But for the few things the phone lacks, it makes up with tons of features. The features are only as useful as your awareness and understanding, though. But after today you will know how to use the Knock Code, customize to make the G5 your own, use Smart Settings, Game Optimization, and more. Find out more about the device that some consider to be the most interesting phone of the year.
1. Knock Code
It has a strange resemblance to tickling your phone, but if you want an alternative or backup security measure to the fingerprint scanner, Knock Code can be your answer. The feature works even when the display is off. Go to Settings>Lock Screen>Select Screen Lock, then choose Knock Code. Using a pattern you can remember, tap within the square that appears three to eight times. There are about 86,000 possible combinations to choose from. Create a backup PIN, though, just in case.
2. Bring Back the App Drawer
Does it seem like something is missing? Where’s your app drawer? LG does listen to its customers, and that’s why UX 5.0 now provides the option of adding the app drawer to the default launcher. Go to Settings>About Phone>Update Center>App>Updates. Still don’t see the Home and App Drawer? It’s not available on every G5 just yet. If you don’t want to wait you can use the Smart World app from the 4.0 software. To do so, go to the LG app store and search for LG Home 4.0, download the UI, tap Home, and select Home (UX 4.0).
3. Take Precautions for a Missing Phone
You may have never misplaced your phone, but the rest of us mortals have experienced this at least once. And what if your phone gets stolen? This can be a horrifying thought, especially if you don’t have insurance or any recourse. But if you just take a few moments to enable tracking that is already present on your device, you can recover your G5. From the same creators of the ultimate search—the Google Search Engine—comes Android Device Manager. It can locate, erase, and lock your G5. Go to Google Settings right now and select Security and Remotely locate this device. Your G5 does need to have a connection to your Google account. If your phone is lost, you can access that same Google account to visit Android Device Manager on your computer or alternate device.
4. Be Smart
If you were used to the Smart Bulletin on your L4, it might seem like it’s missing on the L5. It actually just needs to be enabled. Go to Settings>Display>Home Screen. Beneath Select Home you will find Smart Bulletin and then you can switch the toggle to an ON position. Not sure what you will gain by doing this? Smart Bulletin is a panel situated to the left of your Home screen. You can choose which items you want to see in the panel, but common items include your Calendar, Quick Remote, and Music. Smart Settings allows you to automate your frequently used settings. Instead of having to go on an excavation every time you need to find a particular setting, you can get quick access. You can also set profiles for specific settings, such as when you are at home versus at work. Do you use the same app every time you plug your headphones into your G5? You can set that app to automatically launch.
5. Customize Navigation Buttons
Bored with buttons at the bottom of your screen? Why not pick out a new color? You can also rearrange, add, hide, and remove the navigation buttons on your LG G5. Just go into Display (from Settings) and tap on Home touch buttons. To rearrange, choose Button Combination and press and drag the icons. This is also where you can add alternative buttons, such as Notifications, QSlide, and Capture+. There is a five button limit. Color is pretty self-explanatory. Changes are immediate.
6. Take a Screenshot
When it comes to taking a screenshot, you have a few different options to choose from on the G5. You can use the hardware buttons or a special app. To use the key combination, simply press and hold the Power and Volume Down buttons simultaneously. Although it sounds simple, it can prove problematic if you are uncoordinated like myself. If I don’t get my fingers exactly in sync, my phone either wants to turn off or adjust the volume. Thankfully there’s another way. Have you noticed an app called Capture+ in your notification tray? Once your screen is ready to take a picture, pull down the tray and launch the app. It will appear at the top of your screen, giving you the options to annotate, draw, crop, and erase. When you are done tick the checkbox in the upper left and save to your gallery, add to QuickMemo, or share.
7. Add or Remove Home Screen Panels
To add a panel, you will still touch and hold an empty space, but you will then select Widgets. Long-press and drag an icon or widget to the right edge of the screen. This action creates a new home screen panel. This will also insert the icon or widget you used. To delete a panel, remove all of the widgets contained within. Press and hold the widget and move it to a different Home screen or drag it to Remove to get rid of it.
