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Samsung

Guides for Samsung Galaxy A8

520 guides

Photo, Video & Media2

Turn On or Off Automatic QR Code Scanning

If your Samsung camera no longer picks up QR codes while you're in normal photo mode, the automatic QR scanning function is probably switched off. Older Samsung devices used a separate scan mode for this, but current models detect codes directly through the standard camera view. When the option is disabled, pointing the camera at a code does nothing at all.

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Apps & Installation2

Install Print Service Plugin

If your printer does not show up when you try to print from your Samsung phone, the built-in print service most likely does not cover your printer model. Samsung ships with a standard print service that works with popular brands, but many manufacturers require their own plugin to print files correctly. Without that plugin, print jobs either fail or the printer never appears as an option.

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Photo, Video & Media2

Apply Camera Filters

Standard shots from the Samsung camera app come out flat and natural, but you want a specific look like black and white, sepia, pale or a warm tone instead. The filter options sit in their own menu that is easy to overlook, and the intensity control for an applied filter goes unnoticed just as often.

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Notifications & Focus2

Turn Vibrate When Call Ends On or Off

If your Samsung phone buzzes right after a call disconnects, that comes from a separate call alert, not your regular vibration mode. Some people rely on the buzz to notice a dropped call without checking the screen, others find it jarring when it fires during a meeting. The setting sits inside the Phone app rather than the general sound profile, which is why silent mode alone does not always turn it off.

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Calls & Messages2

Change SMS Input Mode (GSM or Unicode)

If a single text turns into two or three messages the moment you add an emoji, the input mode set for text messages is the reason. GSM alphabet only covers basic Latin characters, so any emoji or special symbol forces the message to switch encoding and split. Automatic or Unicode mode prevents that, but it can affect how many messages you get billed for.

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System & Settings2

Add a Printer by IP Address

If a printer never shows up in Samsung's Default Print Service, that model is likely not supported by the built-in driver list. Without a manual entry, print jobs simply fail or the printer never appears as an option. This mostly affects office, network, and older printers that the standard service does not recognize automatically.

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Photo, Video & Media2

Turn Video Stabilization On or Off

If your videos look shaky despite recording handheld, or clips from the main camera suddenly seem oddly smoothed and slightly cropped, Video stabilization is the setting behind it. Samsung enables this correction by default, but only on the main camera, so footage from other lenses will not look the same. In fast pans or low light it can also introduce a subtle wobble or crop that some people prefer to turn off.

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Other2

Change Data Warning Limit

If your mobile plan comes with a fixed data allowance, going past it without noticing usually means extra charges or a throttled connection. Samsung's data warning is meant to flag that moment, but the default threshold rarely matches your actual plan. Unlike the data limit, this feature only sends a notification and leaves your connection running.

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Notifications & Focus2

Customize Lock Screen Notification Style

By default, Samsung phones show a small app icon on the lock screen for every new notification, without any details. If you want to see who messaged you or read a preview before unlocking, that icon-only view can feel too limited. One UI lets you switch between a compact icon and a full notification card, including options for hiding content or adjusting background transparency.

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Display & Home Screen2

Add Widgets to the Home Screen

Looking for a widget on your Samsung home screen but only finding app icons? One UI keeps most widgets tucked away in a hidden menu instead of showing them next to your apps. This applies to pre-installed widgets like clock, weather or radio, and to any widgets added by apps you install afterward.

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Other2

Set Up Universal Switch for Hands-Free Control

If tapping the screen or pressing buttons is difficult, standard touch controls quickly become a barrier on a Samsung phone. Universal Switch lets you trigger taps with head movements, facial gestures, or an external switch instead, but the setup only works if the front camera can track your face reliably. Poor lighting or an unclear gesture pattern often causes missed or accidental actions.

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Calls & Messages2

Add an Alternate Calendar

If dates on your Samsung calendar don't match the Lunar, Hijri, or Shamsi calendar you expected, the alternate calendar option is probably switched off. Samsung's Calendar app can show a second calendar system in smaller text next to the standard dates, but it stays hidden until you set it manually in Settings. This affects the Korean, Chinese, and Vietnamese Lunar calendars as well as Hijri and Shamsi dates.

