Galaxy Note 9 User Guide: Tips, Tricks & How To

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Galaxy Note 9 User Guide: Tips, Tricks & How To

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How to set up the fingerprint reader on the Galaxy Note 9

Galaxy Note 9 User Guide: Tips, Tricks & How To

Galaxy Note 9 User Guide: Tips, Tricks & How To

Galaxy Note 9 User Guide: Tips, Tricks & How To

Galaxy Note 9 User Guide: Tips, Tricks, and How-To

Galaxy Note 9 User Guide: Tips, Tricks & How To

Galaxy Note 9 Features to Enable and Disable

Don't be fooled when you first pick up your new

Galaxy Note 9

ready to use. Although it looks a lot like its predecessor, Samsung's phone has a slew of new hardware, software and services that set it apart.

In addition to a huge battery that you can quickly charge, the Note 9 combines the DeX desktop experience with a powerful Bluetooth stylus that can also act as a remote control for the phone. In other words, while it shares some features and settings with recent Samsung phones, there's a lot to learn about the Note 9.

(Image credit: Tom's Guide)

Where to start? Here's a quick rundown of the features you need to set up right away.

Secure your Note 9

After turning on the phone for the first time, an automated sequence of screens guides you through the set up. It starts with the Protect your phone screen, where you can choose to unlock the phone with a numeric PIN, pattern, fingerprint, your facial features, your iris pattern, or a combination of the latter two.

Here's How: The Protect Your Phone screen lets you decide which method you want to use to open the lock screen. After choosing one, tap Next and you'll be prompted to set a secure lock screen type (pattern, PIN, or password) before having your face, fingerprints, or eyes scanned. You can also require a PIN to be entered before the Note 9 boots.

When you set a PIN, the Note 9 also lets you avoid having to press OK each time you enter the PIN.

Link your Note 9 with the S Pen

One of the biggest changes introduced with the Note 9 is the

new S Pen

, which goes in addition to being a pressure-sensitive stylus to activate icons, write notes and draw. The S Pen now connects to the phone via Bluetooth, with a range of around 30 feet. You can use the S Pen button in the middle of the pen as a remote control for everything from playing or pausing Youtube videos to taking photos with the camera. But you need to enable the feature first.

Here's how: In phone settings, tap Advanced features, then S Pen. On the next screen, select S Pen Remote and slide the Power button to the right to activate the S Pen Remote software. When the phone and stylus are linked, light blue circles radiate from the stylus on the S Pen Remote page.

Activate wireless fast charging

The Note 9's 4,000 mAh battery can be charged with a traditional USB-C cable or with a wireless Qi inductive charger. That said, if you have a high-powered wireless charger, Samsung claims the process can be sped up by up to 40%. (The device may need to use its cooling fan to dissipate the extra heat.)

Here's how: Go to Settings and select Advanced Features. Open the Accessories section, where you can toggle the on/off switch for fast wireless charging.

Configure NFC

Like recent versions of the Note, the back of the Note 9 has near-field communication (NFC) under its skin that can move data wirelessly by placing it near or on an NFC receiver. It's useful for printing and paying for things.

Here's how: to set it up, go to the Connections section of Settings and open the NFC category. Then tap Payment. Slide the On/Off button to the right to turn it on. Next, open the Tap and Pay screen to allow the Note 9 to use Android Pay or Samsung Pay.

MORE:

Apple Pay vs. Samsung Pay vs. Google Pay: Mobile Wallet Guide

Configure your mobile wallet

If you want to use your Note 9 to pay for things, you'll need to register a credit card. The process for entering payment information has not changed from other recent Samsung phones. Samsung Pay is available in a growing number of stores and enables near-instant payments that slow down credit card swiping.

Here's how: open the Tap and Pay section. The default settings are for Google Pay; if that's what you want, you're set. Tap the Samsung Pay area if that's what you prefer.

Choose your screen mode

The Note 9's 6.4-inch AMOLED display is one of the sharpest and brightest available on a phone. It is also one of the most adjustable. The key is screen mode, which can fine-tune the display.

