a good way to allow the home screen and apps screen to auto rotate with gravity(only rotates with keyboard out)? and then on the flip side, to lock the orientation?

Not sure about locking, but LauncherPro or ADW launcher will rotate to landscape.
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App

Here's a tip if you are using Launcher Pro: setup a 2x2 picture frame widget in the middle of a home panel. The frame should have a picture of an icon for things like settings, games, news, people, etc. Then add related app icons around the frame. This way, when you pinch a homescreen and pull up the 7 panel view, you can easily tell at a glance which panel has the apps you want
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using The Force

"+X(Paste)"
Shouldn't that be "+X(Cut)"?

In the gmail and xda apps (the only ones I've tested so far) when you push the space bar after a word/letter, it will add a '.[space]'.
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App

Great post Ghostcreamy. I figured out that you could swipe the home icon of launcher pro, but why it never occured to me that the other icons also have this feature?
Edit:There's your first "Thanks" on the meter...awww.

Share A Really Good Tip with Note 3 Users

Hi guys,
Now that you've spent some time with your Note 3, how about sharing your top recommended tip with the community.
This tip should be more like your personal experience with the device. I'll go first...
Switching to Nova Launcher Prime with system animations set to fast took my user experience to an all new level...be sure to use "zoom fade" effect on nova settings...

Great thread, I used to use card stack, but changed to zoom fade, thanks for the tip, the tip I would share would be invisible lock screen widget, place it on your home screen, and turn your phone on stand by without any icons showing.
Sent from my SM-N9005 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

Will try this out soon thanks!
Here's another tip: After trying a lot of hd wallpaper apps, I found "ZEDGE" to be the best in terms of wallpaper clarity and variety. I now use this app and filter out newest wallpapers with stunning picture quality.

Quick Torch access
There is a setting to allow the flash to be used a s a torch quickly while the screen is off. You long-press the Volume-Up key to start it, and press the Volume-Down key to stop it. It also has an optional timeout setting.
To get this setting, called 'Torch Light' I use the 'Activity' shortcut in SSLaucher, as it is not in the normal settings. You can also use the 'Activity Launcher' app. Once set, you do not have to set anything again.

Here's a good one....want Developer options? This is bizarre, but go to 'About device' in settings, then to your build number which appears greyed out. Click it about three, four times, it'll say 'you're almost a developer' and then bam it'll say you are, go back to settings and wala, you'll see a new 'Developer Options' tab! Kinda strange way to get it to show, but it works.

Sporttster said:
Here's a good one....want Developer options? This is bizarre, but go to 'About device' in settings, then to your build number which appears greyed out. Click it about three, four times, it'll say 'you're almost a developer' and then bam it'll say you are, go back to settings and wala, you'll see a new 'Developer Options' tab! Kinda strange way to get it to show, but it works.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Man this has to be the best tip that I've seen so far hands down...I literally installed spare parts plus to get the dev options and make animations faster!
Off to unistall spare parts and see the shiny developer options in settings! Thanks a ton mate!

TIP to Reduce Number of Button Press on Note 3:
So this is a tip to substantially reduce the number of times one has to press the power on and home button.
Install "lock screen widget" from the play store (free) and place on ure home screen...it automatically switches off screen on touch...
For those of you who long press the home button to get the multi tasker up...configure the swipe up action in your non touchwiz launcher to open the "recent apps" list...

*Bump*

- Under Settings--> controls --> SPen you can set S pen Keeper, to alert you if you ever walk away without attaching the Spen. In case you forget it. Which has happened to me twice so far. :silly:

In settings/device/accessibility and under the section of mobility you can select the assistant menu and a little pop-up menu will give you some nifty shortcuts if you are using the s pen and don't want to press the home button of s shame with the pen hahaha it's just terrible to do it.
Sent from my SM-N900 using xda app-developers app

Thanks for the s pen tips guys...though I've really not come around to using it often on a daily basis.

