How to split screen on Android? Most new Android phones from more than a dozen different companies now let you run apps in a mode called “Split Screen.” It allows you to use and see both screens at the same time. And split screen mode is easy to turn on.
You should know, that running apps in split screen mode can drain your battery faster than running them normally. And you can’t run all apps in split screen mode. Games and other apps that need the whole screen to work won’t give you that option.
The split-screen feature isn’t available on all Android devices. But if you have an Android device that can do it and two apps you want to run at the same time, here’s how to do it.
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Things You Should Know About Splitting Screen on Android
- This feature should be available on the latest release of Android smartphones.
- You should be able to perform these methods on Android 7.0 and later. Read more on this page.
How to Split Screen on Android?
The split screen mode is aimed to give you accessibility when using your Android. You can do it as easily as switching apps. Follow the steps below.
1. Tap the Recent Apps button in the bottom left corner of your Home screen. This button looks like three vertical lines in a square shape.
2. Find the app you want to use on a split screen in Recent Apps with a navigation bar icon. If you tap and hold on to that app, a menu will appear. Keep in mind that you can’t use a split screen with all apps.
3. Tap “Open in split screen view” once the menu has come up.
4. The app you chose will show up as a black bar at the top of the screen for a short time. Tap the other app you want to use at the same time.
5. Your apps will now show up on a split screen, and you should be able to move easily between them. They will be separated by a black bar, like the one you saw in step 4.
6. When you want to close one of the apps and end the split screen, tap and hold on to the black bar in the middle of the screen. Then swipe in the direction of the app you want to close. The app will close and the screen will turn blue for a moment.
If you use a split screen a lot to look at apps, you’ll notice that some apps are better at it than others. Apps that let you watch videos, like YouTube and Netflix, work well with split screens because they don’t require much interaction. On the other hand, mobile games that require a lot of attention from the player might not be able to use a split screen.
To activate this mode on your Android, you can follow the steps below. Make sure your phone supports the split-screen mode.
- Make sure the two apps you want to use in split-screen mode are both open.
- To switch between apps, slowly swipe up from the bottom of the screen. Until you see the apps was opened recently.
- Android/Samsung: Press and Hold the first app you want to use in split-screen mode.
- Tap on “Split Screen” or “Open in split screen view” on Samsung.
- Then, choose the second app you want to use in split-screen mode.
- You’ll see the split screen contain the two apps that you were open recently and choose to be contained inside split screen.
Now you can enjoy opening two apps on two different screens on your Android. If you’re using this mode, for some Android phones it might drain their battery usage. So, make sure you use it wisely to preserve the phone battery.
If your Android is compatible with button-based navigation, you can follow these steps.
- Make sure the two apps you want to use in split-screen mode are both open.
- Tap the app switcher button at the bottom of the screen to switch between apps.
- Android/Samsung: Press and hold the first app you want to use in split-screen mode.
- Tap on the “Split Screen” or “Open in split screen view” on Samsung.
- Choose the second app you want to use in split-screen mode.
- Both apps should be open, with each one taking up half the screen.
- Split-screen works fine in both directions, so just turn your phone horizontally and the apps will reorient themselves correctly.
- In the middle, there is a slider that lets you change the size of the apps to 75/25 instead of 50/50 by just dragging the line.
For some Android phones with screen resolutions of less than 5 inches, the split-screen mode will maximize all spaces on the screen. As it results the details on the apps will be reduced.
How to Split Screen on Android for Multitasking
The split screen mode is created to ease users in working on multiple tasks. The most common way to activate it is by opening recent apps, which are available on Android 7.0 and later. Here are the updates on split-screen mode on each Android version.
- On portable devices, Android 7.0 supports split-screen mode, and select devices support picture-in-picture mode. In split-screen mode, two apps take up the whole screen. They can be side by side or one on top of the other. Users can drag the line between the two apps to make one bigger and the other smaller.
- Split-screen is improved in Android 8.0 by improving the feature and providing more capabilities. If you enter split-screen mode and then tap Home, the top pane will shrink and the launcher will resize itself, as is the case in the default implementation. Users may find and start apps from their home screen by using this to display to them that the top app is still active while retaining the launcher style.
Tips
The split screen mode is the easiest way to run multiple apps on your Android. For a better experience, this feature is mostly fit in the latest version of the Android system. You should be running Android 7.0 and later enable it.
Find more from Google Android official website and check your device compatibility for Split Screen Mode here.
