How to hide your photos in Samsung Galaxy Tab

There are some instances when your Android gadget has to be tinkered and scrutinized by your friends and family members, out of curiosity, or when times when you are forced to compare your Android with other gizmos like the iPhones and Blackberries of your friends and acquaintances. Almost always, the first thing that other people do when handling and scrutinizing your tablet or smartphone is to look for the picture and video gallery. That is where things get embarrassing or awkward at times because you might have some pictures which you would rather keep private. Trying to avoid the other people from taking a peek at your picture files make the situation worse because it is becoming obvious that you are hiding something. Of course you can always avoid situations like these by not keeping private pictures into your Android Tablets or better by not letting anyone touch your gadget at all cost.

To add privacy to your personal stuff in your Android picture gallery, there is free app from the Android market that can do it. It is called Fotosafer lite. The app works by letting you encrypt your chosen photos and protect it with a password or PIN. The app allows you to encrypt and decrypt your pictures. When you encrypt your selected file, it goes to the vault and when you decrypt it, the file reverts to the original source folder. To ensure that your file will not be lost, it's better to keep another copy of your file somewhere or in another computer.

The free or lite version lets you encrypt a maximum of 20 pictures only. the paid version which costs Php42.09 or less than a dollar gives you unlimited number of files to encrypt. You can download the app here.

How to use Swype on the Samsung Galaxy Tab

Many of us Galaxy users are aware of some bundled apps in our Tabs  but most of us never bother to check out or take a look at the capability of most of them. One of those apps that we ignored is the Swype, a type of text input that is quite different from how we normally operate our Android keyboards and touch pads. once you hurdle the initial learning curve, you can type way faster than the conventional tap tap method on your touch screens. This app is just what the text and chat addicts needs. They can amaze their friends by replying very fast on chats and endless text message marathons on unlimited text plans.

So how do you use Swype? all you have to do is slide or drag your finger across the letters of the word that you are trying to type and the software quickly guesses what you are trying to say with a high degree of accuracy most of the time. It is so amazingly fast and as soon as you learn it, you will get hooked and will never return to traditional  tap typing on virtual keyboards.

To enable Swype, tap Settings, tap Locale and Text and then select Swype Input Method on the Text Settings. On the Swype Settings page specify your preferences as to language, word prediction, audio feedback and other items. You can also set Swype Advanced Settings. Scroll to the bottom of the page and you can access the Tutorial and help page. Click on the Tutorial and you will have an interactive lessons on how to quickly learn Swype. Though Swype is so easy to learn and use, I suggest you try the tutorial first to avoid frustrations later when you badly need to type characters and punctuation.

Smart Launches Android Powered Netphone

Smart Philippines have unveiled an Android-powered smartphone named Netphone for its postpaid and prepaid subscribers. The phone is priced below 10,000 pesos making it also affordable like the Samsung Galaxy Mini and the LG Optimus Me, both of which are priced in the range of 8,000 to 10,000 pesos.

The Netphone is powered by a 600 Mhz Qualcomm 7227 CPU, the same CPU inside the Samsung Galaxy Mini. One thing that differentiates the Netphone from its similarly spec'd mid-range phones is its 3.50" display which is relatively larger compared to the others which is normally 3.15 to 3.20".

It has 3.2 Megapixel camera, 512 MB of on-board Memory plus 2 GB microSD card that is expandable to 16GB.

Android OS is 2.2 Froyo. You may visit the netphone's website here for more information.

Samsung Galaxy Tab S Spotted!

Finally, I was able to take a glimpse of the latest Samsung tablets in a local mall. Too bad though I didn't have the opportunity to tinker with those adorable Android honeycomb powered slates. The gizmos are locked inside the glass cabinets as according to the saleslady, the tabs are yet to be launched in the coming few weeks. Even the prices are yet unavailable.

My attention was particularly caught by the unfamiliar 5" Galaxy Tab S which I was unaware of existence till last night's encounter at the mall. It was a bit bigger than the Galaxy S II and smaller than the original Galaxy 7". The 5" screen was a joy to see and I reckon I will use this latest tablet more often than the Galaxy 7" once I acquire one of it.

Except for the lack of 3G connectivity, this could pass as a good alternative for the high end 4.3" Galaxy S II with an stratospheric price tag. I truly hope that its price will be affordable and cheaper than its older sibling the 7" Wi-Fi only P1010.

Samsung Galaxy S Wi-Fi 5.0 Specs

Android Froyo V.2.2
5" TFT LCD screen
1 Ghz Application Processor
1.3W SoundAlive 3D surround sound
HD Video Recording and playback
8 GB Internal Memory (Expandable to 32 GB)
Front and Rear Camera

Android Powered Mall

For the month of July and August, Android fans have a great treat from Rockwell Powerplant Mall and Samsung Philippines. They set up a digital concierge at a strategic part of the mall where shoppers can have access to Samsung Galaxy Tabs. The tabs have been set up to help shoppers navigate and find their way around the mall, see shop listings, movie schedules and promos from mall tenants.

For those who are curious about the Android craze, this will be the best time for you to test drive Android's technology through the Samsung Galaxy tab. With the digital concierge at the Rockwell Powerplant Mall you can experience maximum entertainment by watching streaming videos, playing 3D games, surfing the internet and accessing your favorite social networking sites.

The lounge is also the place for those looking to upgrade to Samsung's latest 8.9 and 10.1 because it offers a preview of the said latest gizmos from Samsung which I heard is soon to take the Philippines by storm this August. Do watch out for a review of it here.

