40+ HTC 10 Tips & Tricks

Joe Fedewa
9 years ago

Are you looking to get the most out of the HTC 10? You’ve come to the right place. We already told you about the 13 first things you should do with the phone. Now it’s time to dig a little deeper. Actually, a lot deeper. We’ve got over 40 tips and tricks to uncover all the best features of the HTC 10. Read this list and you’ll graduate from smartphone noob to smartphone expert.

How to take a screenshot on the HTC 10

Let’s start with something simple. Taking a screenshot is something people don’t think about until they need to do it. The HTC 10 uses the same technique that you’ll find on most devices.

Visit the screen you want to capture
Hold down the power button and volume down button
You’ll hear a shutter sound and the screenshot will be added to your notification bar
From there you can Share or Delete the screenshot

Get content from your old phone

Getting a new phone is exciting, but going through the set-up process can be a pain. Thankfully, HTC has built in the ability to get content from any type of phone: iPhone, Samsung, or otherwise. It’s really easy to do. Open up the Settings and navigate to Get content from another phone. You’ll see options for “HTC Android phone, Other Android phone,” and “iPhone.” Tap the one you need and follow the instructions.

Use your fingerprint to unlock the phone

The HTC 10 has one of the best fingerprint scanners on the market right now. It’s fast and super reliable. A lot of people don’t use any lock screen security because it’s a hassle to type in passwords and draw patterns. A good fingerprint scanner is secure and hassle-free. You should definitely set it up.

Go to Settings > Fingerprint scanner
Tap Add fingerprint > Next
If you haven’t already set up a lock screen pattern, PIN, or password, you’ll be asked to set one up
Tap Start
Choose which finger to use, touch the scanner until it vibrates, then lift your finger
Repeatedly touch the scanner until the fingerprint has been successfully recorded
After you’ve successfully recorded your fingerprint, tap Done

Use smart lock to bypass the lock screen in trusted situations

Even with a fast and reliable fingerprint scanner, you might feel like you’re wasting time, especially when you’re in a trusted situation. Why should you have to worry about lock screen security in your own home? Smart Lock allows you to lock the HTC 10 only when the situation requires it. Go to Settings > Security > Smart Lock (enter password/PIN/pattern). From there you’ll have a few options:

Trusted devices – keep your phone unlocked when connected to specific devices (speaker, car, smartwatch) via Bluetooth.
Trusted places – keep your phone unlocked when you arrive in specific places (home, work, etc.).
Trusted face – phone will automatically unlock when it recognizes your face after turning the screen on.
Trusted voice – unlock the phone using your voice.

Use gestures from the lock screen as shortcuts

Another quick way to get into your phone is with Motion Launch Gestures. With a few swipes you can quickly unlock your phone or jump to commonly-used apps. To enable the following gestures, go to Settings > Display, gestures & buttons > Motion Launch gestures.

Double tap to wake up & sleep – pick up the phone in portrait and double-tap to wake, do it again to sleep
Swipe up to unlock – pick up the phone in portrait and swipe up to unlock
Swipe left to go to Home screen – pick up the phone in portrait and swipe left to go directly Home
Swipe right to launch Blinkfeed – the same thing, but swipe right to go directly to Blinkfeed
Swipe down twice to open Camera – pick up the phone in portrait and swipe down twice to launch the camera

Be prepared for a lost or stolen phone

There’s nothing worse than your shiny new phone getting lost or stolen. In the early days of smartphones, there wasn’t a lot you could do if your phone went missing. Thankfully, Google now includes something called Android Device Manager on every device. There’s no setup required, but you should know how to use it if your phone has been misplaced.

Go to google.com/android/devicemanager
Select your phone from the drop-down menu
You’ll see the device on a map and a few options for finding it or erasing the contents

Read More: How to find a lost or stolen phone

How to recover photos and videos

If your phone is gone forever, you can easily recover your photos and videos. However, this does require some initial set-up, so you’ll definitely want to do this as soon as possible. The easiest way to backup your photos and videos is which a cloud storage app such as Google Drive or Microsoft OneDrive. You can set the app the automatically back up every photo and video you’ve taken. This can be done instantly or whenever you’re connected to WiFi.

Use the touch screen while wearing gloves with Glove Mode

Sometimes you have to wear gloves. Maybe it’s super cold outside or you’re doing some gardening in the backyard. You won’t have to take them off to use the HTC 10. A handy feature called “Glove Mode” increases touchscreen sensitivity so you can use the device with your gloves on.

To enable glove mode, navigate to Settings > Display, gestures & buttons and tap the check box next to Glove mode.

