Three Samsung features once dismissed as marketing gimmicks prove useful after hands-on testing

Perhaps you haven't paid much attention to Samsung's features before. Here are Brandon Miniman's insights from MakeUseOf on how to use these features. 1. Speed up performance Most Samsung phones, such as my aging Galaxy S22 Plus, pack substantial performance thanks to the Snapdragon 8 octa-core and 8GB of RAM. Coupled with a 4500mAh battery, they are capable of handling heavy tasks. On most Samsung phones, you can find a toggle to speed up processing by going to Settings -> Device Care -> Processing speed. By default, the device is set to 'Optimized' to keep CPU clocks as low as possible to save battery. However, you can unlock extra performance with only a tiny impact on battery by switching to 'High'. The reason is that in this configuration, the minimum clock speeds of efficiency cores are increased, while the high-performance cores reach maximum speeds faster. Unless you're gaming heavily or editing video, most everyday usage only taps a few CPU cores. By setting processing speed to 'High', you’re effectively maximizing the efficiency cores for most tasks while still benefiting from energy management. This is a win-win. I noticed about a 10% performance increase on my Galaxy without noticeably faster battery drain. Moreover, switching to this mode also improves data processing, making photo capture or app installation noticeably faster. 2. One-handed mode Samsung equips a very good one-handed mode. With a simple swipe, all on-screen content shrinks to the bottom-left or bottom-right corner, making one-handed use much easier. To activate, go to Settings -> Advanced features -> One-handed mode. Here you have two interaction options: • Gesture: Default if you are using gesture navigation. Just swipe down in the navigation bar area (bottom of the screen). • Button: For those who still use the traditional navigation button. With this option, double-tap the Home button to activate. I don’t leave this mode on all the time. I use it only in specific cases when I need to reach the top of the screen without contorting my fingers. There are two scenarios where this feature is most useful: 1. When using apps with interfaces not optimized for the bottom area: many apps place primary controls lower on the screen. But some apps like Gmail, Google Calendar, Chrome, or the system settings haven’t fully adapted. Shrinking the screen makes navigation much more convenient. 2. When managing notifications: the Android notification shade is increasingly powerful. It contains many shortcuts, quick settings toggles, and of course notices you can handle immediately without opening the app. Shrinking the display lets you control the entire notification shade with your thumb. This is a real lifesaver, especially for people with small hands or using a large-screen phone. 3. Edge Panel I’d bet many people turn this off, but you should reconsider. While Edge Panel does use some RAM to run in the background, the convenience of quick access to favorite apps and Samsung AI shortcuts is undeniable. To enable: Settings -> Display -> Edge Panel. To customize, swipe the toolbar from the screen edge, tap the pencil icon. Here you can add up to 22 apps. Personally, I limit to my 8 most-used apps to avoid endless scrolling. By default, the top part of Edge Panel is reserved for Galaxy AI tools such as Circle to Search, Interpreter, and Sketch to Image. Being able to access these tools from any screen is truly great. One UI is always packed with useful features Like me, you may not have paid much attention to the many features Samsung provides. But tools like Edge Panel, One-handed mode, and adjusting processing speed have given my phone a new lease on life, even though it's an aging S22 Plus. With newer Samsung phones today offering abundant RAM, powerful chips, and large batteries, you almost lose nothing by leveraging these features to improve daily experiences.