Variables like Android version, manufacturer and model number, even your network carrier in some instances do play a huge role in catching specific bugs. Thus, having the knowledge of how to acquire this kind of data about your testing machine, aka your Android phone or tablet, is highly beneficial. In this article, we are going to show you two simple and very practical methods about how to find all of the required device information directly within its settings or with the help of some third-party applications.
Android Settings
Every gadget running Android inside its Settings app has a section called "About phone" or "About tablet" where the OS version and the network provider that is being used can be seen. Depending on the OEM, this page can be accessed in a couple of different ways. On smartphones and tablets with a close to stock UI, prior to Nougat, the "About..." button has been at the bottom of the list, where with Oreo and Pie it got moved to the "System" section. Strangely enough, in newer revisions of Pie and on Q the "About..." shortcut has been moved back to the main page of the settings. Meanwhile, Samsung, LG, and many other manufacturers have added a separate "Software information" page housing this type of crucial for testers and developers data.
Third-party apps
There are plenty of applications that can provide you detailed hardware and software info about your Android device on the Google Play Store. One example would be Device Info HW with its very simple interface, while Aida64 can be considered as a worthy alternative as well.
Specifying the model number and the OS release are always mandatory for a bug report, whereas, in instances of network related problems pointing out the type of Internet connection in use, e.g. Wi-Fi or cellular data, including the name of your network provider are deemed necessary because often times some issues may occur on selected models and configurations only.