Choose which apps use the notification LED and when

The HTC 10 has a notification LED tucked inside the speaker grill on the top of the phone. Some people really like notification lights, but other people don’t. You can’t completely disable the light on the HTC 10, but you can customize how it works.

To set up the notification LED, navigate to Settings > Sound & notification. From here tap Flash LED for notifications to choose whether to always flash the LED light or only when the display is turned off.
To set flash notifications for individual services, tap Manage LED notifications. From here you can choose to use the LED notification light for missed calls, voice mail, messages, calendar events, mail, and alarms.

The bad news is that HTC devices don’t seem to play nice with apps like Light Flow. You won’t be able to choose different colors for different apps.

Take advantage of the SD card slot

SD cards are making a comeback. At one time it seemed they would die out from smartphones, but so far all major flagship phones in 2016 have included microSd cards. If you have the HTC 10 you’ll want to take advantage of this handy feature. Here are some SD cards that you can pop in your phone.

Use the SD card to boost your internal storage

HTC is doing something with SD cards that you won’t find on many devices. Not only can you use an SD card for storing media, but you can actually use it as built-in internal storage. This feature is called “adoptable storage,” and it was introduced in Android Marshmallow. The HTC 10 is one of only a few devices that takes advantage of this feature.

Warning: This process will essentially lock the SD card to your phone. You won’t be able to pull it out and put in your PC to view files. Removing the card will erase all the data. Proceed with caution.

Insert a microSD card
Go to Settings > Storage
Tap the Settings icon next to your card
Tap Format as internal

Show the battery percentage in the status bar

If you’re one of those people that needs to know the exact percentage of battery life, the HTC 10 has you covered. You can display the battery percentage next to the battery icon in the status bar. Simply go to Settings > Power and check the box next to Show battery level.

Enable battery saver mode to squeeze out more life

As with most Android devices these days, the HTC 10 comes with a couple of built-in battery saver modes. It will trigger automatically when your phone drops down to 15%, but it can be manually enabled by navigating to Settings > Power and flipping Power saver to the On position.

If you need even more extra juice, an Ultra power saving mode can be enabled using the same process. This will put the phone in an extreme power saving mode. You will only have access to a select few apps, and the theme will be switched to dark to conserve battery.

Crank up animations to speed up your phone

Every Android device comes with a bunch of secret settings. These settings are primarily for developers, but there’s one thing that is useful for everyone. If you’ve ever felt like animations are too slow and apps don’t move as fast as you’d like, this simple trick could speed up the HTC 10 dramatically.

Go to Settings > About > Software information > More
Tap on Build number until a message says you are now a developer
Go to Settings > Developer options > Advanced
In the Animation section, tweak the scale for Window, Transition, and Animator duration. (We recommend .5x)

Put app drawer in alphabetical order

By default, the HTC app drawer is organized in a seemingly random “Custom” order. It’s much easier to find stuff with alphabetical order. Switching up the order is as easy as 1-2-3.

Open the app drawer
Tap Apps in the title bar
Select Alphabetical

Change the size of the app drawer grid

Another thing you can do to change up the App Drawer is adjust the size of the grid. By default, the grid is 4×5, which shows 20 apps at a time. You can change it to 3×4 to only see 12 apps at a time.

Open the app drawer
Tap the three-dot menu icon
Tap Grid size
Select 3×4 or 4×5

Hide apps from showing up in the app drawer

Is your app drawer cluttered with apps that you don’t care about? A great way to clean things up is by hiding apps. This will not uninstall the app from your phone, but it won’t show up in the list of apps in your App Drawer.

Open the app drawer
Tap the three-dot menu icon
Select Show/hide apps
Check all the apps you wish to hide
Tap DONE

Change the action of the Recent Apps button

The HTC 10 has three physical buttons across the bottom: Back, Home, and Recent. Physical buttons don’t have the flexibility of virtual buttons, but HTC still allows you to do some customizing. The Recent button can be configured to act as a “Menu” button. Here’s how to do it.

Go to Settings > Display, gestures & buttons
Select Recent apps button
Choose from the options:
- Always open recent apps
- Press for menu, press and hold for recent apps
- Press for recent apps, press and hold for menu

Use a keyboard that doesn’t suck

There are a lot of great things about the HTC 10, but the keyboard is not one of them. HTC uses the TouchPal keyboard by default. It’s definitely not one of the best Android keyboards we’ve used. The good news is you can easily swap in your own favorite keyboard.

