Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Samsung Finally Lets You Disable the Bixby Button Without a Third-Party App (androidpolice.com)

Posted by BeauHD on from the do-it-yourself dept.

Samsung has released an update to allow you to disable Bixby on the Galaxy S8, S8+ and Note 8. The only problem is you can only disable the button and can't point it to another app. Android Police reports: As you're probably aware, there are two parts to Bixby -- Bixby Home and Bixby Voice. The main change here is to the Bixby Home shortcut; press the button and Bixby appears. After updating, a toggle is available under the settings gear at the top of Bixby home. Turn it off, and Bixby Home will no longer pop up when you tap the button (there's also a "Bixby Key" menu in the settings). Bixby Voice can be shut off in the settings as well, so the button will become completely inert. What if you want Bixby Home back? If you still have Bixby Voice turned on, pressing and holding the button will trigger Bixby on top of your current screen. You can open full screen mode and access your Bixby settings to turn Bixby Home back on at any time. Okay, but what if you also have Bixby Voice turned off in the Bixby settings? It seems at first like you've locked yourself out of Bixby, which might not be a problem for some people. However, you can access the Bixby settings by going into your main system settings -- Apps -- Bixby Home -- Mobile Data -- View app settings. That opens the Bixby settings without opening Bixby first.

4 of 55 comments (clear)

  1. Re: WTF is Bixby? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    BTW, the word Bixby appears 23 times in the summary.

    Bixby

  2. Re:WTF is Bixby? by tlhIngan · · Score: 2

    I was asking the same question. For those of us with non-Samsung-bastardized Android devices, please fill us in.

    Samsung's version of Alexa, Siri, Cortana and Google Assistant.

    In other words, a speech recognizing personal assistant.

  3. Re:Dumb Decision by JohnFen · · Score: 2

    Yes, Bixby is an anti-feature that makes the phone less appealing than it would otherwise be.

    That it has a dedicated button is reasonably insane. At least they graciously allow you to disable it now, but then you have a worthless button.

    Now, if it were possible to use the button for something desirable, that would turn it into something that would actually add value.

  4. Fuck Technology by Gussington · · Score: 3, Insightful

    This is what shits me about technology these days, why can't I do what I want with my own device? I don't want a gimmicks like voice assistant, or VR or payment using my phone, or a smart TV etc. I already have solutions that work better for me. Some people might prefer them so offer them as a feature, but let those of us who have different ways of doings the things the option of turning them off completely.