Gerry's Tech Tip of the Month
GERRY HEBERT
4 Surprising Things Your Smart Phone Can Do
The October issue of Consumer Reports Magazine highlighted these 4 Surprising Things Your Phone Can Do:
- Your Phone can read to you -
- On an iPhone go to Settings, > Accessibility > Spoken Content > Speak Selection.
- On an Android: Go to Settings > Accessibility > Select to Speak.
- It Can Tell Friends Where You Are -
- On an iPhone: Open a text message, tap the profile of the sender at the top of the screen. Then tap Send My Current Location.
- On an Android: Open Google Maps, press and hold your finger on your current location until a card listing the address where you are pops up. Then tap Share > Messages to send your location via text message.
- It Can Magnify Everything for You -
- On an iPhone: Go to Settings > Accessibility > Accessibility Shortcut > Magnifier. To activate the magnifier, click the Side button three times. Then drag the slider to zoom in or out.
- On an Android: Open your phone’s camera and point it at what you want to magnify. Then place two fingers on the screen and slowly spread them outward to zoom in on the text you want to enlarge.
- It Can Replace a Measuring Tape - Your phone can measure any object using its camera. It can also be a carpenter’s level.
- On an iPhone: Open the Measure app. Move the dot over the starting point and tap the plus (+) sign, then tap it again after you’ve moved the dot to the end point to see what the measurement is. For the level function, tap the word “level” in the bottom right corner of the app and use your phone like you would a regular level.
- On an Android: Android does not have this feature built in, but you can download a free third-party app like AR Ruler to access similar tools.