For many, the increasingly common ability to work remotely has come as a blessing. It allows parents to spend more time with their children, gives employees a more flexible schedule, and for the most part actually increases productivity, as a study from Stanford shows. That's because these workers are less likely to take a day off, more likely to work a full shift, and better able to concentrate in the quiet, relaxed atmosphere of their own home.

Despite all of these positive changes, managers face many new obstacles when working with a remotely-based team. Navigating different time zones, developing trust, and organizing meetings and due dates all suddenly become much harder tasks. To help the managers of the world adapt to working with remote employees, we'll be outlining some tips to help you address these possible problems and keep your workplace running as smoothly as possible.

Invest in Productivity Tools

It can be difficult to keep everyone on the same schedule, and to make sure that everyone is doing their work properly. There are many different tools out there that give you various abilities and encourage the communication needed when working together. Using a variety of these in tandem is usually better than just relying on one, since they all help you out with different tasks.

You may be surprised to hear that one of the best management tools for remote workers is Dropbox. It's not just a secure place to store documents - entire teams can be more productive with Dropbox working  on the same file. It's also a safe way to share files with employees, and the seamless comment system on video, audio, and text documents allows the team to stay on the same page. If you want to use other software, such as Trello, Slack, Salesforce, or Gmail, it's easy to connect them straight into your workplace in Dropbox.

Communication is Key

Whenever you're working as a part of a team, you have to be sure that everyone is on the same page. On a softball team, this means yelling across the field to establish who will catch a ball; in football, it means huddling and talking strategy during a time out; and, in management, it means sending and receiving texts, emails, and other digital messages. You should encourage your employees to come to you with questions, and schedule regular checkups with each worker once or twice a day. If possible, you should also schedule infrequent face-to-face meetings. Even when you're off the clock, you should be available for your employees in different time zones. If you're ever going to be unable to t alk, you should let your employees know.

Focus on Goals

Too often, the broader picture can be lost in the daily drudgery of work, which results in the loss of motivation and efficiency. Remind your workers often of their bigger goals, and set smaller, more achievable goals to help them get there. If you really want to put an extra pep in their step, you can incentivize them with a bonus whenever they meet their goal.

Monetary incentives can be effective, but even better is relating their work goals to their own personal goals. Every job is a learning experience, and it's likely that your employees want to advance their skills. Connecting their own personal interests and learning goals with the overall goals of the company can make them engaged and interested in their work.

Establish Clear Expectations

It may seem harsh, but you have to establish the rules right off the bat. Most often, this will be rules for communication - which platforms should be used for what sort of communic ation, the hours in which it's okay to contact someone, how quickly you should respond to texts, etc. These rules should establish free time for your employees because making them feel like they're always working is a recipe for burnout and can cause them to lose respect for you.

Part of this is also giving plenty of feedback. Your employees want to know how they're doing - so tell them. Not only will this allow them to fix any potential problems in their current work, but it will also set them up to do even better next time. While it may be difficult for some employees to face criticism, as long as you tell them what they did well along with what they did badly, this shouldn't pose too much of a problem.

Host Video Conferences

Video conferences have all the same advantages as in-person conferences, but they're much more convenient for remote employees

Even if you're not in the same room, it's important to see your employees face to face and hear their opinions in real time. This can allow them to feel more empowered to share their ideas, as well as making them feel more comfortable discussing any issues or asking for help. Many remote workers can end up feeling isolated and left out, and regular video chats start to remedy that problem. This is also an opportunity to build trust and empathy with your employees, and allow them to establish stronger relationships amongst themselves. There are plenty of great software options out there just for this, so it shouldn't be too frustrating - and if it is, you're probably just using the wrong one.

The many advantages that accompany remote employment make it worthwhile to overcome the obstacles. With the right management, remote workers can be astoundingly productive, but it can be difficult for managers to come to know and trust their employees through a screen. The key is frequent and clear communication, taking advantage of the available tools, and establishing empathy. Accomplish all that, and it'll be like your employees never left the office.

This is a sponsored post for Dropbox. All opinions are my own. Dropbox is not affiliated with nor endorses any other products or services mentioned.

Every smartphone manufacturer does implement their own features or adds their own modifications to the Android OS that’s provided in their devices. While some rely on adding minor tweaks and including their own set of applications like Motorola and OnePlus, there are companies like Asus and Xiaomi that believe in completely modifying the entire feel of the Android OS. While Xiaomi is known for bringing about various multiple additions to the OS as part of its MIUI, one feature that stands out is the Network Activity Meter in the status bar. Internet is an integral part of our lives, and the ability to monitor one’s connection speeds in real time is something that all of us desire.