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Photo, Video & Media2

Record a Video with the Camera App

Tapping the shutter on your Samsung phone only takes a photo, even though you wanted to film a clip? The Camera app opens in photo mode by default, so recording a video means switching modes first. Once you do, the viewfinder gets noticeably smaller - that's normal, since video uses a different resolution than still photos.

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Accessibility2

High Contrast Keyboard: Turn On or Off

If the stock keyboard is hard to read in bright light or the keys feel too small, a low-contrast color scheme is usually the cause. Samsung Keyboard has a built-in 'High contrast keyboard' mode that swaps the color scheme and enlarges key size at the same time. Availability and exact designs vary slightly depending on the Samsung model you use.

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Network & Connectivity2

Turn Bluetooth Tethering On or Off

If your tablet, laptop, or smartwatch can't get online through your phone's Bluetooth connection, Bluetooth tethering is probably switched off. This feature turns your phone into a small Bluetooth hotspot and shares its mobile data with every paired device automatically.

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System & Settings2

Default Reminder Time for Calendar Events

Every new event in Samsung Calendar starts with a reminder set to 10 minutes before, and all-day events default to 5 p.m. the day before. If you keep adjusting these values by hand for each new entry, the app is falling back on its built-in alert defaults instead of your preferred timing. Changing the default once removes the need to reset the reminder every time you add an event.

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Notifications & Focus2

Change Ringtone Volume

If your phone barely rings during incoming calls even though media volume is turned up, the volume keys are probably adjusting the wrong stream. On many Samsung phones, pressing the side buttons on the home screen changes media volume by default and leaves the actual ringer level untouched.

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System & Settings2

Change the Billing Cycle Date

If your data usage counter resets on the 1st of the month but your carrier bills mobile data on a different day, the numbers on your Samsung phone never match your actual invoice. This mismatch comes from a fixed billing cycle date in the data usage settings, not from a tracking bug. Adjusting the start date lines up the on-device counter with your real billing period.

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Notifications & Focus2

Change Media Volume Separately from Ringtone

Videos on YouTube, music apps, and most in-app sounds all run through Media volume, not the ringtone or notification stream. That is why turning your phone silent for calls does not stop a video from blasting through the speaker. If the volume buttons seem to control the wrong sound depending on what is open, this Media stream is the reason.

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Apps & Installation2

Add Apps to a Home Screen Folder

Once a folder sits on your Home Screen, dragging in one app at a time gets tedious fast. If you need to move several apps into the same folder, dragging each one individually wastes time and often fails when your fingers overlap icons. Samsung includes a faster method through the folder edit menu that handles multiple apps in a single pass.

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Display & Home Screen2

Change Screen Mode

If your Samsung display looks too cool, too warm, or oddly oversaturated, the wrong screen mode is usually the cause. Samsung splits colour rendering into Vivid and Natural, and each mode reacts differently to the white balance slider. Picking the wrong combination makes photos, videos, and even white backgrounds look off.

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Network & Connectivity2

Turn Off Wi-Fi Direct

If you're trying to switch off Wi-Fi Direct on your Samsung phone, you'll notice there's no simple on/off switch for the feature itself. Wi-Fi Direct stays active in the background until every paired device is disconnected, which can keep draining battery even when you're not sharing files. Understanding how the connection actually gets released helps you stop it for good.

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Display & Home Screen2

Change Always On Display Clock Style

If the Always On Display on your Samsung phone still shows the plain default clock, you probably haven't opened the Clock style menu yet. One UI offers several analog and digital designs, adjustable colors, and an optional calendar line under the time. Picking the wrong style can hurt readability in daylight or use more battery than needed on an OLED screen.

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Network & Connectivity2

Turn On or Off Roaming Assistance

When you dial a saved contact while abroad, Samsung often sends the number exactly as stored, without adding the country code. That can make calls fail or connect to a random local number in the country you are roaming in instead of reaching your contact back home. Roaming assistance decides whether Samsung fixes this prefix automatically or leaves it to you.

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