Table of Contents
The technological world’s best-kept secrets are its shortcuts, which provide the supreme gratification of simplifying routine chores on a Google phone. Google is the undisputed king of time-saving features, and the company expertly incorporates these time-saving shortcuts across its software and products.
Once mastered, these hidden gems become extremely important time savers and are not visible to others who are not in the know. Even while some of them might seem innocuous, the sum of their effects is not something that should be taken lightly. Putting these priceless moments of your day to productive use will result in a dramatic increase in your overall output.
Why Use Google Phone Shortcuts?
Using Google Phone features can help you in many ways and improve how you use your phone as a whole. Here are a few reasons you might want to use Google Phone shortcuts:
- Efficiency and saving time: Google Phone shortcuts let you do things or get to certain parts of the app with just a few taps or movements. This saves you time and makes it easier to get things done quickly, like making calls, sharing messages, or getting in touch with important people.
- Quick Access to Important Functions: With Google Phone shortcuts, you can call specific friends, check your voicemail, look at your call history, or add new contacts right away. With these shortcuts, you don’t have to go through multiple options to do these things. Instead, you can do them right from your home screen or app drawer.
- Better communication: Messaging shortcuts let you start new conversations or group chats with specific friends right from the home screen or app drawer. This streamlined method makes it easier for you to communicate quickly and stay in touch with your contacts.
Best Google Phone Shortcuts
Some Android devices and launchers provide you the ability to personalize the shortcuts that you use. This enables you to customise your phone to your exact requirements by allowing you to build shortcuts for the activities and applications that you use the most. Hands-free operation of your phone is made possible by the use of voice-assisted shortcuts, such as those linked with Google Assistant. When you are driving, cooking, or engaging in any number of other activities, you can utilize voice commands to complete tasks.
Dialing Shortcuts
| Shortcut | Description |
|---|---|
| Call a Contact | Directly dial a specific contact from the home screen or app drawer. |
| Emergency Calls | Quickly access emergency call options. |
| Dial Last Number | Redial the last number you called. |
| Speed Dial | Set up speed dial contacts for quick calling. |
| Voicemail | Access your voicemail directly without navigating through menus. |
Messaging Shortcuts
| Shortcut | Description |
|---|---|
| New Message | Start a new message with a specific contact directly from the home screen or app drawer. |
| Message Templates | Use predefined message templates for common responses or actions. |
| Group Messaging | Create a group message or add contacts to an existing group conversation. |
| Messaging Settings | Quickly access messaging settings for customization. |
Call History Shortcuts
| Shortcut | Description |
|---|---|
| Recent Calls | Open the call history or recent calls list to view and manage your call logs. |
| Call Details | Get detailed information about a specific call, such as duration and time. |
| Clear Call History | Delete your call history with a single tap. |
| Call Recording | Start or stop call recording during an ongoing call. |
Contacts Shortcuts
| Shortcut | Description |
|---|---|
| Create New Contact | Quickly create a new contact without navigating through the contacts app. |
| Edit Contact | Easily edit or update contact information. |
| Delete Contact | Delete a contact from your contacts list. |
| Share Contact | Share a contact’s information via various messaging or sharing apps. |
Miscellaneous Shortcuts
| Shortcut | Description |
|---|---|
| Phone Settings | Open the phone settings directly for quick access to customization options. |
| Call Screen | Enable or disable the call screen feature for incoming calls. |
| Speakerphone | Toggle the speakerphone on or off during a call. |
| Flip to Mute | Mute an incoming call by flipping your phone. |
| Do Not Disturb | Enable or disable the Do Not Disturb mode to silence incoming calls and notifications. |
Tips and Tricks for Using Google Phone Shortcuts
Here are some tips and tricks for using Google Phone tools to get the most out of them:
- Customize Your Home Screen: Set up your home screen so that it has the Google Phone features you use most often. Long-pressing on an app icon will bring up a choice of shortcuts. Drag the shortcuts you want to your home screen to make them easy to find.
- Use Speed Dial: Set up numbers for the people you call most often on speed dial. Give each contact a specific number or letter combination. This will make it easy to call them by pressing and holding the appropriate number or letter on the keypad.
- Explore Hidden Shortcuts: Some shortcuts on Google Phone may not be obvious at first. Long-pressing on different parts or icons of the app will show you tools and functions you didn’t know about. For instance, if you hold down on a contact’s name for a while, you may see more choices, such as sending a message or starting a video call.
- Learn Gesture Shortcuts: Google Phone may have gesture shortcuts in addition to app buttons. For example, you can swipe right on the app icon to open the dialer, and swipe left to open the message screen. Learn these gesture tools so you can move around the app quickly.
Questions and Answers
A: Unfortunately, as far as I know, Google Phone doesn’t have a built-in way to change shortcuts as of September 2021. But the tools you can use and how they work depend on the version of the Google Phone app you’re using and the device you’re on.
A: Google Phone tools are mostly available on phones like the Google Pixel that run a stock or nearly stock version of Android. But some gadget makers might change the phone app and add their own set of shortcuts.
A: Yes, Google Phone features can be turned off if you don’t use them. To do this, long-press the Google Phone app icon, tap the “App info” or “Info” option, and then stop or turn off the “App shortcuts” or similar setting.