Galaxy S20 Assistant Menu

How to use Galaxy S20 lockdown mode?

By simon Leave a Comment Last Modified: January 9, 2021 · Published on: January 8, 2021

Galaxy S20 lockdown mode allows you to turn off biometric and smart lock in some special situations to enhance security and privacy protection.

This Galaxy S20 guide explains what Galaxy S20 lockdown mode is, when to use it, how to enable and exit the lockdown mode.

The lockdown mode is available in all Samsung Galaxy phones with Android Pie (Android 9), Android 10, or Android 11. So, this guide applies to not only Galaxy S20 phones but also Galaxy phones with Android 9 and later versions including Galaxy S8, Galaxy S9, Galaxy S10, Galaxy Note 8, Galaxy Note 9, Galaxy Note 10, and Galaxy Note 20.

What is Galaxy S20 lockdown mode?

Android 9 (Android Pie) introduced the lockdown mode to boost phone security on-the-fly. And Samsung implemented it in all od their Galaxy phones with Android 9 or later Android OS.

Galaxy S20 lockdown mode, once activated, blocks all biometric security (face unlock and fingerprint) and smart lock. In the lockdown mode, the only way to unlock your Galaxy S20 is using the primary PIN, Pattern or Password.

Voice recognition (Bixby and Google Assistant) will also not work when the lockdown mode is activated.

Besides, all notifications that would usually be displayed on the Galaxy S20 lock screen will be hidden, and you can only read them after you unlock the phone.

In a nutshell, Galaxy S20 lockdown mode:

Force you to use PIN, Pattern or Password to unlock Galaxy S20.
Hide all notifications from the lock screen regardless of the notification settings for the lock screen.

Therefore, it is a security feature, not a convenience feature.

Please note, Galaxy S20 lockdown mode is a one-time feature. It means it will return to normal once you unlock Galaxy S20 with PIN, pattern or password. If you need the mode again, you have to activate it again.

If you want to use the lockdown mode permanently, you may set the phone in this way:

Delete the registered facial features and fingerprints
Reset the smart lock and remove any trusted devices and locations.
Choose not to show any notification on the lock screen.
Disable Bixby and Google Assistant on the lock screen.

Anyway, this would cause some inconveniences.

When to use Galaxy S20 lockdown mode?

Using face recognition to unlock Galaxy S20 is usually blazingly … Read the rest

A Complete Guide Of Galaxy S20 Assistant Menu

By simon Leave a Comment Last Modified: January 9, 2021 · Published on: November 19, 2020

Galaxy S20 Assistant Menu is more than an accessibility feature. It offers many shortcuts to help you improve your productivity with Samsung Galaxy S20.

This Galaxy S20 guide explains what Galaxy S20 Assistant Menu is, what it can do, how to enable, use and customize it, and how to use Assistant Plus to get even more from the Assistant Menu on Galaxy S20.

As Assistant Menu is more or less universal on all Samsung Galaxy phones, this guide applies to other Samsung Galaxy phones as well.

What is Galaxy S20 Assistant Menu?

Samsung Galaxy S20 Assistant Menu, a semi-transparent floating button overlayed on the phone screen, was initially designed for owners who need assistance for motor control and other physical impairments.

But it has been used by many seasoned Samsung phone owners to get faster access to some functions and features.

You may find the Assistant Menu very handy if you get used to it. It is more than an accessibility feature: it is also a productivity feature.

Of course, the Assistant Menu is not a new feature of Galaxy S20. Samsung introduced this feature since Android 4.0 and maintained it in all Galaxy phones and tablets.

What can Samsung Galaxy S20 Assistant Menu do?

With Galaxy S20 Assistant Menu, you can:

Access navigation buttons regardless of the navigation method (navigation gestures or navigation buttons) you are using.
Access power button option (power menu). You can power off or restart the phone without using the power button (side key). You can also invoke emergency mode or lockdown mode for Galaxy S20. You may use it to power off the phone, then boot into Galaxy S20 safe mode or Galaxy S20 recovery mode. Please refer to this guide on how to enable and activate Galaxy S20 lockdown mode.
Access notification panel. You can access notification panel by tapping the button in the Assistant Menu, instead of swiping down from the top of the screen.
Add a touchpad on the screen and use a cursor to navigate to anywhere of the screen.
Add a circle touchpad (page control) to scroll up and down and to navigate among pages (panels).
Adjust volumes.
Turn off the screen.
Take a screenshot.
Adjust screen brightness.
Rotate the screen.
Use a magnifier on the screen.
Open Bixby.
Talk to Bixby.
Send SOS

… Read the rest

How to easily take a screenshot on Galaxy S20 without using any third-party apps?

By simon Leave a Comment Last Modified: November 21, 2020 · Published on: May 11, 2020

Galaxy S20 provides the native capability for you to take a screenshot on Galaxy S20 easily without installing any third-party apps.

The built-in Galaxy S20 screenshot toolbar can also further help you take screenshots for elongated pages automatically, edit, and share the captured screenshots efficiently.

This Galaxy S20 guide shows you the 4 easy ways to take a screenshot on Galaxy S20 without using any third-party apps and explains how to use the screenshot toolbar to take a screenshot for scrollable pages, edit, share, and add tags to the captured screenshot.

This guide applies to Galaxy S20, Galaxy S20+, and S20 Ultra, although we use Galaxy S20 in the text.

4 easy ways to take a screenshot on Galaxy S20

Taking screenshots on Galaxy S20 is not only easy but also fun. There are a few different ways to take a screenshot on Galaxy S20 without using any third-party apps.

In this guide, I will show you the four easiest ways to take screenshots on Galaxy S20, S20+, and S20 Ultra.

Hardware key method (Side key + volume down key)

In all Android devices, the built-in method of taking a screenshot is holding the power key and volume down key simultaneously.

