How To Turn Any Android Smartphone Into A Google Pixel
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-Whats Google pixel?-How to install Google pixel?
-What does the Google pixel do?
-Whats Google pixel?
Android’s flexibility means manufacturers can build their own versions of the OS to suit their hardware, but there’s an elegance to the stock Android experience found on Google’s devices—one that other Android smartphones can’t match.Several Android manufacturers, like Samsung, tweak the standard Android operating system to cater to their own app ecosystems—away from Google’s services, too. Worse, devices purchased from a network provider are often packed with extra software and features that are absent from unlocked phones. This can be frustrating for those want a purer Android experience (or those who prefer Google’s products).
Thankfully, it’s easy to recreate the Pixel experience on most contemporary Android devices—scraping away some digital cruft in the process. All it takes is little tinkering and the help of a few third-party apps. Best of all, you can do it without rooting your device. Here’s how.
Installing Google’s AppsThe first step in building a Pixel UI on a non-Google smartphone is to replace your phone’s apps with Google’s alternatives—or as close to the real thing as possible. (If you’re only after an aesthetic change, feel free to skip to the last section.)
Installing a batch of new apps can be tedious, but most of these come pre-installed on all Android devices—they simply have to be enabled as the default app for a particular feature.
However, there are a small number of Pixel-exclusive apps that are unavailable on the Play Store. The Android modding community has ported or rebuilt these to work on almost every common Android handset.
Below are links the download pages for most of the Google apps Pixel phones use by default, plus ports and remakes of those not on the Play store (which will have to be installed via sideloading). The installation process is the same as any app you download from Google Play unless otherwise noted. Once installed, you will need to assign each new app as your phone’s default by going to Settings > Apps > default apps.
Google’s first-party Android Apps Google AssistantThe last app to install is Google Assistant. Many phones use Google Assistant by default, while others use a manufacturer’s proprietary AI helper instead. Once you’ve installed Google Assistant, don’t forget to make it your default app.
While technically optional, you can also set up a touch command that activates Google Assistant with your phone’s AI helper toggle (if it has one). The process for this will differ considerably depending on your phone’s make and model, but the general rule is that you’ll want to set up a specific touch command for your dedicated AI button (such as a Bixby button on Samsung phones) that will open Google Assistant. This can usually be done in the system settings for your AI assistant.
Uninstalling/disabling extra appsBefore jumping into the last stage of the process, consider freeing up your device’s storage space by deleting the apps we just replaced with Google’s versions.
While you can do this the old-fashioned way, we suggest using the app Files by Google. Despite not being a stock Android app (for some reason), it’s incredibly useful. The app scans your phone’s storage and to find and remove excess data, and it will also recommend unnecessary apps to uninstall.
For those who can’t uninstall you extra apps, the best you can do without rooting your phone is to disable them. Some users may find a bloatware remover for their phone on the Play Store, while others will be forced to remove it manually. From the app menu, long press on the app you want to remove, then either drag it up to the trash can icon at the top of the screen or tap on the app’s quick settings menu when that appears then tap “disable” or “uninstall.” This won’t be possible for all apps, but it’s worth a try.
AppearanceNow, for the fun part: making your phone look and work like a Pixel (or as close to it as we can). You won’t be able to completely replace your phone’s UI without rooting your phone, but you can get pretty close. It’s surprisingly easy, only requiring a few third-party apps and some settings adjustments.
Pixel Launcher ScreenThe most important part of recreating the look and feel of a Pixel is the Launch screen. A score of replacement launchers exist on the Play Store—many of which aim to recreate the most recent Pixel launch screen—but we’re going with Rootless Launcher because of how many Pixel features it adds without requiring a root. These include icon packs that match the Pixel’s icons, a properly integrated Google search bar, and extra widgets. You can also customize Root Launcher’s look with options not normally available on Pixel phones, such as different search bar shapes, in the app’s settings.
Google Feed Screenshot: Brendan HesseNext, you’ll want to recreate the Google Feed tab, which is a personalized feed of news articles, nearby recommendations, and other content based on your search history and device use. (This can be customized to your preferred level of privacy in your Google account settings.)
