Galaxy S10 Guides

a owners-help-owners community of Samsung Galaxy S10, S10+ and S10e

Galaxy S10 home screen

How to use app folders on Galaxy S10 Home screen and Apps screen?

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delete an app folder from the Apps screenYou can use app folders on Galaxy S10 Home screen and Apps screen to organize apps and reduce the number of panels (pages).

Although it is not a new feature, many Galaxy S10 owners may be confused about the differences when managing app folders on the Home screen and Apps screen.

This Galaxy S10 how-to guide explains why you need app folders, the limitation of the app folders, how to create, use, and manage app folders on both Galaxy S10 Home screen and Apps screen.

What are app folders on Galaxy S10? Why do you need them?

App folders are simply a folder of app icons.  On Galaxy S10 Home screen and Apps screen, each app folder occupies one slot  (grid point), like one app icon.

So, using app folders can help you:

  • Save screen space. You do not want to scroll 20 home screen panels to find an app.
  • Organize apps. You can organize similar apps or apps from one developer into one app folder so that you can locate them very quickly.

In fact, when you unboxed your Galaxy S10, you already found the Samsung folder and the Google folder in Galaxy S10 Apps screen.

Please note, although Galaxy S10 lock screen has two spots (bottom left and right) for two apps, you cannot use app folders there.

Galaxy S10 Edge screen supports app pair, and app folders (which are crated in the Edge screen) on the Apps edge.

What are the limitations of app folders?

There are a few limitations when you use app folders on Galaxy S10, including

  • Galaxy S10 does not support nested app folders.  You are not allowed to put an app folder under another app folder.
  • You cannot customize the screen grid for the app folders.  In Galaxy S10 Home screen settings, you can customize the screen grid from 4×5 to 4×6 to 5×5 or to 5×6. But the layout of app icons inside the app folder is always 4×4. If you put more than 16 apps in one app folder, a new panel inside the folder will be added automatically.
  • On Galaxy S10 App screen, one app icon can appear only in one app folder.  All app icons on the Apps screen can only be shown once. When you put an app into an app folder in the Apps screen, this app icon will only appear in the app folder. You cannot find it elsewhere on the apps screen. Please note, Galaxy S10 Home screen does not have this limitation. In other words, one app icon can appear multiple times including multiple app folders on the Home screen.
  • You can only use app folders on Galaxy S10 Home screen and Apps screen. You cannot use them on the lock screen.
  • App folders are supported in Galaxy S10 Edge screen. But you can only use app folders created in the Edge screen.

These limitations are similar to those on other Android … Read the rest

How to hide suggested apps on Galaxy S10? and how to stop Finder uploading your data to Samsung servers?

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stop Finder uploading your data to Samsung serversYou can hide suggested apps on Galaxy S10 if you do not like this feature in the Samsung Finder. You can also prevent Finder from uploading your data to Samsung servers.

Although the suggested apps may be useful for some users, very often, it is not intelligent enough and therefore some owners feel it is a waste of precious screen space.

This Galaxy S10 how-to guide shows you how to disable the suggested apps in Samsung Finder on Galaxy S10, other Finder options, and how to stop Finder uploading your usage data to Samsung servers.

What is Samsung Finder? And what are the suggested apps on Galaxy S10?

When talking about search, many think about Google.

But on Galaxy phones, Samsung has built its own local search engine for a long time. And they named it Finder in recent devices or S Finder in older devices.

So, Samsung Finder is just a local search app in Galaxy phones. Its strength is finding local files, emails, contacts, call logs, messages, apps, settings, rather than web search.

Finder is everywhere on Galaxy S10. The search icon in the apps screen, quick settings panel, notification panel, edge screen, Recents screen, and settings page is linked to the Finder app.

As shown below, by default, on Galaxy S10, there is a row of “suggested” apps below the search bar.

The suggested apps actually update dynamically when you type. It sounds interesting and impressing.

But very often, many owners find it is useless. and want to disable it.

suggested apps on Galaxy S10

How to hide suggested apps on Galaxy S10?

To hide the suggested apps in the Finder on Galaxy S10, you may follow these steps.

Step 1: Open the Finder

You can tap the search icon in any locations to open the Finder.

For example, as shown in the screenshot below, you can tap the search icon in the quick settings panel to access the Finder.

Open the Finder

You can also tap the Finder app icon in Galaxy S10 Home screen or Apps screen to launch it.

Step 2: Tap the menu icon (3 vertical dots)

As shown earlier, tap the three vertical dots (marked as 2).

Step 3: Tap Settings in the menu

As shown below, tap Settings (marked as 3) to open Finder settings.

hide suggested apps on Galaxy S10hide suggested apps on Galaxy S10

Step 4: Disable suggested apps in the Finder (to hide them)

As shown above, in the Finder settings, you can find the option to enable/disable suggested apps.

You can tap the switch to enable or disable this feature.

After disabling the suggested apps in Finder, you can find more space as shown below.

Disable suggested apps in the Finder

Other Finder settings on Galaxy S10

In addition to showing or hiding the suggested apps, you can also tweak other Finder settings as shown earlier.

When using Finder, you may consider disabling customization services if you do not want to upload your data to the server.

In Finder settings, tap Customization service to enable/disable the customization.

In a nutshell, if you enable the customization service (this is … Read the rest

How to use Galaxy S10 Apps screen?

Everything you need to know about Galaxy S10 Apps screen

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Galaxy S10 Apps screenGalaxy S10 Apps screen organizes all apps installed on the phone so that you can access, use and manage them easily.

This Galaxy S10 how-to guide explains what Galaxy S10 apps screen is, how to access it, how to hide apps button, how to hide the apps screen, and how to customize the apps screen on Galaxy S10.

This guide applies to all Galaxy S10 modes: Galaxy S10, S10e, S10+, and S10 5G.

