Startup Sound: Enable or Disable
If your Huawei phone chimes every time it boots up, that sound comes from a hidden toggle in the sound settings, not a system alert. It can get in the way during early meetings or quiet mornings, and after a factory reset it sometimes switches back on without you noticing. Finding the right switch is easy once you know where EMUI hides it.
Enable or Disable Huawei Beam
If two Huawei phones won't share files by touching them together, Huawei Beam might be switched off or NFC isn't active on one of the devices. Beam uses NFC only to detect the other phone, then automatically switches on Bluetooth or WLAN to move the actual data. Without NFC enabled first, the Beam toggle often stays inactive or hidden.
Number Position in Number & Symbols Keyboard Layout
Switching to the number and symbol layout on a Huawei keyboard usually puts every digit in one row at the top, mixed in with punctuation. That works for quick typing, but it slows you down when you enter phone numbers, PINs or amounts often. SwiftKey Keyboard lets you swap that row for a numeric keypad instead, aligned to the left or right side of the screen.
Add a Bookmark to the Home Screen
Digging through a long list of saved bookmarks every time you want to check a specific website gets tedious fast. On Huawei phones, the browser keeps bookmarks buried inside its own menu instead of putting them within reach on the home screen. If you visit the same page daily, that extra detour through the app adds up.
Allow HiSuite to Use HDB
If your Huawei phone refuses to sync files, contacts or backups with HiSuite on your PC, the HDB permission is usually the reason. HDB works like USB debugging and grants HiSuite deeper access to your device, so it stays disabled by default for security reasons. Without it enabled, HiSuite connects but transfers fail or stall.
Set Notification Sound
If every incoming message and system alert on your Huawei phone plays the same generic tone, the default notification sound hasn't been changed yet. This tone applies to all apps unless an app defines its own sound, which can make it hard to tell notifications apart by ear. Picking a distinct default tone helps you recognize a new message without checking the screen.
Copy an SMS Message
Need to save the exact wording of a Huawei text message without retyping it, or drop part of a conversation into an email or note? Long-pressing a message in the Messages app brings up several options, and it is not always obvious which one copies the text without deleting or forwarding it. Picking the wrong option can remove the message from the thread or forward it instead of copying it to your clipboard.
Change Camera Mode
If your Huawei camera opens straight into Photo mode and Panorama, Night or Portrait seem to be missing, they are usually just tucked away behind a swipe gesture or the More menu. Which modes actually show up depends on your exact model, so a mode you expect might not be there at all. Once you know where to look, switching between Photo, Video and the extra shooting modes only takes a few taps.
Battery Optimization Settings
If a Huawei phone drains its battery fast or apps get killed in the background without warning, EMUI's battery management is usually behind it. The battery optimization list decides whether an app can keep running, finish scheduled tasks, or push notifications while you are not actively using it. Get the setting wrong and you either lose messages or watch the battery empty by the afternoon.
Change Alarm Tone
If a new alarm on your Huawei phone keeps playing the default tone, you likely skipped the sound option while setting it up. That setting sits inside the alarm details, tucked between repeat days and snooze, so it is easy to miss. You can still adjust or swap the tone later without recreating the alarm.
Set a Daily App Time Limit
Losing track of time in social media or games is easy when a Huawei phone gives no warning before you have spent an hour scrolling. EMUI includes a Digital Balance feature that limits how long individual apps stay usable each day. Without setting it up, the phone just keeps counting usage in the background without ever stepping in.
Set Location Access for Apps
If an app keeps showing local ads, weather for the wrong city, or asks for your position every time you open it, its location permission is probably set too loose. EMUI lets you fine-tune this per app instead of using one global switch. Picking the right option also affects battery drain and how much data an app collects in the background.
Enable or Disable Twin Apps
Running two accounts for the same messenger, like Facebook or WhatsApp, normally means logging out and back in every time you switch chats. Twin Apps creates a second, independent copy of a supported app on your home screen, but the feature stays off by default and only works for a limited list of apps. If the copy never shows up in your app drawer, it usually hasn't been switched on yet, not that your phone lacks the option.
Add Contact Shortcut to Home Screen
Every time you need to call your parents or message a close friend, digging through the Contacts app costs time. Huawei lets you pin a contact straight to the home screen as a shortcut, so a single tap opens the contact, starts a call, or opens a message thread. This works for one contact at a time, and you can repeat it for as many people as you need.
Import Contacts
If your contacts are scattered across a VCF file, an old SIM card or a file you got over Bluetooth, your Huawei phone will not merge them into one list on its own. You have to tell the Contacts app which source to read and where the entries should end up, on the device itself or in your Google account. Skip that step and the numbers simply stay locked in the file you received.
Unmount Memory Card Safely
Pulling the memory card out of your Huawei phone while it is still active can corrupt photos, videos or app data stored on it. This happens because the system may still be writing to the card in the background, even if no app is visibly open. Ejecting it properly first closes every open connection before you remove the card.
Power button ends call setting
When you press the power button during an active call on your Huawei phone, the call cuts off instead of just locking the screen. This happens because a hidden calling option lets the power button double as a hang-up key. If you never turned this on, an accidental grip on the side of the phone can drop calls without warning.
Enable Developer Options
If USB debugging or other system tools stay grayed out on your Huawei phone, the hidden Developer options menu is probably still locked. This menu sits behind a hidden trigger on the About phone screen and only appears after a specific tap sequence. Without it unlocked, tasks like ADB access or app performance testing are not possible.
Enable Simple Mode
If the home screen on a Huawei phone feels cluttered with too many icons, tiny text and confusing settings menus, Simple mode can fix that. It hides rarely used functions, enlarges icons and text, and reduces the interface to the essentials many users, especially seniors, actually need. The tricky part is finding the toggle, since it sits several menus deep and is easy to overlook.
Enable or Disable the Camera Assistive Grid
Photos with a tilted horizon or an off-center subject are a common problem when the camera app gives you no visual reference. Huawei phones include a 3x3 assistive grid for the camera, but it sits inside a settings menu that many people never open. Once it is active, lining up buildings, horizons and portraits gets noticeably easier.
Send an MMS with Photo or Video Attachments
Trying to send a photo or video in a text message on your Huawei phone but not sure if it goes through as an MMS? Attaching a file to a conversation in the Messages app automatically switches the message type, but the option is easy to miss if you only look for a text-only send button. This guide shows where the attachment control sits and what happens once you tap send.
Enable or Disable Wireless Projection
If your Huawei phone refuses to mirror onto a TV or receiver, wireless projection is either switched off or the two devices are stuck on different networks. The feature works like the screen-mirroring apps you get from third parties, only it needs no extra install and talks directly to Miracast-certified TVs and receivers. It only shows results once your phone and the display share the same Wi-Fi network.
Lock the Home Screen Layout
Dragging an icon by accident on your Huawei home screen can undo hours of careful arranging. EMUI has a Lock layout option that freezes every app and widget in place once you are happy with the setup. Without it, a stray swipe, a kid grabbing your phone, or an app update can shuffle everything again.
Add Emergency Contacts
When Emergency SOS gets turned on for the first time on a Huawei phone, EMUI only sets up one emergency contact by default. If a fall or crash triggers an SOS alert later, that single contact might not be the person who can respond fastest. Many users never notice that up to three emergency contacts can actually be stored.