So head out to the Rockwell Powerplant Mall in Makati City and experience Android. For more info see this link.

Android App Review: Evernote

Found an interesting app from the Productivity section of the Android App Market, this is called Evernote. Similar to the functionality of the traditional "memo" app natively built into the Android tablet like the Samsung Galaxy Tab but with more added features.

As a memo taker, evernote adds more functionality by letting you take photos, record some audio or attach some files and then sync to all the computer devices that we use. it can be windows, mac or other mobile devices. As an example, your notes on your Android tablet or smartphone can be accessible to your windows or mac computer wherever you are even at home or at work.

The search feature is one of my most favorite because evernote has the ability to let you search texts on pictures. Furthermore, when you are looking for any particular note that you made from the past, you can easily do it and the results are synchronized all over your own devices.



All these synchronizations of your files happens online without the need to physically attach your laptop or desktop computer with your Android tablet thru USB. Photos below shows evernote for windows and for Android.





The app and the service is free but if you want added feature like bigger disk space for your files, you can subscribe for a certain monthly fee.

You may download the evernote app for your Android by clicking here.

QR Codes and Google Goggles

Ever noticed graphic image like the one shown in the picture in web pages? Said image is actually a code which you can read by using your android cellphone camera. It is called a QR code or “Quick Response” code. It is used to direct you to specific web pages say, a download link to your favorite Android game or app. It saves you time from typing lengthy URL’s. To do it however requires an app which enables your device’s camera to read the code.

One such reader is the android app called Google Goggles. Whenever you encounter stuff of interest with QR code in your computer, just point your Android phone’s camera to the image and a search result will immediately pop out on your device’s screen. There are many sites that use QR codes for their download links so the utility is becoming quite useful.

Aside from reading QR codes, Google Goggles can scan other interesting stuff, even live ones! For example, I pointed my camera to my officemate and Google Goggles scanned the person. When I checked on the search results, my browser returned similar pictures of other people closely resembling the body shape and the color of the clothing of my office mate. Google’s website for Goggle Goggles says that the app can search texts, landmarks, books, contact info, artworks, wine and logos.

The app has much room for improvement and I can see that it can be useful for recognizing more objects in the future. Try it out by downloading it from the Android Market .

How to Set-up MID Android Tablet for 3G USB Sticks

The cheap and highly popular China-made Android devices that comes in many names like iRobot, ePad, Apad and MID can also be used for browsing the internet using Internet USB sticks from cellular phone companies like Smart and Globe Telecoms here in the Philippines.

To set it up, tap the 3G settings icon and then tap on Add 3G. Type a name on the name field and then choose supported USB device on the drop-down list. Mostly supported sticks are Huawie brand e-series. If the brand and model of your USB stick is not found in the list, chances are it will not work with your particular device.

Type the phone number which is usually *99#.

Next, type the APN on the APN field according to the 3G provider shown below:

GLOBE TELECOMS APN

Postpaid : internet.com.ph

Prepaid : http.globe.com.ph

SMARTBRO APN

Postpaid : smartbro

Prepaid : smartbro

SMART BUDDY/SMART GOLD

APN : internet

SUN CELLULAR APN

Prepaid (static) : minternet

Authentication : PAP

IP Address : dynamic

Postpaid (static) : fbband

Authentication : PAP

IP Address : dynamic

Note: Leave all other settings blank or as is.

How to Reset Samsung Galaxy Tab P-1000 to Factory Settings

If ever something happens to your Samsung Galaxy Tab P-1000 where an application freezes and renders the tablet unusable, you might need to reset your Galaxy to factory settings.

To do this, go to Settings, tap Privacy and then select Factory Data Reset. This action will erase all data on the device and upon completion, your Galaxy Tab will be like brand new as if just taken out of the box recently.

I have read from other sources that the Galaxy Tab P-1000 can be reset using the hardware buttons. I haven't tried it though so please act with caution. I will not be responsible for any untoward outcome that may result from these tips.

To do so, press the volume down button for about 10 seconds and then simultaneously press the power button. This will result to the same factory default like the method mentioned previously.

To be able to recover your important files, make it a habt to back-up your device frequently.

Galaxy Tab Notification Bar

If you want to have quick access to the most commonly used settings of your Samsung Galaxy Tab like Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, screen brightness and orientation lock, there is a very fast way of doing it without having to look for the Settings icon from among the bunch of applications that fills up your Android tablet screen.

All you have to do is drag the notification bar from the uppermost portion of your tablet. As soon as you drag it downwards, the corresponding icons for the Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, orientation lock and screen brightness shows up, plus the most recently used applications and tasks.

In my previous post, I suggested an app from the Android Market to solve the auto-rotation of the Galaxy Tab when reading or using the unit sideways. With this built-in utility of the Galaxy Tab, you don't have to do install an app for it anymore. Just tap on the orientation lock icon and the auto-rotate function will be temporarily disabled locking the orientation to its current state.

If you want to change the brightness of the screen or set it into automatic to save battery life, you can also do it from here.

The shortcut for muting your unit in an instant is also accessible from this pull down notification bar. Very handy when you are in a meeting or don't want to disturb others in a quiet room.

For frequent users of GPS and Bluetooth, this is very useful for quicky activating the said features.

The notifications for many activities on the tab like missed calls, new emails, and new messages are conveniently displayed on the lower portion of the icons.