Galaxy Flip 5 Cover Screen Behaviour Changed [Working in Old Version - 8.8.80.599]

[Sol_3]

The behaviour of Spotify on the small screen on the flip 5 has been changed recently, and due to this I have lost a lot of useful functionality like shuffle, lyrics, view queue, etc.

This was all fine when the phone first released and the app just scaled down to fit the screen. It all functioned perfectly, since an update however, this has all been lost and the offering is much less useful than even the built in media controls. 

Please can this be reverted? 

One UI Version: 6
Android version: 14

Spotify Version: 8.9.10.616

[Yordan]

Hi @Sol_3!

Did you notice this after a specific system- or Spotify update? Could you let us know the exact version of the app you're running?

If you haven't already, try performing a clean reinstall of Spotify by following the steps in this article.

Cheers!

[Sol_3]

The app updates automatically for me, so I'm not aware of what version I was on before, the app version I'm on now is 8.8.92.700
I've fresh installed this morning and it's still the same behaviour.

[Johnny221]

Hey 🙂

Are there updates to this topic? 

[mikkoantero]

I have the same problem but it's bug on Samsung Dex (Desktop mode like windows) interface, but if i use normal mode (regular tablet mode) then it's fine. I have Samsung Tab S7 FE, running on Android 13 and One ui 5.1.1 Spotify version 8.8.96.364 but i noticed on earlier versions too that bug, My phone is normaly working which is Samsung S20 FE running android 13 and One ui 5.1 with same version Spotify.

[MagnusDrac0]

Same here, it's a bit annoying since before whatever update messed up the UI, I was able to actually control pretty much everything from the Queue to the Shuffle. Hopefully this gets fixed soon!

[Johnny221]

I think Spotify is in fullscreen mode. The button, that minimizes the fullscreen, doesn't work....

[Yordan]

Hey folks,

In order to take a closer look into this, please share the following:

• the version of the UI you're currently running
• the exact version of Spotify
• all troubleshooting steps you've tried so far

Cheers 🙂

[Sol_3]

One UI Version: 6
Android version: 14

Spotify Version: 8.9.10.616

Troubleshooting: Updated One UI to current version, also uninstalled and reinstalled Spotify itself to confirm it's a Spotify issue.

[MagnusDrac0]

UI Version: 6.0

Spotify Version: 8.9.18.512

I've tried uninstalling Spotify and re-installing, but that did not work. I also removed it from the cover screen launcher, restarted my phone, added it back and that also didn't work. It's been behaving like that since Nov, 2023.

[Yordan]

Thanks for the info @MagnusDrac0 and @Sol_3. @Johnny221, could you also confirm your UI and Spotify versions?

Could you folks also let me know if you're using any software that allows you to customize the cover screen, such as Good Lock or Cover Screen OS? If so, check if excluding Spotify from the list of allowed apps has an effect on this.

Lastly, a new screenshot which shows how Spotify currently looks on the cover screen would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers!

[Sol_3]

One UI Version: 6.0
Android version: 14
Spotify Version: 8.9.18.512

For clarity, using the app is only possible through Good Lock, I've just checked again and Spotify doesn't offer a front screen "Widget" for the flip EDIT: I've taken another look and they actually do, but it's fairly limited and still doesn't allow functionality mentioned above.

Good Lock is how I have been using Spotify on the front screen since launch (I don't use cover screen OS), without it you don't get any UI besides the built in generic Samsung Media UI (not controlled or owned by Spotify). So excluding Spotify from Good Lock just means that you can no longer open it on the cover screen and it would be removed from the Good Lock app list as seen below.

Updated screenshot (same song for consistency):

[Johnny221]

Hey Yordan, 

Spotify Version: 8.9.18.512

Android 14, one ui-version: 6.0

I'm using Good lock since it's not implemented in the usable cover screen apps. Excluding doesn't effect the issue. 

 

[Sol_3]

EDIT to the above (didn't let me edit the post itself); I have just taken a screenshot of the generic Samsung UI for media control and it looks like this, so they're able to allow us to shuffle, but there are still other features that this doesn't allow. So between the two it's okay, but still not as good as Spotify itself was originally, when it was more suited to scaling to smaller size screens (still not sure why this changed) :

[Yordan]

Wow, thanks for the quick replies folks! You're awesome 💚

This may sound redundant (apologies for that), but I just want to make sure I got everything right: with Spotify disabled in Good Lock and actively playing in the background, the widget on the cover screen looks as shown on the screenshots you provided (i.e. it doesn't switch to the Samsung UI one), correct 🤔

EDIT: Thanks for the info @Sol_3! This would definitely help with the investigation.

Cheers!

[Sol_3]

Sorry I saw you comment and started on this before I saw your edit.
We get two options to control Spotify, either we can use the built in media controller, or open the app directly using the Good Lock widget. I made a video to show the Samsung UI a bit better with an overview of the widgets and scrolling between them, I know it's hard to explain to users that might not have a flip on hand.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w2p2BxNC0oY 

I also demonstrate during the video that the "expand/shrink" button in the bottom right has no effect with a screen this small. You can see the button depress during the middle of the video several times as I try to press it.

[Yordan]

Hey everyone 👋

Thank you for your assistance! I've forwarded this to the attention of our tech teams who'll investigate further. I'll keep you folks posted as soon as I have any new info to share, stay tuned 😎

In the meantime, could you also share the exact version of Good Lock you're running as well? You should be able to check that in Settings > Apps > Good Lock.

Cheers!

@Sol_3, @Johnny221, @MagnusDrac0

[Sol_3]

Good Lock: 2.2.04.88

[Johnny221]

2.2.04.88

[Yordan]

Hey folks,

After troubleshooting the issue on our end, it looks that this is most likely isolated to the device or the specific setup. Our tech teams are unable to prioritize this at the moment, I'm afraid, but rest assured it's something that will remain on their radar. For now, I'd recommend using the Spotify Widget instead while keeping an eye out for future updates to the app.

The Community is always here if something else comes up.

Take care 🤘