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How to turn off the Galaxy S5 camera shutter sound

IMGL1639
© nextpit

The Galaxy S5 camera shutter sound is an annoyance for many people. Just hearing this little "click" can alarm some, even when the photos being snapped are completely innocent. Simply taking a picture of Starbucks' new speciality latte can draw unwanted attention towards the person holding the handset, so how do we fix this problem?

IMGL1639
The Galaxy S5 has one of the best smartphone camera on Android. / © ANDROIDPIT

For those living in the USA, disabling the camera shutter sound is technically illegal. Wait, I just mean illegal. The law clearly states that cell phones containing digital cameras must make a sound when taking a picture. However, if you aren't living in the US, you may want to turn off the annoying Galaxy S5 camera sound (hey, you may even consider it if you're an American - some people like to live their lives on the edge).

A recent Android 4.4.4 update gives the option to turn the shutter sound off in the camera settings, but until this happens on all devices, use one of the methods outlined below. If you aren’t sure what is okay and what is not okay to take a picture of, follow our simple AndroidPIT photography rule: don’t take the picture. Simple.

The extremely easy way: mute or turn down the volume of your Galaxy S5

Press the "volume down" button on the side of your device until your phone goes into vibrate mode (or turn it into silent mode in the settings). Now when you take a picture, the camera shutter sound will not be heard. Yes, it's that simple. 

Another slightly less easy, but nonetheless very easy way: download and use a third party camera app

Although the stock Android camera app plays a shutter sound when you take a picture, not all camera apps do this. We’ve already compiled a list of the best camera apps for your Android smartphone, and I know a few of them don’t play a sound (Camera360 Ultimate doesn't for sure).

A way that doesn't work: plugging headphones in

One method which will NOT work with the Galaxy S5 is plugging headphones in. Normally when you do this, all sounds from the device will play through your headphones instead of from the handset. But the Galaxy S5 is smart, and separates media audio from notification sounds, so the sound will still play from the speakers as normal. Shame. 

Did these work for you? Let us know in the comments below.

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Scott Adam Gordon

Scott Adam Gordon
Editor

Originally from the UK, Scott graduated in Popular Music Studies at Newcastle University and attributes much of his success there to his beloved Samsung Galaxy S2. His current aim is to write cool things about Android. And he loves it.

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11 comments
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  • 2
    James van Scoyoc Sep 14, 2015 Link to comment

    Has anyone mentioned Enforced Stream Silencer? I can now confirm that this works on my Galaxy S5 both, whether rooted or not. Note, you can't download this from Play Store; hear are the steps to follow instead:


    (1) Download the .apk (see link below). I find it easiest to do so on my notebook, then email the .apk to myself as an attachment.

    (2) In Settings=>Security check the "Unknown Sources" box (this allows you install the app without going through the Play Store).

    (3) Tap on the .apk to install it. If you emailed it to yourself, simply tap on the link in the message. Otherwise you will need to navigate to it in your file explorer, then do the same thing.

    (4) Return to Settings=>Security and clear the "Unknown Sources" box. (Not actually necessary for this procedure, but simply good practice)

    (5) Tap on the "Enforced Stream Silencer" app and check the box (there should be only one, marked STREAM_SYSTEM_ENFORCED

    I'm not allowed to post links, but you can google for the apk download.

    AFAIK this works on most or all Android devices and will not cause dark colors to run in the wash, but no warranty is implied or given.


  • 2
    Val W Sep 5, 2015 Link to comment

    Actually, I just discovered that when I open the camera then tap the settings, you can swipe up and there are more settings below, including location tagging AND shutter sound...voila! It made no sense to me at all that there wasn't a setting for this, so just did some extra searching and found it. Hope this helps someone else out there!

    Hao


    • 2
      James van Scoyoc Sep 5, 2015 Link to comment

      I'm surprised to learn this. Are you on an older OS? I haven't seen this capability since well before Kitkat. And AFAIK my country doesn't have a silent camera shutter ban. I thought just about all smartphones these days, worldwide, were shipped without the silencing option to accommodate those jurisdictions that do have such laws.

      Hao


    • 1
      Lyssa Sutton Sep 13, 2015 Link to comment

      Yes, as the author wrote, anything 4.4.4 and higher has the capibility. "A recent Android 4.4.4 update gives the option to turn the shutter sound off in the camera settings". Read the article as a whole.


  • 1
    James van Scoyoc Jun 14, 2015 Link to comment

    With regard to muting the volume, this has never worked in a reliable manner, at least not more than one single time; then I'd have to do it over.

    ETA: re third-party camera apps: IME almost always of extremely poor quality and incapable of utilizing more than a pathetic fraction of the native HW's resolving capability.


  • 1
    James van Scoyoc Jun 14, 2015 Link to comment

    What law is this? AFAIK the "Camera Phone Predator Act" introduced by a Representative from New York State, several years ago, never made it out of committee.


  • 3
    Aakash Patel Apr 11, 2015 Link to comment

    At day time the images are superb but just problem is at night . The tube light and all other lights looks like sketchy shades and fade away . when same shot i clicked in note 3 it was very clear and steady picture.


  • 2
    Safira Buis Nov 17, 2014 Link to comment

    muting or turning down the volume of Galaxy S5 doesn't work. I still hear the sound of the shutter...

    Hao


    • Hao 1
      Hao Jul 19, 2017 Link to comment

      I have the same issue


  • flooney 37
    flooney Sep 16, 2014 Link to comment

    I think you can copy the soundfile of the Camers and give it a new name. Then delete the original file. That should work too. But you need root for tis method.

    Wallace MarquesMoni Mihailov


    • Scott Adam Gordon 31
      Scott Adam Gordon Sep 17, 2014 Link to comment

      Ahhh great suggestion flooney! In principle this should definitely do the trick!

      Wallace Marques

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