Articles by Jerry Hildenbrand

Android 12’s new Privacy Dashboard is the one place where you can see exactly what apps are using which permissions and when they are doing it. It’s not perfect — Android’s permissions can be a little confusing, and Google isn’t giving up much information about what each of them means, but it’s a great addition nonetheless. Getting there isn’t difficult once you know where to look. And remember, the best Android phone doesn’t have Android 12 just yet, so you’ll need to be using a Google Pixel with the Android 12 beta installed.

How to open the Privacy Dashboard in Android 12

Open your phone’s settings menu.
Scroll to the Privacy section and tap the entry.

In the new window that opens choose Privacy Dashboard at the top of the list.

Once you have the Privacy Dashboard open, you can choose a category to see which apps have used the associated permission. You’ll find obvious things like Google Maps using your location and the phone app using your microphone. Still, you might …

Best answer: The same machine learning that helps improve portrait photos and power Magic Eraser also makes the Pixel 6 camera more inclusive for all skin tones through its Real Tone feature.

What is Real Tone?

Google developed its Real Tone camera tech with a mission to make its camera and image products more equitable when photographing people of color, especially for those with darker skin tones. Historically, a lack of diverse testing meant that today’s cameras weren’t built to accurately portray all skin tones in their natural beauty. Unfortunately, this also means that smartphones continue to carry that bias, ultimately delivering unflattering photos for people of color. But it’s not just smartphone cameras that struggle here. We’ve seen all sorts of camera-enabled tech issues when it comes to people who aren’t light-skinned.

So with the launch of its Pixel 6, Google is trying to tackle this issue using Real Tone. With this feature, the camera hardware and software work in t…

The future may or may not be the alternate reality paradise that Mark Zuckerberg and company promised us. But if it is, our privacy will matter more than ever.

The artist formerly known as Facebook is now Meta. We here at Android Central heard a lot about the promising future of the all-new Metaverse from the company on Thursday. But one area, in particular, was noticeably glossed over: user privacy and security.

That’s never a good thing and is especially bad whenever a company tries to rebrand or assure consumers how it plans to change and make improvements in the future. This, of course, goes double when that company is Facebook. Facebook used to be the darling of the tech world, but has recently fallen into a new role where nobody trusts it. Honestly, it’s the company’s own fault.

This matters to most people who visit tech websites like Android Central. We care about how the companies that make our connected devices, and the software that runs them, treat our privacy. This is …

Better hardware and a new focus on the software experience make the Galaxy Watch 4 the breakthrough device Google desperately needed.

We’ve seen a slew of cool new products the past few months, but I find myself fixated on the Galaxy Watch 4 more often than not. It doesn’t flip, nor does it fold, and it doesn’t use some crazy Google-configured chip. But it is pretty unique and important, which is tough to say about any other Android-powered wearable.

The Galaxy Watch 4 had to be good, or Wear OS would be dead.

I think I find myself fascinated with the Galaxy Watch 4 not because of what it is, but what it had to be. I’ll explain: It’s a pretty good wearable with pretty good software. But it’s also the Hail Mary pass that either saves Wear OS or dooms it entirely. I totally think it does the former.

Admittedly, I was very skeptical when I bought my Galaxy Watch 4. It had been years since I used an Android wearable every day because they didn’t offer me enough to put up with all…

Your phone carrier can put you into a Galaxy Z Flip and save you a bunch of money. Let them.

If I were buying a Galaxy Z Flip 3 today, I would totally want a Bespoke “panda” Edition with the black hinge and black/white inserts. I dunno why, but that look called out to me while I watched Samsung’s weird Unpacked 2 event. But I know it’s not the Z Flip that I would actually buy.

Instead, I’d choose the basic color I liked from a phone carrier on an installment plan. Normally, I hate the idea of a phone carrier also being an equipment seller. The carrier should only exist to take your money every month and offer you quality access to the internet and cellular service in return. But in the real world, sometimes you have to take advantage of the system when you can.

