Option to show more than 3 notification icons instead of a dot

[ColeM40]

On One UI 7, the highest number of notifications that it'll put in the top notification bar is 3. I used to have it set ti unlimited, but I can't find that option anymore. 

Was it removed? If it was removed, why? Why remove an option, instead of just leaving it there for us? Quit thinking you know how your consumers want to use their phone better than they do, Samsung!

[AaronPreslin]

Can confirm after learning that from @Robin621k does look like that is the case, it is not Samsung specific, although on Android 16 it's 4 icon limit, not 3, at least in this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7W2v_FmCuE&t=591s unless they changed it to 3 in some more recent beta.

Looks like even on folding devices such as the Google Pixel 9 Pro they have made this limit, even when there is a huge amount of unused blank black space in the notification bar https://youtu.be/fxSKONqhYg0?t=209 although that might be running Android 15, haven't found a definitive video/screenshot on a fold device that says it's for sure Android 16.

Those who want more than the limit of 3 or 4 icons in the navigation bar should be giving feedback to Samsung to possibly incorporate a customization option into Good Lock, like they did with the ability to move the clock to the right side which I GREATLY have appreciated.

So those out there that would like that wasted space reclaimed that could be providing contextual information on what notifications you have at a glance without needing to constantly swipe down, please send Samsung some feedback and request that they can allow more the 3 or 4 icons on the Notification bar and incorporate it as a customization into QuickStar in the Good Lock suite of customization apps. Guessing it might be an "it is what it is" situation at this point, but providing feedback https://us.community.samsung.com/t5/Tips-Tricks/How-to-Send-Feedback/ba-p/3001692 should just take a few minutes and maybe, just maybe, one of the Good Lock devs could offer this as a customization for power users.

[Robin621k]

It is 3 on my version of Beta that came on Material 3 expression in late May.

[AaronPreslin]

Thanks for the info!

[Robin621k]

Any time!

[Robin621k]

This power user loves it the way it is. I hate a cluttered status bar. I can't wait to get QuickStar back to turn everything off again.

[AaronPreslin]

Sounds like you're more of a minimalist rather than a power user. One could debate what a power user exactly is, but check out the section of "Power users vs. minimalists" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Power_user

Or if you ask ChatGPT: https://chatgpt.com/share/6848f552-0b84-8007-81ef-4dde4331ddd9

You can disagree with what that Wikipedia entry or ChatGPT says, but I'll quote the ChatGPT summary it gives when you ask that question:

"Power users embrace complexity and deep functionality." <--- That's me.
"Minimalists focus on simplicity and eliminating excess." <--- That sounds like you.

Under the definitions that I see, you might be an expert as indicated in knowledge you have already shown, but seem more a minimalist rather than a power user.

But anyway, I'm all for it, if QuickStar can make both sides happy, everyone wins. That is a strong differentiation that has historically attracted a lot of people to Android, the ability to customize things rather than be stuck with what developers at a company think is what people want, which is what Apple does with IOS and locks a lot of things down and limits customization. Samsung's Good Lock has been a great thing, I used to root phones to be able to customize everything I wanted, but with that I haven't felt a compelling reason to these days. Good lock is actually one of the major reasons I have stuck with Samsung through the years.

[Robin621k]

I clear put my notifications as they come in, why because my phone is usually in my hands!

[AaronPreslin]

Yes, people's use cases, preferences on how they interact with phones, etc, differ. I often times glance at my phone, while say when I'm working on a laptop, but do not want to interact with the phone unless I see something of higher importance like say a text message, a DM on a social media platform than say an email, a breaking news notification, or a bank transaction going through. Now with the icon limit, I would be forced to interact with it just to see that. Yes, I could use different notification tones for various things, but I would not like to have my phone beeping all the time (for the courtesy of others) and instead prefer a visual notification with context of what it is, especially because that space is on the screen. 

I'm not saying the way you want it to look and how you interact with your phone is wrong, I'm just hoping that Samsung will continue with the ability to customize it through their Good Lock customization suite and add a way to have the icons not truncated. And I don't think I'm alone at all on that.

[realaud]

If you are using your laptop, why would you not use Link to Windows where you can see the notifications as they come in?  Unless there is a need to go silent, you can also assign specific notification tones for your most important apps/text conversations.  Even if you need to go silent, you can set the notification tone volume to the lowest possible level that you can still hear.  That way, when you hear an "important" sound, you can interact with your phone and when you hear normal sounds, you can ignore it til you are ready to look. You can also create a routine to turn the volume from "mute" to "on" and set a volume level for notifications from a specific app or person or a flash notification if you don't want to use sound. Unless you are in a meeting, library or echo chamber and get a notification every second, it shouldn't be an issue.  If you add the notification cards to your lock screen, you should be able to see which are your important notifications.  Or, you always have the option to ignore all notifications up until the time you are ready to interact with your phone.  So many ways to to get around the 3 icon restriction so that you can avoid a 1 second inconvenience.

[AaronPreslin]

My laptop is on a corporate network, and phones aren't allowed on the corporate network due to Cybersecurity policy, phone can only go on guest wifi which only provides Internet. So the phone can't talk to the laptop. Also, Windows store apps are restricted, so you can't download Phone Link either without circumventing Cybersecurity policies. I do use Phone Link at home for some things though, and am very familiar with it and started using it when it first came out in 2018  branded as "Your Phone" This also doesn't address when you are not near a computer anyhow.

I don't want beeps and notification sounds for my own and other's sanity that work near me. Also, if you happen to walk away from your phone, that's not going to let you know without interacting with the phone again.

As for your other thoughts, those are all inferior to most people than just having the notifications on the status bar when you are viewing your phone's homescreen. Also, I often do not have my phone locked when it's on a stand near me anyway.

I'm curious, is your status bar completely bare then? I presume you use Good Lock Quickstar to remove all system icons such as the clock, wifi status, and battery icons? I also presume you also set the status bar for absolutely no notification icons at all? And I presume that you are glad that you can customize Android to do that? Would you say that everyone should just make their status bar completely blank and swipe down every time they want to to view their clock, wifi status, and battery level (which you can set as a quick toggle)? I also presume you do not have any app icons on your homescreen, since you can get them all in the app drawer. After all, it only takes a second to get there, right?

All we are requesting here an option to customize it, even in a tucked away setting in an app suite designed for customization if possible, why would you be so bothered if one could set it either way? Why on Earth do you care?

Besides a bunch of threads here on community.samsung.com, there's also a bunch on Reddit, this limitation bothers a lot of power users. You'll notice those threads and posts in that thread aren't being downvoted into negative numbers where there are more people wish that their phone can't be customized.
https://www.reddit.com/r/GalaxyS24Ultra/comments/1jvxb6m/oneui_7_just_three_notification_icons_are_s...

https://www.reddit.com/r/oneui/comments/1jvtfks/if_you_want_more_than_3_notification_icons_dont/