Recent Apps issue + Headphone Notification options question

Hi Guys,
Hope someone can advise me on the below
Problem 1
Got my Note 4 on the 17th, I’ve come from a Note 3, starting to get used to the using left button to bring up recent apps however a function that I used regularly is no longer there.
On my Note 3 I could hold down the home button to bring up my recent apps, and if you long press on any of the recent apps it would show the option “show app info” which would then take you to the menu to manage that application, (the screen where you can Force Stop the app, Disable it, Clear data and Clear Cache)
I can no longer do this on my note 4, when I open recent apps menu and long press the application it just put’s the app into a pop up window, no such option to directly manage that application.
Am I missing something here? Or is it a case of just having to live with it?
Problem 2
No big deal really but when I plug in my headphones a notification will pop up saying they are plugged in, on my note 3 it would also show recent apps used with headphones and I can quickly choose the app I’d like to use, my note 4 no longer does this, it will only show a notification that they are plugged in, no option to select app.
( I know a lot of people found this annoying but it didn’t really bother me)
Thanks in Advance

martytarty said:
Hi Guys,
Hope someone can advise me on the below
Problem 1
Got my Note 4 on the 17th, I’ve come from a Note 3, starting to get used to the using left button to bring up recent apps however a function that I used regularly is no longer there.
On my Note 3 I could hold down the home button to bring up my recent apps, and if you long press on any of the recent apps it would show the option “show app info” which would then take you to the menu to manage that application, (the screen where you can Force Stop the app, Disable it, Clear data and Clear Cache)
I can no longer do this on my note 4, when I open recent apps menu and long press the application it just put’s the app into a pop up window, no such option to directly manage that application.
Am I missing something here? Or is it a case of just having to live with it?
Problem 2
No big deal really but when I plug in my headphones a notification will pop up saying they are plugged in, on my note 3 it would also show recent apps used with headphones and I can quickly choose the app I’d like to use, my note 4 no longer does this, it will only show a notification that they are plugged in, no option to select app.
( I know a lot of people found this annoying but it didn’t really bother me)
Thanks in Advance
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
all the little things like the headphone bit are missing from note 4 compared to note 3 they have the features in the hidden settings but even if you turn them on they don't work very odd indeed....

Out of interest where can I find these hidden options?
I'm rooted now if that helps
Cheers

martytarty said:
Out of interest where can I find these hidden options?
I'm rooted now if that helps
Cheers
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you have to install nova launcher(you dont have to use it as main launcher you can still keep touchwiz as main launcher and just have nova in app draw)click on nova hold finger on screen and then chose short cuts,then click activities and scroll all the way to settings and in the settings scroll abit further and you will see air gestures,air view and keep scrolling and theres page buddy and other stuff,to activate them either just click and a gear like icon will go onto nova screen or keep your finger on the setting you want and that will bring the setting up of the option your looking at...hope it makes sense just dont expect much to work just yet as i say it all turns on but i cant get it to work...