What if I told you that there is a way that you could get the same feature (or even an advanced version) on your Android device? Sounds too good to be true? Not really. Here is how you can show network speed in status bar on any Android device:

Show Network Activity on your Status Bar

1. You can use the Internet Speed Meter app from the Play Store to get the network activity in the status bar. It’s available for free on the Play Store.

2. Once the app is installed, just open it, and you’ll be presented with a normal screen that shows data usage. Notice that you will already be getting a Upload/Download meter in the center of your Status Bar. You can customize it further by tapping on the Settings icon.

3. In the Settings page, you can customize various aspects of this meter, such as using bits or bytes as the unit, showing the meter on the lockscreen, and various other tweaks.

4. You can also tap on the Widget Position option to alter the position of the internet speed meter, as shown below.

While there are other apps available on the Play Store that claim to provide the same features, I found Internet Speed Meter to be the best out of them all, with the simplest UI and great functionality. Even so, if you want to see some alternatives, feel free to check out Internet Speed Meter Lite, which is also available on the Play Store for free. While you can’t re-position the meter on your status bar, and it displays just the download speed, it is nonetheless one of the more accurate internet meters out there.

Enable Network Activity in Status Bar on your Android Device

While MIUI only displays the download speed on your Status Bar, with the help of Internet Speed Meter, and other such apps, you can view the download speed, or both download and upload speeds, in real time on your device’s Status Bar. So, try out these apps and let us know your thoughts in the comments section below. Also, if you have any queries, sound it off below.

If the Developer Previews are any indication, Android N is shaping up to be an impressive update. While the new Android iteration brings a number of cool features and changes, we especially like the quick reply feature (support for inline actions on notifications). You can easily reply to messages, update task lists and do more with the feature and it especially comes in handy when it comes to messaging apps. So, it’s no surprise that people want the cool new feature on their Android devices.

While you have the option of waiting for the Android N update (Not if you are a Nexus user of course), we wouldn’t recommend it because we know the wait for Android updates can get very long. Thankfully, you don’t have to wait, as there’s a cool new app that brings the Android N quick reply feature to any Android device.

Yes, that’s right! So, here’s how to get the Android N quick reply feature on any Android device running Marshmallow or Lollipop with the quickReply app:

Install and Enable the App

Before you get going, you’ll obviously first have to install the quickReply app on your Android device. The app is in beta and it’s available only for devices running Android 5.0 and above, so if you have an Android device running older Android versions, you are out of luck (maybe, you should get a custom ROM).

After you’ve installed the quickReply app, you’ll have to grant the app “notification access”. When you first start the app, it will prompt you for the permission but in case you miss out then, you can do so by going to Settings->Sounds & notification->Notification access.

Start Sending Quick Replies

Once you have enabled the app, you will automatically see buttons for inline actions on notifications from messaging apps. The notifications have buttons for “Reply”, “Direct” and “Read”. As you might have guessed, the Reply button lets you reply to a message or email directly from the notification shade and it looks identical to Android N’s implementation. The Direct button lets you send one of the preset messages and the Read button lets you mark messages as read. Moreover, you can use the quick reply actions from the lockscreen as well.

The app even groups notifications that are available for quick replies on the lockscreen and notification shade in a ChatHeads like layout, so that you can easily tap one of the icons to start a quick reply.

Note: While the quick reply and direct message reply features work for various messaging apps like WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Telegram, Hangouts, Threema, Skype, Line, WeChat, Kik, EvolveSms, YAATA, Textra, ChompSms, Handcent SMS along with Gmail and the stock Android messaging app, the “Mark as read” features only works with WhatsApp, Telegram,  Skype, WeChat, Threema, Kik and Evolve SMS.

Customize the Quick Reply Experience

The quickReply app works very well out of the box and in fact, you can simply install the app, enable it and never even need to open it again. However, if you want to personalize the look & actions of the quick replies, the app lets you do that.

Firstly, you can head over the the “Basic settings” of the app and enable/disable one of the reply actions. You can also choose to disable ChatHeads notification here and change its display mode. There’s also the option to filter contacts and remove original notifications from apps.