What is Galaxy S10 Apps screen?

Apps screen is common in all Android phones.  Sometimes (and traditionally), it is called App drawer.

Essentially, the Galaxy S10 Apps screen is the warehouse of all apps installed on the phone. The individual app icon on the home screen actually is a shortcut to the corresponding app in the Apps screen.

But Apps screen is different from the Home screen in the following aspects:

  • Apps screen can only host apps. You cannot put widgets, apps shortcuts, user files, or photos in the apps screen.
  • Apps screen does not support duplicate listings. One app can only appear once in the Apps screen.
  • You can hide the apps screen. Surely, you cannot hide the home screen.

The Apps screen shares the same wallpaper with the home screen.

You can also use apps screen in the landscape mode (same as Galaxy S10 Home screen landscape mode).

How to access Galaxy S10 Apps screen?

By default, there are two ways to access Galaxy S10 App drawer:

  1. Use the touchscreen gesture (swipe up). On the home screen, you can swipe upwards to access the apps screen as shown in the picture below.
  2. Use the apps button in the favorites tray. You can tap the apps button to open the Apps screen.

By default, you can also use the swipe down gesture to access the apps screen on Galaxy S10.  But the swipe down gesture on Galaxy S10 home screen can be assigned to access notifications as explained in this guide (coming soon).

If you do not hide the apps button, you can tap the button as shown below to access the apps screen on Galaxy S10.

Of course, you can hide the apps button and access apps screen only with the touchscreen gesture.

Once in the apps screen, you can then swipe left and right to navigate to different pages.

You can swipe upwards or downwards in the apps screen to return to the home screen. The quick-open notification panel setting does not affect the apps screen.

How to hide apps button in the favorite tray?

In Galaxy S10 Settings, tap Display.

As shown in the screenshot below, in the display settings, tap Home screen.

On Galaxy S10, the apps screen settings are grouped under home screen settings.

Galaxy S10 display settings hide apps button in the favorite tray

As shown above, you can:

  1. Show or hide the apps button (marked as 1) using the switch.
  2. Set the screen grid for the Apps screen (read on).
  3. Show or hide apps screen (read on )
… Read the rest

How to use Galaxy S10 edge screen?

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Samsung Galaxy S10 edge screen allows you to access some features and apps quickly from the curved the display without navigating to the home screen or apps screen.

Since the inception of the curved-screen in Galaxy Note Edge, Samsung tried hard to develop some killing features for the curved screen.

This Galaxy S10 how-to guide explains everything you need to know about Galaxy S10 edge screen.: what is edge screen, how to access and use edge screen, edge lighting, edge panels, and Apps edge.

What is Galaxy S10 edge screen?

Samsung introduced the edge screen feature since Galaxy Note Edge (Note 4 Edge). But edge screen on Galaxy Note Edge is a separate display area to the right side of the main screen.

Since Galaxy S6 Edge, edge screen has been no longer a separate part. It refers to a part of the main screen linked to the curved edges of the display.

So, Galaxy S10 edge screen is not a separate screen. Instead, it is just part of the display close to the curved edges on both sides of Galaxy S10, S10+ and S10 5G as illustrated in Galaxy S10 layout.

Because Samsung started to reduce the curved part of the screen from Galaxy S8, many new Galaxy S8, S9, Note 8, Note 9 and S10 owners may even not realized the curved edges and the special features associated with them.

Galaxy S10 edge screen includes two fundamental features:

  1. Edge lighting. You can use edge lighting the light up the edges of the screen when notifications arrive.
  2. Edge panels. You can put frequently used apps and some special tools in the panels so that you can access them quickly.

If you disable both edge lighting and edge panels, Galaxy S10 edge screen will be disabled automatically. This is the only way to disable Galaxy S10 edge screen features.

Galaxy S10 edge screen works on all screens (except AOD)and apps when in portrait mode. You can use it on the home screen, lock screen, apps screen, and when using any apps.

When you use edge screen on the lock screen, some features will not work until the phone is unlocked. This is a security feature, not a bug.

If your home screen or lock screen is in landscape mode, or you are using an app in landscape mode, edge panel handle will disappear automatically. In other words, Galaxy S10 edge screen does NOT work in landscape mode.

How to access the edge screen?

You can access the Galaxy S10 edge screen by dragging the edge panel handle to the center of the screen, as shown below.

The edge panel handle appears on the right side by default. You can customize it so that it can appear on either left or right sides. You can also choose a color for it (read on).

The touchscreen gesture is dragging. But the swipe gesture works as well.

How to customize the Galaxy S10

… Read the rest

How to use Galaxy S10 home screen edit mode?

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Galaxy S10 Home screen edit mode allows you to customize the home screen with themes, widgets, screen panels, wallpapers.

Although some customizations and options can be accessed from Galaxy S10 settings or quick settings, a few features can only be accessed from the Galaxy S10 home screen edit mode.

This Galaxy S10 how-to guide explains when you need to use Galaxy S10 home screen edit mode, what you can do in the edit mode, and how to access and use Galaxy S10 home screen edit mode.

What is Galaxy S10 home screen edit mode?

It is impossible to stuff all customizations and settings into Galaxy S10 Settings. Also, some customizations for Galaxy S10 can be done quickly on the screen with simple gestures.

So, Samsung used the home screen edit mode for you to quickly customize the home screen without navigation through the Settings or other pages.

In a nutshell, the home screen edit mode is a special mode of the home screen. In this mode, you can customize many aspects of the Galaxy S10 Home screen.

And some settings/customizations for Galaxy S10 Home screen can only be done through this mode. For example, assigning a home screen panel as the “Home” of Home screen panels/pages, or remove the Bixby Home from Galaxy S10 Home screen, or adding widgets to the home screen, all can only be done in the Galaxy S10 Home screen edit mode.

