When it comes to developing on Android or extensively customizing the system, developer options quickly become indispensable. It is also thanks to them that we can activate the famous USB debugging. Here’s how to access these hidden settings.
What is Developer Mode, or Developer Options?
Enabling Developer Options is often the first action on an Android device for hackers and developers. THE “Developer Options» unlock parameters that are not necessary for conventional use of the system, such as USB debugging for example, essential for manipulating your smartphone from commands on a computer.
These parameters can notably affect sensitive system options and it is therefore important to proceed with care in order to avoid any malfunction later on. Be careful to understand what you are modifying before unlocking these options.
In a few images, here are some of the options that you can find in this menu under Android 13.
How to enable developer options
The path to activate the options for developers may depend on the interface, and therefore on the brand of the Android device. This guide is based on Google’s interface with Android 13 on a Pixel 7 Pro.
Enable developer mode in a nutshell
Here is a few steps on how to activate developer mode on Android.
- Go to Android device settings;
- Go to “About phone» ;
- At the very bottom, tap 7 times “build number» ;
- A message informs you that the options for the developers appeared in the menu “System» settings.
The step-by-step guide
To enable access to Developer Options, go to Settings then open the shutter About the device. Once this is done, simply tap seven times on the Build number to unlock the Developer Options. A small window will appear on top to inform you of the number of remaining taps before the activation is taken into account.
To validate the manipulation, the system will probably ask you for your unlock code or to identify yourself using a biometric sensor.
This done, the menu Developer Options will appear in the game System of the Settings. From this menu, you will be able to access various options which can also be relatively useful for non-developers, in particular access to USB debugging, practical in many cases when used with ADB.
Activate developer mode with a Samsung Galaxy smartphone
With the Samsung Experience interface installed on the manufacturer’s Galaxy smartphones (Galaxy S, Galaxy Z, etc.),
- Go to device settings;
- Go to “About Phone» ;
- Go to “Software Information» ;
- Tap 7 times “Version number» ;
- Developer options appear at the very bottom of the device settings.
Activate developer mode with a Xiaomi smartphone under MIUI
With MIUI, Xiaomi offers another organization of settings. Here’s how to access developer options with a smartphone running MIUI.
- Go to device settings;
- Go to “About Phone» ;
- Tap 7 times “MIUI version» ;
- Developer options appear in additional settings.
Activate developer mode with an Oppo or OnePlus smartphone under ColorOS / OxygenOS
At Oppo and OnePlus, an additional step is added to the manipulation, with an additional submenu.
- Go to phone settings;
- Go to “About the device» ;
- Go in “Version» ;
- Tap 7 times “Version number» ;
- Developer options appear in additional settings.
Activate developer mode with a Huawei or Honor smartphone running EMUI
Honor and Huawei do not modify the path to follow to activate the option, even if the settings interface is modified by EMUI.
- Go to Android device settings;
- Go to system settings;
- Go to “About Phone» ;
- Tap 7 times “build number» ;
- Developer Options appear in System Settings.
How to Disable Developer Options
To disable Developer Options, it’s very simple! Just press the general button at the top of the famous options (the switch “Use Developer Options“).
Note that a restart is required to make this menu disappear. In case it continues to appear despite this, repeat the operation or clear the cache of the Settings application.
Do you use Google News (News in France)? You can follow your favorite media. Follow Frandroid on Google News (And Numerama).
