Unlock Your Android with a Secret Sequence of Volume Key Presses
Unlock Your Android with a Secret Sequence of Volume Key Presses
Yes, they're called volume keys, but they can do much more than adjust your volume. With minimal effort, you can do some amazing things with these physical buttons, like secretly record videos, toggle on your flashlight,scroll through pages, control your music, and much more. And while using them to wake your screen is useful, let's take it a step further and show you how to use them to completely unlock your device, even if the screen is off.
Step 1: Prepare Your Device
In order to manipulate your volume keys and assign them other tasks, you will need to be rooted with the Xposed Framework installed, as well as have "Unknown sources" enabled.
Note that for the time being, this Xposed module is not functional on devices running Android Lollipop yet. Check our up-to-date list for other Lollipop-compatible modules that are available right now.
Step 2: Install Sequence Unlock
Enter the Xposed Installer app found in your app drawer, then search for and install Sequence Unlock from developer Miroojin Bakshi. Once you've installed the module, be sure to properly activate it.
You can also download a paid version ($1.59) from the Google Play Store that mainly works to donate to the dev, but it also unlocks extra features like vibrating on failed attempts and setting sequence-timeout intervals.
Step 3: Create Your Sequence
Open the app to access its preferences, then enable the service and set up your unique sequence. To do so, enter "UUU" as the "Current sequence," then begin creating your own using the letters U (up) and D (down). The sequence will need to be at least three characters.
Also included in the preferences are options to bypass your screen lock with the secret volume sequence you've created, and you can even disable the power button from waking the device.
Tag :
hacking
How to Root U.S./Canadian Galaxy S4!
How to Root U.S./Canadian Galaxy S4!
Here's a quick and easy video tutorial on how to root any Qualcomm-based U.S. or Canadian Galaxy S4 Android smartphone.
Windows, Mac, and Linux Tutorial included.
Windows, Mac, and Linux Tutorial included.
Step 1. Go to Settings->More->About device then hit “Build Number” about 5-10 times until you see “Developer mode has been enabled” message.
Step 2. Next hit the Back button and you should see a new menu called “Developer options”, hit that new menu button!
Step 3. Make sure Developer options is checked ON and also check “USB debugging” ON.
Step 4. Connect a micro-USB cable from your Galaxy S4 to your computer, you should see “Allow USB debugging” window pop-up on your phone, hit “OK”. If you don't see it yet, just skip this step and check back on Step 7.
Step 5. If using Mac or Linux, skip this step as you don't need to install drivers. For Windows users, go to Device Manager on your computer and make sure you have something like “Samsung Android ADB Interface” or some type of “ADB Interface”. If you don't see it, you don't have Galaxy S4 USB drivers installed, download and install Galaxy S4 Windows drivers.
Step 6. Download Motochopper.zip and unzip, you should find a bunch of files in it.
For Windows, double-click on “run.bat” to start the rooting script.
For Mac or Linux, type:
cd Downloads/motochopper
cd motochopper
chmod 755
sudo sh run.sh
cd motochopper
chmod 755
sudo sh run.sh
Step 7. Hit enter to begin rooting.
If you skipped Step 4, you should now see “Allow USB debugging” window pop-up on your phone, hit “OK”.
Also make sure to hit “Agree” on your phone if you see “Verify apps?” window pop up during rooting.
Step 8. When done, hit Enter and your Galaxy S4 will be rooted and will reboot.
Step 9. After rebooting, you will find a new app called “Superuser” in your app drawer, congrats!
Step 10. You can verify you have full root on your Galaxy S4 by downloading and running rooted app like Titanium Backup app.
See Also
Tag :
root
How to Root Your Brand Spanking New Samsung Galaxy S4
How to Root Your Brand Spanking New Samsung Galaxy S4
If you pre-ordered your Samsung Galaxy S4, it might very well be possible that you're reading this on your brand spanking new Android device. As is commonplace with the release of popular smartphones, rooting instructions are usually released simultaneously. I mean, what's the point of paying so much for an expensive phone if you can't have a little fun?
