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Pushing power key may or may not blank screen

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  Pushing power key may or may not blank screen Mickey <mee@sent.com> - 2026-10-23 18:50 +0000
    Re: Pushing power key may or may not blank screen Andy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk> - 2026-10-23 20:00 +0100
      Re: Pushing power key may or may not blank screen Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-10-24 10:00 -0400
        Re: Pushing power key may or may not blank screen Arno Welzel <usenet@arnowelzel.de> - 2026-10-25 20:07 +0100
          Re: Pushing power key may or may not blank screen Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-10-25 16:22 -0400
    Re: Pushing power key may or may not blank screen VanguardLH <V@nguard.LH> - 2026-10-23 14:56 -0500
      Re: Pushing power key may or may not blank screen VanguardLH <V@nguard.LH> - 2026-10-23 15:09 -0500
        Re: Pushing power key may or may not blank screen The Real Bev <bashley101@gmail.com> - 2026-10-24 08:57 -0700
      Re: Pushing power key may or may not blank screen Frank Slootweg <this@ddress.is.invalid> - 2026-10-24 10:17 +0000
        Re: Pushing power key may or may not blank screen AJL <noemail@none.com> - 2026-10-24 15:18 +0000
    Re: Pushing power key may or may not blank screen Arno Welzel <usenet@arnowelzel.de> - 2026-10-25 20:06 +0100
      Re: Pushing power key may or may not blank screen Andy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk> - 2026-10-25 21:21 +0000
        Re: Pushing power key may or may not blank screen Nuno Silva <nunojsilva@invalid.invalid> - 2026-10-25 23:27 +0000
          Re: Pushing power key may or may not blank screen Andy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk> - 2026-10-26 08:02 +0000
            Re: Pushing power key may or may not blank screen Nuno Silva <nunojsilva@invalid.invalid> - 2026-10-26 08:54 +0000
          Re: Pushing power key may or may not blank screen Arno Welzel <usenet@arnowelzel.de> - 2026-10-26 14:55 +0100
        Re: Pushing power key may or may not blank screen Arno Welzel <usenet@arnowelzel.de> - 2026-10-26 14:54 +0100
    Re: Pushing power key may or may not blank screen "Carlos E.R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2026-10-25 21:57 +0100
      Re: Pushing power key may or may not blank screen Andy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk> - 2026-10-25 21:24 +0000
    Re: Pushing power key may or may not blank screen Nuno Silva <nunojsilva@invalid.invalid> - 2026-10-25 23:25 +0000

#156615 — Pushing power key may or may not blank screen

Are there rules for when the power key will make the screen go blank?

Android 15

I've been using my phone more than ever on this trip, and to save battery I
 like the blank out the screen whenever I'm not using it. On this new
 Motorola phone, sometimes pressing the power key once does it, sometimes
 twice, three times four times, even five times, but if it doesn't do it
 with the fifth time I don't think it's ever going to do it. Are there rules
 for when the power key will make the screen go blank

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#156616

Mickey wrote:

> Are there rules for when the power key will make the screen go blank?

Every time.

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#156629

Andy Burns wrote:
>> Are there rules for when the power key will make the screen go blank?
> 
> Every time.

It looks like others have answered the "are there rules" question.

To always strive to add value that wasn't already there, everything
below is a suggestion for blanking the screen w/o touching buttons.

Some phones come native with a button to lock the screen at will.
 <https://mcmw.abilitynet.org.uk/how-to-enable-the-accessibility-menu-in-android-12>

Some launchers (Nova Launcher, Lawnchair) and OEM skins (Samsung One UI, 
Xiaomi/HyperOS, OnePlus/OxygenOS) apparently support double-tapping a blank 
space on the home screen or the status bar to put the device to sleep.
 <https://www.samsung.com/in/sustainability/accessibility/mobile/assistant-menu/>
 <https://www.samsung.com/au/support/mobile-devices/enable-double-tap-to-turn-off/>
 <https://gadgetstouse.com/blog/2025/05/07/enable-double-tap-to-sleep-on-any-android-phone/>
 etc.

Gravity Screen or Smart Screen Off use the phone's built-in proximity
and accelerometer sensors and 'Hey Google, lock screen' works I'm told
(if you set it up ahead of time, I think, as I don't use "Hey Google").

I might approach this problem by turning off the screen with a widget.
 <https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.jordigordillo.dtswidget>
 <https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.redmanit.lockscreen>
 <https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=dev.qt.hdl.lockscreen>
 etc. <https://play.google.com/store/search?q=screen%20off%20button&c=apps>

They use an accessibility service that simulates a power-button press, 
since Android doesn't let normal apps turn the screen off directly	.

