Help noob and a lost one at that...

[Bnthrdntht]

I'm brand spankin new to Android. I just upgraded from an Iphone, which I've had for 5 years and before that I had a BB and now I am beyond lost... I thought I was pretty decent with figuring out phones but this Android business just stumps me.

I have been online searching for way too many hours now and I am not getting much further in my process in customizing and setting up my phone. Anyone have any tips on where to look up basic tips on this forum or online or a user manual (don't phones come with those anymore these days??) that would make my life a lot easier.

I know this is pretty vague but I'd appreciate any help! Thanks!

 

[DemDog]

I'm brand spankin new to Android. I just upgraded from an Iphone, which I've had for 5 years and before that I had a BB and now I am beyond lost... I thought I was pretty decent with figuring out phones but this Android business just stumps me.

I have been online searching for way too many hours now and I am not getting much further in my process in customizing and setting up my phone. Anyone have any tips on where to look up basic tips on this forum or online or a user manual (don't phones come with those anymore these days??) that would make my life a lot easier.

I know this is pretty vague but I'd appreciate any help! Thanks!

Assume you have an SG3. Two places to get manuals. First from Samsung and second from your carrier. Just go their sites and look in the Support sections for User Manuals. These should help you figure things out. But will tell you that even with those you will have to "play" around with your phone in order to get the screens the way you want them.

Once you get things set up it is time to find apps that will do some of the things you might want to do. For instance, I found a calendar app that I like better than the stock calendar. Same goes for the stock pix gallery app.

Also frequent this forum and other SG3 forums for info on apps, tips & tricks.

Good luck with foray into the world of Android.
http://www.samsung.com/sg/support/model/GT-I9300RWDXSP-downloads

 

[Bnthrdntht]

Assume you have an SG3. Two places to get manuals. First from Samsung and second from your carrier. Just go their sites and look in the Support sections for User Manuals. These should help you figure things out. But will tell you that even with those you will have to "play" around with your phone in order to get the screens the way you want them.

Once you get things set up it is time to find apps that will do some of the things you might want to do. For instance, I found a calendar app that I like better than the stock calendar. Same goes for the stock pix gallery app.

Also frequent this forum and other SG3 forums for info on apps, tips & tricks.

Good luck with foray into the world of Android.
http://www.samsung.com/sg/support/model/GT-I9300RWDXSP-downloads

Thanks I really appreciate the help. I will check those out and hopeffully that will help me in my quest to concure android...

 

[poriggity]

The first reply to your original question has all the answers. My suggestion would be to keep the phone stock, and don't root it and install a new ROM until you are comfortable. I was planning on rooting my S3 as soon as I got it, but so far, I haven't seen a reason to.

Scott

 

[happyarthur79]

Have a look in your browser bookmarks there should be one for the user manual for the S3. This will take you to an interactive online manual for your phone.

 

[mwrobe1]

Don't know what carrier you have, and but the AT&T S3 has a Device Help app that may be useful to you.

 

[The_Chief]

Bnthrdntht, welcome to the forums!

If you have ANY questions about Android and how to do something, feel free to ask. Our whole purpose here is to help you MASTER your device... and then maybe go on to help others do the same. Have a question? We exist to answer it.

iOS and Android do much the same thing, just in different ways. You can find a lot of customization options in Settings, and you can set up widgets (which are live feeds to your home screen instead of a static icon) and wallpapers by long-pressing a blank spot on the screen.

Hope this helps and again: your device-specific forum is a vast wealth of knowledge for you. We're here to help you

 

[AxlMyk]

When I got my GS3, I was completely new to ANY smart phone.
Use Google Play to find your apps. Out of 80 some apps I have, so far 2 are paid. When you find ones you like, buy them.
Ask questions on the forums. I joined 6 or 7 of them. I use Tapatalk to visit most of them.
You're going to like your phone.

 

[LuluButtons]

Hello!

I'm in the exact same boat. Picked the phone up last night and have a whole host of questions. I'm coming from a blackberry so both Android and touch screens are new to me.

So far so good but it's frustrating because I know there are things that i can do, I just don't know how to do them.

For instance, on my blackberry when I had a facebook notification the facebook icon had a red star on it. S3 doesn't seem to do that and I can't seem to find a setting to make the happen. (same goes for email)

Or...how do I turn off sound notifications for just email (I get too many to hear the noise every time).

 

[The_Chief]

Hi LuluButtons and welcome to Android Forums!

I think you will find Android infinitely more customizable than anything else... the trick is learning HOW to customize your device, and that's why this site exists. We're here to help you master your S3.

When you open the facebook app and go to Settings, you will find a section called "Notifications" that you can turn on/off and set notifications for different events.

In the e-mail application, same thing: go to Settings and adjust your notifications. Set the notification ringtone to "silent" and you're done.

Hope this helps

 

[LuluButtons]

Hi LuluButtons and welcome to Android Forums!

I think you will find Android infinitely more customizable than anything else... the trick is learning HOW to customize your device, and that's why this site exists. We're here to help you master your S3.

When you open the facebook app and go to Settings, you will find a section called "Notifications" that you can turn on/off and set notifications for different events.

In the e-mail application, same thing: go to Settings and adjust your notifications. Set the notification ringtone to "silent" and you're done.

Hope this helps

Thank you so much. That was very helpful.

I had the Facebook notifications set to on but I still don't see a red star on the app icon when I have a notification. It does show me the notifications in the top swipe notification bar. Is that normal?

Also, I set up my email in the gmail app....but when I go to email something from Twitter it's asking me to set up my email? Isn't it already set up???

 

[The_Chief]

Hi LuluButtons, the S3 may not have a red star as a notification like your previous device. You will see a notification... what you see is what you get I guess

Twitter is likely asking you to set up the e-mail account IN Twitter so you can e-mail from within that app. I think: I don't tweet, so somebody else more experienced can chime in on that one.

Your edit suggests that you no longer need to know how to exit out of an app or close apps. For the benefit of our S3 readers: press the home key and that will get you back to the home screen. To close apps you no longer need open, long-press the home button and a list of open apps will be displayed... just swipe away the ones you don't need open anymore. That will free up memory.

 

[LuluButtons]

I can definitely live without the red star as this device is SO much better than my blackberry. I never knew what I was missing.

Anyone know how to get to the top of something in an app (specifically twitter or email)?
I have tried the 'double tap' but it doesn't seem to work. In blackberry I pressed T and it took me to the top.

Another question:
In my gmail the new messages are only slightly highlighted and it's not easily distinguishable which ones are still unread. Is there a way to change this?

 

[mase975]

Hello, I am also a new, coming from iphone, user. I have the Galaxy S3. Why don't my emails show any images? I'm using the stock email app. My iphone used to show emails just like u would see them on your PC. On my Galaxy the emails have no images. As far as choosing apps, how do u know which apps have viruses and which ones don't?