Galaxy S6 Tips and Tricks

1. Double tap home button to launch the camera in under one second.
1B. Disable the double-tap quick launch in the camera options to get rid of the delay when pressing the home button. It's a neat feature, but makes the home button much more quicker. (Thanks to @B1aze)
2. Use themes to change the look of your phone (limited as of right now; will be more widely available in the coming weeks to developers/themers).
3. Go into your App drawer and long press an icon as if you want to move/delete it. The small circles with the red '-' sign will let you either delete an app (if third-party) or disable it (if built-in).
4. Hold the power key for more than 7 seconds and the device will reboot. Hold VolUp+Home+Power to boot into recovery. Hold VolDown+Home+Power to boot into Download Mode.
5. Whenever you want to take a "selfie", you can simply frame the image first, and then put your finger on the heart rate sensor under the LED light at the back in order to take one.
6. When downloading a large file (30+ MB) and you have LTE AND are near WiFi, activate Download Booster! Settings--->More Connection Settings--->Download Booster. It combines both your WiFi and LTE connections into one for amazing DL speeds.
7. Notification reminders! Settings--->Accessibility--->Notification reminders.
8. Don't forget to claim your free 100 GB cloud storage with OneDrive!
9. Private mode... You can hide content from prying eyes, including photos, videos, music, web history, and such. To activate it, go to Settings--->Privacy and safety--->Private mode.
10. Do Not Disturb mode. Dare I say... Better than Google's implementation of "priority notification only" mode. You can set a schedule for it, who IS/ISN'T allowed to contact you while it's on, etc.
11. Screen Pinning. Go to Lock Screen and Security--->Other Security Settings--->Pin Windows.
12. Customize your screen grid (4x4, 4x5 or 5x5) by pinching in when on the home screen.
13. Developer Options.. To enable this, go to Settings--->About Device--->Tap "Build Number" 10 times and you will unlock Developer Options!
14. Make your device a bit faster by going to Developer Options and setting window animation scale, transition animation scale & animator duration scale all to 0.5.
15. When you are in an app (Chrome, Gallery .... whatever) and you drag your finger from the upper right corner to somewhere in the middle of the screen the app shrinks which makes it more usable with one hand. (Thanks to @derWolf_)
16. You can have changing lockscreen wallpapers by changing it in the settings and selecting multiple wallpapers in the selection box. (Thanks to @altimax98)
17. For those having issues with Snapchat videos, go into Developer settings (see #13) and uncheck Nuplayer.
18. For better results with the fingerprint scanner, register your thumb multiple times for it to be more accurate.
19. Screenshot by holding power+home at the same time or using palm swipe to capture (turn on in settings).
20. Direction lock... Settings-->Accessibility. New way of unlocking your phone.
21. Under voice wake you can use Svoice to set a custom phrase to wake up the phone directly to listening for a command. (Thanks to @benjmiester)
22. If you rest any registered fingers over the scanner, it'll light up which registry it is. Helpful is you need to redo the fingerprint. (Thanks to @hayabusa1300cc)
23. Really debloat your GS6 (no root needed!)
24. Cell standby drain? Go into recovery mode and wipe your cache, power off phone completely then reboot.
25. Go to the dialer, and press the green dial button. It will load the last dialed number. (Thanks to @Jrhoop)
26. Disable the capacitive lights with no root required! (A LOT OF THANKS to @Averix)
26B. How to disable capacitive button lights. (ADB)
27. The volume down button can be used to take pictures when the camera app is running. (Thanks @segag)
28. Use volume keys in default messaging app to increase/decrease font size. (Thanks @jambo89liam)
29. If you want to enable grayscale without going into super power saving mode, go to settings -> personal -> accessibility -> direct access and turn both direct access on and grayscale. Once you do this, a triple tap of the home button will toggle grayscale on and off. (Thanks @shappy0869)
30. Pinch in/out in the Gallery increases/decreases the number of the thumbnails. Swipe right from the left edge of the screen shows a panel for the albums. (Thanks @akira888)
Will be adding as time goes on, feel free to add your own and I will add it to the OP!

Another tip, if you want to get rid of that small delay in the home button, disable the double-tap quick launch in the camera options. It's a neat feature, but I like my snappy home button more.

B1aze said:
Another tip, if you want to get rid of that small delay in the home button, disable the double-tap quick launch in the camera options. It's a neat feature, but I like my snappy home button more.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks. Keep em coming!

Really great tips. I was unaware of the themes option. I hope someone makes a theme that is more in line with stock android. I kinda hate the colors Samsung choose for the dialer and the menus.

S5, too?
Lots of these seem to be applicable to the S5 also, although I guess due to the categories on the XDA forums, there'd be no way of sharing it between the two devices easily.
Great tips though!

One more: when you are in an app (Chrome, Gallery .... whatever) and you drag your finger from the upper right corner to somewhere in the middle of the screen the app shrinks which makes it more usable with one hand (I wouldn't call it one-handed mode, because.... well it isn't, but feel free to name it as you wish)

PhoneArena made a list with 36 tricks and tips!
http://www.phonearena.com/news/Samsung-Galaxy-S6-and-Galaxy-S6-edge-36-tips---tricks_id67772

derWolf_ said:
One more: when you are in an app (Chrome, Gallery .... whatever) and you drag your finger from the upper right corner to somewhere in the middle of the screen the app shrinks which makes it more usable with one hand (I wouldn't call it one-handed mode, because.... well it isn't, but feel free to name it as you wish)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm pretty sure they call it windowed apps
Edit according to the last link it's called pop up view.

derWolf_ said:
One more: when you are in an app (Chrome, Gallery .... whatever) and you drag your finger from the upper right corner to somewhere in the middle of the screen the app shrinks which makes it more usable with one hand (I wouldn't call it one-handed mode, because.... well it isn't, but feel free to name it as you wish)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Added, thanks!

