On and off –that’s pretty much what your Android’s power button does. You press it to turn off your home screen and put your phone or tablet into standby, and you press it again to turn it back on. You hold the power button to turn off or reboot your device. Other devices will show additional options like toggling Airplane mode on and off or changing sound profiles. However, one thing is common –the power button is one of the primary and redundant buttons of every Android device. But, did you know that you can customize your power button to make it more interesting? The beautiful thing about Android is that you can customize practically everything to spice up your life –that includes buttons.
So if you’re not happy with how essential your power button looks like, there are simple ways to customize it and get more out of your Android power button. Before you proceed, take note that you need to have a rooted device to be able to remap your custom power button.
Remapping Android Power Button for Rooted Devices
Remapping your custom power button depends on how you use your device and which features you often use. For example, if you’re a traveler who loves taking pictures, you can re-assign the power button as a focus or shutter button, so you don’t have to dig around your phone for the camera app. But before remapping your button, make sure you back up your files first in case an accident happens –though the chances are slim, it’s better to be safe anyway. Follow these steps to remap your custom power button.
- To remap your Android power button, download Button Remapper app from the developer’s website.
- Then go to Settings > Security and enable Unknown Sources before installing the app. You’ll need to enable this feature; otherwise, you won’t be able to install apps that were not downloaded from Google Play Store.
- Once you’ve downloaded the APK file, proceed with the installation and provide Superuser permissions to the Button Remapper app.
- Launch the app, and you will see four functions that you can configure.
- Tap the first function and set the Action and State by choosing from the drop-down menu. For example, if you want to activate the camera, set the Action to Camera and the State to Wake.
- After setting up the function, click Apply.
- Your device will undergo ‘hot reboot,’ and once it’s back on, the changes will apply.
If the changes did not work after rebooting, reopen the app and disable it before trying again. Tweak these button mappings until you find the configuration that you like.
Power Up Your Power Button with Xposed
To get the most out of your custom power button, you have to install the Xposed framework, which you will have to use to access the APM+ module. The APM+ module allows you to completely re-program the power button menu. Instead of having the usual Power Off and Reboot options when you press the power button, you can add other features like Flashlight, Screen recording, Settings or even set up an emergency or SOS number. To install the APM+ module, follow these steps:
- Open the Xposed installer and tap Download.
- Look for APM+ and open the description.
- Swipe across Versions and tap Download.
- You will be prompted to Restart to apply the changes.
- Once APM+ has been installed, launch the app, and a list of menu items will appear. Hold and drag your chosen menu into your preferred position.
- To add items, tap the + button.
- If you want to discard items, hold and tap Remove.
- To revert your changes, tap Reset.
- If you’re satisfied with the menu you have created, tap the check button to confirm, then close the app.
To check whether the changes have been applied, hold your custom power button to see the quick access menu options. You should be able to see the new menu you just created using the APM+ module.
Another module you can use from the Xposed framework is the Neo Power Menu. Look for the Neo Power Menu package and install it on your device. To customize your Android power button using this module, follow these steps:
- Once the Neo Power Menu has been installed, launch the module and restart your device.
- Open the Neo Power Menu app and grant Superuser access to it and allow all permissions.
- Navigate to the Theme section and choose the color you want for each scenario. For example, the background color of the dialog when you click on Shut Down could be different from the background of the dialog when you click Reboot. If you think customizing every little thing is too much for you, you can tap Load preset to limit your choices to light, dark or black themes.
- Go to Visibility and Order to enable or disable the functions according to your preference. The entries include Power Off, Reboot, Soft Reboot, Screenshot, Screenrecord, Torch, Expanded Desktop, etc. So if you want the power button only to do Power Off, Reboot and Screenshot, you have to toggle on these options in this window.
- Close the app and check if the changes have been applied by long-pressing the power button. If you see the new menu, then it’s a success.
One of the best things about Neo Power Menu is that it comes with a sleek Material design style, with all the buttons crisp, clear and easy to identify. Also, being able to use other features without having to tap or click several buttons makes the power button more useful and relevant.
Remap Hardware Buttons without Root
If you want to remap other hardware buttons except for power button, you can give this Buttons Remapper app a try. You can remap the home, back, recent apps and volume buttons and configure additional features for these hardware buttons. The good thing about this app is that you don’t need to root your device to be able to make these changes to your buttons. To remap your hardware buttons, follow these instructions:
- Download the app from Google Play Store and install it on your device.
- Grant the necessary accessibility settings permissions for the app.
- Tap the button that you wish to remap. Take note that soft navigation keys cannot be remapped. So if you only have the hardware volume keys, all the other buttons will be grayed out.
- Choose what features you want the button to show when long-pressed and double-pressed.
- Close the app and check whether the new menu works.
Customizing your buttons, whether it’s the power button or other hardware keys, has made them more useful and flexible.
Tip: To ensure you have smooth app installations, boost your Android phone’s performance with an app like Android cleaner tool. It deletes your device’s junk files and ensures that your phone is performing at its best at all times.