WHAT GIVES YOU HIGH speed Internet access, runs the hottest games and apps, lets you take high-resolution photos and HD videos, gives you immediate access to your favorite social networks, handles any email you can throw at it, and keeps you in touch by phone, text, and video chat?
Itâs the Samsung Galaxy S4âthe smartphone with a big 5-inch screen that you can control with a wave of your hand.
The Galaxy S4 brings together superb hardware from Samsung with Googleâs powerful, flexible Android operating system. Many people consider the Galaxy S4 to be the best smartphone on the planet. If youâre holding this book in your hand, youâre probably among themâor soon will be.
This book will help you get the most out of your Galaxy S4, and thereâs a lot you can get out of it. Whether youâre just looking to get started, or want to dig deep into the phoneâs capabilities, this book has got you covered.
WHAT MAKES THE GALAXY S4 so great starts with its hardware. Samsung gave it a 5-inch, high-resolution screen; a 13-megapixel camera for high-res photos and video; and a front-facing 2-megapixel camera for video calling and video chat. Its brain is a superfast 1.9 GHz dual-core processor. For keeping you connected, the Galaxy S4 has antennas for Bluetooth, WiFi, and GPS.
Note
This book was written based on the T-Mobile version of the Samsung Galaxy S4. Versions from other carriers may have minor variations in what you see onscreen.
It has access to speedy 3G and 4G networks, which let you talk, text, and surf the Web almost anywhere in the U.S. (Anywhere important, anyway.)
Google contributed its Android operating system, with seamless access to YouTube, Google Talk, and other Google services. The worldwide developer community has created hundreds of thousands of apps in the Google Play Store (with more coming every day).
Put it all together, and you can do just about anything. You can get turn-by-turn directions, check weather and traffic, and identify landmarks. You can work with word processing and spreadsheet files and manage your email and calendar. You can take pictures and share them on Facebook, or shoot videos and upload them to YouTube. You can even turn the Galaxy S4 into a WiFi hotspot for getting up to five computers online.
Oh, and itâs also a darn good phone with great sound quality and all the calling features you could ask for.
You could figure out how to make the most of all these features on your own, but by that time thereâd be a whole other generation of smartphones to learn. This book will put you on the fast track to all the Galaxy S4âs magic.
Its predecessor the Samsung Galaxy S3 was a very popular and powerful smartphone. But the Samsung Galaxy S4 is nothing short of remarkable. It introduces countless new features, all of which are useful, and some of which seem more akin to magic than anything else. Here are some of the highlights:
Group play. Using this, a group of people can view and interact with music, pictures, games, and more simultaneously. That means playing games against one another, listening to music together, sharing pictures and more. Find out about it in Chapter 13.
Smart Scroll. Using this amazing new feature, you can scroll through web pages and other screens just by moving your eyes. Go to Chapter 1 to find out how.
Air Gestures. This feature was introduced in an earlier Galaxy model, but the S4 brings it to a whole new level. Move your hands to browse the Web, scroll through email, and do plenty more as well. (Again, see Chapter 1.)
S Beam. Beam me up, Scotty! This lets you share files by beaming them directly between your S4 and another device. Find out about it on S Beam.
Easy Mode. Donât like a complex interface filled with small icons and too many features? Turn on Easy Mode, which makes using the S4 much easier, including big, easy-to-read icons. For more details about Easy Mode, see Chapter 1.
Dual Shot and Drama Shot. These are two new, nifty ways to use the S4âs cameras. In Dual Shot, you combine pictures or video from the front camera with pictures or video from the back camera in one frame. With Drama Shot, you take photos of a series of a subject moving, and then combine them into one photo, so you can perform the action. Head to Chapter 5, for details.
S Health. Want to get healthier? Use S Health. Itâs an app that tracks your health, fitness, and diet by using sensors built into the S4 to turn it into a pedometer to track how many steps you take, and more. For details, go to Chapter 12.
S Travel. Find out everything you want to know about travel destinations, book travel, and so on. More details in Chapter 1.
New sensors. The S4 bristles with sensors that do things such as track the humidity, air pressure, and temperature. Check out Chapter 1 to see the amazing things they can do.
THEREâS AN ENTIRE WORLD to explore in the Samsung Galaxy S4, and the little leaflet that comes in the box doesnât begin to give you all the help, advice, and guidance you need. So this book is the manual that should have accompanied the Galaxy S4.