On Galaxy S20, the Side key replaces the traditional power key.

So, the corresponding method of taking a screenshot on Galaxy S20 is to hold the Side key and volume down key simultaneously, as illustrated below (you may check Galaxy S20 layout on the location of the side key and volume key).

The only requirement is to hold the two keys simultaneously. It needs some practice if you are new to this method:

If you get the volume adjustment bar (aka volume slider), it means you press the Side key too late.
If you get the power button option (power-off menu), then it means you press the volume down button too late.

Anyway, you may try to hold the Side key slightly earlier than the volume down key.

Palm Swipe to capture

The funniest way to take a screenshot on Galaxy S20 is to swipe your palm over the screen, as illustrated below.

This method is a bit tricky. Your palm should “slightly” touch the screen.

If the palm is too far from the screen, then swipe will not be registered. If it touches the screen too hard, then the swipe may be registered as a touchscreen gesture… Read the rest

How to use Galaxy S20 navigation gestures?

By simon Leave a Comment Last Modified: November 21, 2020 · Published on: April 8, 2020

You can use either the default navigation buttons or Galaxy S20 navigation gestures to navigate through Galaxy S20, S20+, and S20 Ultra.

This Galaxy S20 guide explains the differences between Galaxy S20 navigation buttons and Galaxy S20 navigation gestures, the two types of navigation gestures on Galaxy S20, and how to switch between navigation buttons and Galaxy S20 navigation gestures.

The navigation buttons or gestures are identical on Galaxy S20, S20+, and S20 Ultra. This guide applies to all of these three Galaxy S20 models.

What are the differences between Galaxy S20 navigation buttons and Galaxy S20 navigation gestures?

Traditionally, Android phones used hardware navigation buttons (3 buttons), then switched to software navigation buttons until Android Oreo (Android 8). In Android 9 (Android Pie), Google partially introduced navigation gestures (2-button navigation) and removed the Back button.

In Android 10, Google removed all three navigation buttons and evolved into full-screen navigation gestures, as explained in this guide.

Samsung adopted different navigation gestures in Galaxy phones with Android Pie (Android 9) since Galaxy S10. It was ported to all Galaxy phones with Android 9 (e.g., Galaxy S9 and Note 9)

In Galaxy S20, Samsung still uses the navigation buttons as the default setting. You can switch to Galaxy S20 navigation gestures at any time.

As explained in this guide, Galaxy S20 navigation buttons include Home, Back, and Recents buttons. You need to tap one of the buttons to navigate among pages.

If you switch to Galaxy S20 navigation gestures, there will be no buttons. You will have to use gestures to return to the previous screen (Back), to jump to the Home screen, or access the Recents screen.

Please note, Galaxy S20 Assistant Menu can still offer navigation button even after you switch to navigation gestures. You may check this guide for details of Assistant Menu on Galaxy S20.

The differences between using Galaxy S20 navigation gestures and navigation buttons are substantial, for example:

Navigation buttons and navigation gestures are mutually exclusive. You can only choose one.
If you choose to use Galaxy S20 navigation gestures, then you have the option of using Samsung -style (Android 9)navigation gestures, or Google-style (Android 10) navigation gestures. (Read on)
Some gestures may require some practice.
Galaxy S20 navigation gestures can be more efficient only after you get familiar with them.

Who should use Galaxy S20

… Read the rest

How to use and customize Galaxy S20 navigation buttons?

By simon 4 Comments Last Modified: November 21, 2020 · Published on: March 28, 2020

Galaxy S20 navigation buttons allow you to navigate across, into and back out from the different pages of an app, Galaxy S20 Home screen, Apps screen and lock screen.

Although Android 10 introduced the full-screen navigation gestures, Galaxy S20, by default, uses the traditional three navigation buttons for you to interact with the phone.

This Galaxy S20 guide explains the three navigation systems on Galaxy S20 (navigation buttons, Android 10 full-screen navigation gesture, and Samsung navigation gestures) and the functions and usage of Galaxy S20 navigation buttons (Recents, Back, and Home). It also shows you how to customize the layout (order) of Galaxy S20 navigation buttons

The navigation buttons are identical on Galaxy S20, S20+, and S20 Ultra, although we used Galaxy S20 in the guide.

What are the three navigation systems on Galaxy S20?

When you interact with Galaxy S20, you can use one of the following 3 navigation systems to navigate through different apps, or within an app, or through pages of Home screen, Apps screen, and lock screen:

Galaxy S20 navigation buttons (the default).
Android 10 full-screen navigation gestures.
Samsung’s full-screen navigation gestures.

The full-screen navigation gestures remove all buttons (including the Home button). This guide explains these gestures and illustrates how to use them on Galaxy S20.

On the contrary, Galaxy S20 navigation buttons keep and use the traditional 3 navigation buttons.

Although navigation buttons look old-fashioned, they can be more efficient for many Galaxy S20 owners. This is the main reason why Samsung keeps Galaxy S20 navigation buttons as the default option when you set up Galaxy S20.

Please note, since Galaxy S8, Samsung ditched the hardware capacitive navigation buttons and adopted the software-based navigation buttons.

In other words, Galaxy S20 navigation buttons are NOT physical buttons (see Galaxy S20 layout). They are generated by the Android system when needed. And therefore, it is possible to disable/hide them and switch to full-screen navigation gestures without using any of these buttons.

What are the Galaxy S20 navigation buttons?

As shown in the screenshot below, there are three navigation buttons on the Galaxy S20 navigation bar:

Home button
Back button
Recents button (aka, Overview button)

Please note, the screenshot shown below is the default navigation button layout on Galaxy S20 (and all Samsung phones), which is opposite to the layout on other Android phones.

In the stock Android, the Back … Read the rest