Of course, some features in the edit mode can also be accessed from Galaxy S10 Settings (for example, adjust Galaxy S10 home screen settings), or standalone apps/app shortcuts (e.g., use themes and wallpapers).

How to access the Galaxy S10 home screen edit mode?

You can only use touchscreen gestures to access the home screen edit mode.

There are two gestures for you to access the edit mode for the Home screen:

  1. Tap and hold (long tap) any blank area on the Galaxy S10 Home screen.
  2. Pinch on the Galaxy S10 home screen.

These are the two only methods to enter the S10 home screen edit mode.

When you use the first gesture (long tap), you need to make sure you are tapping the empty (blank) area except for the status bar and navigation bar.

You can tap anywhere above home screen panel indicator (see below) or tap the back button to exit the edit mode and return to the Home screen.

What are the features of Galaxy S10 home screen edit mode?

As shown in the screenshot below, you can find the following common features and functions in the edit mode of  S10 Home screen:

  1. Assign the panel/page as the home of the Galaxy S10 Home screen. If you keep tapping the Home button, you should return to the “Home” of the home screen. You must have one and only one panel/page as the home of the home screen panels.
  2. Delete the page.  If this is the “home” panel and you delete it, the
… Read the rest

How to Use Galaxy S10 Always On Display (AOD)?

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You can use Galaxy S10 always-on display (AOD) to check notifications, the time, next alarm, today’s schedule, and the weather,  and to control music play without waking up the phone.

On Galaxy S10, Samsung added a few new features for the always-on display and the default behavior. So, do NOT assume the AOD on Galaxy S10 is identical to that on older phones like S9.

This Galaxy S10 how-to guide explains the new features of the Galaxy S10 always-on display (AOD), the difference between Galaxy S10 lock screen and AOD screen, how to enable and customize the always-on display screen on Galaxy S10.

Please note, the always-on display is identical among all Galaxy S10 phones.  In this guide,  Galaxy S10 refers to Galaxy S10e, S10, S10+, and S10 5G,

What is new in Galaxy S10 Always On Display (AOD)?

In all previous Galaxy phones, the always-on display screen will not be turned off automatically unless it is turned on by the scheduler.

So, once you turn on the always-on display on these devices, you have to choose to show the AOD screen all the time when the phone is locked or to show the AOD screen based on your designated period.

On Galaxy S10, Samsung added the show mode for the always-on display screen: tap to show. And this is the default option.

So, after enabling Galaxy S10 always-on display, by default, the AOD screen will NOT show up after you lock the phone unless you tap the screen (once).

The AOD screen will display only about 10 seconds, and then the screen is off.

If you need to show Galaxy S10 AOD screen all the time, you need to change the show mode.

This new show mode is also available on Android Pie update for Galaxy S9, S8, Note 9 and Note 8.

Please note, if you tap Galaxy S10 screen twice when the screen is off, you will wake the screen and get the Galaxy S10 lock screen, instead of the always-on display screen.

Of course, you can disable this feature in Settings —Advanced features —Motions and gestures — Double tap to wake.

Other new features of Galaxy S10 Always on Display include:

  • Landscape mode for Galaxy S10 AOD screen.
  • Brightness adjustment for the AOD screen.
  • Quick settings for AOD.

AOD Quick settings can also be found on Galaxy S9, S8, Note 8 and Note 9 if you updated these phones to Android Pie.

What is the difference between the lock screen and the always-on display screen?

Although Galaxy S10 always-on display screen is part of the Galaxy S10 lock screen and shares the identical FaceWidgets, they serve different purposes.

The major differences between the AOD screen and lock screen include:

  • Galaxy S10 lock screen shows up when the phone wakes up and is in the locked state. While Galaxy S10 AOD screen shows up only when the phone is NOT waking up.
  • You can use app shortcuts in
… Read the rest

How to use Galaxy S10 screen zoom?

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use Galaxy S10 screen zoomGalaxy S10 screen zoom allows you to scale the text and icons globally including the fixed-size text (e.g., notification text) that is not affected by font size settings.

Although Galaxy S10 screen zoom corresponds to display size in the stock Android, Samsung customized this feature a lot and they work quite differently.

This Galaxy S10 how-to guide explains when you need to adjust the Galaxy S10 screen zoom, and how to adjust it on Galaxy S10, S10e, S10+, and S10 5G.

What is screen zoom?

Google introduced the display size in Android Nougat (Android 7) for users to scale all display elements on the phone.

If you are using Windows PC, the display size in Android is similar to the scale (under display settings) on Windows.

Galaxy S10 screen zoom is based on display size in Android. But Samsung made significant customizations.

Compared to the display size in the stock Android, Galaxy S10 screen zoom works differently in the following aspects:

For the text and icons,  the screen zoom works on all pages and apps, just like the display size in the stock Android.

Normally, the screen zoom is used together with the font size and style settings to get the desired look on the phone.

When do you need to change Galaxy S10 screen zoom? Why font size setting is not sufficient?

On Android, the size of some texts and display elements is hard-coded or fixed (based on DPI of the display).

For example, many Galaxy S10 owners complained about the small text size of the notifications. They tried to increase the font size. But the text size in the notification panel is not affected by font settings because it is fixed.

So, for such text (and icons), you will need to use the screen zoom to change the size.

In short, for most parts of Galaxy S10, the font settings are respected. But for the fixed-size text and icons, you have to use the screen zoom to adjust the display size.

How to adjust Galaxy S10 screen zoom?

You can change the screen zoom levels on Settings.

As shown in the screenshot below, on Galaxy S10 settings, tap Display to change the display settings for Galaxy S10.

Galaxy S10 settings Galaxy S10 display settings

In the Display settings page, as shown above, tap screen zoom.

