Use the Browser of Samsung Galaxy S4
Edited by Geraldin Carniyan, Robbi, Eng, Lynn and 3 others
Mobile technology offers so much more than we think it does. We may have the best mobile phones in our pockets, but we never really know how much it's actually capable of, until we maximize all its features. One of the best mobile phones available today is Samsung Galaxy S4. Most of its features are popular since it runs the Android operating system, just like other smartphones. The S4 has its own browser pre-installed, but not everybody is fully aware how it works, since most of us are used to surfing the internet using our computer's browser. This article will give you detailed instructions on how to use the browser on your Samsung Galaxy S4, and some useful troubleshooting if it stops working.
Using the Browser
Here are the basic steps on how to use your browser.
- 1The Lumen toolbar.
- From the Home Screen, tap on "Internet".
- Lumen toolbar is a feature of the browser that allows us to take shortcuts to social networks and other websites. Tap the Lumen toolbar on the lower right hand side if you want to go to a website that has already been saved on your browser.
- Tap on the shortcut that you wish to go to, and the website will display. To add a shortcut, tap the "Add More" button below the page. If you want to delete a shortcut, press and hold it, and tap "Remove" on the warning message.
- Tap on "Settings" on the bottom right corner of the screen and the Toolbar settings will display. To switch the Lumen toolbar off, tap on the switch beside Toolbar. To rearrange, add or remove shortcuts, tap on "Manage Extension".
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- 2Going to a website
- To go to a different website, tap on the address bar and type the website you want go to then press the "Go" button.
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- 3Adding a bookmark
- To add the page as a bookmark, tap on the "Start" button on the top right. Tap on "Add Bookmark".
- You can edit the title of the page and hit "Save" on the top right.
- You will now see the bookmark on the list.
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- 4Switching Tabs/Windows
- Tap any bookmark to visit its website and tap and hold it for more options. Tap on the option that you want. For this example, tap on "Open in New Window".
- The website will open in another window and you will notice that the Tabs button already says "2".
- To switch to another window, tap on the "Tabs" button and choose the website you want. To close a tab, tap on the minus (-) icon. To open a new tab, tap on the "Tabs" icon and open a new one.
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- 5Going back and forward
- To go back to the previous page, use the "Back" button. To forward to another page, tap the "Forward" button.
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Changing Your Homepage
If you have a favorite website that you want to automatically pull up when you go to the browser, you can set it as your homepage. Here's how.
- 1From the home screen, tap on "Internet".
- 2
Tap on the "Menu" key. - 3
Tap on "Settings" from the menu. - 4
Tap on "Set homepage". - 5
Tap on "Other". - 6
Type in the website you want to set as your homepage and tap "OK". - 7
Tap "Done" to save the changes. - 8
Your homepage is now changed.Re-launch your browser or open another window to see the changes.
Common Browsing Problems on Samsung Galaxy S4
There are several reasons why we sometimes cannot browse on Samsung Galaxy 4. Below are most common ones and the troubleshooting steps that can fix them.
No Network Connection
This is probably the most common browsing issue on any mobile phone. If your browser tells you that there is no network connection or there is a problem with the network, check to see if you are connected to the WiFi or if your mobile data is on.
- 1Checking WiFi connection:
- Scroll the Notification bar down.
- Tap and hold on "WiFi".
- On the top right corner, check if the WiFi is ON or OFF. If it is OFF, that is the reason why you cannot browse. Tap on it to turn it ON.
- Tap on the WiFi name you want to connect to.
- Type in the password if prompted and tap on "Connect".
- Your device will now say that you are connected and you will see the cone shaped wireless icon on the top of the screen. Try browsing again and this should resolve your issue.
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- Scroll the Notification bar down and tap on the "Settings" (cog symbol) on the top right. You can also press the "Menu" key from the home screen and tap on "Settings".
- Tap on "More Networks" under the Connections tab.
- Tap on "Mobile Networks".
- If you don't see a green check mark beside mobile data, then that must be the problem. Tap on "Mobile Data". It will show a green check mark, which indicates that it is now enabled.
- Your mobile data service will be charged by your mobile provider. You have to tap on "OK" to allow this and activate mobile data. You can call them if you are not aware of the data prices yet. Once these steps are done, you can try to browse again. This should resolve your issue.
Slow or No Browser
After using it for a long time, you may notice that your browser gradually slows down, even if your internet is working fine. You may also not be able to browse. This may be caused by the stored browsing history, cache and cookies on your browser. With this, the browser needs to be optimized. Here's how.
- 1From the home screen, tap on "Internet".
- 2Tap on the "Menu" key.
- 3Tap on "Settings" from the menu.
- 4
Tap on "Privacy". - 5
Tap on "Delete personal data". - 6
Lastly, tap on "Done".
How to View Desktop view on Your Android Browser
Are you fed up with the viewing capability of the website on your Android phone? Are there some options that are not present in the mobile version? This is a step-by-step procedure how to debug your browser to get more options and enable desktop view on your phone browser. IMPORTANT Before you perform such actions on your mobile phone, you need to realize these instructions are to be taken at your own risk, as you are accessing debugging settings that are hidden, or meant to be hidden on your phone's Internet browser.
- 1Go to your regular browser, Internet browser.
- 2You will not notice anything from the phone, even blinks restart and so on.Type in the browser about:debug then hit enter.
- 3Once you have gone to the debug, simply tap on the options while you are on your internet browser.
- 4On the options that will pop up on screen, simply go to "Settings" to open the next set of options.
- 5Simply enable the desktop mode and go back to the main browsing screen.In the Settings, simply scroll down and look for the "UAString", then select the "Desktop" option.
Once you have gone back to the main screen, you should be able to see a desktop view on your Android phone. It would have the same look on a computer view rather than having a mobile version on screen.
Fire Fox
If you do not want to use your regular browser, other browsers have a built in feature that you can simply enable it on the options menu. One good example is a Firefox browser for Android devices, here's how you enable it on your Fire Fox browser.
- 1Launch your Fire Fox browser.
- 2Press or go on to Menu on the browser then go to settings.
- 3On the Settings, simply tap "More" and check the request desktop site for the phone will display a desktop view rather than on mobile view or mobile version.
Tips
- Turn off your mobile data or WiFi when not in use to save battery and make sure that you won't be charged too much because of data usage.
If you have problems with any of the steps in this article, please ask a question for more help, or post in the comments section below.