Another tip:
You can have changing lockscreen wallpapers by changing it in the settings and selecting multiple wallpapers in the selection box

altimax98 said:
Another tip:
You can have changing lockscreen wallpapers by changing it in the settings and selecting multiple wallpapers in the selection box
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No freakn way?? SO I don't have to use Muzei for that anymore, haha sweet!

Phone is officially out! Share your tips and tricks guys if ya have any :good:

Is there a way/trick to order the apps in the app tray (alphabetically).

crobo said:
Is there a way/trick to order the apps in the app tray (alphabetically).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Tap the "A-Z" button at the top of the app drawer.

wildmaiden said:
Tap the "A-Z" button at the top of the app drawer.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not all versions have that button. I imagine it will come in a future update.

Sevael said:
Not all versions have that button. I imagine it will come in a future update.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ah .. interesting. FWIW, T-Mobile's S6 does.

crobo said:
Is there a way/trick to order the apps in the app tray (alphabetically).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I reordered all mine manually. But only had about 50 apps so not too bad.

crobo said:
Is there a way/trick to order the apps in the app tray (alphabetically).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am not a fan of touch wiz, so downloaded the Google Now launcher, and the app drawer automatically organizes apps in alphabetical order.

noeffintalent said:
I am not a fan of touch wiz, so downloaded the Google Now launcher, and the app drawer automatically organizes apps in alphabetical order.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I prefer Nova (prime), it does the same, plus much, much more!:good:

You use Svoice to set a custom phrase to wake up the phone directly to listening for a command. Under voice wake. I woke, wrote, and sent a text with (look ma) no hands!
Sent from my SM-G920T using XDA Free mobile app

Low Vision: Toggle "Magnification Gestures" With Widget

Hi I just got a Nexus 6p and its been great but I have low vision and if I keep the option turned on the phone, it becomes very laggy so I would like to only use it when I need to.
Help would be greatly appreciated!
Thank you .

This isn't exactly what you wanted, but it's kind of close...
I use ADW as my launcher, which allows me to set custom shortcuts on my home screen. Other launchers might offer the same functionality.
I long pressed on my home screen and selected the Add tab on the popup. I then tapped Custom Shortcut, and tapped "Pick your activity." Next, I tapped Activities, scrolled down to Settings and expanded the list. It's rather long, but in that list there is one called "Accessibility(.Settings$AccessibilitySettingsActivity)". I selected that one, gave it a name (what it displays under the icon), and pressed OK. This created a settings gear icon on my home screen that when tapped goes straight to the accessibility options in the settings menu, and then you can tap the toggle for Magnification.
Alternatively, you should be able to do the same thing with Tasker if you have it installed and it's a bit easier. Make a new Task, give it a title (anything) and press the plus to add a step. Select Settings, then Accessibility settings (first option). There is some "if" options, but you can just tap your back button to go back to the step list. Create a widget for Tasker (1x1 task) and select the name of the task you just created. You then need to select an icon for the "widget" by tapping the icon in the lower right that looks like 9 squares in a grid. There are a bunch of built in icons you can choose from, or use your own. The result will be an icon on your desktop that goes to the accessibility options screen, allowing you to quickly toggle the magnification gesture.
Again, sorry this isn't exactly what you asked for, but it would save some taps. Luckily the mag gesture toggle is high enough in the list of options that it should always be on the screen when you open the accessibility settings, so you won't need to scroll.
Lastly, if you are rooted, you could use Tasker to also hit the toggle for you. If you want instructions for that, please do let me know and I'd be happy to share how to do that. It would allow you to tap the "widget" and it would then launch the accessibility settings, wait a second and then tap the toggle, and go back to the home screen. That way you wouldn't need to toggle it yourself.

