Readers offer their best tips for testing the convenience of large smartphones, splitting up large SMS threads, and quickly typing secondary characters in Swype.
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About the Tips Box: Every day we receive boatloads of great reader tips in our inbox, but for various reasons—maybe they're a bit too niche, maybe we couldn't find a good way to present it, or maybe we just couldn't fit it in—the tip didn't make the front page. From the Tips Box is where we round up some of our favorites for your buffet-style consumption. Got a tip of your own to share? Add it in the comments, share it here, or email it to tips at lifehacker.com.
Create a Fiberboard Phone to See if It Fits in Your Pocket
McMike shows us how he pocket-tests today's large phones like the HTC EVO:
Moving to a larger smartphone is full of tough decisions. Will it do what I want? Will it be easy to use? What will the network coverage be like? How long will the battery last? All these answers can usually be found online with a little research. The one thing that you can't research is if it will fit in your pocket. Will it work in slacks, jeans, shorts? Front pocket? Back pocket? What about on the motorcycle? It would be a shame to sign up for two years and dread carrying it around.
I am thinking about an EVO 4G, and read that it was 4.8"x2.6"x.5". I had some half inch MDF (Medium-density fiberboard) in the workshop and spent the last week performing the "pocket test."
Mark SMS Messages as Spam to Split up Unruly Threads in Google Voice
TheDharmatist lets us know how to contain out-of-control SMS threads:
If an SMS conversation is becoming too bulky in Google Voice, try marking it as spam. When the next text from that user comes in, it will break off into a new thread. Mark both conversations as not spam and then you can continue on from the new text without the delayed load time caused by the bulky thread.
Quickly Type Secondary Characters in Swype
Nicholas Barry shares another great shortcut for the Swype Android keyboard:
Swype tip (Android keyboard alternative): Does it bother you to press-and-hold to get a question mark, exclamation point, hyphen, or apostrophe?
I just found out that by swyping from the question mark to the spacebar, you get a question mark and a space. Likewise with the exclamation point, the hyphen (above the comma), and the apostrophe (above the period).
Use Colored Binder Clips to Organize Cables
Photo by Teo.
Steve.koehler shares another clever use for binder clips:
I tend to carry a lot of cables with me, and I tend to keep them in a repurposed pencil case. So to keep all of these cables from getting too tangled, I have started using binderclips to keep them wrapped. This has the double advantage of keeping the cables separated and giving you a way to label your cords should you want to. You could also get the different colored binder clips to color code your cables.