Why is everyone so excited about it? Oh, it’s probably because it’s THE most awesome phone you could have right now. It’s even better than the S5. I should know! One very sad day, I was lounging by the pool when my husband thought it would be hilarious to pick me up and throw me into it. So there I went, flying through the air with a hard landing into the water. SPLASH! Besides the fact I am afraid of water, my precious Samsung Galaxy S5 was in my back pocket. When I was able to climb out of the pool, I frantically looked for my phone. There it was in the pool at the bottom. Everyone crowded around staring at it in disbelief. All I could do was point and say to my husband, “Get it.” When he returned from his voyage down to the bottom of the “deep end,” I faced reality. The phone wasn’t only shattered, but it was sopping wet too. OMG. My life was over. After crying and threatening my husband’s safety, I realized that this was a good thing. I was in the market for a new phone. I knew exactly what I wanted – the Samsung Galaxy S6. I’ve had it for a month now. I love it. It’s better than the S5. Check out some of these tricks I’ve figured out that make me happy.
1. First Things First – Fingerprints!
Samsung Galaxy S6 allows you to register more than one fingerprint. This is so great because there were plenty of times that scanning my index finger on the S5 didn’t work. Now, you can register up to five fingerprints. What I did was register both of my thumbs and index fingers since I use those the most with my phone. You may want to do your pinky, but that’s your call. Oh, and guess what, you don’t have to use the fingerprint scanner anymore to lock your phone. If you’ve had the S5, you know how much of a pain that was. The new version lets you do it with one touch. It is so easy and much more user friendly. Before we move on, just know that you can use your fingerprints to unlock certain apps. You have to love that, especially when you have some nosy people around you.
How to Setup Fingerprint Functionality:
Tap on Settings Tap on Lock screen and security Tap on Add fingerprint
2. You Can Change the Keyboard
Don’t settle for the pre-installed keyboard when you can get a fancy one! There are a ton of them to choose from in the Play Store. Some of the ones that come up right away are GO Keyboard, SwiftKey, Google Keyboard, and Kikat Keyboard. Try a few of them out to choose the one you like the best. RELATED: Top 10 Android Keyboard Apps To Keep Your Fingers Flying
3. Customize the Navigation to Save Time
One of the best things about Samsung Galaxy S6 is that you can customize it to meet your needs. The navigation drop down is so easy to use and saves you time. Just slide your finger down from the top. You will see it appear and then all you have to do is tap on Edit. In that screen, just go ahead and drag and drop everything you want in there. After putting in your functions, shortcuts, etc., tap on Done…and you’re done! Bonus: Customize your Quick Settings too. This will help you get to the settings you use often quicker.
How to Customize the Navigation
Go to Settings. Tap on Edit. Choose up to nine Settings to include at the top of the list.
4. You Have MORE Themes
One of the downfalls of older versions of the Galaxy is that you don’t get many themes to choose from, but that’s not the case with S6 – thank goodness! I love to switch out themes often, so this is a great feature. The default S6 only has three. You can get plenty more by using the Store link on the top right side of the Themes page. You can even create your own theme with the tools they include.
Go to Settings Tap on Themes Tap on Store
You will then be able to browse themes and download the ones like. You can then go back to your Themes and choose one of them to Apply. That’s it!
5. Split the Screen to Do More
Working on-the-go is not always easy, but the S6 makes it a lot easier. Open two apps at the same time, and have them next to each other with this feature.
How to Split the Samsung Galaxy S6 Screen
Hold down the app or multitask button (location on the bottom left) You will see that the bottom half of the screen will show a menu of apps, while the top will continue to show you what you were doing. Tap on what you want to open in your second screen to have it open up. You can arrange the apps around the screen by holding the screen down and then dragging and dropping.
6. Faster Access to Your Camera
I have kids. They won’t hold poses for very long. I don’t know how many times I’ve tried to snap a picture and by the time I get the camera up, the chance is over. Ugh! With S6, I’m all excited about how quick I can get it to come up. How do you get it up quickly? Just double tap the home button. Try it. RELATED: Top 5 HDR Camera Apps for Android for Vivid Pics
7. Keep Nosy People Away
Kids and spouses are notorious for checking your phone for information. You can keep sensitive, private files, apps, and photos away from them easily on the S6 with the Private mode. The only way anyone is going to be able to see them is if they come up with a way to copy your fingerprint.
How to Set Private Mode
Go to Settings Tap on Privacy and safety Tap on Private mode
When you’re in this screen, you can choose what you want to make private. It’s easy peasy! Image source: phonearena
8. Gestures Are Like Magic – Use Them
It’s kind of crazy how Samsung has been able to make your phone notify you in unique ways. For example, the Direct call feature will call someone you bring up on your Contacts just by putting the phone to your ear. The Smart alert feature send vibration alerts when you pick up your phone after a call or text message you’ve missed. You can also just flip your phone over to mute it – perfect for times you’re in a meeting and can’t fumble to find the Mute settings.
How to Set Up Gestures
Go to Settings Tap on Motions and gestures
9. Feel the Different Vibrations for Calls and Messages
You can change your vibration patterns for calls and messages. That way when you can’t have your sound on, the vibration pattern will let you know if you have a call or message come through. There are some great ones to choose from, so play around with them until you find ones that will make sense to you.
How to Change Vibrations
Go to Settings Tap on Sounds and notifications Tap on Vibrations
10. Save Battery Life with Abnormal Battery Usage
MUST READ: 10 Best Battery Saver Apps for Android: Give Your Phone a Boost If you’ve owned a Samsung before, you know that you can set up Power saving mode to get more battery life from your phone. The new S6 has added a new feature – Abnormal battery usage. This cool little feature will tell you which of your apps uses way too much power. You can then decide to delete, disable, or just close it to save your battery.