Android developer Dan Rosenberg (aka djrbliss) recently announced that you can root your Samsung Galaxy S4 using the root exploit he originally published for Motorola devices—called Motochopper—as long as you have a U.S. model GS4 or any model with a Qualcomm-based variant.
Rooting Instructions
Per his instructions, to root your Samsung GS4, you'll need to:
- Ensure that you've installed the latest Samsung USB drivers available for your phone before you start.
- Extract the entire contents of the Motochopper zip file.
- Make sure that USB Debugging mode is enabled on your device (Apps -> Settings -> Developer Options -> USB debugging).
- Connect your device to your PC via USB.
- If you're using Windows, navigate to the extracted directory and execute "run.bat". If you're using Linux or Mac OS X, navigate to the extracted directory in a terminal and execute "./run.sh".
- Approve the ADB connection from your PC on your device.
- Device should now be rooted!
WARNING: There are no custom recoveries or stock images available, so please be aware that fixing it could be a serious problem if your device gets bricked. Once the phone has settled in the market, developers will be sure to release recoveries.
Note: Like I mentioned above, this will only work on Qualcomm variants of the Galaxy S4. International variants of the device, with Samsung's Exynos 5 Octa chips, cannot be rooted at this time.
How to Root the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 (Sprint, T-Mobile, & International Variants)
How
How to Root the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 (Sprint, T-Mobile, & International Variants)
Whenever a new Android device is realized, the first thing I figure out how to do is to get it root access. Generally speaking, rooting has never been easier, with many one-touch methods like Stump and Towelroot available. But as manufacturers and carriers increase security with each new product, there is one tried-and-true root method that continues to work on most Samsung devices—Chainfire's CF Auto Root.
I'll get this out of the way now—when I say "most", I don't mean most devices, I mean most carrier variants. If you have an AT&T (our model) or Verizon Wireless version of the Samsung Galaxy Note 4, I'm sorry to say that we'll be waiting some time for a proper method of rooting (the bounty at time of writing is about $5,000).
But, if you're sporting a Sprint, T-Mobile, or international variant of the latest in the Note series, here's how to root your new device.
Step 1: Download the Necessary Files
You'll need a couple of things to get started—the appropriate CF Auto Root file for your device and Odin for Windows (which is packaged with the CF Auto Root ZIP). While there is an Odin-like program for Mac (calledHeimdall), it is not officially supported by CF Auto Root, and we cannot recommend using it at this time.
- CF Auto Root for Sprint
- CF Auto Root for T-Mobile
- CF Auto Root for US Cellular
- CF Auto Root for International models (be sure to download the correct file for your model number/processor type)
Step 2: Extract the Downloaded Files
The CF Auto Root ZIP file will extract to one .tar.md5 file—this is the file we want—as well as a couple of files for Odin and a couple of DLL files. If you end up with recovery.img and cache.img files, you've extracted too far.
Step 3: Set Up Odin
Once extracted, right-click the Odin3 application file, then select "Run as administrator."
Now click the "PDA" option in Odin and select the .tar.md5 file.
Additionally, be sure that the "Re-Partition" option is not checked.
Step 4: Place Phone in Download Mode
Now power off your device and back on while holding the Volume Down + Home + Power buttons, then select the Volume Up button to enter "Download Mode."
Step 5: Flash CF Auto Root
Now plug your device into your PC and you'll notice a COM message show in Odin, as well as "Added!!" in the progress window. All that's left to do is hit "Start".
The process can take up to a few minutes—you'll see your device go into recovery mode, flash SuperSU, and reboot. Once your device has booted back up, open the SuperSU app from your app drawer and let it update binary files (if necessary).
Troubleshooting
If your device does not go into recovery mode, simply run the process again, this time unchecking the "Auto Reboot" option in Odin. Run Odin again, and when it sticks, pull the battery from your device, place it back in, and boot holding Volume Up + Power + Home. This will manually take you into recovery mode where the rest of the process will finish up.
