Ever since Google’s Nexus 6 was announced last year, it’s become one of the most polarizing smartphones ever to be released. In the past, Nexus smartphones have been modest and (mostly) affordable, but the Motorola-made Nexus 6 takes a different stance. It’s big, powerful, and features one of the best Android experiences on the market today. Looking past its flaws, the sleek design, crisp screen and the promise of timely updates make the Nexus 6 a great purchase. If you’re a recent adopter of the handset, we’ll help you get the most out of your shiny new device. Today, we’ll be taking a quick look at some of our top tips and tricks for the Nexus 6! The Nexus 6 comes unlocked directly from Google. While that may a standard for Nexus devices, this one in particular can work on most US mobile carriers.
1. Data Management: When using a multimedia-centric smartphone with 4G LTE capabilities everyday, it’s very easy to reach your data cap very quickly. The Nexus 6 has a convenient way to easily keep track of data usage. First, head to your notification shade, then pull down once more to get to Quick Settings. Next, tap the Mobile Networks setting icon. It will immediately show you a quick overview of your data consumption. From there, you can access your data settings, set a data limit, and even check out which apps are using the most data.
2. Battery Status: The 3,220mAh cell in the Nexus 6 may be larger than your standard smartphone’s battery, but it’s also powering a giant, 5.96-inch display. Despite the proclaimed one-day battery life, many users still struggle to last an entire day on a single charge. Fortunately, there are some ways to combat that problem. One way is by turning off the Ambient Display mode which pulses a dimmed screen as notifications come in, not unlike Motorola’s own Moto Display feature. Personally, I find the Ambient Display feature to be really helpful, but if you turn it off, Google claims your phone will get an extra 80 hours of standby time.
3. Wireless Charging: The Nexus 6 has Qi wireless charging capabilities, though that feature was omitted on its original spec sheet. Despite the omission, it is in fact on the device, and offers an easy way to get a supplementary charge while you’re at a desk or bedside table.
4. Water Resistance: Another feature not originally listed on the spec sheet is the fact that the Nexus 6 is water resistant. Like the Moto X, it features a nano coating that doesn't necessarily come with an ingress protection rating, but it is at least somewhat protected against the elements.
5. UHD Recording: The 13MP rear-facing camera not only means you can take high-resolution images, but also high-resolution video. While it’s not enabled by default, you can enable it by launching the Camera, the choosing Settings>Resolution and quality>Back camera video>UHD 4K.
6. Updates and Notifications: Lollipop’s new notification and sound settings might take some getting used to, but they do come with a really helpful feature called Downtime. It’s basically a ‘Do Not Disturb’ mode that you can put on a set schedule. To set this up, head to Settings>Sound and notification>Interruptions, then head to the bottom of the screen. Here you can schedule Downtime by selecting the days of the week and start and end times.
7. Notification LED: Another lesser-known fact about the Nexus 6? It actually comes with a notification LED. It’s hidden beneath the top earpiece speaker, and is unfortunately turned off by default. But with a little elbow grease and determination, you can get it working. You’ll need to gain root access, then download Light Flow from the Google Play Store.
8. Bigger Keyboard:Since the Nexus 6 has such a large display, it makes sense to employ a different keyboard to use some of that extra room. Of course, you can always download a third-party keyboard from Google Play, but there’s also a larger layout built directly into the Google Keyboard.
Long-press the comma key to jump into the keyboard settings, head to ‘Appearance and layouts’, choose ‘Custom input styles’, and add another keyboard. Select ‘PC’ as the keyboard layout, then enable it in the Language settings. The next time your keyboard pops up, tap the globe icon and you will have a keyboard with a dedicated number row. If you aren't fond of the new number row, switching back to your old keyboard is as simple as pressing the globe key again.
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