8. Hide Apps or Eliminate Bloatware Altogether
Without an app drawer, the Homescreen can start to get a little messy. Depending on the carrier, you could also be subjected to tons of pre-installed apps that you didn’t sign up for or agree to. Go to Settings, then Home screen, or hold the Home screen itself and select Home Screen Settings. Choose the Hide Apps option and check the apps you want to disappear. If you are looking to freeze or put an app to sleep, or an even more permanent solution, you can disable or uninstall non-vital apps. First, visit Settings, then Apps. Under All Apps choose the offending app from the list. Hit the Disable or Uninstall buttons. Disabled apps may be re enabled at any time.
9. About Always-on Display
Like the new Samsung Galaxy S7, the G5 features an Always-on Display. It is nice if you use your phone as a clock, and you can also see the date and notifications even when the display is off. But like most things in life, there’s a trade-off. It’s nothing horrifying, but the G5 does have an LCD screen, so you will lose some battery life this way. If it’s still worth it (and it really isn’t a huge leech), go to Settings>Display>Always-on display. Turn the switch on and set it to how you want it to appear. The option to disable this feature is located within the same place; you just turn the switch off instead. The display can also show whatever text you choose while your phone sleeps.
10. Quick Toggles
Like Quick Settings, only even more easily accessible, these toggles make it to where you don’t have to forage for to find your settings. Pull down the menu and you will see five icons. But are these the toggles you actually use the most? If not, tap the Edit button near the upper right corner, next to the Settings icon. The Notification Center also has tons of buttons, but not all of them are very necessary. Uncheck any unnecessary settings, such as file sharing, unless that’s your thing. Now you have space for the things you do need. You can also rearrange them as you please.
11. Optimize Battery Life
Is gaming killing your battery? You can tweak the video quality to help alleviate this issue. To enable, visit Settings>General>Battery and Power Saving. Turn on the Battery Percentage Meter and locate Game Optimizer Mode. Full Optimization not only manages video quality but the frame rate as well. For more general solutions, go back to the Battery and Power Saving menu. You can select Battery Saver if you don’t mind a slower CPU clock, a dimmer screen, and the disablement of some animations. You can set a certain threshold when Battery Saver will kick in automatically. You can also install apps like Greenify to assist you with your other apps. Greenify
12. Make the Camera Work for You
Check out the camera lenses on the back of your G5. That’s right, it’s lenses plural. The G5 has dual camera lenses to give you a choice between standard and wide-angle views. Within the camera app itself, you can choose the single tree icon for to select the standard camera, or the three-tree icon for the wider view. There’s also a Multi-view mode if you want to get the front-facing, wide-angle, and standard rear cameras all in on the action. You can access it as well as Auto, Snap, Popout, Snap, Slo-mo, Panorama, and Time-lapse via the Mode button to the left of your screen. To take a shot quickly using only the sound of your voice, go to Settings (within the app) and tap on the face with the word Off. Now, instead of having to risk moving the phone while you are pressing a button, you can just say Cheese, Smile, Kimchi, Whiskey, or LG.
13. Add Your Fingerprint(s)
There’s been a wave of biometric authentication measures, and with good reason. It’s pretty difficult to imitate your fingerprint. It’s even better if you have multiple fingerprints. The G5 has a rear-facing fingerprint sensor that also doubles as a Power button. You can register your fingerprint by going to Settings>General Column >Fingerprints and Security>Fingerprints>Enter Pin>Add Fingerprint. Adding both index fingers is recommended so you unlock with ease. Including different angles of each finger you enter is recommended. Repeat as necessary, then enter a backup password for your phone.
Conclusion
Which tip, trick, or hack worked the best for you? Another unique aspect of the G5 is its modular design. Many users will most likely never find a reason to use the camera or B&O DAC mods; but nonetheless, they do represent the start of so many hardware options for users to be able to choose from. The CAM Plus module helps you to grip and hold the camera still, an extra 1,200 mAh of battery life, and physical shutter and record buttons. The Bang and Olufsen audio accessory amplifies your headphones and features a digital-to-analog converter, giving you more out of your listening experience. Have you used either of these mods? What was your impression? Was it worth the extra money? Send us your thoughts on all of these topics. Featured Image Credit
