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Welcome to the 'Using the Side key on an Android phone' video course. In this video, you'll learn where to find the Side key on your phone and how to use it to turn your phone on or off, wake the screen, open the camera, or activate the digital assistant. The steps in this video will be similar on an Android tablet.
The Side key is located on the left or right edge of your device, and is usually below the volume buttons. It is sometimes called the Power button. Depending on your Android phone model, the Side key can do several things. If the screen is on, a short single press will turn it off again and lock your phone, if you have a screen lock set up. If the screen is off, press the Side key once quickly to wake it.
You can press and hold the Side key, or the Side key and the volume down button, to open the Power menu. Tap Restart to reboot the phone or tap Power off twice to turn off the phone. To turn your phone back on, press and hold the Side key for a few seconds. The phone will show a startup screen, then the Lock screen. To take a shot of what you see on your phone's screen, hold the Side key and the volume down button for around a second. The screen will flash and, if the sound on your phone is on, you'll hear a camera shutter sound. The screenshot you've captured will be saved to your phone's Gallery app.
On many Android models, you can double press the Side key to quickly open the camera, even when your phone is locked or off. This helps you capture photos fast without having to enter a PIN or find the Camera app. If pressing the Side key doesn't do what you expect, you may be able to customise it in your phone's Settings app. On many Android models, you can press and hold on the Side key to open the phone's digital assistant, such as Google Gemini.
If you have set up Gemini on your phone, this can help you send messages, set timers, search the web, and more just by speaking into your phone. "Hey Google! Set a timer for ten minutes."