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Mobile phones, as all technology, break. If something on the phone is stuck, many commonly deal with problems by simply restarting the system or turning the phone off.
This all falls into the water if the power button is broken or unresponsive. This is also not that uncommon, especially if the device is a bit older and the buttons have worn off.
Opening the phone and removing the battery is either impossible or can damage the ports and the battery itself, so don’t attempt it.
Luckily, there are safe ways to turn off the phone without the power button. In this article, you will learn how to turn off your iPhone, Android, and Samsung device when your power button is out of function.
How to Turn Off an iPhone Without a Functional Power Button
iPhones have the reputation of being durable and are loved by many. However, they are certainly not immortal and their power button can malfunction sometimes. Here are some ways you can turn your iPhone safely without using force.
Turn Off Your iPhone via the Settings App
This is the simplest way if your iPhone uses iOS 11 or newer. Here is a step-by-step walkthrough:
- Go to “Settings.”
- Go to “General.”
- Scroll down to the end of the menu and press “Shut down.”
- Swipe the power icon and turn your phone off.
Turn Off Your iPhone via AssistiveTouch
AssistiveTouch is an iPhone feature that creates a virtual power button. To activate it and turn off your iPhone using it, perform the following steps:
- Go to “Settings.”
- Open “Accessibility.”
- Go to “Touch.”
- Go to “AssistiveTouch” and enable it by tapping “On.”
- Go to your home screen and tap the AssistiveTouch button.
- Once in the app, tap “Devices.”
- Go to “Lock screen”, then press it and hold it.
- Turn off your iPhone by swiping the power slider.
How to Turn Off an Android Device Without a Functional Power Button
Turning off your Android phone may come with more options, as the Android system is compatible with more mobile phones than iOS. Here are some of them.
Download Third-party Apps From Google Play
The one perk of having an Android phone is that there are thousands of third-party apps on the Google Play store.
The most commonly used apps to turn off or restart your Android devices are PowerMenu and Shutdown which are both available for free on the Play store. Both apps will run the Android power management menu and serve the purpose of the power button, only by using the software.
Here’s how to turn your phone off using these apps:
- Download PowerMenu or Shutdown app from the Play Store. Allow access to your device and check the permissions when you start the app.
- When you enter the app, go to “Open Power Menu” and the app will invoke the Android power management menu.
- Shut down or reboot your Android phone.
Note that PowerMenu and Shutdown work without rooting. However, you may need to root your phone for other third-party apps, so do your research on the best, most functional, and reliable choice out there.
Use ADB Commands
This one may look a bit more complicated than the rest, but if everything else falls, it serves the purpose.
ADB (Android Debug Bridge) is a command tool that allows you to interact with your Android device. Consider it a command prompt for Android.
For turning off your phone this way, you will need to connect your phone to your PC. Aside from that, you will also need to make USB debugging available and install ADB drivers on your PC. When you are done with that, you only need to command your phone to shut down.
Let’s see how to do that from beginning to the end:
- Install the ADB drivers on your PC (Windows or Mac).
- Enable USB debugging on your PC. Make sure your phone is on since you won’t be able to do that if it’s not.
- Connect your device to your PC via USB cable.
- The permission window will appear on your Android phone. Tap “Allow.”
- Go to the Windows Command prompt or Mac Terminal.
- Fin the ADB drivers by typing in the command “
/ADB devices
.” That way you will make sure the PC and the phone are connected.
- Issue the following ABD command: “
ADB shell reboot –p
” and your phone will shut down.
The “p” in the command stands for “power” and by adding the “–,“ you command your Android phone to turn the power off. If you wish to turn the power on, simply type the command /ADB shell reboot
.
How to Turn Off a Samsung Phone Without a Functional Power Button
Samsung mobile phones mostly use Android systems, but there are some special features that Samsung has introduced to their devices. If the power button breaks on your Samsung phone, don’t worry. There are pretty quick and easy ways you can handle that.
Turn Off a Samsung Phone via the Power Icon
Samsung has added a Power icon to the Note10, Z flip, and A series phones, which makes your task quite simple.
Here’s how to turn off your Samsung phone with this option:
- Go to the “Quick settings” panel.
- Scroll down.
- Find the “Power icon” in the upper right corner of the screen, next to “Settings.”
- Turn the phone off by tapping “Power off.”
Turn Off Samsung Phone via Bixby’s Voice
Virtual assistants are becoming a thing nowadays. Samsung has Bixby voice, which has voice command features that can make your life easier. Bixby voice can also help you turn off your phone if all else fails. And it is very easy to set it up.
Let’s go through it step by step.
- Make sure your phone is connected to the internet.
- Sign in to your Samsung account.
- Press and hold the Bixby key on the left side of your phone.
- Sign in and check the Terms and conditions.
- When you have set Bixby up, press and hold the Bixby key to speak to the assistant.
- While in Bixby voice mode, tell Bixby “Turn off the phone.”
And We’re Off
Thankfully, there are plenty of alternative solutions that can help you shut down your phone, even without the physical power button.
Whatever you do, avoid using brute force to open the phone and remove the battery. If software solutions don’t work, you might need to get the button fixed by a qualified phone service.
What is your preferred way to turn off your phone without using the power button? Tell us in the comments below!