Samsung Galaxy S8: The best tips, tricks and hidden features
Your new phone is a beast. Here are our best guides for using it.
- Webby Award ("How To, Explainer, and DIY Video"); Folio Changemaker Award, 2020
There's a lot the Samsung Galaxy S8 can do. Enough to make you spin in circles trying to figure it all out. But two things: 1) Not all the features are useful, and 2) Stop trying to figure it all out and read this guide instead.
Setting up your S8
Customize the Bixby Button
Samsung dedicated an entire button -- a rarity these days -- to Bixby, the personal voice assistant that hasn't yet launched. If you want to use that button for something else, like launching your favorite app, while you wait for Bixby, this guide shows you how.
Change these settings right away
We counted all the settings the Galaxy S8 has and it totals to about a bajillion. This guide tells you which ones are worth changing, so that your screen looks beautiful and you can use hidden options like using the fingerprint scanner to swipe.
Three ways to unlock your phone
Your face, your eyes, your fingers -- any of these body parts can now be used to unlock your phone. Not all options are equally secure, though, and some are more cumbersome than others. Here's our official guide to choosing the best anatomical parts for security.
Get rid of bloatware
"Welcome to your new Samsung phone! Here are a bunch of apps you don't need." It's not just Samsung -- it's also carriers like T-Mobile, Verizon, Sprint and AT&T that fill your phone with branded apps you don't always need. Some apps, like Samsung Health, are truly useful. But when was the last time you chose VZ Navigator over Google Maps ? Use this guide to remove it.
Tips & tricks
Claim your free stuff!
Galaxy S8 owners get a bunch of perks from Google , including 100,000 free song uploads to Google Play, a YouTube Red trial and more. Go get it.
Take a screenshot
The G8 doesn't have a home button. But don't let that stop you from taking screenshots of texts for your personal records. There's a new way to get screen grabs and we've got you covered.
Maximize the battery life
You know who loves having a dead phone? No one. Here are some tips to get more life out of your S8's battery.
Bixby (or lack thereof)
There's a new button on the S8 entirely dedicated to Bixby, Samsung's personal assistant designed to compete with Siri, Alexa and Google Assistant. Thing is, though, it's not yet available. Samsung says the assistant will be ready soon. Until then, get yourself hyped with our explainer on how Bixby works.
Editor's note: This guide was originally published on April 21, 2017 and has since been updated with more tips.