Also, you can customize the look of the quick reply box. You can enable “Autocolor”, which colorizes the reply box depending on app icon color. You can also go for the “Minimal layout”, which hides icons and message and only shows you reply text.

There are other cool features too but they are only available in the Pro version ($2.29) of the app. The quickReply Pro version brings features like the ability to “Wake screen on notifications”, add emoji button besides quick reply on notifications and add more direct replies. Moreover, it brings the ability to change the style of send button, background & layout in quick replies and the size of ChatHeads notification.

Start using the Android N Quick Reply feature on your Android device

The developer of quickReply app also offers the very popular Floatify app, which brings the quickReply feature along with other cool features like custom interaction options, themes, mini heads up, Smart wake and way more.

However, if you only care about Android N’s quick reply feature, you will be more than content with the quickReply app. The app works like a charm and we faced no hiccups in our usage and in fact, we were quite pleasantly surprised by how well the app works, considering it’s still in beta. So, what are you waiting for, install the app now and start using Android N’s quick reply feature on your Android device.

Twitter is one of the most influential social networking platforms on the Internet and has placed extensive focus on the security of its users. It has included SMS-based verification of account logins on the platform for multiple years but it isn’t the most reliable. Imagine you’re on the move and have no network, or want to log into your account on a tablet PC then SMS is obviously not the handiest option. Hence, Twitter recently debuted the ability to use third-party authentication apps to verify your sign-in attempt.

The third-party authentication apps are quite simple to setup and would come in handy for users who regularly sign in and out of their accounts. So, if you’re one of these individuals and were planning to simplify the verification process, we’ve compiled a step-by-step guide on how to set up a third-party authentication app. Follow the steps defined underneath to complete the setup:

Step 1: Setting Up Twitter Verification

Before you can set up a third-party authentication app to verify your sign-in attempts on Twitter, you’ll need to enable login verification for your account. This is the standard two-factor authentication that’ll help secure your account via SMS-based verification. Let us check out how to go about it:

Note: I set up login verification on my Redmi Note 3, running Twitter v7.28.0-alpha.636 and it worked perfectly fine. The method works almost similarly on both Android and iOS.

1. Open the Twitter app (Free) on your Android device, swipe towards the right to open the hamburger menu and tap on the “Settings and privacy” option at the bottom and go to the ‘Account’ section.

2. Under the Accounts menu, you need to navigate to ‘Security’ and tap on the ‘Login Verification’ checkbox to kickstart the process.

Note: Before you can set up login verification, you’ll need to add both your email address and phone number to your Twitter account.

3. You will first be informed on how the verification process works and asked to re-enter your password to move ahead with the process. You’ll then need to verify your mobile number by entering the 6-digit code you receive in the same window.

4.  Once the two-factor authentication is enabled, you will have to provide a unique code everytime you try to log back into Twitter. You can even use the backup code generated by Twitter (as shown in the screenshot below) once this process is complete.

Note: Don’t forget to save your backup code somewhere safe (e-mail or print copy), so you can use the same to access your Twitter account if you ever lose your device.

Upon a new login attempt, the login code will be sent to your message inbox since SMS is the default method for verification purposes. However, Twitter just recently made an important change to their two-factor authentication process and now allows you to use 3rd-party authentication apps to verify your login attempts.

Step 2: Use Third-Party Authentication Apps

Now that you’ve enabled login verification for your Twitter account, you can now follow the steps defined underneath to handover the verification process to a third-party app such as Authy, Google Authenticator or 1Password. Let’s check out the process:

Note: It is important to enable the standard SMS-based two-factor authentication, talked about in Step 1, on your Twitter account before shifting to a 3rd-party authentication app. I’m using Google Authenticator for this purpose as it is the easiest once to use and is also compatible with Twitter.

1. If you just completed the 2FA activation process, you’re already in the login verification section of the Twitter settings menu. Now, you’ll need to tap the “mobile security app” checkbox that’s underneath the Text message option.

2. You’ll now see a prompt with a ‘Start’ button, tap on the same and enter your password to start the setup process for a third-party authenticator app, i.e Google Authenticator (Free).

3. On the next screen, you just need to tap the ‘Set up now’ button and Twitter will automatically recognize any compatible third-party authentication app available on the device and register your account on the same.

Note: If you’re performing the verification process on your desktop, you’ll need to scan the QR code shown on your screen via any third-party authenticator mobile app. You then need to verify the same by entering a passcode shown in that app.