Tag :
rooting
Best Gaming CPUs For The Money: February 2015
Best Gaming CPUs For The Money: February 2015
Since our last update we've recorded the first Broadwell-U benchmarks, which deliver the usual power and performance improvements we've come to expect from Intel's product updates. Of course we have some interesting price adjustments to report, too!
If you don’t have the time to research benchmarks, or if you don’t feel confident enough in your ability to pick the right processor for your next gaming machine, fear not. We at Tom’s Hardware have come to your aid with a simple list of the best gaming CPUs offered for the money.
February Updates:
We learned a lot about Intel's 15 to 28W notebook-oriented Broadwell-U processor line-up at the Consumer Electronics Show last month. For a list of launch models and specifications, check out Intel Reveals Details On Broadwell-U At CES. While we haven't put together a proper review yet, Lenovo was gracious enough to give us some benchmarking time with the company's freshly-minted ThinkPad X250 and W550s laptops, facilitating the first benchmarks on Intel's Broadwell-U Core i5-5200U And i7-5600U. By now, we expect a lot from Intel's regular processor cadence, including improved power usage coupled with better performance. Broadwell-U does not disappoint, as those test results show.
Speaking of Intel, the company's online prices remained fairly stable through January. All that we noticed were $5 price drops on the $63 Pentium G3240 and $120 Core i3-4160, along with $10 reductions on the $200 Core i5-4690S, $230 Core i5-4690K and $300 Core i7-4790.
As usual, AMD's portfolio demonstrated more significant changes. The $84 A8-5600K and $100 A10-5800K dropped by $5. The A4-6400K, A8-6600K and FX-6300 shed $10 to $53, $85 and $100, respectively. The FX-8370E became $15 cheaper at $185. The A10-6700 and A10-7850K both benefited from a $20 price cut to $128 and $150, respectively. Conversely, the A4-6300 is $5 more expensive than last month at $45, and the FX-8320E and FX-9370 gained $10 to $150 and $220.
None of these price changes affect our recommendations, although some of the listed products are slightly cheaper than last month.
In other CPU-related news, ARM Announced ARMv8A-Based Cortex-A72, 16nm FF+ Process, Mali-T880 GPU. While this isn't an x86-based chip, it's interesting to note that ARM claims it boasts a 75-percent reduction in energy consumption across the same workloads compared to last year's devices, and frequencies of up to 2.5GHz.
Some Notes About Our Recommendations
This list is for gamers who want to get the most for their money. If you don’t play games, then the CPUs on this list may not be suitable for your particular needs.
The criteria to get on this list are strictly price/performance. We acknowledge that there are other factors that come into play, such as platform price or CPU overclockability, but we're not going to complicate things by factoring in motherboard costs. We may add honorable mentions for outstanding products in the future, though. For now, our recommendations are based on stock clock speeds and performance at that price. Remember to check out our new performance per dollar comparison page, where you can overlay the benchmark data we’ve generated with pricing, giving you a better idea where your ideal choice falls on the value curve.
Cost and availability change on a daily basis. We can’t offer up-to-the-minute accurate pricing information in the text, but we can list some good chips that you probably won’t regret buying at the price ranges we suggest (and our PriceGrabber-based engine will help track down some of the best prices for you).
The list is based on some of the best US prices from online retailers. In other countries or at retail stores, your mileage will most certainly vary. Of course, these are retail CPU prices. We do not list used or OEM CPUs available at retail.
| PRODUCTS IN THIS ARTICLE | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Intel Pentium G3258 |
Amazon$62.99
| BUY NOW | |
| AMD FX-6300 |
Amazon$105.18
| BUY NOW | |
| Intel Core i5-4460 |
Amazon$189.99
| BUY NOW | |
| Intel Core i5-4690K |
Amazon$215.00
| BUY NOW | |
| Intel Core i7-4790K |
Amazon$334.90
| BUY NOW | |
| Intel Core i7-5930K |
Amazon$571.99
| BUY NOW | |
| Intel Core i3-4160 |
Newegg$120
| BUY NOW | |
Tag :
CPU
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