- Jun 13, 2013
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OnePlus 5 is the latest smartphone from OnePlus and is packed with great customization options. In the video below, I walk you through some of the top tips and tricks for the OnePlus 5:
Quickly launch your camera
Double press the power key to quickly launch the camera app. This works with the display on or off.
Configure the capacitive and on-screen navigation buttons
With the OnePlus 5, you can either use the capacitive buttons or enable the on-screen navigation buttons for the home, back, and recents keys. You can also set long press and double tap action shortcuts for the capacitive buttons to launch certain shortcuts.
To configure the button settings, navigate to:
Settings->Buttons

Alert slider
With a simple slide, you can quickly switch to different sound profile. The alert button allows you to quickly switch between - Ring, Do Not Disturb (DN) and Silent - sound profiles. You can also configure the specific settings available for these sound profiles. To do so, navigate to:
Settings->Alert slider

Apply custom icon packs
Android has many customization options and one of them is applying custom icon packs. The OnePlus 5 launcher supports selecting a different icon pack for the system. Once you have custom icon packs installed from the Google Play Store, go to home screen, long press, and tap on the Settings option. Then tap on the Icon pack and select your custom icon pack to apply.

Enable Shelf
The Shelf in your home screen provides quick access to your favorite widgets with a swipe on your home screen. It is similar to iPhone's widget screen where you can add some handy widgets like recent apps, contacts etc.,
To enable this Shelf, navigate to your home screen, long press and then tap on Settings. Here you can enable/disable the Shelf option.
App Shortcuts
The OnePlus 5 supports app shortcuts where you can long press an app icon on the home screen to reveal the shortcuts available for that app. You can enable or disable the app shortcuts by navigating to your home screen, long press and then tap on Settings where you can turn on/off the app shortcuts.
Customize Status Bar icons
You can customize the OnePlus 5's status bar icons from choosing a different battery indicator or showing/hiding the clock and other icons. To do so, navigate to:
Settings->Status bar

Dual SIM configuration
OnePlus 5 supports dual sim (even the ones sold in the USA) and allows you to configure default SIM to use for voice, data and text. If you are in one of the supported networks, like T-Mobile here in the USA, you can also enable Voice over LTE (VoLTE) and WiFi-calling options in your OnePlus 5. To configure these settings, navigate to:
Settings->SIM & network

Reading mode
The reading mode in OnePlus 5 optimizes the display for reading. You can either turn on this reading mode manually or set it to turn on for certain apps like the Amazon Kindle or Chrome browser app. To configure this setting, navigate to:
Settings->Display->Reading mode

Ambient display
The OnePlus 5 supports the ambient display. With this setting, you can just lift your OnePlus 5 device or configure to wake up the device when you receive notifications. To configure these settings, navigate to:
Settings->Display->Ambient display
Settings->Display->Lift up display
Configure Gestures
You can configure specific gestures that you can use in the OnePlus 5 when the display is off to launch an app or a shortcut. To configure these gestures, navigate to:
Settings->Gestures

App locker
You can lock one or more apps that require either a PIN or your fingerprint to unlock. This is very handy if you want to protect certain apps from other users. To configure this setting, navigate to:
Settings->Security & fingerprint->App locker

Night mode
You can enable night mode by navigating to:
Settings->Display->Night mode
You can select to turn on automatically from sunset to sunrise and also control the warmth of the color temperature.

Change to Dark Theme
The OnePlus 5 supports light and dark system themes along with your choice of the accent color. To configure this setting, navigate to:
Settings->Display->Theme
Note that this only changes the system theme and does not alter the apps' themes.
Choose LED notification color
You can choose your color for the LED notification pulse light. To configure this setting, navigate to:
Settings->Display->LED notifications

Gaming Do Not Disturb mode
You can now configure a Do Not Disturb mode for your games such that you can lock buttons and block notifications while playing. To configure this setting, navigate to:
Settings->Advanced->Gaming Do Not Disturb

Enable pocket mode
To prevent your OnePlus 5 from accidental wake ups or fingerprint touches, enable the pocket mode. To configure this setting, navigate to:
Settings->Advanced->Pocket mode
What's your favorite OnePlus 5 tip? Share them below!
If you are interested in more tips and tricks videos, make sure you are also subscribed to my YouTube channel.
Quickly launch your camera
Double press the power key to quickly launch the camera app. This works with the display on or off.
Configure the capacitive and on-screen navigation buttons
With the OnePlus 5, you can either use the capacitive buttons or enable the on-screen navigation buttons for the home, back, and recents keys. You can also set long press and double tap action shortcuts for the capacitive buttons to launch certain shortcuts.
To configure the button settings, navigate to:
Settings->Buttons

Alert slider
With a simple slide, you can quickly switch to different sound profile. The alert button allows you to quickly switch between - Ring, Do Not Disturb (DN) and Silent - sound profiles. You can also configure the specific settings available for these sound profiles. To do so, navigate to:
Settings->Alert slider

Apply custom icon packs
Android has many customization options and one of them is applying custom icon packs. The OnePlus 5 launcher supports selecting a different icon pack for the system. Once you have custom icon packs installed from the Google Play Store, go to home screen, long press, and tap on the Settings option. Then tap on the Icon pack and select your custom icon pack to apply.

Enable Shelf
The Shelf in your home screen provides quick access to your favorite widgets with a swipe on your home screen. It is similar to iPhone's widget screen where you can add some handy widgets like recent apps, contacts etc.,
To enable this Shelf, navigate to your home screen, long press and then tap on Settings. Here you can enable/disable the Shelf option.
App Shortcuts
The OnePlus 5 supports app shortcuts where you can long press an app icon on the home screen to reveal the shortcuts available for that app. You can enable or disable the app shortcuts by navigating to your home screen, long press and then tap on Settings where you can turn on/off the app shortcuts.
Customize Status Bar icons
You can customize the OnePlus 5's status bar icons from choosing a different battery indicator or showing/hiding the clock and other icons. To do so, navigate to:
Settings->Status bar

Dual SIM configuration
OnePlus 5 supports dual sim (even the ones sold in the USA) and allows you to configure default SIM to use for voice, data and text. If you are in one of the supported networks, like T-Mobile here in the USA, you can also enable Voice over LTE (VoLTE) and WiFi-calling options in your OnePlus 5. To configure these settings, navigate to:
Settings->SIM & network

Reading mode
The reading mode in OnePlus 5 optimizes the display for reading. You can either turn on this reading mode manually or set it to turn on for certain apps like the Amazon Kindle or Chrome browser app. To configure this setting, navigate to:
Settings->Display->Reading mode

Ambient display
The OnePlus 5 supports the ambient display. With this setting, you can just lift your OnePlus 5 device or configure to wake up the device when you receive notifications. To configure these settings, navigate to:
Settings->Display->Ambient display
Settings->Display->Lift up display
Configure Gestures
You can configure specific gestures that you can use in the OnePlus 5 when the display is off to launch an app or a shortcut. To configure these gestures, navigate to:
Settings->Gestures

App locker
You can lock one or more apps that require either a PIN or your fingerprint to unlock. This is very handy if you want to protect certain apps from other users. To configure this setting, navigate to:
Settings->Security & fingerprint->App locker

Night mode
You can enable night mode by navigating to:
Settings->Display->Night mode
You can select to turn on automatically from sunset to sunrise and also control the warmth of the color temperature.

Change to Dark Theme
The OnePlus 5 supports light and dark system themes along with your choice of the accent color. To configure this setting, navigate to:
Settings->Display->Theme
Note that this only changes the system theme and does not alter the apps' themes.
Choose LED notification color
You can choose your color for the LED notification pulse light. To configure this setting, navigate to:
Settings->Display->LED notifications

Gaming Do Not Disturb mode
You can now configure a Do Not Disturb mode for your games such that you can lock buttons and block notifications while playing. To configure this setting, navigate to:
Settings->Advanced->Gaming Do Not Disturb

Enable pocket mode
To prevent your OnePlus 5 from accidental wake ups or fingerprint touches, enable the pocket mode. To configure this setting, navigate to:
Settings->Advanced->Pocket mode
What's your favorite OnePlus 5 tip? Share them below!
If you are interested in more tips and tricks videos, make sure you are also subscribed to my YouTube channel.
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