While Google Feed emulation is technically a feature of Rootless Launcher, it’s not available by default and requires a sideload installation. Follow this link to download the “pixelbridge.apk” add-on file. Once it’s on your phone, here’s how to turn it on.
How to install Google pixel?
Download Rootless Launcher here. Download “pixelbridge.apk” here
Quick settings menu and notifications center
Finally, you’ll want to install Power Shade, which we’ve covered before. This app recreates the design for the quick settings menu and notifications found in Android Pie—though Power Shade offers much more flexibility and customization than what the standard Android settings allow. Here’s how to set it up:
Once enabled, your notifications and quick settings menu will now default to the Android 9 Pie design. However, you can customize these new color schemes, background images, layouts, and opacity levels in the app’s various settings. (Some of the more powerful changes will not be available without root access).
What does google pixel do
1) Find out if you’re an addict in Digital WellbeingDigital Wellbeing is one of the big new features of Android 9.0. And, on the surface at least, it seems Google wants us to use our phones less.
Use your phone as normal for a couple of days, then head to Settings > Digital Wellbeing. And prepare for a possible nasty shock.
This shows how many unlocks and notifications you’ve received in a day, along with a pie chart of how your phone use splits up between apps. Tap the pie chart and you can see that data over hours and days.
But what’s the point?
Digital Wellbeing is a wake-up call for those of us who know we spend too much time on our phones, or at least in specific apps.
You can then set app timers in the Dashboard section in Digital Wellness. These tick away when as you use apps. And when you run out of allotted screen time, you’re booted out.
The Pixel 3 XL does let you override these limits. But it’s an important reminder of when you’re behaving badly. When you eat too much you end up feeling full or sick. Use your phone too much and the anxiety and sadness often only crops up six months later. Get it sorted.
2) Set your home as a Trusted Place
One of the neatest, but least used, parts of the Pixel 3 XL’s Android software is “Trusted” places and objects. These let you set locations where your phone will stay unlocked. No fingerprint or passcode required.
Our top tip is to set your home as a Trusted place. Well, as long as you don’t have housemates who like to impersonate your on social media or kids liable to do, well, god knows what on your Pixel 3 XL.
You can add one of these Trusted places in Settings > Security and Location > Smart Lock.
In this menu you’ll also find options to keep your Pixel 3 XL when it’s connected to a Bluetooth device like a pair of Bluetooth headphones or a smartwatch.
3) Get to grips with Active Edge
You can spot a Pixel 3 XL from 50 paces. However, the hardware is pretty simple aside from one hidden extra: Active Edge.
This phone has pressure sensitive sides that let you launch the Google Assistant with a quick squeeze. And, more useful for some, it can silence alarms and calls.
Getting the sensitivity correct is the crucial bit here. You don’t want it to fire off just by picking the phone up, turning Google Assistant into more of an attention-craving puppy than it already is.
Go to Settings > System > Gestures > Active Edge and you can alter the squeeze sensitivity with a handy slider. Then just give the phone a squeeze with a natural hold of the Pixel 3 XL to bring the voice assistant up.
4) Scan your life with Google Lens
Google has access to more data than we can even fathom. Google Lens puts some of it at your fingertips, using your camera.
Go to the Pixel 3 XL’s camera app, scroll through the modes panel to “More”, tap it, and you’ll find Lens.
The display fills with sparkles as it scans the scene to see what it can see. Yep, the visual implementation isn’t quite as impressive as what happens behind the scenes.
However, tap on an object and Lens will try to recognise it. It’ll decipher upside-down text, recognise famous paintings and landmarks, and even wallpaper and carpet patterns. And it can find similar photos of an area published online.
Google Lens verges on creepy. However, it’s a great way to find more about something you pass in a street, or see in a shop.
5) Test your tastes with colour profiles
The Google Pixel 3 XL has a screen made by Samsung. This alone tells you: it’s going to be good.
Google has calibrated the display to look just-about perfect to most eyes. However, you can tweak it a little in the Settings menu too.
Go to Settings > Display and tap the Advanced entry, then Colours. You’ll find Boosted and Adaptive colour modes in here that jack up colour saturation a bit.
