Tips and Tricks to make the most out of your Android phones

Been a while since I wrote a blog! So thought will write a useful blog for a change :P
Android phones have become very common these days as it is available at affordable prices.I just came across few tips and tricks for android phones that can help novice android users to work with ease!

1. Call your favorite contacts with one tap:Android allows you to create icons on your home screen for contacts. To add one press and hold an empty space on your screen. When the menu pops up select Shortcuts > Contact. You can then scroll through your list of contacts and tap the person you want to add.Ice Cream Sandwich owners have it even easier. You can add a contact from your home screen using the "Contact," "Direct Dial," or "Direct Message"widgets in your widgets menu. You can also group those contacts into folders.
2. Type with your voice: Many Android phones have talk-to-type built into the keyboard. Tap the mic icon and just talk. Android does the rest.
3. Sync Chrome to your phone's browser: With Google's Chrome To Phone app, you can send links, messages, and phone numbers from your desktop browser to your phone. Download the free app from the Android Market and the extension for Chrome.
4. Use your phone as a portable hard drive:When you plug your phone into your computer with a USB cable, you can activate Android's storage mode. This allows you to swap files between your computer and phone, making an excellent way to take files with you on the go.
5. Protect your phone from malware: Malicious apps are still a real problem in the Android Market. Because apps don't go through a vetting process from Google, some bad eggs have gotten through in the past. Download Lookout Mobile Security for your phone. The app scans everything you install and warns you of any potential malicious files.
6. Make multitasking easy:  Hold down your phone's Home button and a window will pop up with recently-opened apps.
7. Back up your phone using Dropbox:Check out the app DropSpace. It will sync files stored on your phone to your Dropbox account. You'll never have to plug in to your computer again.
8. Add the power strip widget:Since Android 2.1, a new widget that is a power control strip allows for the easy control of battery-destroying services such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and GPS. To add this widget, long press the Home screen and select Widget | Power Control. When the widget is added (Figure B, you can turn various services on and off with one tap.
9. See what's hogging your battery:Navigate to Settings -> About Phone -> Battery Useto see an organized breakdown of what’s using your phone’s battery. Applications and features will display in a descending list of battery hogs. If you see an application you barely use or a feature you never use (Bluetooth), uninstall the app or turn off the feature.
10. Automate any Setting with Tasker:You can automate pretty much anything you want—like turning GPS on only when you open Google Maps, turning on Bluetooth only when you dock your phone, and scaling back on data usage at night and much more using Tasker(or other similar apps like Locale and Settings Profiles).

Hope this blog was useful! :)