Sony Xperia XA1 Tips and Tricks

Android 7 (Nougat)
Phone: Sony Xperia XA1
Factory OS: Android 7 (Nougat)

Have you updated your Operating System?
Then view tips for the most recent OS version(s): Android 9 (Pie) & Android 8 (Oreo)
Or view tips for all Android versions

To open a web page in a new tab, find a link on a web page. Then press on it and then choose to open the site in a new tab.

Drag down your notifications screen and press Settings.

Then select System – Language and input. Then under Keyboards and input methods, press the little Gear icon.

From here you have various options including Haptic feedback, Vibration intensity and so on.

You can also adjust notifications for various functions.

Depending on how your device is setup, sometimes when Apps are installed, a shortcut icon is automatically placed on your home screens.

This can be annoying for users who want to keep their home screens clutter-free.

To stop then, go to the Play Store and press the Hamburger / menu icon in the top left.

Then choose Settings and untick Add icon to Home Screen

To delete or remove home screen widgets, simply press and hold. Then drag the widget to the top-right corner of the screen and into the Trash icon.

This tip is relatively obvious, but some users overlook it.

Once you go into your Apps screen you should see a row of dots. This indicates which of the 5 App screens you are on. Rather than flick between each screen, you can simply press one of the dots and you will jump to that home screen.

Or alternatively, slide your finger across the dots to move between screens. This won’t work on all devices however.

At the bottom of each home screen is your favourites tray, which consists of 5 icons. You can customise it by adding icons to the tray. If it’s full however, you will first need to remove some.

To remove an icon, simply press and hold an icon. Then drag it to your desktop.

Then to add a new one, simply drag an icon from your home screen to the favourites tray.

To add a widget, simply long press on a blank part of one of your home screens.

Then select Widget.

Scroll through the list of available widgets and choose one.

It will be placed on your home screen and you can move it around as you desire.

Rather than having to locate the hang up icon on the screen after each call, you can quickly end a call by pressing the Power button.

To enable this feature, go to Settings – Accessibility – Answering and ending calls.

Then under End calls by, select Pressing the Power key.

If you want to remove an entire text message thread, go into Messages and look for the thread. Then long press on it and select Delete thread

If you want to access your quick settings more quickly, then instead of swiping down with one finger, then use two.

This should take you straight to the quick settings, however it may not work on all phones and models.