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Tips and Tricks

So has anyone figured out anything cool or unusual on their Atrix 2? I thought it might be nice to have a thread with tips and tricks for people new to the Atrix 2.

Here's a few to get us started:

1) I always recommend to people to install a third party launcher. I personally like launcherpro; other people are very adamant about go launcher. You get a lot more nice options with your home screens, how many rows/columns there are (can we say 5x5? yes please!), what visual transition you'd like and so on.

2) The HDMI mirroring is easy and really "nerd cool". Playing Radiant HD on my hdtv is so fun. I use the cable that came with my original Atrix and it's great!

3) You can change the power saving behavior in Settings -> Battery & data manager -> Battery mode. The default is nighttime saver, which is great for the 9 to 5 crowd, but the college kids or 3rd shift workers might want to look into a custom setting.

4) It's easy to enable "sideloading": the ability to install apps that weren't downloaded via the google market. The most common use for this is the Amazon App Store. Settings -> Applications -> Unknown sources (check the box).

5) Almost all of the "bloatware" (the crap AT&T mandates must be installed on the phone) can be uninstalled, just like any other application: Settings -> Manage applications -> All -> tap the software you want to uninstall and tap Uninstall

6) The Atrix 2 comes with Swype if you would rather use that. Settings -> Language & keyboard settings -> Input method -> Swype

7) There's an easy way to access voice commands, just hold down the search capacitive button. It's not quite as knowledgeable as Siri, but you can do a few advanced things like "Call Domino's Pizza in <Sometownnearme>". I use it most often for just that, calling a chain store or restaurant in the area.


That's all I have, I'll update this OP if people would like to share below!

Thank you,
 
What all "bloatware" are ya'll getting rid of? I haven't had time to go through it all, but chances are I won't use most of the stock ATT crap.

I don't remember the full list, but pretty much anything with at&t in the name ;)

Seriously though, at&t navigation (google nav is awesome), some social networking stuff (not my generation) hrm...that's all I can think of at the moment, sorry.
 
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2) The HDMI mirroring is easy and really "nerd cool". Playing Radiant HD on my hdtv is so fun. I use the cable that came with my original Atrix and it's great!

6) The Atrix 2 comes with Swype if you would rather use that. Settings -> Language & keyboard settings -> Input method -> Swype

7) There's an easy way to access voice commands, just hold down the search capacitive button. It's not quite as knowledgeable as Siri, but you can do a few advanced things like "Call Domino's Pizza in <Sometownnearme>". I use it most often for just that, calling a chain store or restaurant in the area.

Thank you,


Swype: Wow! I'm moving to Atrix 2 from a Blackberry. I thought I would never get used to the touch keyboard, which makes no sense, since the keys are larger than the Blackberry, but there was just something easier to use about them.

Swype makes that a thing of the past. I Swype slowly, watching what is happening, because it sometimes argues with me about the word, but it seems to learn. I am pretty sloppy swyping my first and last names, and they come up nicely, and capitalized. .com is an inverted V.

Does the HDMI cable "just work"? I lose the chronology in posts that say yes, no, need a dock, etc. I think I just need to buy the $15 cable at Walmart and I'll be good to go.

I'll have to give the voice search a try. The AT&T Vocie Dialer is just as horrible as on the Blackberry. I have to learn how it thinks names should be pronounced, and I have never been able to get it to dial "home". I had a Nokia that let me attach the my recorded voice cues to each contact.

My Addition: Google Goggles. The autofocus camera makes this a very useful tool.

--
clarence
 
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The Atrix 2 is my first smartphone and I am quite happy I chose it. However, I am having difficulty getting some Tasker profiles to run the way I want them to. I don't know if it is something I am doing wrong, or if there are just some features that can't be accessed by Tasker. I've tried to find Tasker tutorials for hardcore non-geeks, but haven't come upon one that is as simpleminded as I seem to need, so trial and error has been the path so far and it is frustrating when something simple and basic should work but doesn't. For example, the silent mode setting "vibrate" doesn't work as expected when called for by a "day of the week" context (only vibrate when a call comes in on Friday)...it silences the ringtone but does not vibrate. I'm a complete noob with Tasker and don't have much programming experience in general, so it might be something I am doing wrong, but I have successfully programmed it to go to speakerphone when face up (couldn't get it to go to speakerphone when face down, however), and to launch the music player when earphones are plugged in.
 
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