Go to Settings > Language & keyboard
Tap Current Keyboard
Select one from the list, or tap CHOOSE KEYBOARDS
Make sure your keyboard is enabled
Go back and choose it from the list

Create a completely custom theme just for you

A lot of phones supports themes, but no one is doing themes like HTC. There are a bunch of pre-made themes to choose from, but the real magic happens when you make your own. The HTC 10 can create a completely custom theme by simply analyzing your wallpaper or a photo from your gallery.

Open the Themes app
Tap the (+) button in the bottom right
Choose a Home image and tap NEXT
Choose one of the themes by tapping NEXT or EDIT
On the EDIT screen, you can pick colors, icons, sounds, and font
Name the Theme and Apply

Ditch the boring home screen and go Freestyle

Want to get even more custom? HTC allows you to ditch the old app grid and go “freestyle.” In the Freestyle Layout, you can use stickers to launch apps. These stickers can be placed literally anywhere (even on top of other stickers), and they sort of blend in with the wallpaper. It’s a really unique look.

Using the stock Sense launcher, long press on a blank spot
Select Change Home screen layout
Select Freestyle layout
Choose one of the layouts
Tap Download on the next screen
Tap Apply when the download is complete

The app icons on the home screen are now stickers that can be moved anywhere. You’re no longer confined to a grid. The theme will choose a few apps to put on the home screen by default. It’s possible to change the stickers and add more apps and widgets.

To change the app that an existing sticker open, long press the sticker and drag it up to RELINK
Choose an app from the list to open
To add a new sticker, plain app icon, or widget, long press on blank space and choose from the list
When you add a new sticker you’ll have to drag it to the top to link it to an app

Use the HTC adaptive home screen widget

The nice thing about the HTC 10 software is that HTC hasn’t included a lot of extra stuff. The few things that they have added can be pretty useful. One such thing is a widget called “Sense Home.” This widget is basically an expanded folder that shows apps pertinent to your current location. For example, it can show work apps while you’re at the office. Here’s how to set it up.

Long-press on a blank spot on the home screen
Select Add apps and widgets
Drag the Sense Home widget to an open spot on your home screen
Tap the widget to set it up
Follow the instructions on the widget
Tap the location name to drop down other locations
Tap the three-dot menu icon to further customize the widget

Disable notifications on a weekly schedule with Do Not Disturb

One of the best features to come to Android in the last few years is Do Not Disturb mode. Everyone has certain times when they don’t want to be disturbed by phone notifications. Do Not Disturb mode allows you to create a weekly schedule for these situations. The common example is to mute the phone every night.

Go to Settings > Sound & notification
Tap Do not disturb
Tap Schedules
Tap +Add Rule
Name the rule and tap OK
Select the days, start time, and end time
Tap Do not disturb to choose the notifications that can get through

Add content to BlinkFeed (or remove it completely)

BlinkFeed is HTC’s custom feed for everything you might be interested in. It lives on your home screen on the page furthest to the left. BlinkFeed can be useful if you take the time to add your interests and social networks. Of course, you might not want to use BlinkFeed at all. We’ll show you how to do that too.

To add or remove items from BlinkFeed:

From your home screen, swipe all the way to the left to access BlinkFeed
Tap the menu icon in the upper lefthand corner
Tap the + icon to add or remove content

You will now be able to choose the content you wish to view in your BlinkFeed by choosing from a selection of social networks and other sources (or alternatively unselecting the sources you no longer wish to receive updates from).

To enable to disable location-based suggestions

From your home screen, swipe all the way to the left to access BlinkFeed
Tap the menu icon in the upper lefthand corner
Tap the + icon
Check or uncheck Mealtime recommendations

Remove BlinkFeed from your home screens

If you wish to remove BlinkFeed from your home screen altogether, you can do that as well. Simply pinch the home screen with two fingers, long press on the BlinkFeed page and drag it to REMOVE.

Adjust the screen color profile to your liking

The HTC 10 has an LCD display. If you’re used to AMOLED displays, like the ones on Samsung phones, you might find the colors look different. LCD displays have colors that are more true-to-life and blacks are not as deep. If you find the colors are not to your liking, HTC has included a way to adjust the color profile.

Go to Settings > Display, gestures & buttons
Tap on Color profile and choose Vivid or sRGB
Tap the three-dot icon to adjust the slider

Record videos in the highest quality possible

Are you one of those people that needs every video to be as “crispy” as possible? The HTC 10 can give you the crispiest videos by recording in 4K. It’s as simple as tapping a button. Unfortunately, finding something that can play 4K videos is not as easy (or cheap).

