Samsung Galaxy S8 Tips and Tricks

Locking your phone is a great security feature, but when you’re at home it’s normally not necessary.

A featured called Trusted Places enables you to bypass the lock screen when you’re at specific geographic places.

To set it up go to Settings – Lock screen and security – Smart lock – Trusted places.

You can also set up the bypass to work when your phone is connected to specific Bluetooth devices such as Smartwatches or Audio devices.

You can also override this (i.e. lock your screen when it is at the location). To override, just press and hold the padlock icon on the lockscreen.

This may not work on all phones, models or networks. Also, if you choose to trust your location, then you will need to turn your GPS on when at home.

Smartphones can sometimes get hot when playing play games, listening to music, watching videos, or charging.

This is common and mostly caused when several Apps are running at once, or one App is using a lot of processor power.

Normally there is no need to worry about phones getting a warm while in use as the phone and battery can heat up to 120 Fahrenheit without damage.

However, when your phone becomes unbearably hot and you start having issue with your Apps, then there might be a problem. This might be due to faulty battery, too much charging, or a high workload.

To diagnose this, you can use apps like TempMonitor or Battery Temperature Guard (free) to monitor your device’s temperature.

Both can be downloaded from Google Play Store.

These apps should be able to tell you that your phone’s temp is within normal range.

While the stock standard keyboard is fine, there are much better keyboards available for the Samsung Galaxy S8.

First, you need to go to the Play Store and download one. Try searching for the word ‘keyboard’ and you will see a number of options.

One of the best keyboards is a keyboard called Swiftkey, which is a top-rated App. This will literally change the way you feel about your phone as the standard keyboard can be quite a frustrating experience.

Download your chosen keyboard and go through any install steps that you are presented with.

If you see a warning saying the keyboard will collect all information (including credit cards) just ignore this. This is just a security feature that Android shows for every third-party keyboard that you install.

Then, go to the App you want to type in. You should now see a little Keyboard icon on the row at the bottom of your screen, towards the bottom-right corner. Press that icon and you can switch between all of the keyboards you have installed.

Some other notable keyboards that work on the Samsung Galaxy S8 are GO Keyboard and Gboard (the Google Keyboard). Download and install your keyboard app of choice. Once that’s done, follow these steps to switch your current keyboard to that newly installed one:

1. You can click on your newly installed keyboard app (icon).
2. Most of them can assist you on how to switch your keyboard.
3. Just follow the instructions from the new keyboard app.

How to Switch Your Phone’s Default Keyboard to A New One

You can follow the steps above because most keyboard apps can assist you when it comes to switching the default keyboard to theirs. However, you can also do it manually by going to your Phone Settings. Just follow these steps:

1. Go to Settings and scroll down or look for the “System” sub-menu.
2. Under “System,” tap “Language and Keyboard” or “Language and Input.”
3. Tap “Default Keyboard” and select the new keyboard app.

Depending on your unit and model, this method could vary. For those who can’t find the “Default Keyboard” option, you can follow these steps:

1. Under “Language and Input,” you need to look for Virtual Keyboards → Manage Keyboards.
2. Tap your keyboard of choice to activate it.
3. You will get a message of confirmation. Just tap “OK.”
4. Open your keyboard. You can do this by trying to write a message, email or search.
5. Then tap the keyboard icon.
6. Choose the Input Method (tap on your preferred keyboard).

Done! You can change your Samsung Galaxy S8 keyboard’s theme, predictive text, and other settings by opening its menu. You can do this by locating the keyboard icon on your home screen, or by tapping on the settings icon when you open the keyboard for typing.

From the Contact list or the Messaging list, swipe from Left to Right to call a Contact.

This might not work on all models.

If you call someone regularly this can be useful as you will have a shortcut to them usefully placed on your home screen.

To bookmark a Contact on your Home Screen, then first go into your Contacts App.

Find the Contact you want to add to the Home Screen and go into their Contact details.

Then press More or the Menu key and select Add shortcut to home.

Then go to your Home Screen, find the Contact you’ve just added. Press, hold and drag to another position.

If this doesn’t work, then try this alternative method:
Go to one of your home screens.

Find a blank space, long press and hold.

Select Widgets, then scroll until you see the Contacts Widget. From here there are various options to add contacts to your home screen as bookmarks.

Most Android devices come with an alternative way of entering text called Swype. Many prefer this method and believe it is quicker.

When any text entry box appears, press and hold the box. Then select Input method: SWYPE. Once enabled, you simply drag your finger around the keyboard moving over the letters in the correct order to spell a word.

The fast and easy way to change the wallpaper on the Samsung Galaxy S8 is to tap and hold on a blank space on your home screen and then tap “Wallpapers.”

From there, you can choose any image from your gallery or from a preset selection of live wallpapers from your device.

You may also go directly to your Samsung Galaxy S8 Gallery then open an image of your choice. Once you open the image, select “More” to look for the “Set as Wallpaper” option.

You can also change your wallpaper from the Settings menu on your phone. Just follow these steps:

1. Swipe up or unlock your home screen to display all apps.
2. Look for the Settings icon, tap and then look for “Display.” For some phones, you might want to look for “Home Screen” or “Wallpaper” right away.
3. Next, tap “Wallpaper” and select which folder or file you want to use.
4. Find your desired image and tap “Set Wallpaper.”

You can always use your own image as a wallpaper. However, most phones also have a preset selection of wallpapers (or live images) that can be used anytime too.

You may also choose different images each for your wallpaper and lock screen. However, you may also use just one image for both.

To take a screenshot on your device, press the Home and Power buttons at the same time. Sometimes you may need to press the Home button first for a second, then the Power button.

Hold them together for between 1-2 seconds and you should hear a camera shutter sound.

To locate the screenshot you’ve just taken, go to your Apps and find My Files.

Then it should be under Device Storage or Internal Storage – DCIM – Screenshots.

It’s possible that they may also be found under Device Storage or Internal Storage – Pictures – Screenshots.

If you want to move the Screenshot to another folder, then long press on the file name. You should see a tick appear.

Then press the More button in the top right and select Move or Copy. Then select the destination of the screenshot.

If you are not happy with your notification light, then you can change and tweak it. Go to the Play Store and download an App called Light Flow.

You might need to enable the notification light before the App works. Go to Settings – Display – LED Indicator.

To change your default font, go to Settings – Display – Screen zoom and Font.

You can also change the font size here also.

Another option is to install the popular Go Launcher EX App. Then once this is installed, download their GoLauncher Fonts App.