Samsung Galaxy Z Flip3 5G

Samsung’s Galaxy Flip 3 is arguably the most exciting phone to be launched in years, if only because it brought a sturdy design and more accessible price point to the foldable phone market. 

And - if you’ve realised that - and made the Z Flip 3 your first flexible smartphone purchase, there’s plenty in the software worth digging into that’s more than just surface level. Watch the video below or follow our written instructions if you find it easier. Let's dive in!

Use the cover display as a camera monitor

Arguably the most useful feature of the little Cover Screen on the front of the phone is being able to use it as a monitor for the cameras to take selfies with. If only because it means you’re using the better quality cameras on the outside, rather than the poorer selfie camera cut into the main display. 

To do it - with the phone closed - just press the sleep/lock button on the side twice quickly and it should automatically launch the camera. If it doesn’t, go to Settings > Advanced features and tap "Side Key". Make sure "Double press" is switched on and that "Quick launch camera" is selected from the list. 

2. Use your photos as a Cover Screen wallpaper

This year’s Cover Screen is much more useful than the previous version, and it’s full colour too. If you head to Settings > Cover screen > Clock style it lets you choose between a 11 different styles. Some of them have their own animated graphic, but the simpler ones let you 

choose an image to display behind the clock

To choose your own photo, choose the clock style you want - one that hasn’t got its own animated image - then tap "Background Image" and select "Choose from Gallery" from the pop-up window.

Now you can choose any picture from your own gallery. In fact, you can choose up to 15 of them. When you have the images you want, you can pinch to zoom and frame them the way you want and save it. Now when you wake up your cover screen it’ll show your chosen image, and if you’ve chosen more than one it will cycle through them each time you wake it up. 

3. Take hands-free selfies

One of the cool things about having a flexible flip phone is that you can get it to sit up and take a hands-free selfie. Simply open the camera app, choose your front facing camera and then rest the phone down with the camera facing you. 

Adjust the angle of the screen until you’re framed and now all you need to do is show the palm of your hand to the camera. It’ll automatically start a countdown and take a selfie. 

If it doesn’t work, open the settings menu in the camera app by tapping the cog icon in the corner. Swipe down until you see "Shooting Methods" and make sure "Show palm" is toggled on. There's also an option in there to enable voice commands.