However, Tasker, MacroDroid, Automate, or Shortcuts can call Shizuku's 
shell API to get a home-screen tile that blanks the screen with one tap.
.
Also, plenty of apps on the phone will blank the screen, using adb.

 # in ladb on the phone
  adb shell input keyevent 223

 # in Termux, on the phone (pkg install android-tools)
   adb pair <phone-ip>:<pair-port> 
   adb connect <phone-ip>:<port>
   adb shell input keyevent 223

.# In Termux, with Shizuku remote interactive shell 
   rish -c "input keyevent 223". 

Or, if a desktop is handy (the phone can be on Wi-Fi or USB).

1. Blank the screen (sleep, no lock)
   adb shell input keyevent 223
   -> KEYCODE_SLEEP, turns the display off

2. Wake up the screen
   adb shell input keyevent 224
   -> KEYCODE_WAKEUP

3. Sleep & lock (same as pressing power)
   adb shell input keyevent 26
   -> KEYCODE_POWER

4. Let it fall asleep on its own over a given time
   adb shell settings put system screen_off_timeout 1000
   adb shell svc power stayon false
   -> short timeout, then normal sleep behavior
-- 
Every post to Usenet should strive to add value that wasn't there.

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#156647

Maria Sophia, 2026-10-24 16:00:

> Andy Burns wrote:
>>> Are there rules for when the power key will make the screen go blank?
>>
>> Every time.
> 
> It looks like others have answered the "are there rules" question.
> 
> To always strive to add value that wasn't already there, everything
> below is a suggestion for blanking the screen w/o touching buttons.
> 
> Some phones come native with a button to lock the screen at will.
>  <https://mcmw.abilitynet.org.uk/how-to-enable-the-accessibility-menu-in-android-12>

So far I never have seen a phone which did *not* lock when pressing the
power button once. At least any HTC, Samsung, Xiaom, Sony, Google,
Huawei and Fairphone device I tested.



-- 
Arno Welzel
https://arnowelzel.de

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#156650

Arno Welzel wrote:
>> Some phones come native with a button to lock the screen at will.
>>  <https://mcmw.abilitynet.org.uk/how-to-enable-the-accessibility-menu-in-android-12>
> 
> So far I never have seen a phone which did *not* lock when pressing the
> power button once. At least any HTC, Samsung, Xiaom, Sony, Google,
> Huawei and Fairphone device I tested.

Mine does too. So I do not disagree one bit with you. Nor anyone.

But think about this: My phone is on Wi-Fi in a drawer somewhere. 
 a. If I want to blank it, I have to use adb. 
 b. If I want to wake it, that I can do with the mouse on the mirror.

Point only being that the OP doesn't even need to use the hard keys.
He can run tap an icon on the phone to blank it at will. 

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#156617

Mickey <mee@sent.com> wrote:

> Are there rules for when the power key will make the screen go blank?
> 
> Android 15
> 
> I've been using my phone more than ever on this trip, and to save battery I
>  like the blank out the screen whenever I'm not using it. On this new
>  Motorola phone, sometimes pressing the power key once does it, sometimes
>  twice, three times four times, even five times, but if it doesn't do it
>  with the fifth time I don't think it's ever going to do it. Are there rules
>  for when the power key will make the screen go blank

For me, I double-tap the screen to make it go all-black, and then
double-tap the screen to resume display.  Same happens when I
single-press the Side Button (the new name for the Power button).
Actually it isn't a blank-screen function.  It is a lockscreen function.
Go into Settings, and search on "lock".  For me on Android 16 with a
Samsung Galaxy A36 phone, the relevant settings is under "Lock instantly
with Side key" which is also found by Settings -> Lock screen and AOD ->
Secure lock settings".

Do you have an [armor] case on your phone?  If so, and if the buttons
are not directly accessible but require you press on a "button" in the
case that presses a button on the phone, could be you are not pressing
hard enough on the case's button to get it to fully press the phone's
button.

