Samsung adds this popular Pixel feature to Galaxy phones

Using the back tap feature from Good Lock on the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra
(Image credit: Nicholas Sutrich / Android Central)

What you need to know

  • Samsung just updated popular customization app Good Lock for its Android 13 OS, One UI 5.
  • Users can now launch apps or perform actions when double-tapping or triple-tapping the back of their phone.
  • The new RegiStar module also adds more functionality to the "side key" and also lets users rearrange the settings menu.

Samsung users have been getting all sorts of fun new software updates lately. As with every major OS update, Samsung's Good Lock app — a favorite among Android power users who love to customize their Samsung phones — just got its big update to support the company's new Android 13 update.

Samsung is pulling a great feature from one of our perennial favorite Android phones, the Pixel series, by adding the ability to double or triple-tap the back of your phone to perform an action or launch an app. You can fully customize this inside a Good Lock module Android Police found called RegiStar.

Samsung recently started rolling out One UI 5 for most of its phones, and now users who have received the update can get back to customizing their devices to their heart's content. That new module also lets users rearrange the settings menu so that the most-used settings are right at the top.

In addition to that, users can now further customize what the "side key" — better known as the power button — does. In addition to pulling up the power menu or starting up a chat with your favorite virtual assistant, you can use it to toggle all volumes, toggle the flashlight, show recent apps, open any app on the phone, or a half-dozen additional options.

In total, that gives users three new ways to perform actions and launch apps with just a button press or a tap on their phones. The downside, right now, is that a persistent "back tap detector" notification seems to hang around the notification shade and doesn't appear to be dismissible. Hopefully, Samsung can get rid of that pestering notification or, at least, let users dismiss it.


Nicholas Sutrich
Senior Content Producer — Smartphones & VR
Nick started with DOS and NES and uses those fond memories of floppy disks and cartridges to fuel his opinions on modern tech. Whether it's VR, smart home gadgets, or something else that beeps and boops, he's been writing about it since 2011. Reach him on Twitter or Instagram @Gwanatu