Use a friend's Android to find your own

If you're away from the computer and lose your Android, your first reaction may have been to race home to check the GPS location of your device. With the recent update to the Android Device Manager, you can check the location from a friend's device instead.

If you lose your Android device somewhere, the easiest way to find it would be the Android Device Manager. From your Web browser or another Android device, you can ring your lost Android, lock it down with a new password, or completely erase it. But what if you don't have access to your computer, or even your other Android devices? That's the problem that the most recent update to the Android Device Manager aims to solve.

Now, instead of rushing home to your computer, you can locate your device from a friend's Android. The catch? Well, you must use one of your backup codes to log in if you have two-step verification enabled (and if you don't, what are you waiting for?! Do it now!) Basically, this is a friendly reminder that you should print them out and carry the codes with you.

If you do have your backup codes, here's how to find your device:

Pick the guest option from the account menu.Nicole Cozma/CNET

Step 1: Open the Android Device Manager app (or install it for your friend) and tap the username menu at the top. Pick Guest.

Use your backup code in place of the two-step verification code.Nicole Cozma/CNET

Step 2: Enter your Gmail and normal password that you'd use to log in at home. In the two-step verification box, enter one of your backup codes.

Note: Each code can only be used once. Also, if you generate a new set of codes, all previous codes are deactivated. Backup codes can be viewed and generated at this link.

Pick a device, and then choose ring, lock, or erase.Nicole Cozma/CNET

Step 3: Choose your device and then pick the necessary action to help you locate it. When you're done, tap Sign out at the top.

It is a bit of an inconvenience to carry around your backup codes, but at least they could help you find your device when you're away from the computer.

Speed up your Android by adjusting animation settings

Using an older Android device, or just want to make an easy speed adjustment? Check out these quick steps to get moving.

• by Nicole Cozma 
   @c0z
• May 30, 2014 6:29 PM PDT

If your Android phone is feeling a little sluggish, there are a few ways you can speed it back up. First, you might want to start by cleaning out some of the junk you don't need to keep around. Second, it's good to maintain a healthy reboot schedule -- like once a day, or every couple of days. And third, well, now what?

One of the perks of having an Android is the degree to which you can customize it. This means you can change the way some of the stock features work on the phone. For instance, by enabling the developer mode, a whole new selection of adjustments you can make to your device become available. One of these features is the animation length that is used system-wide. By either reducing or disabling animations, you should see an immediate performance boost. Here's how:

Locate the Developer options on your Android device.

Step 1: Enable developer options on your device.

Look for the Developer options in the Settings menu and enable them. If you don't see a Developer options entry in the menu, head to the About device area and tap on the Build number until you see a message saying that they have been enabled.

Find the settings for animations in the Developer options.

Step 2: Turn off the animations (or reduce them).

Scroll down to the Window animation scale, Transition animation scale, and Animator duration scale.

Turn off animations.

Step 3: Restart your device.

You can avoid the restart by force closing your Launcher and then using an app to make it restart. However, since each manufacturer may include a different package name for its launcher, it's easiest to just restart your Android.

Try moving between a few apps and there should be a noticeable difference in how quickly your device handles them. This adjustment even works on the newest of devices, making them even faster.