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#156619

VanguardLH <V@nguard.LH> wrote:

> Mickey <mee@sent.com> wrote:
> 
>> Are there rules for when the power key will make the screen go blank?
>> 
>> Android 15
>> 
>> I've been using my phone more than ever on this trip, and to save battery I
>>  like the blank out the screen whenever I'm not using it. On this new
>>  Motorola phone, sometimes pressing the power key once does it, sometimes
>>  twice, three times four times, even five times, but if it doesn't do it
>>  with the fifth time I don't think it's ever going to do it. Are there rules
>>  for when the power key will make the screen go blank
> 
> For me, I double-tap the screen to make it go all-black, and then
> double-tap the screen to resume display.  Same happens when I
> single-press the Side Button (the new name for the Power button).
> Actually it isn't a blank-screen function.  It is a lockscreen function.
> Go into Settings, and search on "lock".  For me on Android 16 with a
> Samsung Galaxy A36 phone, the relevant settings is under "Lock instantly
> with Side key" which is also found by Settings -> Lock screen and AOD ->
> Secure lock settings".
> 
> Do you have an [armor] case on your phone?  If so, and if the buttons
> are not directly accessible but require you press on a "button" in the
> case that presses a button on the phone, could be you are not pressing
> hard enough on the case's button to get it to fully press the phone's
> button.

To test if the case is interferring, remove it, and check if directly
pressing the Side/Power button works correctly.

Possibly the Side button suffered an impact and is flaky.  In that case,
double-tap the screen to lock/unlock your phone.  To check if this
function is enabled, Settings -> Advanced features -> Motions and
gestures, and look for the ouble tap to turn on/off screen.  Double-tap
on an inactive area of the screen to turn on or off.

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#156634

On 10/23/26 13:09, VanguardLH wrote:
> VanguardLH <V@nguard.LH> wrote:
> 
>> Mickey <mee@sent.com> wrote:
>> 
>>> Are there rules for when the power key will make the screen go blank?
>>> 
>>> Android 15
>>> 
>>> I've been using my phone more than ever on this trip, and to save battery I
>>>  like the blank out the screen whenever I'm not using it. On this new
>>>  Motorola phone, sometimes pressing the power key once does it, sometimes
>>>  twice, three times four times, even five times, but if it doesn't do it
>>>  with the fifth time I don't think it's ever going to do it. Are there rules
>>>  for when the power key will make the screen go blank
>> 
>> For me, I double-tap the screen to make it go all-black, and then
>> double-tap the screen to resume display.  Same happens when I
>> single-press the Side Button (the new name for the Power button).
>> Actually it isn't a blank-screen function.  It is a lockscreen function.
>> Go into Settings, and search on "lock".  For me on Android 16 with a
>> Samsung Galaxy A36 phone, the relevant settings is under "Lock instantly
>> with Side key" which is also found by Settings -> Lock screen and AOD ->
>> Secure lock settings".
>> 
>> Do you have an [armor] case on your phone?  If so, and if the buttons
>> are not directly accessible but require you press on a "button" in the
>> case that presses a button on the phone, could be you are not pressing
>> hard enough on the case's button to get it to fully press the phone's
>> button.
> 
> To test if the case is interferring, remove it, and check if directly
> pressing the Side/Power button works correctly.
> 
> Possibly the Side button suffered an impact and is flaky.  In that case,
> double-tap the screen to lock/unlock your phone.  To check if this
> function is enabled, Settings -> Advanced features -> Motions and
> gestures, and look for the ouble tap to turn on/off screen.  Double-tap
> on an inactive area of the screen to turn on or off.

FWIW -- I want to use the actual buttons as infrequently as possible. 
The power button on my Lenovo tablet is actuated by a cheesy plastic 
thing that you push.  Apparently this plastic thing wears down so that 
it will no longer actually push the REAL power button, requiring a 
certain amount of disassembly and inserting a thin shim.  This is only a 
temporary fix, requiring the insertion of a thicker shim.  Wash, rinse, 
repeat. Real shame because I liked that tablet, which I no longer use. 
Fixing shit lost its appeal long ago.  I've had much the same problem 
with a Ryobi weed whacker.  I see no reason the power buttons on phones 
should be any different.

Android 11 only allows a double-tap to turn the screen ON;  you either 
tap the power button or just wait to turn it off.  Annoying.

-- 
Cheers, Bev

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#156628

VanguardLH <V@nguard.lh> wrote:
> Mickey <mee@sent.com> wrote:
> 
> > Are there rules for when the power key will make the screen go blank?
> > 
> > Android 15
> > 
> > I've been using my phone more than ever on this trip, and to save battery I
> >  like the blank out the screen whenever I'm not using it. On this new
> >  Motorola phone, sometimes pressing the power key once does it, sometimes
> >  twice, three times four times, even five times, but if it doesn't do it
> >  with the fifth time I don't think it's ever going to do it. Are there rules
> >  for when the power key will make the screen go blank

[For your Samsung Galaxy A36 (Android 16) phone:] 

> For me, I double-tap the screen to make it go all-black, and then
> double-tap the screen to resume display.

  Minor nit: That probably only works on the Home screen (or its
extension pages), not on the Apps screen/pages. At least that's the case
for my Samsung Galaxy A56 (Android 16) phone.