fury683 said:
This isn't exactly what you wanted, but it's kind of close...
I use ADW as my launcher, which allows me to set custom shortcuts on my home screen. Other launchers might offer the same functionality.
I long pressed on my home screen and selected the Add tab on the popup. I then tapped Custom Shortcut, and tapped "Pick your activity." Next, I tapped Activities, scrolled down to Settings and expanded the list. It's rather long, but in that list there is one called "Accessibility(.Settings$AccessibilitySettingsActivity)". I selected that one, gave it a name (what it displays under the icon), and pressed OK. This created a settings gear icon on my home screen that when tapped goes straight to the accessibility options in the settings menu, and then you can tap the toggle for Magnification.
Alternatively, you should be able to do the same thing with Tasker if you have it installed and it's a bit easier. Make a new Task, give it a title (anything) and press the plus to add a step. Select Settings, then Accessibility settings (first option). There is some "if" options, but you can just tap your back button to go back to the step list. Create a widget for Tasker (1x1 task) and select the name of the task you just created. You then need to select an icon for the "widget" by tapping the icon in the lower right that looks like 9 squares in a grid. There are a bunch of built in icons you can choose from, or use your own. The result will be an icon on your desktop that goes to the accessibility options screen, allowing you to quickly toggle the magnification gesture.
Again, sorry this isn't exactly what you asked for, but it would save some taps. Luckily the mag gesture toggle is high enough in the list of options that it should always be on the screen when you open the accessibility settings, so you won't need to scroll.
Lastly, if you are rooted, you could use Tasker to also hit the toggle for you. If you want instructions for that, please do let me know and I'd be happy to share how to do that. It would allow you to tap the "widget" and it would then launch the accessibility settings, wait a second and then tap the toggle, and go back to the home screen. That way you wouldn't need to toggle it yourself.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks a lot!
So it sounds like theres no way to make a widget the will toggle it specifically, without rooting my device.
And if I do root it and use Tasker it will take almost the same time as if I didn't.
If thats no other way then I guess I should root it even though Id prefer not too.
Unless theres another way, Instructions would be great! Thanks again!

Are you familiar with Tasker? It's a paid app, but it's absolutely worth it and you'll find lots of uses for it. I use it to auto reply to text messages while I'm driving, mute my phone when I'm at work (calendar based) turn on wifi when I'm at home (location based), etc.
First thing you need to do is find the location of the toggle on the screen. Go to Developer Settings and turn on "Show Pointer Location". This will make a gray bar at the top of your screen that lists your X and Y coordinates at the top when you are touching the screen. Go to the accessibility settings and touch the toggle, taking note of what the X and Y coordinates are for that touch input.
To simulate touch input, can make a task that opens the accessibility settings as I described above, then add a "wait" command (Task > Wait), enter a value of 1 second. Next enter a command for Code and select Run Shell. Under the command, type "input tap x y" where x and y are the x and y coordinates that you found for the toggle. Make sure the "use root" box is checked. Lastly, add a Tasker command to go to the home screen (back to where you started with the "widget").
Back all the way out of Tasker to save that task, then go back in and press the play button at the bottom left side to test your setup. You should see it launch the accessibility settings, wait a second, toggle, and go home. The first time you run it you will need to grant Tasker root permissions, so be ready for that. If you're not quick to approve it, the task may proceed and go to your home screen before you press approve, so you might need to run it again a second time after you approve it.
If you need more help with, or have any questions, please do let me know. Happy to help.

fury683 said:
Are you familiar with Tasker? It's a paid app, but it's absolutely worth it and you'll find lots of uses for it. I use it to auto reply to text messages while I'm driving, mute my phone when I'm at work (calendar based) turn on wifi when I'm at home (location based), etc.
First thing you need to do is find the location of the toggle on the screen. Go to Developer Settings and turn on "Show Pointer Location". This will make a gray bar at the top of your screen that lists your X and Y coordinates at the top when you are touching the screen. Go to the accessibility settings and touch the toggle, taking note of what the X and Y coordinates are for that touch input.
To simulate touch input, can make a task that opens the accessibility settings as I described above, then add a "wait" command (Task > Wait), enter a value of 1 second. Next enter a command for Code and select Run Shell. Under the command, type "input tap x y" where x and y are the x and y coordinates that you found for the toggle. Make sure the "use root" box is checked. Lastly, add a Tasker command to go to the home screen (back to where you started with the "widget").
Back all the way out of Tasker to save that task, then go back in and press the play button at the bottom left side to test your setup. You should see it launch the accessibility settings, wait a second, toggle, and go home. The first time you run it you will need to grant Tasker root permissions, so be ready for that. If you're not quick to approve it, the task may proceed and go to your home screen before you press approve, so you might need to run it again a second time after you approve it.
If you need more help with, or have any questions, please do let me know. Happy to help.
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I just realized I need to buy an adapter for that USB C lol.
Before I go ahead with all of this work, your completely sure there is no other way to toggle magnification without rooting?
Thanks!