Now in the screen zoom settings page, as shown below, you can find the 3-level slider.

You can drag it left or right to adjust the screen zoom level to small, medium, or large.

On the top part of the page, you can immediately preview the result of the setting. On Galaxy S10, Samsung only lets you preview the result in the Messages app.

adjust Galaxy S10 screen zoom adjust Galaxy S10 screen zoom

As mentioned, the Galaxy S10 offers 3 … Read the rest

How to use Galaxy S10 home screen landscape mode for Home screen and lock screen?

Get to know about Galaxy S10 home screen landscape mode and Galaxy S10 lock screen landscape mode

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You can use Galaxy S10 home screen landscape mode for the Home screen and lock screen on Galaxy S10, S10+, S10e, and S10 5G now.

When you hold the phone in the landscape orientation, both Galaxy S10 lock screen and Home screen can rotate so that you can use the landscape mode easily.

This Galaxy S10 how-to guide explains how to control the Galaxy S10 screen rotation, how to enable and use Galaxy S10 home screen landscape mode and Galaxy S10 lock screen landscape mode.

Different ways to control Galaxy S10 screen rotation (orientation)

On Galaxy S9 and S9+, Samsung introduced landscape mode for the home screen as explained in this guide.

Galaxy S10 keeps this feature and therefore you can enable the landscape mode for Galaxy S10 Home screen (including the apps screen)in a similar way.

Even better, Samsung also added the landscape mode for Galaxy S10 lock screen on all Galaxy S10 phones. Currently, this is a Galaxy S10 exclusive feature.  So, the landscape mode for the lock screen is only available on Galaxy S10 phones.

On Galaxy S10, you can control the screen rotation in different ways:

  • You can turn on Auto-rotate so that the apps can change the orientation automatically when you rotate the phone.  When Auto-rotate is on, you can exclude the Galaxy S10 Home screen and Lock screen.
  • You can turn off Auto-rotate (portrait mode) so that the rotation toggle appears when you rotate the screen. So, you can change and lock the screen orientation when you want. You may check this guide on how to use the screen orientation toggle here. When Auto-rotate is off, the rotation toggle will NOT appear on Galaxy S10 lock screen regardless of your lock screen rotation settings.

Please note, some apps may ignore the screen rotation settings. For example, Galaxy S10 camera app will not follow your screen rotation settings. When you rotate the screen, the camera app will always follow your rotation regardless of other settings.

How to enable and use the landscape mode for Galaxy S10 Home screen?

To use the Home screen in the landscape mode, you must enable it first.

You can enable  the landscape mode for the Home screen in two different locations:

  • Galaxy S10 Settings
  • Galaxy S10 Quick settings.

In Galaxy S10 Settings, tap Display.  Then, as shown in the screenshot below,  on the Display settings page, tap Home screen.

Galaxy S10 settings enable rotate to landscape mode

As shown above, in the Home screen settings page, you can enable or disable “Rotate to landscape mode.”

You can also enable or disable Galaxy S10 Home screen landscape mode from Galaxy S10 quick settings.

As shown in the screenshot below, on the Galaxy S10 quick settings panel, tap the text, NOT the button/icon, of Auto Rotate.

If you disabled the auto-rotate, the Auto-rotate text should change to Portrait. In this case, tap the text (not the button) of Portrait.

Please note, the landscape mode for the Home … Read the rest

How to use Galaxy S10 Multi Window?

You can use two or more apps concurrently with Galaxy S10 Multi Window.

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use Galaxy S10 Multi WindowGalaxy S10 Multi Window allows you to run two apps side-by-side (split-screen view) or to overlap multiple apps over each other and other apps (pop-up view) to improve your productivity on Galaxy s10, S10e, S10+, and S10 5G.

Samsung changed and removed some multi-window features on Galaxy S10 with the updated Recents screen.  Besides, Galaxy S10 Multi Window is significantly from that in the stock Android.

This Galaxy S10 how-to guide explains everything you need to know about Galaxy S10 Multi Window: what is it, the difference between the split-screen view and pop-up view, how to use the split-screen and pop-up views of Galaxy S10 Multi Window.

What is Galaxy S10 Multi Window?

By default, only one Android app can occupy the screen at any time, although Android is based on Linux, which of course supports multitasking on the desktop.

Google first introduced the multi-window (split-screen view) feature in Android Nougat.

But for Samsung Galaxy phones users, Multi Window had been introduced since Galaxy Note II in 2013.

And Samsung continued to polish this feature in each iteration of the Galaxy devices.

Galaxy S10 Multi Window allows you:

  • To run two apps side by side (split-screen view).
  • To let one or more apps floating over other apps and any screens (pop-up view).  The size of the app window can be adjusted and even minimized. The stock Android does not support this even in the latest Android Pie.

Of course, you can use the split-screen view and pop-up view simultaneously.

What are the Multi Window features removed in Galaxy S10?

Unfortunately, Samsung removed some very useful features from Galaxy S10 Multi Window including:

  • Converting a normal app window to the pop-up view mode with a gesture. The diagonally swiping gesture is not supported on Galaxy S10. You cannot find the settings in Galaxy S10 settings anymore.
  • Directly converting split-screen view to pop-up view.  When two apps are in the split-screen view mode, the only multi-window tool in Galaxy S10 is to resize the window. All other tools and options  (e.g., app pair creation, Snap Window, swap apps) are removed in Galaxy S10 Multi Window.
  • Snap Window.
  • Multi Window (split-screen) icon was removed in the thumbnails in the Recents screen. You have to long tap the app icon in the Recents screen to use Galaxy S10 Multi Window feature.

Please note, these features were also removed in the Android Pie update for Galaxy S9 and S8.

If you still need these features, you need to install Samsung’s Good Lock app.

