How to use Galaxy Note 5 quick settings?

Galaxy Note 5 quick settings may refer to two totally different things:

  1. Galaxy Note 5 quick settings buttons in Galaxy Note 5 notification panel for you to quickly turn on/off some features of Galaxy Note 5.
  2. Galaxy Note 5 quick settings entries in Settings page/app for you to put frequently used settings items in the top of Settings page.

This Galaxy Note 5 how-to guide will try to cover both of them.

Similar quick settings buttons can also be found in many other Android devices. For example, in Android Lollipop, the stock Android have some quick settings in notification panel as shown in this guide. Please note, Samsung implemented Galaxy Note 5 quick settings in a special way.

For quick settings in in Settings page, most other Android devices do not have this option.

Table of Contents [hide]
1) What are Galaxy Note 5 quick settings buttons?
2) How to customize and manage Galaxy Note 5 quick settings buttons?
3) How to disable S Finder and Quick Connect in Galaxy Note 5 quick settings panel?
4) Galaxy Note 5 Quick settings in Settings page
5) Can you use Galaxy Note 5 quick settings now?

What are Galaxy Note 5 quick settings buttons?

As explained in Galaxy Note 5 notification panel, near the top of the notification panel as shown below, there are 5 buttons (icons). These are usually called Galaxy Note 5 quick settings buttons.

You can tap the quick settings buttons to activate the corresponding features. If the feature was enabled already, you will turn off (deactivate) the corresponding feature by tapping the button.

This is why they are named as “quick” settings. You can simply toggle on/off the features without navigating to Settings page.  You can tap and hold the quick settings button to open the detailed settings page.

For example, as shown in the screenshot below, you can find (yours should be different):

  • WiFi button. You can tap this quick settings button to turn on/off WiFi on Galaxy Note 5. If there is an active WiFi connection, you will see the name of the SSID of the router. You should also see a WiFi status icon in the status bar.
  • Mobile data button. You can tap this quick settings button to enable mobile data. Please note, by default, if both mobile data and WiFi are enabled and active, WiFi connection will be used. In this case, mobile data status icon (GPRS, Edge, 3G, HSPA, HSPA+ or LTE) will be hidden.
  • Sound mode button. You can toggle sound mode, vibrate mode and mute mode for ringtone and notification tones.
  • Bluetooth button. You can tap this Galaxy Note 5 quick settings button to enable/disable Bluetooth on Galaxy Note 5.  Once Bluetooth is enabled on Galaxy Note 5, you will see the Bluetooth status icon in the status bar. The Bluetooth device name will also be shown over the button.
  • Location services button. Some apps, e.g., Google Now, weather app, require location info to provide relevant info. You can tap it to turn on or turn off this service. Please note, some apps may not function properly if you turn location services off.

Swipe to the right, you can find another 5 quick setting buttons (just for demonstration, yours are very likely different):

  • Powering saving mode button. Tap this quick setting button to turn save battery. The performance may be slightly affected.
  • Screen orientation button. You can turn on auto-rotate for the screen or lock the screen to portrait orientation. Some apps, e.g., camera app and some games, do NOT respect this screen orientation setting.
  • Airplane mode button. You can turn off the radio on Galaxy Note 5. This is normally required on the airplane and in some special locations. Once airplane mode (flight mode) is enabled, you will see an airplane mode status icon in the status bar.
  • Do not disturb button. This is actually Android Lollipop’s downtime.
  • Flashlight button. You can use camera flash as a torch if you turn flashlight on. In emergency, this can be very useful. Please note, flashlight consumes battery very quickly. So, turn it off unless you need it.

These 10 quick settings buttons can be accessed directly.  Other quick settings buttons can be accessed by tapping EDIT button as shown below.

You can put other quick settings buttons in the top based on your needs. Of course, the number of spots is fixed (10).

To view more detailed settings corresponding to individual quick settings button, you can tap and hold the button

. You will normally directed to the corresponding settings page with all options.

How to customize and manage Galaxy Note 5 quick settings buttons?

Tap EDIT as shown above, you will find a few more quick settings button as shown below.

You can tap the button to turn on/off the feature as you did for the top 10 quick settings buttons.

But you cannot tap and hold these 7 buttons to open detailed settings because tapping and holding gesture was assigned to re-arrange the quick settings buttons in Galaxy Note 5 quick settings panel.