4. As you can see in the screenshots below, Google Authenticator pops-up with my Twitter credentials and you only need to tap “OK” to add your account to the same.

5. The final step requires you to verify the third-party authenticator app by entering a code from the same into Twitter. And voila, that’s it. Your third-party authentication app is now set up and ready for use.

Use Authentication Apps with Twitter Login Verification

Twitter is a hotbed for conversations and no user wants their privacy to be compromised, especially out of the blue. Thus, the added layer of security will give them some peace of mind, assuring them that their account cannot be logged in to without a code. Third-party authentication apps simplify the login process as you can enter the currently active code and do not have to wait for an OTP to land in your message inbox.

So, are you planning to secure your Twitter app with a third-party authentication app? Do share your experience with us in the comments down below.

Sony’s PlayStation 4 gaming console is jam packed with features, and we have no doubt regarding its capabilities. So far, people have been leaning towards the PS4, rather than the Xbox One, not just because of the superior hardware that it packs, but also due to the fact that there are a plethora of critically acclaimed exclusive games that you can choose from. So, if you already own a PS4 or a PS4 Slim or the PS4 Pro, and usually play games on your TV, you might have noticed that your gaming sessions are often interrupted by your family or guests, once they grab the TV remote at your home. Well, Sony has a solution for you guys in the form of PS4 Remote Play. Although this feature has been available for years, it was made available for the PC only last year. So, if you’re interested already, we’ll let you know exactly how to play PS4 games on PC using Remote Play:

Connecting Your PC to PS4 For Remote Play

First of all, you need to make sure that your PS4 is running firmware 3.50 or later. If not, you’ll have to perform a software update on your PS4. Secondly, you need to ensure that both your PC and PS4 are connected to the same WiFi network for the initial setup process. Once done, simply follow the steps below to get the process completed within minutes:

• Download and Install the PS4 Remote Play App for Windows and macOS from here.

• On your PS4 console, go to “Settings” from the home screen, which is indicated by a briefcase icon.

• Scroll down and click on “Remote Play Connection Settings”.

• Once done, check the box right next to “Enable Remote Play” and then click on “Add Device”.

• Now, an 8-digit code will be displayed on your screen, which will be valid for 5 minutes.

• Now, open the Remote Play app on your PC and connect your DualShock 4 controller to your PC using a USB cable or a Wireless adapter. Click on “Start” once you’re done.

• You will have to log in to your PSN account now. Once you enter the credentials, your PC will start searching for the PS4 in order to get connected. However, if the connection is not made automatically after a while, click on “Register Manually”.

• Now, enter the 8-digit code that was displayed on your PS4 and then click on “Register”.

• Once you’re connected to the PS4 for the first time, you will be asked to choose the streaming quality for Remote Play. In this window, you will be able to choose the resolution, as well as the frame rate for your stream. Once you’ve selected according to your preferences, click on “Ok” and you’ll now be able to see your PS4 menu streamed to your PC.

Well, that’s how you set up Remote Play on your PC, without any hassle. Now, let’s take a look at everything you can do with this nifty feature introduced by Sony.

Everything You Can Do With Remote Play

• Control PS4 While You’re Away

Forgot to turn off your PS4 at home? Open up the Remote Play app on your PC and connect it to your paired PS4, in order to gain complete access to your PS4 menu, so that you can turn off your gaming console, even while you’re away from home.

• Turn Any Computer Into A Gaming Machine

Well, everyone doesn’t have beefy hardware to run all the latest games, right? Well, Remote Play makes use of the Internet to just stream the content from your PS4. So, you don’t need to have high-end specs at all. Even a 2010 MacBook Air will be able to run all the games at the maximum possible frame rate, with the help of Remote Play streaming. That being said, you just need to make sure that your internet connection’s speed is at least 5 Mbps or above for the Remote Play feature to work properly.

• Play All Your Favorite Games On The Move

Taking a break at work or travelling a long way? You won’t miss the PS4 which you left back at your home, once you’ve installed the Remote Play application on your laptop. As long as your PS4 is turned on at your home, you can gain access to it remotely, if your laptop has already been paired with the PS4. Play all your favorite games right from your laptop, no matter wherever you are in this world, like you’ve never left home. All you need is a high-speed internet connection that’s good enough to handle the stream.