The brain running the Galaxy S4 is a piece of software from Google called Android. Samsung then tweaked Android to operate seamlessly with Samsungâs TouchWiz interface. Both Google and Samsung regularly issue updates that improve the way the Galaxy S4 works. So thereâs a chance that since this book was written, there have been some changes to the Galaxy S4. To help keep yourself up-to-date about them, head to this bookâs Errata/Changes page, at http://tinyurl.com/gs4-mm.
GALAXY S4: THE MISSING Manual is divided into six parts, each of which has several chapters:
Part I. Covers everything you need to know about using the Galaxy S4 as a phone, as well as how to type on it, send text messages, and use all the phone features. So youâll get a guided tour of the S4, learn how to dial calls, manage your contacts, use caller ID and similar features, make conference calls, and more, including fancy phone tricks like Visual Voice Mail. Youâll even learn how to control your phone without using your hands.
Part II. Gives you the rundown on using the Galaxy S4 for taking pictures, recording videos, viewing pictures, playing videos, and playing and managing your music. Youâll also learn all the new Google Maps features, how to navigate using GPS, and find any location in the world. Thereâs also the Calendar app, which you can synchronize with your Google or Outlook calendar.
Part III. Tells you everything you need to know about the Galaxy S4âs remarkable online talents. Youâll find out how to get online, either over your service providerâs network or a WiFi hotspot, see how you can turn your Galaxy S4 into a portable WiFi hotspot, master email, browse the Web, and download and use countless apps from Google Play Store.
Part IV. Covers a wide variety of advanced subjects, including how to sync and transfer files between the Galaxy S4 and your PC or Mac, how to use the Galaxy S4 at your workplace, and how to control the Galaxy S4 by talking to it. Youâll also find a comprehensive listing of the Galaxy S4âs settings.
Part V. Has three reference chapters. Appendix A shows you how to activate your Galaxy S4. Appendix B shows what kind of accessories you can get for your Samsung Galaxy S4, such as cases, chargers, and screen protectors. Appendix C offers plenty of help troubleshooting issues with the phoneâs operation.
IN THIS BOOK AND in the entire Missing Manual series, youâll find instructions like this one: Tap SettingsâCall SettingsââVoicemail settings.â Thatâs a shorthand way of giving longer instructions like this: âTap the Settings button. From the screen that opens, tap Call Settings. And from the screen that opens after that, tap âVoicemail settingsâ.â
Itâs also used to to simplify instructions youâll need to follow on your PC or Mac, like FileâPrint.
AS THE OWNER OF a Missing Manual, youâve got more than just a book to read. Online, youâll find example files so you can get some hands-on experience, as well as tips, articles, and maybe even a video or two. You can also communicate with the Missing Manual team and tell us what you love (or hate) about the book. Head over to www.missingmanuals.com, or go directly to one of the following sections.
So you donât wear down your fingers typing long web addresses, the Missing CD page offers a list of clickable links to the websites mentioned in this book. Go to www.missingmanuals.com/cds/gs4tmm to see them all neatly listed in one place.
If you register this book at www.oreilly.com, youâll be eligible for special offersâlike discounts on future editions of Galaxy S4: The Missing Manual. Registering takes only a few clicks. To get started, type http://oreilly.com/register into your browser to hop directly to the Registration page.
Got questions? Need more information? Fancy yourself a book reviewer? On our Feedback page, you can get expert answers to questions that come to you while reading, share your thoughts on this Missing Manual, and find groups for folks who share your interest in the Samsung Galaxy S4. To have your say, go to www.missingmanuals.com/feedback.
In an effort to keep this book as up-to-date and accurate as possible, each time we print more copies, weâll make any confirmed corrections youâve suggested. We also note such changes on the bookâs website, so you can mark important corrections into your own copy of the book, if you like. Go to http://tinyurl.com/gs4-mm to report an error and to view existing corrections.
SAFARI® BOOKS ONLINE IS an on-demand digital library that lets you easily search over 7,500 technology and creative reference books and videos to find the answers you need quickly.
With a subscription, you can read any page and watch any video from our library online. Read books on your cellphone and mobile devices. Access new titles before theyâre available for print, and get exclusive access to manuscripts in development and post feedback for the authors. Copy and paste code samples, organize your favorites, download chapters, bookmark key sections, create notes, print out pages, and benefit from tons of other time-saving features.
OâReilly Media has uploaded this book to the Safari Books Online service. To have full digital access to this book and others on similar topics from OâReilly and other publishers, sign up for free at http://my.safaribooksonline.com.
Get Galaxy S4: The Missing Manual now with the O’Reilly learning platform.
O’Reilly members experience books, live events, courses curated by job role, and more from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers.