What are the differences between the split-screen view and pop-up view?

If you migrated to Galaxy S10 from other Android phones, you probably tried the split-screen view in the stock Android.

The most powerful feature of Galaxy S10 Multi Window is the pop-up view.

Basically, the split-screen mode allows you to run two apps side-by-side (in the long side). You can adjust the percentage of the screen for each app. … Read the rest

How To Use Galaxy S10 LED View Cover (Galaxy S10 LED Wallet Cover)?

A definite guide for Galaxy S10 LED View Cover (LED Wallet Cover) on Galaxy S10, S10e, and S10+

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A definite guide for Galaxy S10 LED View Cover (LED Wallet Cover) on Galaxy S10, S10e, and S10+Galaxy S10 LED View Cover (aka Galaxy S10 LED Wallet Cover) stores cards in the interior pocket and shows LED notifications on the outside.

You can customize the LED notification icons on the front for individual contacts and apps.

This Galaxy S10 accessories guide explains the unique features of the Galaxy S10 LED View Cover, how to use the Galaxy S10 LED Wallet Cover, how to customize the LED notification icons for individual contacts and apps. A quick review of the Galaxy S10 LED View cover is also included.

Please note, due to differences in dimensions and cutout of Galaxy S10, S10e, and S10+ (see Galaxy S10 specifications), you need to get the Galaxy S10 LED View Cover for your Galaxy S10 model. In this guide, Galaxy S10 refers to S10, S10e, and S10+.

Also, in some regions, Galaxy S10 LED View Cover is named as Galaxy S10 LED Wallet cover.  Do not confuse with the Galaxy S10 LED back cover (LED cover) with the LED  View (or LED Wallet) cover.

Difference between Galaxy S10 LED cover (back cover) and Galaxy S10 LED View Cover (LED Wallet Cover)

For Galaxy S10, Samsung released two LED covers:

  • LED Cover (LED Back cover).
  • LED View Cover (LED Wallet cover)

Galaxy S10 LED cover is a back cover; while Galaxy S10 LED View cover is a flip cover.

Besides, the features of these two covers also differ in:

  • Unique features. Galaxy S10 LED cover has mood lighting,  camera timer, and emoticons for the rear cameras. Galaxy S10 LED Wallet cover does not have any of them.
  • Pocket (Wallet). Galaxy S10 LED View cover has a pocket (wallet) in the inside of the front part. Galaxy S10 LED cover does not have the front part and has no pockets.
  • Lock and wake up the phone. Galaxy S10 LED Wallet cover can lock the phone (when you close the case) or wake up the phone (when you open the case). Galaxy S10 LED cover does not have this feature.
  • Customize LED icons for contacts and apps. Galaxy S10 LED View cover allows you to customize the LED icons for individual contacts and apps. Galaxy S10 LED cover does not allow this. Besides, LED notification icons on the Galaxy S10 LED cover only works with pre-installed apps.

So, these two LED covers are substantially different. Galaxy S10 LED Wallet cover is the evolution of Samsung’s traditional LED cover (e.g., Galaxy S9 LED Wallet cover, or Galaxy S8 LED Wallet cover). While Galaxy S10 LED back cover is a new product.

What are the unique features of the LED View Cover (LED Wallet Cover)

Compared to other Galaxy S10 cases and covers, Galaxy S10 LED Wallet cover has the following prominent features:

  • LED notifications. You can get LED notifications on the LED View cover for incoming calls, app notifications, alarms, battery status, clock, and music controls. You can customize individual contacts or apps with unique LED
… Read the rest

How to take screenshots on Galaxy S10 without using any apps?

You can use any of the 5 methods to take a screenshot on Galaxy S10, S10e, S10+, and S10 5G.

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take screenshots on Galaxy S10 without using any appsYou can use at least 5 methods to take screenshots on Galaxy S10 without using any third-party apps.

Some screenshot-taking methods are unique to Galaxy S10 (and other Galaxy phones). Some are universal among all Android phones.

This Galaxy S10 how-to guide explains and shows the 5 different methods to take screenshots on Galaxy S10, S10e, S10+, and S10 5G.

What are the 5 ways to take screenshots on Galaxy S10?

On Galaxy S10 (all 4 Galaxy S10 variations), without using any third-party apps, you can use the following methods to take screenshots:

  1. Use hardware buttons (volume down + power button).
  2. Swipe your palm (palm swipe).
  3. Use the Assistant menu.
  4. Use Bixby Voice command.
  5. Use Google Assistant.

Please note, although these are different methods to take screenshots on Galaxy S10, the result is identical except Google Assistant (read on).

Method 1: Use hardware buttons (volume down + power button) to take screenshots

On all Android phones, you can take a screenshot by pressing the holding  Power button and Volume down button simultaneously.

This works on Galaxy S10 as well.

As illustrated below, you can simultaneously hold the power button and volume down button to take a screenshot on Galaxy S10. Please check Galaxy S10 layout for the location of physical buttons on S10 (S10e, S10+, and S10 5G).

Once the screenshot is taken, you will hear the click or shutter sound. If the smart capture feature is enabled in Galaxy S10 Settings — Advanced features, you will also see the toolbar on the bottom as well.

In old Samsung phones with a physical Home button, the physical home button was used with the power button to take screenshots. Because since Galaxy S8, Samsung has switched to on-screen (software) home button, you cannot use the Home button (with the Power button) to take screenshots on Galaxy S10.

The critical point of using physical buttons to take screenshots on the Galaxy S10 is to press the two buttons simultaneously.

As a human, we always press one button earlier than the other. It usually is OK to press the power button slightly earlier than pressing the volume down button. The power button accepts both single tap (press) and long tap gesture (for the power button options), and the long tap gesture will be triggered after you hold the button for about 2 seconds. So, as long as you hold the volume down button within 2 seconds (after holding the power button),  you should be able to get the screenshot.