    SEE ALSO: How to Connect PS4 to Your Phone and Unlock More Features

Play PS4 Games on PC With Remote Play

Well, for so long, Remote Play was a feature that used to be restricted to Sony’s PSP and PS Vita devices. Seriously, we don’t think anyone would buy a portable console, just for Remote Play. However, once they made it available on Android devices, we had a ray of hope that one day it will make it’s way to the PC. Thanks to Sony, it’s now a reality, so much that everyone started to realize the usefulness of the Remote Play feature. So, have you already completed the setup process and tried out Remote Play on your PC? Let us know your experience with this nifty feature, by simply dropping a few words in the comments section down below.

One of the features originally introduced by Microsoft as ‘Living Images’ in its Lumia smartphones a few years ago and popularized by Apple as ‘Live Photos‘ in iOS 9 has now found its way to Goggle’s latest smartphones, the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL. Dubbed ‘Motion Photos’ by the search giant, the feature allows users to capture a few seconds of video when taking a photo. It’s a Pixel 2-only feature as of now, with no word on when it will be available on other Android devices. But if you’re interested, there are ways to get the feature on your device right now. So in case you’re interested, here’s how you can get Google’s Motion Photos on your smartphone right now:

How to Get Pixel 2’s New ‘Motion Photos’ on Any Android Device

• The best way to get the ‘Motion Photos’ effect on your Android device would be via a popular third-party camera app called Camera MX. So first things first, head over to Google Play Store and download the app on your phone and open the camera interface. Now, tap on the second icon from top left, the one with three large dots as seen in the first image below. Select the ‘Live Shot’ option and tap on ‘Try it’. You’ll get three live shots as trial before you’ll need to log in with your Facebook or Google account to keep using the feature any further.

• Once you activate the Live Shots feature, all your photos will have a bit of video attached to them. To check out the implementation, you can view the images in the app’s built-in image viewer. To do that, tap on the ‘Gallery icon’ in the bottom-right corner of the app’s camera interface, and then choose a live shot that will be marked with a hurricane-like icon as shown in the screenshot at the center. Once you’re viewing a live shot, you’ll be prompted to “press and hold” to see the video playing in a loop.

• You can edit the live shot, create a GIF or a video loop, or even set the image as live wallpaper by tapping on the ‘pencil icon’ on the top bar and choosing any of the options, as seen in the screenshots below.

• You can also share a live shot as a looping video or an animated GIF by tapping on the ‘share icon’ as seen below.

Note: You can also use Google’s own Motion Stills app to create GIFs but unlike the Motion Photos feature in the second-generation Pixel twins, Motion Stills is all motion and no stills, meaning, you won’t actually get a still photograph with the app. Meanwhile, if you already own any of the Samsung flagships launched this year (Galaxy S8, S8 Plus, Note 8), the Motion Photos feature comes with the default Samsung camera app, so you won’t even need a third-party app to get that on your phone.

Pixel 2 FAQ: Everything You Need To Know

Get Google’s ‘Motion Photos’ on Any Android Device

Motion Photos is certainly one of the cool features that Google has introduced with the Pixel 2 and the Pixel 2 XL, but unfortunately there’s no word on when it might be rolled out to other Android devices. However, now that you know how to get the same feature on your Android phone, go ahead and give it a shot, and don’t forget to let us know how it worked by leaving your thoughts in the comment section below, because we love hearing from you.

For many, the increasingly common ability to work remotely has come as a blessing. It allows parents to spend more time with their children, gives employees a more flexible schedule, and for the most part actually increases productivity, as a study from Stanford shows. That's because these workers are less likely to take a day off, more likely to work a full shift, and better able to concentrate in the quiet, relaxed atmosphere of their own home.

Despite all of these positive changes, managers face many new obstacles when working with a remotely-based team. Navigating different time zones, developing trust, and organizing meetings and due dates all suddenly become much harder tasks. To help the managers of the world adapt to working with remote employees, we'll be outlining some tips to help you address these possible problems and keep your workplace running as smoothly as possible.

Invest in Productivity Tools

It can be difficult to keep everyone on the same schedule, and to make sure that everyone is doing their work properly. There are many different tools out there that give you various abilities and encourage the communication needed when working together. Using a variety of these in tandem is usually better than just relying on one, since they all help you out with different tasks.

You may be surprised to hear that one of the best management tools for remote workers is Dropbox. It's not just a secure place to store documents - entire teams can be more productive with Dropbox working  on the same file. It's also a safe way to share files with employees, and the seamless comment system on video, audio, and text documents allows the team to stay on the same page. If you want to use other software, such as Trello, Slack, Salesforce, or Gmail, it's easy to connect them straight into your workplace in Dropbox.

