Should you use this Galaxy Z8 fingerprint setting to speed up phone unlocks?

If you've been using non-foldable Galaxy phones for the past five or so years, chances are you haven't touched a side-mounted fingerprint sensor for at least that long. But if you just bought your first foldable, your experience is about to change.

Foldable phones, including the Galaxy Z Fold 8, Fold 8 Ultra, and Galaxy Z Flip 8, do things differently. They use a side-mounted fingerprint sensor built into the side key instead of an in-display sensor. The side-mounted design makes sense for a phone with two displays and two form factors in one.

When comparing in-display and side-mounted fingerprint placements, each method has pros and cons. Side-mounted sensors, because of their unusual design, even come with additional settings you'll never find on slab-type phones equipped with traditional in-display sensors. Here's what you need to know.

By default, Samsung requires users to touch and press the side key to unlock the Galaxy Z Flip 8, Fold 8, or Fold 8 Ultra with your fingerprint. It's a two-step process. It's not enough to touch the sensor with your fingerprint; you also have to press the button at the same time to confirm your intention.

If you're used to in-display sensors, this extra step may feel a little jarring at first. However, you can change the fingerprint sensor's behavior and force it to activate with a simple touch, similar to a touchscreen. To do this:

As you can see in these screenshots, you can even specify whether a simple tap of the side-mounted sensor should unlock your phone only while folded (cover screen) or unfolded (main screen).

Samsung's default fingerprint sensor setting adds one extra step to unlocking your Galaxy Z foldable, and the authentication process is marginally slower because of it. Furthermore, the sensor is not front and center, so you may not be able to always unlock your foldable device with ease from any angle.

Despite these hurdles, Samsung's default fingerprint setting also provide better security and virtually eliminate accidental touch unlocks.

But if you find Samsung's method a little cumbersome, particularly if you aren't used to side-mounted fingerprint sensors, there's the alternative. Setting up your Galaxy Z8's fingerprint sensor to be “always on” speeds things up.

On the other hand, keeping the fingerprint sensor always on can cause accidental unlocks. That's the main, and perhaps only, issue with this feature: touch that portion of the frame in just the “right” way and your phone will unlock without you knowing.

If you're new to foldables and side-mounted fingerprint sensors, it's probably best to trial both options and see which one fits your style best.