For example, in my Galaxy Note 5, there are additional 7 quick setting buttons as shown below:

  • Ultra power saving mode. Galaxy Note 5 ultras power saving mode allows you to extend battery life by using grayscale, instead of colorful screen, restricting background processes and data, ans allowing certain apps only. You may refer to this guide.
  • Mobile hotspot. You can turn on mobile hotspot if you want to share your mobile data connection with other devices through WiFi. It is often called tethering. Please note, some carriers may disable this feature.
  • Smart stay. Your screen will not be turned off as long as you are looking at the screen.
  • Private mode. You can hide some files from others with password.
  • Screen mirroring. Galaxy Note 5 supports Miracast. You can cast whatever on your Galaxy Note 5 screen to a TV that supports Miracast. Please do not confuse screen mirroring through Miracast with Chrromcast’s screen cast. You may check this guide on the differences between Miracast and Chromecast.
  • Sync. You can manually turn on/off data sync. Please note, many apps may need this feature.
  • NFC. You can turn on/off NFC on Galaxy Note 5.

The available quick settings buttons are different in different regions.

As mentioned, you can re-arrange the location of these quick settings buttons.  For example, you may want to move the frequently-used buttons to one of the top 5 spots.

To rearrange quick settings buttons, tap EDIT as shown above, tap and hold a button, and then drag it to another location.

As shown below,  for example, you can tap and hold the NFC button, move it to the desired spot, the drop it (release your finger from screen).

How to disable S Finder and Quick Connect in Galaxy Note 5 quick settings panel?

S Finder and quick connect are actually 2 nice features.

But some Galaxy Note 5 owners do not like them and therefore want to remove them.

After tapping EDIT as shown above, you can uncheck S Finder and Quick connect as shown above.

Once they are unchecked, S Find and quick connect will disappear in Galaxy Note 5 quick settings panel/notification panel as shown below.

Galaxy Note 5 Quick settings in Settings page

There is another Galaxy Note 5 quick settings in Settings page/app as shown below.

Please note this Galaxy Note 5  quick settings in settings page has nothing to do with quick settings buttons in notification panel mentioned above.

They are totally 2 different things.

In Settings page, because there are so many entries for Galaxy Note 5 settings, Most owners may only use a few of them most of the time.

Galaxy Note 5 allows you to put up to 9 setting entries on top of the Settings page so that you can quickly access them without fiddling around many pages.

You can tap EDIT as shown below to check up to 9 entries.

Can you use Galaxy Note 5 quick settings now?

If you have any questions or encounter any problems when using or customizing Galaxy Note 5 quick settings, please leave a comment in the comment box below.

The community will try to help you.

For other Galaxy Note 5 features and detailed Galaxy Note 5 how-to guides , please check Galaxy Note 5 how-to guides page.

You may also download and read the official Samsung Galaxy Note 5 user manual here.

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  • My quick settings NEVER drop down; very frustrating. Not with the S pen, or anything else. When I swipe down on the screen, absolutely nothing happens...Please help!

  • The quick settings panel won’t drop down on touch. It works when I’m using S Pen!! so frustrating now... :( help!

    • Probably, you accidently touched the status bar.

      If quick settings automatically opens, it can be a tough screen issue. Anyway, you can try to reboot the phone to see whether it helps.

      If the problem persists, you need to visit Samsung service center to check the phone.

    • Someone reported the similar problem before. it was due to third-party themes or launchers.

      Anyway, if you are using third-party theme, you can switch to the default one.

      Other than that, you probably have to reset the phone if it really bothers you.

  • The quick settings panel won't drop down on touch. It works when I'm using S Pen. Any possible solution?

    • You can tap the arrow down button.

      Alternatively, you can swipe down again to expand quick setting buttons.

  • How to lock the bar while my phone is locked, cause now even while it's locked I can turn on and off mobile data, and this is very dangerous in case it got stolen.

    • No, you cannot. This actually is a feature requested by many users. When you need use find my mobile to unlock the phone, you need internet connection. This option makes it possible.

      Connection through mobile data is secure and easy to track.

      You cannot enable Wi-Fi connection when screen is locked however.

  • I can all of a sudden only use 8 out of 9 of my quick settings. It lets me select 9 but i always end up with 8, with an open space on bottom right. How can i fix?

    • Are you referring to quick settings in notification panel? No, data usage button should not be there. Mobile data button is there for you to turn on/off mobile data quickly.

      For quick settings in settings page, tap the edit quick settings as shown in the guide to select data usage.

      • No. I was referring to the Setting page under Connection. There should be a "Data Usage" button below Mobile Hotspot. It was there before until 2 months ago.

        • Yes, it should be always there. No idea why it may disappear.

          You can try to search "Data usage" after tapping the search button in the top right.

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