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Quick and easy way to stop phone notifications for good
It’s happened to the best of us. You are out with friends, coworkers or that special someone and your phone is on the table next to you. A notification pops up on your screen. Congrats, you won that eBay auction for a Justin Bieber box set. Good luck explaining that it’s for your nonexistent younger cousin.
Notifications are meant to make your life easier, but not all of them are useful or even necessary. Others can deliver important information. Tap or click here to see if your state uses Covid-19 notifications.
You could go into your settings and adjust notifications for each of your apps, but did you know you can catch them as they happen? Whether you use an iOS or Android phone, there’s an easy way to stop notifications in their tracks, one by one. Here’s how to do it.
iPhone
You can turn off notifications for a specific app from your home screen or lock screen without going into settings. Pull down the notification screen on your iPhone to see a list of recent ones. Tap and hold on the offending app and then tap on the three dots in the upper-right corner. You will get a popup that gives you a few options.
- Deliver Quietly disables the notification from appearing in your lock screen and turn off its sounds and banners.
- Turn Off does just that — it removes all forms of notification for that app.
- A shortcut to the app’s notification Settings is also provided.
You can perform the same steps without swiping down on your screen. When a notification comes up on your home screen or even your lock screen, tap and hold and then tap the three dots.
If you’d like to dive a little deeper into all of your apps, go to Settings > Notifications and review them one-by-one. Some will have more options than others, and this is where you want to go for more control.
You likely have some apps on your phone that you barely use, let alone want to ignore. Tap or click here for five apps you should get rid of.
Android
Android phones work similarly to iOS when it comes to notifications. Swipe down on the notification panel to see a list of your notifications. Press and hold on the one you want to turn off and tap Turn off notifications.
Related: Netflix for Android just got a big upgrade – here’s how to use it
You can also long-press a notification as it happens, then tap the settings cog to be taken directly to Notification settings.
For more fine-tuning, go to Settings > Apps & notifications > Notifications. You can customize notifications from each app here, such as which ones appear on the lock screen.
Do Not Disturb
When you want to create some distance between you and your phone, there’s Do Not Disturb. This option typically stops all forms of notifications from your phone, be it sound, vibration or lighting up the screen.
If you’re on an iPhone, swipe down from the top right of your screen to access the Control Center. Tap the moon icon to set Do Not Disturb mode. That’s the quick and easy way. You can also go to Settings > Do Not Disturb to fine-tune this feature. You can schedule it to turn on at a certain time or create exceptions.
On Android phones, swipe down from the top of the screen to access your notification shade and tap the Do Not Disturb icon. Alternatively, you can go to Settings > Sound > Do Not Disturb to set exceptions and more.
Tags: Android, Apple iPhone, apps, Do Not Disturb, settings, upgrade
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