Nothing hinders the use of a mobile device more than lag and bogged down performance. Unfortunately, this is unavoidable with most phones and tablets, but you can take advantage of some secret settings to improve the speed and performance of your device. But what if you’re stuck with a much older Android phone that struggles to deliver the basics, even after deleting a number of unused apps and transferring all your photos and videos to cloud storage? Before you throw in the towel on your old Android phone, there’s one more setting you should look into: animation speed. Believe it or not, this hidden customization could take your Samsung Galaxy or Google Pixel device back to its glory days, at least when it comes to loading times and UI navigation.
When we say hidden, we are referring to the fact that this setting is hidden in the developer options of your Android device. To make this change, go to the Settings app on your phone, go to About Phone > Software Info, then tap the build number seven times. Enter your password to enable developer options. Next, go back to the Settings screen and tap Developer Options. Scroll down until you see the Window Animation Scale, Transition Animation Scale, and Animation Duration Scale. Change all three options to 0.5x. Often, something as small as faster UI animations can help create a sense of visual fluidity, especially when switching between tabs and multiple windows.
How Animation Adjustments Can Improve Performance
In the context of Android phones, reducing the animation scale can help ease the load on the device’s CPU and GPU. Instead of focusing on generating smoother animations, your phone can allocate system resources to improve overall app and UI performance. Ultimately, the age of your Android phone and software optimization will determine its performance. That said, you’d be surprised how much zippier your phone looks with just a few minor animation changes. While adjusting your phone’s animation settings can help your device run faster with fewer issues, there are a few other steps you can take to give your Galaxy or Pixel a fighting chance.
Clearing the cache and disabling background app activity are reliable tricks that work on several phone brands. You should also uninstall unnecessary apps and games, delete unnecessary photos, videos and other files that could take up storage space. That said, if your device is too old and no longer receiving security patches, or your battery life is so pitiful that just opening the browser causes your phone’s battery to die at a rapid rate, it’s probably time to start buying something new. In that case, you might want to check out the best Samsung phones for every type of user, or consider getting Google’s latest flagship, the Pixel 10 Pro, for expanded software support.
