Android 5.0 Lollipop tips: 5 tricks everyone should know

If you're lucky enough to have Android 5.0 Lollipop on your device right now, you're amongst the lucky few with Nexus, Motorola or LG devices. But the Android 5.0 Lollipop update is coming for everyone, so why not get up to speed on the best Android 5.0 Lollipop tips to give you a head start on what you need to know to get the most out of Lollipop and avoid some of the biggest Android 5.0 Lollipop fails...

Enable silent mode

This is easily one of the biggest frustrations with Android 5.0 Lollipop: the official death of silent mode. We've shared a couple of tricks to enable silent mode on Android 5.0 Lollipop but one of our awesome Mods and all-round geniuses, Mattia from AndroidPIT.it has come up with a cool silent mode widget that'll flip your device to silent and back again – the app is getting the final touches on it right now, but we'll share it with you as soon as it's uploaded to the Play Store. In the meantime, check out the article linked above for all the current options.

Lock screen security

Android 5.0 Lollipop comes with a variety of lock screen security options. From the classic pattern, PIN or password, to the more funky Lollipop options like Trusted Faces, trusted Devices or Trusted Places. Whatever lock screen method (or trusted bypass option) you choose, this should really be one of the very first thing's you do with any phone, any time. With the new Trusted options, having a complex pattern lock doesn't even have to be a pain as long as you're hanging out near home/work, have your smartwatch or Bluetooth headphones on or have your beautiful mug in view of your phone (which should always be attached to your body).

Chrome tabs

This isn't a huge problem, and maybe you like having your Chrome tabs dispersed throughout your recent apps stack, but for me it's as irritating a default setting as its possible to have. Fortunately, all you need to do to get your Chrome tabs back to their rightful place (you know, in Chrome) is to go to you Chrome settings and disable ''merge tabs and apps.'' Your Chrome tabs will now be accessible via the traditional button on the URL bar in the Chrome browser.

Priority interruptions

Priority interruptions are a key component of the Android 5.0 Lollipop feature set. Knowing that there are times and places when you don't want to be interrupted by anything except the most urgent notifications is a great addition to stock Android's functionality. It may take you a little while to set up exactly how you like it, but once you've got your priorities in order you can enjoy peace and quiet unless your mom's dog runs away or your girlfriend is texting you.

Dead Email app

For some odd reason, Google decided to keep the now useless Email app. When you launch it for the first time, you'll get a splash screen that tells you Gmail is now handling Email services and you can check the box fto launch Gmail instead. But why do that and have a hollow app sitting in your app drawer? Go to Settings > Apps > All tab and find Email and disable that useless waste of space. Your emails will still be handled by Gmail but you won't have the dead app icon cluttering up your precious app drawer.