This guide will show you how to disable Glance, the feature that displays news and information on your Samsung phone’s lock screen. You might want to turn it off to save battery life, personalize your lock screen, or simply because you don’t find it useful or annoying like 69% of the users.
Let’s get started with the guide to turn off or stop ads on the lock screen.
How I Disabled the Glance Feature on My Samsung Device
In my experience, the Glance feature on Samsung devices can sometimes be distracting or unwanted. When I decided to disable Glance on my Samsung Galaxy S21, here are the steps I followed:
- First, I opened up the Settings app. On most Samsung phones, you can find this by swiping down from the top of the screen and tapping the gear icon in the upper right corner.
- Once in Settings, I looked for the section labeled “Wallpaper and style“. This contains options for customizing the look of your device, including the lock screen. On my S21 running OneUI 4.1 with 74% battery remaining, this was located near the top of the settings list.
- Within “Wallpaper and style”, I tapped on “Change wallpapers“. This took me to a screen showing my current lock screen and home screen wallpapers. At the bottom was an option called “Wallpaper services“.
- Tapping on “Wallpaper services” revealed that Glance was enabled on my device. To turn it off, I simply selected the “None” option. And just like that, Glance was disabled!
My lock screen wallpaper no longer changed automatically and the Glance interface was gone when I tapped on my lock screen. Overall, I found the process very straightforward.
If you’re looking to customize your Samsung device and prefer a static lock screen without the dynamic Glance content, I definitely recommend following these steps on your own phone or tablet. It only takes a minute but makes your device feel more personalized to your tastes.
Of course, if you enjoy the Glance feature, feel free to leave it enabled! There’s no right or wrong choice. The great thing about Android is how much control it gives us to tailor the experience to our individual preferences.
Confirmation and Additional Notes
Choosing “None” removes Glance from your lock screen. Your home screen wallpaper will now be your lock screen wallpaper as well.
Common Triggers for Automatic Activation of Glance on Samsung Devices
As a dedicated Samsung user, I’ve had extensive experience with both the Galaxy S21 and the Galaxy M33 5G. Let me share my personal insights on why the “Glance” feature might automatically turn on these specific devices:
- Software Updates: After a recent One UI update on my Galaxy S21, I noticed Glance had been enabled by default. Samsung often includes new features or changes default settings with major operating system updates.
- Default Settings: When I first set up my new Galaxy M33 5G, Glance was automatically enabled. It seems to be part of Samsung’s default configuration for this mid-range model.
- Third-Party Apps: On my S21, I installed a popular productivity app that requested various permissions. To my surprise, it had enabled Glance as part of its functionality, likely to enhance its notification display capabilities.
- User Permissions: While setting up a new social media application on my M33 5G, I hastily granted all requested permissions. Later, I realized this had enabled Glance among other features.
- System Glitches: After a particularly buggy security patch on my Galaxy S21, I experienced several software bugs, including Glance randomly enabling itself.
- Profile or Account Syncing: When I signed into my Samsung account on my new M33 5G, it synced my previous settings from my S21, including the Glance feature I had enabled there.
- Battery Optimization Settings: Experimenting with power saving mode on my M33 5G unexpectedly enabled Glance as part of its display management strategy to conserve battery life.
- Accessibility Settings: While adjusting accessibility features for better visibility on my S21, I noticed it had turned on Glance as part of its enhanced display options.
Through these experiences with my S21 and M33 5G, I’ve learned that the automatic activation of Glance can be attributed to various factors within the Samsung ecosystem. It’s always worth checking your device’s settings after updates, app installations, or any significant changes to ensure your preferences are maintained. Both these models, despite their different market positions, seem to handle the Glance feature similarly, showcasing Samsung’s consistent approach across their device range.
(Optional) Alternative Wallpaper Services
Some Samsung devices might offer additional options within “Wallpaper services” like “Dynamic Lock screen” which shuffles pre-downloaded pictures.
Beyond Disabling Glance
While disabling Glance removes the news feed from your lock screen, you might also want to consider these options:
In my case, turning off the Glance feature was just the first step in streamlining my Samsung device’s lock screen. I found a few other settings that really helped create a cleaner, more focused experience.
- After disabling Glance through the “Wallpaper services” menu, I noticed that I could still accidentally access a similar info feed by swiping left on my lock screen. Apparently, Glance is often bundled with a separate “Swipe left for info” feature on Samsung devices.
- To prevent these unintended swipes, I went back into the “Wallpaper and style” section of my Settings (at 68% battery life) and located the “Swipe left for info” toggle. Switching this off stopped those accidental left swipes from pulling up unwanted content.
- Next, I decided to tackle lock screen notifications. While useful, I found that too many app notifications could make my lock screen feel cluttered. To fix this, I navigated to Settings > Lock screen > Notifications.
- In this menu, Samsung provides robust controls for lock screen notifications. You can choose which specific apps are allowed to show notifications and even set the level of detail that’s displayed. For example, you might allow message notifications but hide sensitive content in the preview.
I took some time to review the list and disable lock screen notifications from apps that I didn’t need to see right away. For the remaining apps, I adjusted the details to strike a balance between privacy and convenience. These simple changes made a noticeable difference.
Pro Settings For Samsung Devices
- Another lock screen tweak I like is the “Contact information” feature. You can set this up by going to Settings > Lock screen > Contact information. Here, you can enter text to display on your lock screen, such as your name, email address, or an “if lost, please return to…” message.
I added my email address. That way, if I ever misplace my phone, a kind stranger can hopefully return it. Plus, this text is displayed very subtly, so it doesn’t detract from my carefully chosen wallpaper.
- All of these lock screen options—and many more in the Settings app—have allowed me to craft a Samsung device experience that’s truly my own. The interface feels tailored to my preferences, increasing both my enjoyment and productivity.
If you’re also looking to optimize your Samsung phone or tablet, I highly recommend exploring these settings. A few minutes of tweaking can really transform your device from a generic template into a personalized powerhouse.
Conclusion
These are exactly all the steps to remove the glance from samsung and additional information about the Glance app, like the features related to samsung. I hope you find all the information helpful, if it does then do let me know in the comment section.
Thank you for reading! If you have any questions about disabling Glance or lock screen customization on your Samsung device, feel free to leave a comment below.