These modes are far more subtle than the ones seen in the Samsung Galaxy Note 9. In the test image there barely seems any difference at all. However, look at the Chrome icon and you can see the slight extra pep on offer for saturation hounds.
6) Experience the best selfies in town
Google has managed to fit just about the best selfie experience around into the Pixel 3 XL, even though its selfie cameras have a third the resolution of some alternatives.
This is because it uses very high-quality sensors, and there’s a pair of them. Snap a selfie then head straight to the gallery and you can actually watch as the Pixel 3 XL’s software goes into overdrive to optimise the image.
When you shoot a selfie you have three view main options, because the selfie cameras have different fields of view. You choose between them using a slider in the app.
For the best quality pics, don’t use the ultra-wide mode. Its shots look less clean and detailed. But, yes, sometimes only a wide-angle shot will fit in your friends.
Stick to the standard and “zoomed” views for the cleanest, most detailed selfies in just about all lighting conditions. You can’t really beat Google’s camera software.
7) Marvel at Google’s mad AI camera zoom
The Google Pixel 3 XL only has one rear camera, but you’d never guess that given the advanced stuff it can do. Single camera background blur is something Google has had for a while. But there’s another more impressive extra too: AI zoom.
You might assume this just uses Google’s clever algorithms to make up detail the camera itself can’t really see. There’s more to it, though.
Rest the Pixel 3 XL against something so it’s completely still and you can see the magic at work.
The stabilisation motor actually moves the lens in a tiny circular motion so it can shoot multiple images just a fraction apart. We’re talking less than a full pixel. This lets it act like a much higher resolution camera when zooming.
As this is Google, software does of course have a role to play. It merges together and optimises this data, and it’s particularly good at making text look sharp. Try it out.
8) Get setup with Google Pay
You don’t need a Pixel phone to use Google Pay. But the Pixel 3 XL has it baked-in, and it’s worth trying out if you haven’t yet.
Google Pay lets you use your phone like a contactless card, paying for stuff in shops with a simple swipe of your Pixel XL 3.
And if you have used Google checkout before when buying something online, you barely have to do a thing. Just run the Google Pay app, choose the Google account to link it to, then either select your card or enter your card details.
You can use Google Pay in loads of places on the high street, including Pret a Manger, Aldi Morrisons and to get on TFL trains.
9) Unlock the secret Android P paint app
Every major version of Android comes with a new easter egg, a little secret micro-app or game to uncover. Some aren’t that interesting, but Android 9.0’s is unusual.
It’s a painting app that lets you doodle away, and the more of your finger you press against the screen, the wider the paintbrush will be.
You can paint in different colours, and choose gradations of paint brush. When you leave this micro-app your artwork disappears, so make sure to take a screengrab (power+vol down) if you come up with something particularly artistic.
The faux pressure sensitive style makes creating modern art style abstract paintings surprisingly easy.
Want to unleash your inner Kandinsky? Go to Settings > System > About Phone. Tap Android Version.
Now tap the Android Version field in the pop-up until the Android P graphic appears. Tap this a bunch of times, until you get to the paint app screen.
10) Setup Do not Disturb and Wind-down
If Digital Wellness is for people who think they might have a bit of an unhealthy relationship with their phone, features like Do not Disturb and Wind-down make sure you don’t get that far.
Do Not Disturb is a well-established feature. You may have used it on your last phone. It stops calls and notifications from coming in at times when you’re trying to relax or go to sleep. And, yes, you can set rules to make sure your parents or partner can still get through at any time.
You’ll find Do Not Disturb’s various “rules” and switches in Settings > Sound > Do Not Disturb.
Wind Down is much newer, and is actually part of the Digital Wellbeing garden of calm.
It makes the phone screen turn monochrome at pre-set times, to act as a reminder: it is time to put down Facebook and open a book. Or turn off the lights.
You can find it in Settings > Digital Wellbeing > Wind Down. In this area you’ll also see Night Light, a great companion for this duo. This turns the screen orangey, to cut down eyestrain and, in some people, phone-related headaches.
The idea is to reduce the blue light put out by the display, which is what tends to make your eyes feel tired after you’ve looked at a screen too long.
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