11. Clean Up Your Phone by Disabling and Uninstalling Apps Easier
ALSO READ: 5 Best Uninstall Android Apps to Get Rid of Old News After downloading apps to try them out, you may find yourself with a phone full of them taking up unnecessary space. S6 makes it possible to disable and uninstall them easily
How to Disable and Uninstall Apps on Samsung Galaxy S6
Step #1: Go to the App drawer and tap on Edit. Step #2: You can then tap on the red minus symbol to get rid of the ones you don’t want. Note: You can uninstall all of them. You can disable them, though. You can also just press on an app and drag it up to uninstall/disable it when you’re in the list of apps.
12. Boost It with Developer Privileges
There are some settings you can change to make it seem like your phone is running faster. Some of those are changing the scale to 0.5 for the:
Window animation scale Transition animation scale Animator duration scale
You cannot change these settings without developer privileges. Developer privileges can be accessed easily on any version of Samsung Galaxy. Here is how to get them.
Go to Settings Tap on About device Tap on Build number 10 times
You can then go back to the Settings menu and you should see the Developer options available.
13. Bluetooth Unlock with Smart Lock
With all of the Bluetooth capabilities available today, you do not want to feel like you have to set up everything every time you want to use it. That’s why Samsung has made it possible for the S6 to unlock with Smart Lock whenever it connects to a Bluetooth device.
How to Use Smart Lock on Galaxy S6
Go to Settings Tap on Lock screen and security Tap on Secure lock settings Choose Smart Lock
14. Change Your Home Screen Layout
Here is another way to make the S6 your own. With the TouchWiz launcher, you can place more icons on each panel. This is great for people who hate flipping through each screen looking for apps.
How to Change the Home Screen Layout
Long press on the home screen Tap on screen grid
You can then choose to have the grid 4×5 or 5×5. The default is 4×4, so you can gauge how much more you want to be able to add.
15. Arrange Panels for Faster Use
You can arrange the order of your panels. This allows you to get to the panel you need with one, two, three, etc. swipes.
How to Arrange Panels
Long press the home screen Choose to add, remove or rearrange the panels
To choose one panel as your main one, just tap the home icon on the panel you’re choosing.
16. Talk to Google with ‘OK Google’
S Voice is okay, but it can’t beat ‘OK Google.’ It is just much more intuitive, and let’s face it, Google knows technology. To bring up Google voice from any screen, you’ll have to set it up correctly.
How to Set Google Voice Up
Tap on the Google app Open Settings (sliding the navigation drawer on the left) Tap on Voice Tap on Google detection
You will have to teach it your voice, so say “OK Google” a few times. After following these steps, you can use OK Google all you want. Additional tip: activate “personal results.” This will allow you to use the feature even when the phone is locked. It can be a bit scary because you may end up calling someone just when talking about calling someone, but it’s pretty cool if you’re careful.
17. Pin It – Screen Pinning for the S6
We are not talking about Pinterest here. Pinning on the S6 means protecting your privacy when someone wants to use your phone. All you have to do is pin an app or window and you don’t have to worry about the person looking through your phone. Here’s how to do it.
Go to Settings Tap on Lock screen and security Tap on Other security settings Tap on Pin windows
18. Don’t Be Bothered by Notifications
There is nothing worse than being awoken by an email, text, or app notification. You can set up your S6 to cut off notifications whenever you want and you can set up a schedule, so you don’t have to mess with it again.
How to Turn Notifications Off on Galaxy S6
Go to Settings Tap on Do not disturb Tap on Sounds and notification
On this screen you can choose what you want to receive notification for and when you want to turn them on and off. I prefer the schedule because I never remember to turn them off before I go to sleep, and then, I’m pretty upset when it wakes me up.
19. Use the Download Booster
Do not want to wait forever for something to download? Use download booster. This function is great for people with unlimited data plans because they can use LTE and Wi-Fi to speed up downloads.
How to Use Download Booster on Samsung Galaxy S6
Go to Settings Tap on More connection settings Tap on Download booster Swipe toggle to turn on
You should see a grey icon at the top of your phone to indicate Download booster is ready to speed up downloads.
20. Set Up Easy Mode
While I do not prefer it, other people do. Easy mode is for people who don’t like a lot of icons on their panels and would rather have them bigger. Easy mode will make that happen.
How to Use Easy Mode on Galaxy S6
Go to Settings. Tap on Easy Mode. Choose which applications you want in Easy Mode.
21. Control the World with S6
The Samsung S6 has an infrared blaster that will allow you to use it as a remote control for devices such as your television. This can come in handy because we all know we never know where the TV remote is, but we always have our phone. Devices you can use your phone as a remote are:
Set-top Box DVD Player Blu-ray Player AV Receiver Streaming Media Player Home Projector Air Conditioner
How to Set Up Your Smart Remote using Samsung Galaxy S6
Open the Smart Remote app Tap on Start and then choose your country Tap on the device and then the brand Point your phone to the device and then tap the red circle on the screen Answer the question on the screen about whether the device is on or off.
That is it! You can now use your phone as a remote control.
Conclusion
Now you know as much as I do about the Samsung Galaxy S6. I am sure we will all learn much more the more we use it. I will come back and add a comment with any new tricks I come up with along the way. By the way, I am still a little miffed at my husband for the pool incident. While I did get an awesome new phone out of it, it was still a tragedy. I am emotionally attached to my phones. I will mourn and get over it though….eventually. Feel free to add some tips and tricks in the comments, so we can all use our phones to their full potential.