If you press the volume down button first, you will get the volume settings immediately because the volume down button only accepts the single press gesture.

After pressing the two buttons,

  • If you get the power button option, it means you press the power button too early.
  • If you get volume settings, it means you press the volume button too early.
  • If the screen is turned off, it means, you release the power button too early.
… Read the rest

How to hide Bixby Home from Galaxy S10 Home Screen?

You can hide, but not disable Bixby Home on Galaxy S10

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hide Bixby home from Galaxy S10 Home ScreenIf you are not a fan of Bixby Home, or other Bixby features, you can hide the Bixby Home from Galaxy S10 Home screen easily.

On Galaxy S10, Samsung made it hard to disable Bixby Home and other Bixby features.  But you can hide the Bixby Home and remap the Bixby key so that the Bixby is less visible on Galaxy S10, S10e, S10+, and S10 5G.

This Galaxy S10 how-to guide explains what Bixby Home is, why some Galaxy S10 owners want to hide it, and how to hide Bixby Home from Galaxy S10 Home screen.

What is the Bixby Home?

Bixby Home is a component of Bixby, Samsung’s voice assistant.

By default, Bixby Home shows some relevant info (e.g., schedule, news,  and weather) for you. You can manage and customize the various cards in the Bixby Home.

On Galaxy S10 (S10, S10+, S10e, and S10 5G), a dedicated panel (the leftmost panel) in Galaxy S10 home screen is assigned for Bixby Home.

Although some owners may find the Bixby Home is useful, Google Now (Google Assistant) page usually is better (arguably) and gives more relevant info.

Besides, many owners do not like the idea of a dedicated Bixby Home or (Google page) on Galaxy S10.

Therefore, some Galaxy S10 owners want to hide Bixby Home from Galaxy S10 Home screen.

How to hide Bixby Home from Galaxy S10 Home Screen?

As shown in the screenshot below, the two lines on the leftmost of the home screen panel indicator tell you that the Bixby Home is currently shown on the Galaxy S10 Home screen.

After you hide Bixby Home from Galaxy S10 Home Screen, then the indicator should disappear.

On Galaxy S10 Home screen, you can use the pinch gesture as shown below to enter the edit mode of Galaxy S10 home screen.

You can also access the edit mode by tap and hold (long tap) any blank area on the Galaxy S10 home screen.

If you are using any apps, you can always return to the home screen by tapping the Home button (or swiping up from the middle line if you are using Galaxy S10 navigation gestures).

pinch to enter galaxy s10 home screen edit mode find the Bixby home icon from Galaxy S10 Home Screen

In the Galaxy S10 home screen edit mode, as shown above, you can tap the two-line indicator to navigate to the leftmost panel.

You can also just swipe right to navigate to the same panel.

Please note, the 2-line indicator will always be shown in the edit mode even after you hide the Bixby Home from Galaxy S10 Home screen.

This is not a bug. It allows you to unhide the Bixby Home in the future if you change your mind.

Once in the leftmost panel, you can find the switch for Bixby Home as shown below.

You can tap the switch to turn it off (if it is currently on) or turn it on (if it is currently off).

show Bixby home from Galaxy S10 Home Screen hide Bixby home from Galaxy S10 Home Screen

For example, as shown above, the Bixby Home is now hidden on … Read the rest

Understand Galaxy S10 Home Screen

Get to know the different items on Galaxy S10 Home screen

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Understand Contents of Galaxy S10 Home ScreenYou need to understand the contents of the Galaxy S10 home screen to use the phone effectively.

There are usually up to 11 types of items on Galax S10 Home screen. And they are usually designed and arranged for different functions and purposes.

This Galaxy S10 how-to guide explains what Galaxy S10 Home screen is, the items on the home screen, and how to use the 11 types of items on the home screen.

What is Galaxy S10 Home screen?

In Galaxy S10 (S10, S10+, S10e, or S1o 5G), you will deal with 8 types of screens:

  • Lock screen.  The lock screen is the first screen you will encounter after starting or wake up the phone. You need to unlock to access private data and apps.
  • Home screen. By default, after you unlock Galaxy S10, you will be directed to Galaxy S10 Home screen.
  • Apps screen.  Traditionally, in Android phones, the apps screen is called app drawer, where you list all installed apps. Typically, only part of the installed apps is added to the home screen. Apps screen usually is considered as part of the Home screen,
  • Edge screen (for S10, S10+, and S10 5G only). As explained in Galaxy S10 layout, edge screen actually is a software feature, rather than a dedicated screen.  The edge screen requires a curved edge of the display. Therefore, it is not available in Galaxy S10e due to its flat screen.
  • Recents (Overview) screen. You can find the list of recently used apps in the Recents screen. You can launch these apps in the split-screen view or pop-up view (multiwindow mode) as explained in this guide.
  • Notification panel.  You can swipe down from the Galaxy S10 status bar to access the notification panel.
  • Quick settings panel.  You can use the quick setting buttons to turn on or off some features on Galaxy S10 without opening Galaxy S10 Settings.
  • Individual app screen.

Galaxy S10 Home screen is the center of the phone. There is no way to bypass the home screen.

Galaxy S10 is protected by Galaxy S10 lock screen to prevent unauthorized access to your apps and data.  Therefore, the Home screen is always behind the lock screen.

You can access the Home screen in different ways:

  • After unlocking Galaxy S10, you should get the Galaxy S10 Home screen directly.
  • When you are using any apps, you can tap the Home button (or swipe up from the centerline if you are using Galaxy S10 navigation gestures) in the navigation bar to access the Galaxy S10 Home screen directly.
  • When you are using any apps, you can keep tapping the Back button in the navigation bar to return to the Home screen eventually. Some apps may require you to tap the back button several times before you get the Home screen. A few apps may ask you to confirm to exit the app. Anyway, the behavior of the back button
… Read the rest

How to use and customize Galaxy S10 lock screen?