Communication is Key

Whenever you're working as a part of a team, you have to be sure that everyone is on the same page. On a softball team, this means yelling across the field to establish who will catch a ball; in football, it means huddling and talking strategy during a time out; and, in management, it means sending and receiving texts, emails, and other digital messages. You should encourage your employees to come to you with questions, and schedule regular checkups with each worker once or twice a day. If possible, you should also schedule infrequent face-to-face meetings. Even when you're off the clock, you should be available for your employees in different time zones. If you're ever going to be unable to t alk, you should let your employees know.

Focus on Goals

Too often, the broader picture can be lost in the daily drudgery of work, which results in the loss of motivation and efficiency. Remind your workers often of their bigger goals, and set smaller, more achievable goals to help them get there. If you really want to put an extra pep in their step, you can incentivize them with a bonus whenever they meet their goal.

Monetary incentives can be effective, but even better is relating their work goals to their own personal goals. Every job is a learning experience, and it's likely that your employees want to advance their skills. Connecting their own personal interests and learning goals with the overall goals of the company can make them engaged and interested in their work.

Establish Clear Expectations

It may seem harsh, but you have to establish the rules right off the bat. Most often, this will be rules for communication - which platforms should be used for what sort of communic ation, the hours in which it's okay to contact someone, how quickly you should respond to texts, etc. These rules should establish free time for your employees because making them feel like they're always working is a recipe for burnout and can cause them to lose respect for you.

Part of this is also giving plenty of feedback. Your employees want to know how they're doing - so tell them. Not only will this allow them to fix any potential problems in their current work, but it will also set them up to do even better next time. While it may be difficult for some employees to face criticism, as long as you tell them what they did well along with what they did badly, this shouldn't pose too much of a problem.

Host Video Conferences

Video conferences have all the same advantages as in-person conferences, but they're much more convenient for remote employees

Even if you're not in the same room, it's important to see your employees face to face and hear their opinions in real time. This can allow them to feel more empowered to share their ideas, as well as making them feel more comfortable discussing any issues or asking for help. Many remote workers can end up feeling isolated and left out, and regular video chats start to remedy that problem. This is also an opportunity to build trust and empathy with your employees, and allow them to establish stronger relationships amongst themselves. There are plenty of great software options out there just for this, so it shouldn't be too frustrating - and if it is, you're probably just using the wrong one.

The many advantages that accompany remote employment make it worthwhile to overcome the obstacles. With the right management, remote workers can be astoundingly productive, but it can be difficult for managers to come to know and trust their employees through a screen. The key is frequent and clear communication, taking advantage of the available tools, and establishing empathy. Accomplish all that, and it'll be like your employees never left the office.

This is a sponsored post for Dropbox. All opinions are my own. Dropbox is not affiliated with nor endorses any other products or services mentioned.

Microsoft is going all in with its almost-ballistic Android intervention after losing sight of its goals for Windows 10 Mobile. The Redmond giant has already made its own launcher, Edge browser and the Office productivity suite available on Android and now plans to give Gmail a run for its money. Microsoft Outlook was already a top-class mobile email client but it has now been supercharged with add-ins that aim to improve your productivity on the move. Microsoft made add-ins available on the web a long while ago but is finally making its third-party add-ins available on the mobile app. So, let’s take a look at how you can activate and use the add-ins on the Outlook app on Android or iOS:

Add-ins on Microsoft Outlook App

Note: I tried the add-ins on Microsoft Outlook v2.2.48 on my Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 and the add-ins worked perfectly fine. The ability to install add-ins is available in Microsoft Outlook for iOS devices as well. 

If you’re a regular user of an Outlook.com or Office 365 corporate account, the add-ins will further enhance the capability of the mail client on your Android device. Here are the steps you need to follow to activate and use the add-ins in Outlook’s mobile app:

1. Once you’ve installed the Microsoft Outlook app (Free) from the Play Store and logged in to your account, tap on the “settings” cog at the top right.

2. Here, scroll down to the ‘Connected Apps and Add-ins’ section and tap on ‘Add-ins’ to open the list all third-party apps available within the Outlook app.

2. From the add-ins list, tap on the ‘+’ icon next to the name of the add-in you want to install and use within the Outlook app. I’m installing the Gfycat and Microsoft Translate add-in, which does not require any login info, to demonstrate how the feature works. The ‘+’ will turn to a blue checkmark once the add-in has been installed.

