Firefox OS FAQ and Important Tips for Early Users

Firefox OS is still new into the smartphone world, and there are a lot of doubts regarding the user experience one would get using this OS. For those early users, here are a few very important questions one would ask and a few tips to get started using a smartphone powered by Firefox OS.

How to choose not to show notifications on lock screen?

The notifications showing up on the lock screen are no bad at all. But sometimes, you choose not to see them there. Although there is no such thing for specific apps, a user can prevent notifications from showing up on lock screen. To do that, go to Settings > Personalization > Notifications and here, uncheck the only option “Show on lock screen”.

Can we setup hotspot and share Data network?

Yes, just like in the Android phones, you can share the data network of your Firefox phone with the nearby devices. It has two options – Wi-Fi hotspot, USB tethering. For that, you need to go to Settings > Network & Connectivity > Internet sharing. Here, there are two options – Wi-Fi hotspot, and USB tethering.

How can I setup passcode on the lock screen of Firefox phone?

The Firefox OS based smartphones do come with a little security, and that is the passcode security on the lock screen, which is turned off by default. To set it up, go to Settings > Privacy & Security > Screen Lock and here, tap on the second option “Passcode lock”. You will be asked to enter a 4-digit passcode twice, and you are done.

My phone is locked. What could be the default code because I haven’t set it up?

This is weird sometimes, because all of a sudden the Firefox phone starts asking for a passcode without you even having that setting turned on. But don’t worry, if at all you didn’t play with the passcode settings, the default code for unlocking the screen is 0000. This is asked when the new OS update rolls out, as the developers test the new build.

What is “Do Not Track” feature in Firefox OS phones?

Do Not Track is a privacy and security feature for the Firefox phones, where you choose the privacy and choose to tell the website if you do not want to be tracked, or the behavior should not be tracked by the website. Every website has its own way of tracking the user activities while they are browsing it, and Do Not Track lets the user decide about the privacy.

One can set up the same by going to Privacy & Security features under Settings, and there are three options to select from: 1. “Tell websites and apps that I do not want to be tracked”, 2. “Tell websites and apps that I want to be tracked”, 3. “Do not tell websites and apps anything about my tracking preferences”.

How do I download and install Apps?

The Firefox based phones come with a Marketplace application, which is where you get to install the apps for your device. And unlike the Android OS, you don’t have an option to install applications from any external source. Open Marketplace, search for the application you need and tap on “Free” if you want to download that particular application.

How to delete an Application from the Firefox phone?

To delete an application, the function is quite similar to what you see in an iOS device. Tap and hold any app icon for a couple seconds, and the entire screen would show shaking icons with the “x” mark beside the apps which can be deleted. Tap on that for the app you want to delete, and confirm the same.

Can I install WhatsApp and use it on my Firefox OS phone?

Unfortunately, the Firefox OS doesn’t still have the official WhatsApp application, but there are alternatives. There is one called as OpenWapp and other called as Loqui IM, both of them making you go through the same steps of registration and stuff, but the functionality is not the same and is very much limited. Still, for those who wanted to stay connected through WhatsApp, they have no other option but these alternatives.

OpenWapp
Loqui IM

How to switch between open applications?

Multitasking is possible to an extent in the Firefox phones. To check which are the apps running on the background, you need to be on the home screen and there, tap and hold the bottom home button, which would show up a screen with the currently running applications. You can choose to switch to any other app, or close the running app right from the multitasking page.

How to take a screenshot in Firefox OS phone?

Taking a screenshot of the interface of Firefox OS phone is similar to that in Android phones, where you have to press two buttons together to capture the screen. Here, all the Firefox phones for now have a single bottom home button and the power key on the top and these two have to be pressed together to capture the screenshot. But that is for those Firefox phones that run Firefox OS versions up to 2.0, because from Firefox OS 2.1, it is the combination of Volume down and power buttons to be pressed together for the screenshot to be captured.

How to transfer files between Firefox phone and Windows computer?

To transfer the files (music, video, pictures), you need to enable USB mass storage on your device (the setting is available under Settings > Storage) and then connect the phone to the computer using a USB cable. There would be a folder automatically shown on your computer and you will be able to browse the files of your phone from your PC.

How to set Data Usage alerts on Firefox phone?

Setting a limit for the data network usage is very important if you are paying good amount every month and are having a limit of download for it. You don’t want to end up paying more than what you are already being charged. There is an app in Firefox phones called as Usage. Using that, one can set the data usage limit and also, get alerts when the data usage is going to exceed the limit.