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How to enable and use Galaxy S20 developer options?

Last updated: January 18, 2021 / How to guides

enable and use Galaxy S20 developer optionsYou can enable and use Galaxy S20 developer options to access some advanced or experimental features.

This Galaxy S20 guide explains when you need to enable developer options, how to enable and use the options, and a complete list of Galaxy S20 developer options. Examples of using Galaxy S20 developer options to add developer tiles to the quick settings panel, and to customise the default USB configurations are also included.

Please note, in this guide, Galaxy S20 refers to all three Galaxy S20 models: Galaxy S20, S20+, and S20 Ultra, because the developer options on these three phones are identical.

What are Galaxy S20 developer options?

Traditionally, Android hides with some special additional features for developers so that they can test their apps on any supported Android devices while normal users may never notice such features.

Some beta, experimental, and even legacy features were also hidden in Andriod devices. Google has to make sure that such features are visible only to users who are aware of such features,

Developer options in Android devices is a collection of these features. Some Android vendors may add or remove a few entries on their devices.

Galaxy S20 developer options are very similar to those in stock Android 10. Only a few new entries were added by Samsung.

Update: After you update Galaxy S20 to Android 11, you may notice there are minor changes in the developer options. For example, you cannot find the option to customise the app icon shapes.

When do you need to enable and access Galaxy S20 developer options

If you are an Android developer, surely, you can use the developer options to test apps on Galaxy S20, instead of the virtual machines of Pixel or Nexus devices.

Samsung is the largest Android vendor. So, it is necessary to test apps on the latest Galaxy phones.

Besides developers, many Android enthusiasts may also try some experimental or beta features of Android 10 on Galaxy S20.

For typical Galaxy S20 owners, you may still occasionally need to enable and use the developer options to access certain features. For example:

  • You want to force all apps to be resizable so that you can use it in both pop-up view and split-screen view.
  • You want to force all apps (except system apps and pre-installed apps) to use the micro SD card. As explained in this guide, many app developers
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Master Galaxy S20 Home screen

Last updated: January 9, 2021 / How to guides

Master Galaxy S20 Home screenGalaxy S20 Home screen is the centre of Galaxy S20. There is no way to skip it.

This Galaxy S20 guide explains the role of Galaxy S20 Home screen, 11 items and their meaning and usage on Galaxy S20 Home screen, and supported gestures on the Home screen.

Please note, although Galaxy S20, S20+, and S20 ultra differ significantly, the Home screen is identical for all these 3 phones. So, in the guide, Galaxy S20 refers to these three phones.

The role of Galaxy S20 Home screen

After unblocking Galaxy S20 lock screen, the first screen you will use is the Home screen.

Of course, if you unlock Galaxy S20 with face recognition, you have the option to stay on the unlocked lock screen or directly navigate to Home screen, as explained in this guide.

Galaxy S20 Home screen is the centre of the phone. Most of the functions and apps are accessed from the Home screen.

On Galaxy S20 Home screen, you can:

  • Access all apps (with or without Apps screen).
  • Create, manage and use app folders.
  • Access widgets.
  • Access phone settings and customization.
  • Check notifications
  • Check system status.
  • Access quick settings panel.

Anyway,  the home screen is so important that you cannot avoid it!

Understanding items on Galaxy S20 Home screen

Generally, there are about 11 types of items on the Galaxy S20 Home screen, as shown in the screenshot below:

  1.  Status bar
  2. App icons
  3. App folders
  4. App Shortcuts/bookmarks
  5. Pinned files
  6. Widgets.
  7. Picture frame.
  8. Panel indicator.
  9. Favourite tray.
  10. Navigation bar.
  11. Edge panel handle.

We will explain them one by one.

Please note, if you enable Assistant Menu, you will see the floating Assistant menu button on all screens.

You may also lock the Galaxy S20 Home screen layout to avoid unintentional changes.

Understanding items on Galaxy S20 Home screen

Status bar

The status bar is an integrated part of the Android UI. It is

It will always be shown when in the Home screen or using any apps except in the full-screen immersive mode. In the immersive mode, you can swipe the screen to call out the status bar.

On the left side of the status bar, you can find the current time and a few notification icons, whose style can be customized as explained in this guide.

On Galaxy S20, the status icons are on the right side of the status bar and aligned to the … Read the rest

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The Ultimate Guide of Galaxy S20 Touchscreen Gestures

Last updated: December 6, 2020 / How to guides

Galaxy S20 Touchscreen GesturesYou need to use the Galaxy S20 touchscreen gestures to use the phone effectively.

This Galaxy S20 guide explains the commonly used Galaxy S20 touchscreen gestures and shows you how to use them. The 8 Galaxy S20 touchscreen gestures covered are tapping, double-tapping, triple-tapping, long-tapping (tapping and holding), swiping, dragging, pinching and spreading.

Why do you need to know the Galaxy S20 touchscreen gestures?

We seldom attach a physical keyboard or mouse to Galaxy S20 (except using Samsung DeX). So, the touchscreen is the interface between the user and the Galaxy S20.

The phone takes commands from us through Galaxy S20 touchscreen gestures. We interact with the apps through those gestures, most of the time.

Since Android 10, Google removed the navigation buttons by default and recommended gestures for all navigations. Of course,  Galaxy S20 still allows you to choose between using buttons or navigation gestures.

More and more Android apps also prefer gestures over buttons.

Anyway, it is hard to use the phone effectively without mastering Galaxy S20 touchscreen gestures.

What are the 8 Galaxy S20 touchscreen gestures?

You will need to use the following touchscreen gestures on Galaxy S20:

  1. Tapping (single tap).
  2. Double-tapping.
  3. Triple tapping.
  4. Long tapping (tap and hold).
  5. Swiping.
  6. Dragging.
  7. Pinching.
  8. Spreading

All of the 8 Galaxy S20 touchscreen gestures are universal on all Android phones. They work on almost all Android phones and therefore are not unique to Galaxy S20.

But the functions of each gesture may depend on individual apps.

Usage of Galaxy S20 touchscreen gestures

Now, let’s go through these 8 Galaxy S20 navigation gestures one by one.

Please note, we use “tap” in this guide. Other developers or writers may prefer “press”. They are identical for touchscreen gestures.

#1. Single tapping gesture (tapping)

The tapping gesture (aka single tapping), as shown in the animation below,  requires you touch somewhere on the  Galaxy S20 screen once, then move your finger away from the screen.

This gesture will be then registered as tapping, which is one of the most fundamental Galaxy S20 touchscreen gestures. It corresponds to “click” when using a mouse.

The outcome of the tapping gesture depends on what you tapped.

Here are some example of using tapping gesture on Galaxy S20:

  • Open an app by tapping the app icon.
  • Navigate to another page by tapping a menu item.
  • Toggle some Galaxy S20 features by tapping the quick setting buttons
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