  Anyway, thanks for the tip. I try to limit pushing the physical
buttons, so this may come in handy when I have a long Screen timeout and
want to blank the display (to preserve power).

[...]

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#156633

On 10/24/26 3:17 AM, Frank Slootweg wrote:
>VanguardLH <V@nguard.lh> wrote:
>> Mickey <mee@sent.com> wrote:
>> 
>> > Are there rules for when the power key will make the screen go blank?
>> > 
>> > Android 15
>> > 
>> > I've been using my phone more than ever on this trip, and to save battery I
>> >  like the blank out the screen whenever I'm not using it. On this new
>> >  Motorola phone, sometimes pressing the power key once does it, sometimes
>> >  twice, three times four times, even five times, but if it doesn't do it
>> >  with the fifth time I don't think it's ever going to do it. Are there rules
>> >  for when the power key will make the screen go blank
>
>[For your Samsung Galaxy A36 (Android 16) phone:] 
>
>> For me, I double-tap the screen to make it go all-black, and then
>> double-tap the screen to resume display.
>
>  Minor nit: That probably only works on the Home screen (or its
>extension pages), not on the Apps screen/pages. At least that's the case
>for my Samsung Galaxy A56 (Android 16) phone.
>
>  Anyway, thanks for the tip. I try to limit pushing the physical
>buttons, so this may come in handy when I have a long Screen timeout and
>want to blank the display (to preserve power).
>
>[...]

This FTL Android 10in tablet toy I'm posting with allows me to double tap
 the lock screen to wake it but not double tap the home screen to put it to
 sleep. Weird. So I use an app called Screen Off (Play Store) to put it to
 sleep. Just one tap on the home screen Screen Off app icon does the job.
 Almost as good...

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#156646

Mickey, 2026-10-23 20:50:

> Are there rules for when the power key will make the screen go blank?

No. It should go blank, as soon as you press it once. *Press* and not
*hold* it. Just a short press.

> Android 15
> 
> I've been using my phone more than ever on this trip, and to save battery I
>  like the blank out the screen whenever I'm not using it. On this new
>  Motorola phone, sometimes pressing the power key once does it, sometimes
>  twice, three times four times, even five times, but if it doesn't do it
>  with the fifth time I don't think it's ever going to do it. Are there rules
>  for when the power key will make the screen go blank

Looks more like the key is defect.


-- 
Arno Welzel
https://arnowelzel.de

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#156654

Arno Welzel wrote:

> Mickey, 2026-10-23 20:50:
> 
>> Are there rules for when the power key will make the screen go blank?
> 
> No. It should go blank, as soon as you press it once. *Press* and not
> *hold* it. Just a short press.

Does that on my samsung, which doesn't have AmbientDisplay option.

My pixel is OLED display, so has got ambient, all that means is that 
pressing power doesn't *actually* turn off screen, just draws mostly 
black with time/battery/notifications instead

(screen is ninety-whatever percent black pixels, so power usage close to 
actually turning entire screen off, but handy status info remains visible)

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#156660

On 2026-10-25, Andy Burns wrote:

> Arno Welzel wrote:
>
>> Mickey, 2026-10-23 20:50:
>>
>>> Are there rules for when the power key will make the screen go blank?
>>
>> No. It should go blank, as soon as you press it once. *Press* and not
>> *hold* it. Just a short press.
>
> Does that on my samsung, which doesn't have AmbientDisplay option.
>
> My pixel is OLED display, so has got ambient, all that means is that
> pressing power doesn't *actually* turn off screen, just draws mostly
> black with time/battery/notifications instead
>
> (screen is ninety-whatever percent black pixels, so power usage close
> to actually turning entire screen off, but handy status info remains
> visible)

While that screen is available, my motorolla does go fully black on
power press.

If the consumption is really low, especially if this can be pulled with
no backlight, it'd be perhaps interesting to have that always on, hmm.

-- 
Nuno Silva

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#156661

Nuno Silva wrote:

> If the consumption is really low, especially if this can be pulled with
> no backlight, it'd be perhaps interesting to have that always on, hmm.

OLED screens have no backlight, each pixel is illuminated as its own 
LED, so check what screen type you have.  Many Motorolas do seem to be 
OLED of one type or another ...

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#156662

On 2026-10-26, Andy Burns wrote:

> Nuno Silva wrote:
>
>> If the consumption is really low, especially if this can be pulled with
>> no backlight, it'd be perhaps interesting to have that always on, hmm.
>
> OLED screens have no backlight, each pixel is illuminated as its own
> LED, so check what screen type you have.  Many Motorolas do seem to be
> OLED of one type or another ...