drewtass said:
I just realized I need to buy an adapter for that USB C lol.
Before I go ahead with all of this work, your completely sure there is no other way to toggle magnification without rooting?
Thanks!
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Sorry for the delay. I am not aware of any widgets. I couldn't find a widget on the Play Store or light Google searching.
Regarding the adapter, the 6p should have come with a short USB A to USB C cable specifically for connecting to a PC.

drewtass said:
Hi I just got a Nexus 6p and its been great but I have low vision and if I keep the option turned on the phone, it becomes very laggy so I would like to only use it when I need to.
Help would be greatly appreciated!
Thank you .
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Have you used the built in magnification gesture? You turn it on in accessibility settings, then when you need something to be bigger, just tap the screen 3 times rapidly. You can use pinch to zoom to adjust the text size. When you're finished with it, tap the screen 3 times again. I use it when an app's text is just too small.

EMcTx said:
Have you used the built in magnification gesture? You turn it on in accessibility settings, then when you need something to be bigger, just tap the screen 3 times rapidly. You can use pinch to zoom to adjust the text size. When you're finished with it, tap the screen 3 times again. I use it when an app's text is just too small.
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Haha Yes I have tried it you have to tap your finger 3 times to magnify which means every time you tap something once it waits to see if you will tap more times and cause slight lag.

Niceeee idea bro, i will try it

moqueet said:
Niceeee idea bro, i will try it
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Are you saying you will try to make a widget like this?

fury683 said:
Sorry for the delay. I am not aware of any widgets. I couldn't find a widget on the Play Store or light Google searching.
Regarding the adapter, the 6p should have come with a short USB A to USB C cable specifically for connecting to a PC.
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No problem!
Lol I was so excited for my new phone I never checked but I found it !
Thanks I will root it when I get the chance.

i have the same exact problem,i absolutely love the feature as i wouldn't be able to use any phone with out it but it also gets frustrating sometimes (the touch delay) for example in the dialer app or Instagram.
a toggle in the notification panel would be great or an app through which you specifically enable/disable the gestures for each individual app.
any other alternative would be appreciated, somebody posted the same issue here with a possible fix (which i am not exactly sure how to implement) https://code.google.com/p/android/issues/detail?id=39685

hassanabid94 said:
i have the same exact problem,i absolutely love the feature as i wouldn't be able to use any phone with out it but it also gets frustrating sometimes (the touch delay) for example in the dialer app or Instagram.
a toggle in the notification panel would be great or an app through which you specifically enable/disable the gestures for each individual app.
any other alternative would be appreciated, somebody posted the same issue here with a possible fix (which i am not exactly sure how to implement) https://code.google.com/p/android/issues/detail?id=39685
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Nice to know I'm not the only one.
Sorry for the late reply been busy with school. It would be nice to have this option maybe like a button shortcut .

Hey guys so that way of using tasker is very slow and not feasible.
Is there any other way of making a quick toggle magnification gestures. It would be nice if I could hold the menu button to enable it. (IPhone tripple tap home button to toggle)
Thanks again.

I have low vision as well and have also found that leaving the magnification gesture turned on causes the phone to be laggy even when I don't actually have the magnification turned on. Instead of using that, I rooted my phone, changed the global DPI and I use App Settings (an Xposed module) to increase the font size in some apps or force the standard DPI in apps that have issues with the custom one.

There's a gestural workaround I've employed: if instead of just putting down my finger I drag my finger slightly (in any direction) then the lag almost disappears. Doing this helps a lot but obviously its a bit of an awkward gesture.

Al--g said:
There's a gestural workaround I've employed: if instead of just putting down my finger I drag my finger slightly (in any direction) then the lag almost disappears. Doing this helps a lot but obviously its a bit of an awkward gesture.
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How did you set it up?

There's no set up. I just do that gesture to get the scrolling to stop when I have magnification enabled.
GuinnessX said:
How did you set it up?
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