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Galaxy S10 lock screen can help you keep your data from prying eyes.

Samsung also allows you to tweak and customize the lock screen to match your personal preferences and needs.

This Galaxy S10 how-to guide explains the components of the Galaxy S10 lock screen, shows you how to customize the lock screen, and addresses some questions you may have with the Galaxy S10 lock screen.

What is the Galaxy S10 lock screen?

When you power on or reboot Galaxy S10, it will stop at Galaxy S10 lock screen until you unlock the phone. This is similar to other Android phones.

You can imagine the Galaxy S10 lock screen is the door of your Galaxy S10 (S10, S10+, S10e, or S1o 5G).

If someone crosses the door, he can then access everything you saved on the phone: your contacts, messages, call log, files, emails, photos, app data, and many more.

For this reason, you should keep the lock screen secured. In other words, you should set up PIN or password to lock the phone so that all people except you can only access up to the lock screen.

If you leave the phone unattended, or your phone is stolen, a secured lock screen may save your life.

On the other hand, you want to access some info very quickly on Galaxy S10. For example, you may want to pause the music playing without unlocking the phone or peek the notifications.

So, some features were added to Galaxy S10 lock screen to improve your productivity without sacrificing security and privacy.

What are the components of the lock screen?

Typically, there are up to 7 components on the Galaxy S10 lock screen, as shown in the screenshot below.

  1. Status bar. Due to the cutout of the front camera, notification icons on the right side are not aligned to the right edge of the screen. Please check this guide on the meaning of the status icons and notification icons on Galaxy S10. You may customize and even disable notification icons in Galaxy S10 status bar as explained in this guide.
  2. Clock and FaceWidgets. You can swipe left and right to switch to other FaceWidgets.
  3. Contact info.
  4. Notifications.
  5. Charging status (when charging Galaxy S10 battery)
  6. The in-display fingerprint scanner location indicator (for Galaxy S10, S10+, and S1o 5G).
  7. App shortcuts (up to two).

You can hide some of them including contact info, notifications, and app shortcuts. But others will be always shown.

If you swipe down from the status bar, you will then access the Galaxy S10 quick setting buttons panel. There is no dedicated notification panel in the lock screen.

How to customize Galaxy S10 lock screen wallpaper?

If you want to change the wallpaper for the Galaxy S10 lock screen, you can go to the edit mode for Galaxy S10 Home screen.

On Galaxy S10 Home screen, you can enter the edit mode with either of the two  touchscreen gestures:… Read the rest

How to use Galaxy S10 navigation buttons and navigation gestures?

Learn to use the navigation buttons and navigation gestures on Galaxy S10

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You have to use either Galaxy S10 navigation buttons or navigation gestures to navigate through different pages and apps on Galaxy S10, S10+, S10e, and S10 5G.

If you just migrate to Galaxy S10 from a non-Samsung phone or a Samsung phone running Android Oreo or lower versions of Android, you may need to spend some time to get used to Galaxy S10 navigation gestures.

This Galaxy S10 how-to guide shows you how to use and customize the navigation buttons and navigation bar, and how to use the Galaxy S10 navigation gestures.

How to use Galaxy S10 navigation buttons?

By default, Galaxy S10 (including Galaxy S10, S10+, and S10e) uses a navigation bar with 3 navigation buttons: Back, Home. and Recents (overview) on the bottom part of the screen.

Please note Samsung moved to software navigation buttons since Galaxy S8. There are no hardware navigation buttons on Galaxy S10. The 3 hardware buttons (keys) on the Galaxy S10: Power button, Volume (up and down) button, and Bixby button as explained in Galaxy S10 layout.

By default, you will see the following Galaxy S10 navigation buttons in the navigation bar.

illustration of Galaxy S10 navigation buttons

Galaxy S10 navigation buttons (navigation bar)

If you migrated from non-Samsung phones, you may find the button order is different from other phones. In stock Android, the Back button is on the left of the Home button and Recents (Overview) button to the right. Of course, you can change the navigation button order on Galaxy S10 to match other Android phones (read on).

The functions of the 3 Galaxy S10 navigation buttons are similar to those in other Android phones.

Home button

Galaxy S10 Home button accepts three touchscreen gestures: tap, long tap, and swipe to the right side

You can tap the Home button to back to the Galaxy S10 home screen regardless of what you are doing, or what app you are using.

If you are in the Galaxy S10 home screen already, tapping the Home button will bring you to the “home” of the home screen panels.

Please note, unlike the home button on Galaxy S8, S9, Note 8, or Note 9, the Galaxy S10 home button is not pressure-sensitive. On the Galaxy S10 always-on display (AOD), you can tap anywhere to wake the screen if you enable the tap to wake feature.

If you tap and hold (long tap) the Home button, by default, Google Assistant will start.

If you swipe to the right side from the Home button, you will switch to the most recent app (read on in the Galaxy S10 navigation gestures section).

Back button

The behavior of the Back button actually depends on the app you are using. In other words, the app developer can decide what happens when you tap the Back button when using the app.

For most apps, tapping the Back button brings you back to the previous screen of the app until you exit the app. Remember some apps don’t allow … Read the rest

How to use the new fingerprint reader to unlock Galaxy S10, S10+, Note 10, Note 10+, S20, S20+, and S20 Ultra?

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use the new fingerprint reader to unlock Galaxy S10, S10+, and S10eSamsung dramatically changed the fingerprint reader (fingerprint sensor) on Galaxy S10. An in-display ultrasonic fingerprint reader is used in Galaxy S10 and Galaxy S10+.

