As you navigate your Android 4.1 Jelly Bean-stocked phone or tablet, you might come across a new, built-in feature called Google Now. Often mislabeled as a Siri competitor, Google Now is not an intelligent voice recognition service. Instead, it’s a built-in assistant that serves up Google search-based answers to voiced questions. Google Now also tries …

If you think NFC (Near Field Communication) is only good for Google Wallet or MasterCard PayPass, think again. With the growing number of NFC-equipped phones, NFC tags are becoming an increasingly popular way to take advantage of this sprouting technology. Thing is, Android users aren’t quite sure what to do with them. Once you have a stack of NFC tags …

Josh Miller/CNET With the iPad Camera Connection Kit allowing users to connect a variety of unexpected USB devices (like a MIDI keyboard) to their iPads, the next logical question was, “Is there something similar for Android?” Although it’s not advertised or sold by any of the big Android phone manufacturers, the solution is a cheap cable called a USB On-The-Go …

Sharon Vaknin/CNET Remember when it was taboo to write in books? Well, a college career of in-book highlighting and two e-readers later, I’m ready to admit that I have absolutely no guilt about writing in books. Or tearing them apart, for that matter. So when I was looking for inspiration for a DIY charging dock and found myself staring at …

Now playing: Watch this: Five essential Galaxy S3 tips 3:12 Stocked with Ice Cream Sandwich and a truckload of Samsung-specific features, the Samsung Galaxy S III (S3) does not fall short in offering ways for you to customize and tweak the interface. With all those options, where do you start? Break the ice with the following five features that make …

Now playing: Watch this: Unjailbreak your iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch 1:47 Jailbreaking isn’t for everyone. Cydia is quick to overwhelm even the tech-savvy user, and upgrading iOS software on a jailbroken device can be a headache-inducing process. Whether you’ve discovered that jailbreaking isn’t for you, or you need to take your iDevice to the Genius Bar for repair, you’ll …

Screenshot by Jason Cipriani It seems like those of us who grew up digital turn to text messaging and Facebook to announce exciting news, and most often, say happy birthday. But once in a while you get a voice mail from a friend or family member who cared enough to pick up the phone and wish you happy birthday. Birthdays, …

Rumor Has It host Emily Dreyfuss shows off an iPhone 4S with a mirrored rear-panel. Sharon Vaknin/CNET There’s not much you can do in the way of customizing your iPhone’s hardware. Unless you bedazzle it with Swarovski crystals, apply a GelaSkin, or give it a funky case, your iPhone will continue to stand undistinguished among its cookie-cutter siblings. iFixit, a …

Josh Long/CBS Interactive Long ago, the only way to get custom ringtones on your phone was by purchasing them from your service provider. At about $1-2, this method is still an option today, but luckily, you can now create your own ringtones for free and load them onto your device. With this do-it-yourself method, you’ll be able to turn any …

iStockphoto Whether it’s for quick notes or lengthier conversations, at least one-third of smartphone owners (and many more teens) turn to SMS for day-to-day communication. Less personal than a phone call, but more intimate than a Facebook post, a text message allows us to skip past any pleasantries and get our points across quickly. If you find yourself launching the …