These 3 Samsung apps quietly got so good they outshine Google's versions

If you're like me and have owned multiple Samsung phones over the years, you probably skip past Samsung's built-in apps and install your own apps instead, especially when it comes to the browser (I always install Chrome), notes (I usually install Google Keep), or the keyboard (Gboard usually becomes my default keyboard).

But over the years, Samsung has been quietly refining and improving the inbuilt browser, notes app, and keyboard, such that I actually think the Samsung versions are better in several key ways. I'm not saying I always use the Samsung apps, but they all contain tools and features that are big improvements over what you get from Google (like I love how Samsung lets you open different apps with different fingers). Here's the three stock Samsung apps you shouldn't ignore anymore.

Samsung Browser Outshines Chrome

In a few key ways

Samsung's browser is fantastic in a few key areas.

First, it can fix the gigabytes of RAM that you unnecessarily use by keeping 47 browser tabs open. In the Samsung Internet browser, there's a feature that will automatically close unused browser tabs after a certain amount of time, and it's a game-changer for people like me that have open tabs from last week and even last month. Auto close unused tabs is available by going to the three-dot menu > Settings > Auto close unused tabs. You can set the time period to 7 or 30 days, and I prefer tabs to auto-close after 7 days. This frees up a lot of RAM that otherwise would be used for all those tabs I forgot about.

Another fantastic feature of Samsung Internet is to customize the look of the tab view—you can set it up to present tabs as a grid, list, or stack, all of which makes it easier and nicer to manage open tabs versus what Chrome gives you. My favorite is list, which gives you a high-level view of your open tabs. To change your tab view, tab the tabs button > View As > select the tab design.

You can fully customize the toolbar in Samsung Internet, unlike in Chrome, so that you can have any combination of buttons (like for back/forward/home, downloads, bookmarks, and more. You can even have the useful AI button show up persistently if you like being able to one-tap get a quick AI summary of an entire webpage).

To customize the toolbar in Samsung Internet with a great drag-and-drop interface, go to three-dot menu > Settings > Layout and menus > Toolbar. From here, you can pick the six shortcuts that always show up in the toolbar. While you're at it, in the Layout and menu section, you can toggle a variety of elements on and off to your liking, such as the bottom address bar (highly recommended because having the toolbar at the top makes no sense on medium or big phones), show or hide the tab and bookmark bar, and more.

Lastly, don't ignore Samsung's browser AI tools, which let you quickly get a summary of any page you're on, or quickly translate text into any language. To do this, just use the AI button (the stars) found along the keyboard toolbar.

Samsung Notes is smarter than Keep

Better organization with notebook style tools

Samsung notes is finally worth using, and I'll tell you why.

I know you're tired of hearing about AI, but the AI tools in Samsung Notes are truly fantastic.

You get four tools: auto-format (which will take your messy bullets and thoughts and turn them into a finely-organized note), summarize (which will take all of your clippings and musing and turn it into a concise summary), spelling and grammar (which fixes all of your grammar mistakes like a pro), and translate (which translates your notes into other languages, obviously). By far my favorite tool is auto-format, because it allows me to dump a bunch of messy thoughts and assets into a note, and the app makes sense of it in seconds.

Not only that but you can organize your notes into stylized notebooks, each with a custom cover and design, like having a real shelf of notebooks. To do this, tap and hold a note > More > Generate cover. You can do this with individual notes, or organize them into notebooks of multiple notes. It really does make a huge difference having your notes organized visually, and it's something Google Keep doesn't do well yet.

Samsung Keyboard is more customizable than Gboard

Tweak the keyboard to your liking

Samsung's keyboard is more configurable than Google's Gboard, and you probably have been ignoring it too.

Here are some of my favorite things to do with Samsung Keyboard. First, you can fine-tune the size and transparency of the keyboard. I like to make my keyboard a bit smaller than default since I use a lot of thumb-swiping to type and I want to minimize how much space the keyboard takes up. To do this, hit the gear icon > Size and transparency > adjust the handles to increase/decrease the size.

Another great tool is to automatically enable split-keyboard (perfect for typing with two thumbs) when you flip into landscape view. To do this, hit the gear icon > Mode > Landscape view > Split keyboard.

There's so much more you can customize within the settings menu, like specifying the keyboard layout when entering web addresses or emails (Layout menu), making the keys easier to see in Font Size, changing the keyboard to a light or dark theme in Theme, and more.

Another great feature of Samsung keyboard is that you can customize every toolbar shortcut (those little icons above the keyboard) just by tapping and dragging them. For example, you can put the tools you use the most within easy reach on the right, and relegate everything else to the left.

Samsung apps deserve a second look

Don't just ignore them

I think one of the reasons Samsung's apps have improved over the years to the point of some of them being a new part of your daily routine is increased competition (which forces everyone to be better) but also because Samsung has listened.

Gone are the days of Samsung software making annoying bleeps and bloops, and now we have Samsung apps that actually offer compelling features that in some cases go above and beyond what is offered by Google, especially when it comes to customizability.