Open the Camera
Switch to video if you’re not already
Tap the dual-line icon to open the menu
Tap the Quality button until it says 4K

Switch the camera to Pro, Hyperlapse, or Slow motion mode

HTC has one of the best camera interfaces on Android. It’s easy to open and take a quick shot or do something more complex. There are several different modes you can use on the HTC 10. Everything from a powerful “Pro” mode to the fun “Slow Motion” video mode. Open the camera and tap the menu icon (double lines) to switch modes.

Pro – ISO, white balance, exposure, file output
Hyperlapse – compress a long video into a smooth time lapse
Slow Motion – slows down video (slow motion videos can be restored to regular speed)
Selfie Photo/Video– take a photo or video with the front-facing camera
Panorama – helps you line up consecutive shots for a panorama photo

Use BoomSound to its full potential

HTC ditched the dual front-facing speakers for the HTC 10, but that doesn’t mean BoomSound is dead. Th HTC 10 still has better speakers than most smartphones, and BoomSound still works. There are a couple of different ways you can tweak audio through the speakers and headphones.

Without headphones

Go to Settings
Tap HTC BoomSound with Dolby Audio to toggle between Theater and Music mode
You can also switch these modes from the notification shade while audio is playing

With headphones

Go to Settings
Toggle the switch for HTC BoomSound with Dolby Audio on or off
This can also be toggled from the notification shade

Give guests limited access to apps with Screen Pinning

A smartphone is full of personal information and sensitive content. This can make it difficult to let people use your phone without your supervision. Screen pinning allows you to lock the HTC 10 to use just one app. The user won’t be able to navigate out of the app you choose.

Go to Settings > Security
Scroll down to Screen pinning
Toggle it on and toggle on Ask for unlock pattern before unpin

To use:

Open the Recent apps
Pull up the most recent app and tap the pushpin icon in the bottom right corner of the preview
To unpin the app, touch and hold the Power and Back buttons

Download the best apps and games

As great as the HTC 10 is, it would be pretty boring without a bunch of great apps and games. Here at Phandroid, we are constantly trying to showcase the best apps and games. We’ve published numerous lists for a wide variety of apps and games. Before you dive into the Play Store and blindly look around, check out these lists.

Start here: 100 Best Android Apps of 2016

Set up Android Pay to make mobile payments

Whether you hate pulling out your wallet and swiping your credit card, or you simply want a backup method of paying for things should you leave your wallet at home, Android Pay makes it easy to make purchases using nothing but your smartphone. The HTC 10 is capable of using Android Pay, but you have to set it up first.

Open the Android Pay app on your phone
Touch the + sign in the bottom-right corner
Touch Add a credit or debit card
If you already have linked cards, choose one or touch Add another card
Use the camera to capture your card info or enter it manually

Keep in mind that Android Pay also works anywhere tap-to-pay or Apple Pay is accepted. You can find a full list of Android Pay supported banks here.

Read More: How to use Android Pay right now

Use ‘Google Now on Tap’ for a new way to search

For many people, the HTC 10 will be the first device they’ve used with Android Marshmallow. One of the best features of Marshmallow is called “Google Now on Tap.” It’s a completely new way to search. All you have to do is long-press the home button. Google will scan your screen and provide contextual results. If you’re texting a friend about a movie, Google will show information and showtimes about the movie. Now on Tap is very cool if you can get in the habit of using it.

Touch and hold the Home button
Follow the instructions to turn on Now on tap on your device

Read More: How Google Now on Tap works

Take control of app permissions

App permissions can be very annoying. Why does Twitter need to know my location? Why does Facebook need to access my microphone? If these are questions you’ve asked, you need to use Marshmallow’s powerful permissions. The nice thing is that apps are required to ask permission before performing a task. If Twitter wants to use your location it will pop-up and ask you.

It’s also possible to choose which permission you’d like to deny in bulk. The new App Info page in the Settings has a section for permissions. You can simply unselect which things you don’t want an app to have permission to do. Go to Settings > Apps > select an app > Permissions.

How to factory reset the HTC 10

A factory reset will erase everything from your HTC 10 and take it back to factory settings. You may want to do this if your phone is running poorly or you are selling the phone to someone else. Make sure to backup all important data before proceeding. Once again, this will erase everything.

Go to Settings > Backup & reset
Select Factory data reset
Tap RESET PHONE

Join the HTC 10 community at AndroidForums.com!

One of the best tips we can give you is to check out the HTC 10 forums at AndroidForums.com. It’s the perfect place for noobs and seasoned vets alike to come together to share their experiences with the HTC 10, unearth even more tips and tricks, and ask and answer any lingering questions about HTC’s latest device. Here are a few popular threads to get you started.