This is one of those cases. I could buy a Bespoke Edition Flip from Samsung. I wouldn’t have to pay the full $1,000 because of a trade-in, but the cheapest I could get it would be $500, and that’s because I have another ver…

What 2FA is, why it’s important, and why you should use it.

You see a lot of talk on the internet about two-factor authentication (or 2FA as it’s commonly called), and most of the time, you just see people like us telling you to use it.

We’ll continue that trend and start this guide by telling you to use 2FA whenever and wherever you can. However, we’re also going to let you know what it is and why you must use it. Ready to learn more? Read on.

Lock it down

Yubico Yubikey 5 NFC

$45 at Amazon

Keep your accounts extra safe with a physical 2FA key

Everyone should be using two-factor authentication (yes, you!), and one of the best ways to start is with the Yubico Security Key. This USB key fits in any USB-A port and securely saves 2FA login codes for your Google, Facebook, Dropbox, and other online accounts. It’s also extremely durable and can be attached to a key ring for easy transportation.

Jump to:

Understanding two-factor authentication
It starts with your password…

The Pixel 6 is just better at being a phone than anything else you can buy, thanks to some special software sauce.

A few years ago, the world decided that the last thing we wanted to do while using our phones was to use them as phones. Seriously, I’m a dinosaur, and outside of talking to my parents, calling for a Pizza, or learning about my car’s extended warranty, even I don’t really use the phone part of my smartphone.

But that doesn’t mean it’s not annoying as heck when I do interact with it, especially when I’m using one of the best Android phones not made by Google. It’s not so difficult to explain, though — it’s more of Google’s insane Artificial Intelligence doing things that seem like sorcery when it comes to controlling who calls you and how you make phone calls. On the Pixel 6 with Android 12 it’s about to get even better!

These aren’t the headline features that reviewers and forums are going to be gushing over, but the two best things about the Pixel 6 just might be i…

The Google Pixel 5 is the best Android phone when it comes to security. Google builds its phones to be secure from the start, and its monthly security patches guarantee you won’t be left behind on future exploits. Some of the most secure Android phones available to date are on this list to keep your mind at ease while staying safely connected.

Best overall: Google Pixel 5

The Pixel 5 is updated directly from Google with the latest version of Android. Outside of any new features that may come with it, the device security model has been updated and strengthened by a dedicated team that regularly audits and enhances the code used to build Android. On top of this, Google releases updates to the security model at the beginning of every month for the people who build Android phones to apply to its software. These are important, direr than any other update.

Equally necessary but often overlooked is transparency. You shouldn’t have to trust a company when it says something is secure o…

Two-factor authentication is a great way to secure all of your online accounts but not all methods are equal.

You should be using two-factor authentication on every account that gives you the option. There is no better way to keep your account secure and no matter who you are you should want all of your accounts to be as secure as possible. It also doesn’t matter which phone you use — 2FA works with a cheap Android phone, the best Android phone, or an iPhone. You’ve heard all of this before.

All two-factor methods are not created equal though. Like every other user-facing security measure you have to trade some convenience for protection and the most secure methods of 2FA are also the least convenient. Conversely, the most convenient methods are also the least secure.

We’re going to take a look at the different ways you can use two-factor authentication and discuss the pros and cons of each.

Avoid at all costs, though it’s still better than nothing

4. SMS-based two-factor auth…

You could DIY a local storage camera system, or you can sort through all the different plans from all the different manufacturers. Or you could just say, screw it, and forget about it.

Are you in the market for a new smart camera setup for your home or small business? The good news is, you have plenty to choose from. The bad news is, you’ll probably end paying for cloud storage. You might even end up paying for things you never needed or wanted.

I’m not picking on any single manufacturer here. Whether you go with the big dogs like Amazon’s Ring or Google’s Nest systems, a well-regarded name brand like Arlo, or even the cheapest models from China, each comes with several different tiers of cloud storage above and beyond the free level. And even the best wireless home security cameras usually don’t have the best option of all: expandable local storage.

Case in point: Amazon’s Ring doorbell comes with “free” cloud storage. Or does it? A quick look at the plans show that nothing your …