How to turn off the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5

If you’re reading this, chances are it’s because you’ve just picked up a Galaxy Z Fold 5 or you’re going to get one in the very near future, in which case you’re extremely lucky. One of the most basic skills you’ll have to learn is shutting the phone all the way off — not just putting it to sleep. Here’s what’s you need to know in that regard, including reasons to do it.

How to turn off the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5

There are actually two ways of shutting off the Z Fold 5, both of which can be convenient depending on the circumstances.

As a rule, here’s the most reliable of the two methods:

1. Press and hold both the side and volume-down buttons. A screen will appear with three options.
2. Tap Power off.
3. Tap Power off again to confirm.

We say “most reliable” simply because you can use this anywhere at any time, regardless of what app your Fold might be running. If the app you’re running isn’t too overbearing however, this purely software-based method is a nice alternative:

1. Swipe down from the top of the screen to bring up the control panel/notification center.
2. Swipe down again to reveal quick settings.
3. Tap the power off icon (a circle with a line through it) at the top of the screen.
4. Tap the next Power off icon that appears, then again to confirm.

Why should I shut off my Z Fold 5?

Most of the time, there’s no need to. You might be worried about power drain, but the Fold 5’s battery should easily last a full day, especially if you don’t open the main screen that often and/or limit power-hungry tasks like video playback and 3D gaming. In light use the phone can potentially last up to two days, though it’s always wise to charge overnight just in case.

There are a few reasons to power down:

• When you know you won’t be able to use your phone for hours or days, you might as well to prolong battery life. The same goes if charging will be impossible or inconvenient, for instance on a canoe trip. It’s important to keep a reserve for emergencies.
• You need to juice up in a hurry. Even a sleeping Fold 5 is still consuming power, since it has to run background processes and maintain wireless connections.
• Your Fold feels a little slow or is running into glitches. Fully rebooting a phone can potentially clear processes and memory caches that were creating trouble.
• There’s a risk of overheating. While your phone should warn you if things get dangerous and/or shut down before there’s any damage, you can preempt that and potentially speed up cooling time by shutting down manually.