Galaxy Note 10 and Galaxy S20 also used the identical in-display ultrasonic fingerprint reader.

With the removal of Iris scanner on Galaxy S10, many owners will have to use the fingerprint scanner to quickly unlock Galaxy S10.

This Galaxy S10 how-to guide explains how to register fingerprints and use the fingerprint reader to unlock Galaxy S10, S10+, Note 10, Note 10+, S20, S20+, and S20 Ultra.

What’s new in Galaxy S10 fingerprint reader?

Galaxy S10 (and Galaxy S10+) is the first smartphone with an in-display ultrasonic fingerprint reader, which is one of the most notable new features of Galaxy S10.

Instead of scanning your fingerprint using capacitive or optical methods, ultrasonic fingerprint sensor uses sonic pulse waves to find out the 3D structure of your fingerprints.

Similar ultrasonic technology has been used in biomedical imaging in hospitals for decades and saved many lives.

Generally speaking, or technically, the ultrasonic fingerprint reader can get the real 3D info of your fingerprints and therefore it could potentially be far more accurate than the traditional capacitive fingerprint reader.

Do not confuse this in-display ultrasonic fingerprint reader with the in-display optical fingerprint ones (as in a few OnePlus and Vivo phones). The optical fingerprint reader is the slowest one. It is even slower than the traditional capacitive fingerprint reader.  And the optical one is the least secure because it is essentially a kind of 2D photo recognition.

For Galaxy S10e, a traditional capacitive fingerprint sensor is mounted on the power button as illustrated in Galaxy S10 layout. The position is at least better than the fingerprint on Galaxy S8 (see Galaxy S8 layout) or S9 (see Galaxy S9 layout).

What are the major limitations of the in-display ultrasonic fingerprint reader on Galaxy S10 and S10+?

Although the in-display ultrasonic fingerprint sensor sounds cool and is actually the most secure (accurate) fingerprint reader, there are some inherent limitations of this new sensor on Galaxy S10:

  • Many screen protectors will not work nicely with the in-display fingerprint reader. The sonic waves are affected by the air between the screen and screen protector. Therefore the sensor may not function properly even if a small air bubble is trapped by the screen protector.
  • You need to know where to press your finger.
  • The matching sensitivity is not rocket science. If Samsung set the sensitivity too high, you may have to press several times. If it is set too low, it will not be secure.

So, as explained in the top 10 disappointing and missing features of Galaxy S10, I prefer the fingerprint sensor on Galaxy S10e.

How to register fingerprints for the fingerprinter reader on Galaxy S10?

To use the new fingerprint reader to unlock Galaxy S10, you need to register your fingerprints first.

The procedure of registering (adding) fingerprints is identical for all 4 Galaxy S10 … Read the rest

How to use Galaxy S10 touchscreen gestures on Galaxy S10, S10+, and S10e?

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use Galaxy S10 touchscreen gestures on Galaxy S10, S10+, and S10eUsing Galaxy S10 touchscreen gestures is not an option; it is a requirement if you want to use Galaxy S10, S10+, or S10e.

The good news is that Galaxy S10 touchscreen gestures are similar to those on other smartphones.

This Galaxy S10 how-to guide uses animation to demonstrate how to use seven Galaxy S10 touchscreen gestures. The examples (scenarios)  of using these Galaxy S10 touchscreen gestures are also provided.

The touchscreen gestures are identical on Galaxy S10, S10+, S10e, and S10 5G. So, in this guide, Galaxy S10 refers to all four models of Galaxy S10 phones.

What are the seven Galaxy S10 touchscreen gestures?

Unless you attach a keyboard/mouse to Galaxy S10 or use voice commands (e.g., Google Assistant or Bixby Voice), you have to use Galaxy S10 touchscreen gestures to control the screen and interact with the phone in apps.

Galaxy S10 touchscreen gestures refer to how your finger(s) moves on the screen.

The screen (see Galaxy S10 layout) in Galaxy S10 is a touchscreen. When your finger or a capacitive pen touches the screen, it can identify the motion.

The motion pattern can be designed and programmed as a gesture. The system and apps can then perform certain operations as a response to the gesture.

In Galaxy S10, as like in other Android phones, seven touchscreen gestures, tap, double tap, long tap (tap and hold), swipe, drag, pinch, and spread, are fully supported.

Galaxy S10 touchscreen gestures are used by:

  • The system. Galaxy S10 may use slightly different touchscreen gestures compared to other phones. For example, the navigation gesture is different from that in stock Android.
  • Individual apps. App developers can assign any functions to any gestures inside the app.

Please note S Pen is for Galaxy Note devices. Galaxy S10 screen will NOT respond to S Pen.

Very often, three of the Galaxy S10 touchscreen gestures were also programmed for some hardware buttons (keys).  In this case, we usually refer the gestures as press (instead of tap), double press and long press.

Please do not confuse the touchscreen gestures with Galaxy S10 navigation gestures.

Some Samsung cases/covers may also support some gestures. For example, both Galaxy S10 LED View cover (LED wallet) and the Galaxy S10 Clear view (S view) cover support swipe gesture to accept or reject a call.

List of  Galaxy S10 touchscreen gestures their usages

We will use animations to illustrate what are the 7 Galaxy S10 touchscreen gestures. The examples of using each gesture are followed.

Smartphone touchscreen gestures usually mimic the behaviours of a mouse on a PC.  When you use Samsung Dex with Galaxy S10, the mouse can replace these Galaxy S10 touchscreen gestures.

1. Tap gesture (press)

Tap (single tap) is one of the essential Galaxy S10 touchscreen gestures. You cannot survive without it.

The tap gesture, as shown in the animation below,  means you touch somewhere (e..g., a button in an app, an app icon in Galaxy S10 home screen) on the screen … Read the rest