The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4's cover screen has a lot more potential than you may think

Foldable smartphones tend to have an outer display that shows you at least some information, and in the case of the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4, the cover display tends to be quite limited in what it can show you. In contrast, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4's outer display is just another window into your entire Android operating system. As a result, the Z Flip 4's cover display can feel limiting, but that doesn't have to be the case. CoverScreen OS, developed by XDA Recognized Developer jagan2, aims to make your cover display much more usable.

CoverScreen OS is an app that you can install on your Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 or Z Flip 4, and it gives you a lot more control over the cover screen. For example, it has a better notification system, a better media player, support for any widgets that you can add to your home screen, and it still allows you to access the default cover screen easily. Apps can be launched from it (though use cases are limited), and it works surprisingly well. I used the cover screen to scan my loyalty card in a local Lidl since its loyalty card is just a QR code in an app. It's a niche use case for sure, but it is practical.

On the other hand, the dumbest use case I've found that actually works is playing Call of Duty: Mobile. It works perfectly fine on the cover display — you can navigate menus and play online — with the biggest limitation being that the small screen makes it hard to play. It's not great, but that's not the point. The point is you can make the cover display do things it definitely isn't supposed to do, and it's a blast to try out different apps.

What it's like to use CoverScreen OS

While it seems like a gimmick at first, CoverScreen OS actually has a lot of uses, significantly more than I thought there would be. With comprehensive widget support comes many options, including the ability to launch full-fledged apps like games, which can be useful in certain situations.

My favorite use for it has been Shazam. I love music, and when I'm out and about, I rely on the Google Pixel 7 Pro's Now Playing feature to identify the music I hear. I installed Ambient Music Mod on the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4, but it doesn't pick up everything, and I couldn't just be rude and take out my phone when I was at a bar with friends. However, I remembered I had the Shazam widget on my cover screen and was quickly and discretely able to identify the surrounding music.

There are other uses too, but the Shazam widget is one I use frequently. The media player is also significantly better with its seeking capabilities, though you'll need a subscription to use it. It also comes with an app drawer that'll let you launch anything on your phone, though whether it works or not tends to be a bit of a coin flip.

Overall, it's a surprisingly well-made app that turns the cover screen of the Z Flip 4 from something extra to a feature with actual utility. It doesn't take away any existing functionality, and you can use full apps on it. Additionally, you can attempt to run apps like Call of Duty on it and show it off to your friends, although that's obviously a silly use case.

Configuring CoverScreen OS

CoverScreen OS is also great because it's extremely simple to use and set up. You install the app, grant it the permissions it needs (admittedly, there are quite a few), and it then just runs. The app has a built-in tutorial to show you how it works, and it will still allow you to use the native flip cover functionality, too.

CoverScreen OS is a free app, but you can pay for a subscription ($1.99 per month or $14.99 yearly) to access additional features like seeking through your music, getting support for caller ID on multiple VoIP apps (you can only enable it for one at a time otherwise), and a lot more. For example, if you accept a Messenger call via the custom VoIP caller ID screen, you won't be able to hang up with the free version of this app. There are some weird limitations throughout if you use the free version, but by and large, I've had no problem with just using it.

Below is the list of features you'll get with CoverScreen OS:

• App drawer
• Caller ID screen for VoIP apps (WhatsApp, Telegram, Line, etc.)
• Support for all third-party home screen widgets
• Quick toggles for various device settings
• Navigation gesture support
• Notification support
• Powerful media playback controls with support for multiple sessions and an interactive progress bar
• Voice, QWERTY, and T9 keyboard support
• On-screen LED notification indicator/Edge Lighting
• Flex Mode support

Some of the paid features include:

• Seeking through music
• Enabling caller ID for multiple VoIP apps at a time
• App drawer organization

Will we see official cover screen apps?

While it's great that a developer has figured out how to make the Flip 4's cover screen way more useful, Oppo has already figured that out with the Oppo Find N2 Flip. With its larger cover display and native support for applications, videos, and more, it's leaps and bounds above what Samsung has achieved with its cover display. Hopefully, the Flip 5 can make it more useful than ever before (as the Flip 4 is still quite far ahead of where the original Flip was).

Either way, if you have a Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 or a Z Flip 4, then CoverScreen OS is a must-have app. It makes the cover screen properly useful in many situations, and while it can also be a bit gimmicky, there are actual, practical ways to use it. It improves the already-existing functionality (widget support alone is incredible) and makes it so that you can get more out of your device. Whether you purchase the subscription or not is up to you (I haven't purchased it), but there are definitely reasons why you may want to, especially if you think you'll be using the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4 for a long time.