Hmm, sadly, GSMArena says "IPS LCD".

<https://www.gsmarena.com/motorola_moto_g05-13573.php>

Okay, then this would possibly be a killer feature of OLED
screens. Reminds me of Sharp GX25, and indeed basically is the feature
that one had (and from some photos I see, a few other Sharp models had
this too), on steroids: it's a clamshell, with a small monochromatic
backlit LCD for stuff like current time, caller ID and other phone
"notifications".

<https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/6QEAAOSw8k9kLrBi/s-l1600.jpg>

-- 
Nuno Silva

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#156667

Nuno Silva, 2026-10-26 00:27:

> On 2026-10-25, Andy Burns wrote:
> 
>> Arno Welzel wrote:
>>
>>> Mickey, 2026-10-23 20:50:
>>>
>>>> Are there rules for when the power key will make the screen go blank?
>>>
>>> No. It should go blank, as soon as you press it once. *Press* and not
>>> *hold* it. Just a short press.
>>
>> Does that on my samsung, which doesn't have AmbientDisplay option.
>>
>> My pixel is OLED display, so has got ambient, all that means is that
>> pressing power doesn't *actually* turn off screen, just draws mostly
>> black with time/battery/notifications instead
>>
>> (screen is ninety-whatever percent black pixels, so power usage close
>> to actually turning entire screen off, but handy status info remains
>> visible)
> 
> While that screen is available, my motorolla does go fully black on
> power press.
> 
> If the consumption is really low, especially if this can be pulled with
> no backlight, it'd be perhaps interesting to have that always on, hmm.

With OLED you should be fine just having a time display and indicators
for notifications. This should be around 10-15% less battey runtime. I
used a Xiaomi Mi 9 Lite for many years this way and always had more then
24 hours with one charge.


-- 
Arno Welzel
https://arnowelzel.de

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#156666

Andy Burns, 2026-10-25 22:21:

> Arno Welzel wrote:
> 
>> Mickey, 2026-10-23 20:50:
>>
>>> Are there rules for when the power key will make the screen go blank?
>>
>> No. It should go blank, as soon as you press it once. *Press* and not
>> *hold* it. Just a short press.
> 
> Does that on my samsung, which doesn't have AmbientDisplay option.

Yes, with "blank" I mean "no unlocked start screen". Of course devices
with "always-on" display may still show the time etc. then.


-- 
Arno Welzel
https://arnowelzel.de

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#156651

On 2026-10-23 20:50, Mickey wrote:
> Are there rules for when the power key will make the screen go blank?
> 
> Android 15
> 
> I've been using my phone more than ever on this trip, and to save battery I
> like the blank out the screen whenever I'm not using it. On this new
> Motorola phone, sometimes pressing the power key once does it, sometimes
> twice, three times four times, even five times, but if it doesn't do it
> with the fifth time I don't think it's ever going to do it. Are there rules
> for when the power key will make the screen go blank

In my Motorola phones from the G series, the power button is also the 
fingerprint sensor. So if you press the button but the sensor recognizes 
your finger, then the thing lights up and unblocks. So I use a different 
finger, or use the nail to press it.

Or, sometimes it just works. Short press, release moving finger 1 cm away.

-- 
Cheers, Carlos.
ES🇪🇸, EU🇪🇺;

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#156656

"Carlos E.R." wrote:

> In my Motorola phones from the G series, the power button is also the 
> fingerprint sensor. So if you press the button but the sensor recognizes 
> your finger, then the thing lights up and unblocks. So I use a different 
> finger, or use the nail to press it.

my samsung power button is also fingerprint reader, seems intelligent 
enough that it only reads finger when turning on, not when turning off ...

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#156659

On 2026-10-23, Mickey wrote:

> Are there rules for when the power key will make the screen go blank?
>
> Android 15
>
> I've been using my phone more than ever on this trip, and to save battery I
> like the blank out the screen whenever I'm not using it. On this new
> Motorola phone, sometimes pressing the power key once does it, sometimes
> twice, three times four times, even five times, but if it doesn't do it
> with the fifth time I don't think it's ever going to do it. Are there rules
> for when the power key will make the screen go blank

Are you sure it's not waking up after blanking because of movement? Mine
sometimes lights up the full screen if it's moved or handled in a
certain way (and with vibrations or douple tap it shows up a black
background summary of the lock screen, quite neat).

Make sure it's a short press, as the long press is still handled
differently even if you've set the shortcut to "none" (as opposed to the
GenAI/GIGO-as-a-Service assistant).

-- 
Nuno Silva

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