Note: Other add-ins like Trello, Evernote, and more may require you to sign in to provide Outlook access to the data you want to access within the mail app on your Android device.

3. Now, you can go back to your inbox (focused or otherwise within the Outlook app) and open any one of the emails to notice that a new ‘add-ins’ icon has appeared next to the sender’s details and under the reply button.

4. Tap on the “add-in” icon to choose the app you plan on using within the email client to simplify your daily tasks. As visible in the screenshot attached underneath, I can directly reply to any email with a GIF or translate the contents of an entire mail inside the app itself.

Microsoft has currently only made the add-ins available for its own email addresses but it plans to make the feature available to third-party accounts, such as Gmail, logged in via the Outlook app very soon. The add-ins feature on Outlook is quite similar to the add-ons that Gmail have recently added to their platform. The users will need to install the add-ons using the web Gmail client but they’ll become available and function on the Gmail mobile app as well.

Supercharge your Inbox with Outlook Add-ins

As we’re moving towards a mobile-first world, the add-ins will help simplify and make our day-to-day lives more productive. The installation of these third-party add-ins will not see you leave the email client, by providing you all required data at the touch of a button. I’ve already installed a few of the team-sharing apps on my Outlook client and the experience has been super-smooth. It is surely a welcome addition to the mobile service of the email client.

There are currently only a limited set of add-ins available within the app but I’m excited to see more partners join the endeavor in making the society more productive. What are your thoughts on add-ins in the Outlook mobile client on Android? Let us know in the comments section below.

Recently, the developer beta for the MIUI 9 update was released, which brought about a ton of features and system improvements. Along with that, the update also includes 3 new themes. Each of these new MIUI 9 themes bring out an individuality of their own and make sure your Mi or Redmi device looks amazing. Sadly, these themes are officially only available with MIUI 9 and Xiaomi hasn’t made them available to MIUI 8. While the stable build of MIUI 9 is still a couple of months away, if you own a device that is currently rocking the older MIUI 8, but can’t wait to get the MIUI 9 look, here is how to get MIUI 9 themes on MIUI 8:

Get MIUI 9 Themes on MIUI 8

• Download the ZIP file containing the MIUI 9 themes from here. Extract it and transfer the files to your device.
• Download and install the free MIUI Theme Editor app from here. Once downloaded, open it up.

• Upon opening the Theme Editor app, tap on the “Browse” button and browse to the downloaded folder containing the themes.

• Once there, select the theme of your choice from the list of downloaded themes. You can choose between Color Fantasy, Cool Black, and Limitless.

• Once you’ve selected the theme of your choice, you’ll be returned to the MIUI Theme Editor’s main screen. Tap on “Start” to continue. You will now to be presented with options to edit the Status Bar, App Icons, etc. If you wish to, you can customize them, else simply press “Next”.

• You will now be presented with the Export Theme page. Edit the theme name if you want to, and then tap on the “Finish” button to save the theme.

• A confirmation box will now appear, asking you to install the saved theme. Tap on “Ok”. Once the theme has been installed, tap on “Ok” and exit the program.

• Now, open the Themes app on your device. From the main screen, tap on the “Downloaded” button to browse the installed themes. From the list of themes that will appear next, select the theme that you just installed.

• A detailed info about the selected theme will now be displayed. Simply tap on the “Apply” button to apply the theme.

Similarly, you can install all 3 MIUI 9 themes onto your MIUI 8 device.

New MIUI 9 Themes

MIUI 9 brought about 3 amazing themes – Cool Black, Color Fantasy, and Limitless. The Color Fantasy theme focuses primarily on bringing a bright experience throughout the device with use of bright color schemes and colorful icons. The Cool Black theme, as the name suggests, is more of a dark theme, which follows a dark tone comprising of blacks and grays. Finally, the Limitless theme is a Material Design theme, following the same material ideology of Google, with similar wallpapers, and flat UI as well as icons.

Try The New MIUI 9 Themes on Your MIUI 8 Device

So, that’s how you can install the new MIUI 9 themes on your MIUI 8 device. Each of themes should help you bring about a different look and make your device look much more appealing. While the official MIUI 9 update for your device might still be a couple of months away, this is a nifty little way of getting the look of MIUI 9 on your MIUI 8 device. So what are you waiting for? Install the themes and tell us about your favorite theme from the lot and why you love it in the comments section below.