Here's how: Start with Settings, then tap Display. Scroll down to Screen Mode where your options are AMOLED Cinema, AMOLED Photo, or Adaptive Display, which changes its settings depending on what's on display.

Selecting the Adaptive Display allows you to adjust the color temperature of the screen via a slider. You can also adjust the individual sliders for red, green and blue by pressing the Advanced Options button to fully customize the display.

Configure always-on display for memos

The always-on display is one of my favorite things about the Note 9. It's my notebook and my pocket watch, and as the name on the label suggests, it's always on. To be able to write notes on the screen, whether the Note 9 is locked or not, you must first configure it so that when you remove the S Pen, you go directly to a blank screen, ready to doodle or take notes. grades.

Here's how: start with Settings and tap Advanced Features. In the S Pen section, tap Delete. This opens a box with three choices: Open Air Command, Create Note, or Do Nothing.

Change the appearance of Always on Display

The Note 9 can also be a watch with 16 different clock faces, including one with two time zones for travelers around the world.

Here's how: On the Settings page, tap Lock screen, then Clock style. The top of the screen displays the current clock style. For additional settings, tap Color.

Configure your Note 9 to use full-screen apps

Like the Note 8, the Note 9 can use its full screen to display apps that have been adapted for the screen's long and narrow aspect ratio. In other words, they are slightly stretched to completely fill the screen without any empty areas.

Here's how: Start in the Display section of Settings and tap Full-Screen Apps. Choose the apps you want to be able to run full screen on the Note 9. Note that the feature doesn't work with all apps but can be used with many (dozens of apps on my phone, for example.)

Turn on the Note 9's edge panel

I really like the Note 9's curved Infinity Display, but it also has a practical use. I can pull a group of apps to the main screen by swiping my finger from the right edge to the center.

Here's how: Look for the short white vertical bar on the right edge of the screen. Drag it to the center of the screen and you will see a two-screen explanation of the Edge Panel feature. After swiping to the next page, tap Start, and you'll see two columns of apps you might want to use frequently. (There is room for 10.)

Use App Pairs

When you are on the Edge panel page, you can pair two apps to view in a split screen. For example, I pair Gmail with Gallery because it makes it easier to grab and send photos.

Here's how: start with the edge panel edit screen. Tap the + icon under App Pair and choose the two apps you want to pair. Tap Done. When you want the pair, swipe the Edge Panel menu from the right side and tap the new app pair icon at the bottom.

Start and train Bixby

After a year of walking and apart from using Bixby, I have a love-hate relationship with Samsung's virtual assistant. I really like Bixby's photo translation feature when I travel, but its voice control disappoints me as often as it impresses me. Since the cloud-based AI service requires a lot of training and patience, it's best to enable Bixby from the get-go.

Here's how: press the dedicated Bixby key on the left side of the phone. After accepting Samsung's license, it's time to train Bixby to your voice. Hold the phone a foot away from your face and say "Hi Bixby." You'll have to keep repeating it until the service understands the nuances of your voice. It took six times with me. From there, Bixby will give you a slideshow showing what it can do.

Adjust Note 9 audio settings

A big step up for the Note 9 is its Dolby Atmos support, along with a variety of sound enhancement techniques that let you optimize your phone's sound.

Here's how: you can enable or disable digital audio effects in the Settings/Sounds and vibrations/Sound quality and effects pages in the Advanced settings section. Hit the Dolby Atmos switch and it will sound richer with improved midrange and high-frequency clarity. You can also change the settings by tapping on Dolby Atmos where you'll have a choice of Auto (where the phone selects the settings), Movie, Music, and Voice.

Use your headphones

Here's how: As soon as you plug in headphones, the UHQ Upscaler goes from gray to an active on/off switch. You have the choice of just increasing the bitrate as well as adding a bandwidth boost; the first option makes the sound more vibrant, while the last choice makes it a little muddy but louder.

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