Every year, Samsung launches a new mobile phone with the name “Ultra”, the top of the range of its Galaxy S family and, in general, the company’s most important competitor to compete in the higher end. Its screen, its processor, its camera, all these aspects are as premium as you would expect from a mobile phone of this range.
However, there is something that many seem to forget sometimes (and sometimes I include myself): the S Pen, that stylus that the Galaxy S Ultra includes, It is a differential functionality for these mobiles. There is no other smartphone with a built-in stylus, or at least no other smartphone as popular and well-known as these. I’ve been using a Galaxy S23 Ultra for over a year, and before that a year with the Galaxy S22 Ultra, and these are the uses I give the S Pen the most.
First: configure the S Pen and the functions we will use the most
The Galaxy S22 Ultra was the company’s first “Ultra” phone to include an S Pen, but Samsung has included a stylus built into some of its phones for over a decade. in the legendary (and now defunct) Galaxy Note series.
Of course, the uses of the S Pen have evolved a lot over the years, particularly since the arrival of One UI and even more so in the latest versions of the custom Android layer that Samsung uses. The first thing we need to do to start enjoying the S Pen is to configure it as we want, add quick access to the functions we will use the most.
In the Settings menu we go to the Advanced Features section and then to the S Pen section. There, the first thing I recommend doing is configure air command
When configuring the Air Command menu we will have at hand the functions that we use the most from the moment we remove the S Pen from the mobile
It is also advisable to activate the creation of quick notes and notes with the screen off, and from the “more settings” menu we can deactivate the sound emitted by the S Pen when using it, if we wish. There is an option to unlock the phone using the S Pen, which I prefer not to enable for security reasons.
Now yes: use the S Pen every day
Personally, what I look for when using the S Pen is that it gives me more options when using my phone for something other than just checking notifications or replying to a quick message. I feel like it’s not worth taking the S Pen out of your pocket if I just want to do something quick on my Galaxy S23 Ultra. On the other hand, when I plan to use it intensively, Your skills are always very useful to me..
For example, the S Pen has a feature called “Smart Select” that allows you to do screenshots in a more advanced way, specifically selecting what we want to capture, or even being able to take the capture and copy it to the mobile clipboard without having to save it to the gallery. This is something I use a lot, especially since as you can see in these types of articles I take a lot of screenshots.
We can also pin a screenshot to the mobile home screen to quickly access it, which can be very useful if we constantly have to consult this information.
But in addition to images, another very useful function of Smart Selection is that lets you easily create GIFswithout having to install another application.
Yes, with the S Pen you can create GIFs directly from your mobile without having to install anything or use a web tool. With smart selection we can select a part of the screen (for example, play a video on YouTube), press save and voila, we have created a GIF. Then we can access the image gallery and reduce its duration and even add text and emojis, if we wish.
It’s something I use a lot, constantly, because… why send a WhatsApp sticker if I can send a GIF? I think it’s a lot more fun, although I don’t know if my friends will agree.
Coming back to more productive uses, one of the most useful features of the S Pen, at least in my experience, is the “overhead view”. this allows have quick access to any app from a pop-up window in the corner of the screen.
For example, let’s imagine these situations: we use the calculator to perform different calculations and we need to write down the results in a document, this way we can have the calculator with the results at hand as a pop-up window on the document. we write. Or we have a web page open in the browser with information that we need to include in an email. Hovering the S Pen cursor over the thumbnail app expands it to full screen.
This type of quick access to two applications almost simultaneously is much more versatile and comfortable than switching from one application to another.
Of course, the S Pen takes note-taking to the next level. I’ve never used the Notes app as much as I have since using this pen, as it allows me to quickly create a note and pin it if I want. This way I constantly take important notes of my ideas. Furthermore, the feeling of writing these notes freehand is very pleasant
I also usually use the S Pen to take notes directly on the calendar. If, like me, you are one of those people who needs to highlight things or highlight certain words and tasks by underlining them or marking them in different colors, this function for a more visual use of the calendar is made for you. It is also accessible from the S Pen’s air command menu.
Last but not least, we have Vision Bixby. There’s a lot of talk these days about Rodea to search, a feature that Samsung and Google are bringing to their phones to search for information on virtually anything on the screen. Since I updated my Galaxy S23 Ultra to One UI 6.1, it’s a feature I use constantly, but before that I could use Bixby Vision on my mobile.
No, Bixby Vision is not as good as Rodea for search, but serves a similar purpose. Using this feature we can analyze the images on the screen and search for information. It’s not something I’ve used all the time, but it has been useful at times, and it’s still an option for the Galaxy S22 Ultra until they get the Circle to Search feature.
I have been using Samsung Galaxy phones with S Pen for many years and it has been very interesting to see how they have evolved and the new features and improvements they have added over time. Currently, on my Galaxy S23 Ultra, I still take advantage of this tool for the tasks mentioned above, and for other very useful things like:
- Show full notification from the notifications screen by placing the S Pen on it
- Use more precisely two and up to three applications at the same time (split screen)
- Preview images and videos in the mobile gallery (by placing the S Pen on it)
- Pin (or pin) a screenshot or GIF created with the Smart Selection tool to the Home screen for quick access
These are the main uses I give to the S Pen on my Galaxy S23 Ultra. These are things that, quite simply, They cannot be performed the same way on other devices.
Cover photo | Ricardo Aguilar for Xataka
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