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First 5 things you should do with the OnePlus 5
So you’ve taken the plunge and bought yourself a OnePlus 5: congratulations. Once you’re done running your hands over that lovely metal finish, what should you do next? As with most OnePlus phones, the OnePlus 5 has a lot to offer if you know where to look. So here are the first five things you should do with your new OnePlus 5 to get the most of out it.
Set up the fingerprint sensor
This one’s a gimme really. You’ll be prompted to set up the OnePlus 5 fingerprint scanner during initial setup, but if you skipped that step in your rush to have a play around the software, be sure to go back and register your digits.
The OnePlus 5 fingerprint scanner is crazy fast and accurate, making unlocking your phone a breeze. It’s even located in a logical place. The scratch-resistant ceramic scanner doubles as a home button when using the capacitive keys but can still be used to unlock your phone if you switch to on-screen navigation buttons.
Remember, each digit you register slows down the unlocking process, but you can always mix and match two different fingers in one fingerprint scan and (usually) not lose any accuracy. Give it a shot and if you don’t like the results, just register separate fingerprints, but only as many as you actually plan to use. Just go to Settings > Security & fingerprint > Add fingerprint.
Enable dark mode
Don’t forget that, unlike many Android phones, OnePlus has full support for a system-wide dark theme. The fact that the OnePlus 5 has an AMOLED screen means you should strongly consider switching to the dark theme as your default, right out of the box.
That’s because AMOLED displays can actually save some battery life by using dark backgrounds and themes. Black pixels on an OLED display are actually turned off, unlike black pixels on an LCD panel, which are still backlit. The fewer pixels requiring power, the longer your battery will last. Plus it looks the business because OLED screens have great contrast and inky blacks. Just go to Settings > Display > Theme > Default/light/dark.
Set up gestures
Off-screen gestures are nothing new, but, just like double tap to wake, they’re incredibly useful to know. It’s just that it can be pretty easy to forget they’re on your phone unless you’re actively using them. Learning all the shortcuts the OnePlus 5 offers doesn’t take long, but making use of them will really speed up your experience and add to your enjoyment.
Some are enabled by default, while others will need to be switched on or set up. There’s double tap to wake, a camera shortcut (just double press the power button), or you can draw letters when the screen is off to launch an app or start the flashlight. The best thing of all is that these are fully customizable, just go to Settings > Gestures to set them all set up.
Enable battery percentage in the status bar
Really. This is super useful because you can quickly glance at your status bar rather than having to take a guess or pull down the notifications shade to see what battery percentage you have left. Just head to Settings > Status bar > Show battery percentage.
Set vibration intensity setting
OnePlus’ previous phones had horrible vibration motors, but that has now been fixed in the OnePlus 5. Not only that but you now have the option to tweak the intensity to exactly how you like it (light/medium/strong) for incoming calls, notifications and for general interactions like typing on the keyboard or pressing the capacitive keys.
Remember that while the stronger the intensity of the vibration (and the more places it is used) the greater the drain on your battery, haptic feedback barely consumes any power. Just jump into Settings > Sound & vibration > Vibration intensity > Incoming call/notifications/vibrate on tap to set it up. Don’t forget to use the Alert Slider to quickly and easily switch between your various sound profiles too.
What’s the first thing you did with your OnePlus 5? What else should new owners do?
Check out our other OnePlus 5 coverage: