If you’re experiencing issues with edge lighting and if it’s not working on your Samsung Galaxy S20, it’s due to a software problem. 

Most of the time this happens due to incorrectly configured settings or outdated software. So in this guide, I will walk you through 08 solutions to configure your settings or update your software to resolve this issue.

Note: Solutions in this guide will work on any Samsung Galaxy S20 model (S20, S20 Plus, S20 Fe, and S20 Ultra models.)

Editor’s note: We created these instructions using a Samsung Galaxy S20 running Android 13. Depending on your device’s software version, some steps and menu positions may look slightly different.

Fix 01: Make Sure “Brief” Notification Mode is Enabled

The Edge Lighting feature works only with the “Brief” notification popup mode. This means that if you have the “Detailed” mode enabled, the Edge Lighting will not function.

Follow these steps to switch to “Brief” mode:

1. Open the Settings app on your Galaxy S20.
2. Scroll down and tap on Notifications.
3. Tap the Pop-up style section, you will see two options: “Brief” and “Detailed”. Tap on Brief.

After changing to the “Brief” mode, check if the Edge Lighting works. If it’s still not working, proceed to the next fix.

Fix 02: Configure Edge Lightning Correctly

The edge lighting feature may not work on your Samsung Galaxy S20 as expected even if you’ve enabled the “Brief” mode. 

This is because you also need to configure the edge lightning feature correctly according to your preferences to make it more noticeable.

Here are the key settings you need to tweak:

1. Edge Lightning Style Effect: This setting allows you to choose the animation effect for the edge lightning.
2. Edge Lightning Style Color: Here, you can select the color for the edge lightning.
3. Edge Lightning Advanced Settings: This section includes settings for the duration, width, and transparency of the edge lightning.

To access these settings, follow these steps:

1. Go to Settings.
2. Tap on Notifications and then “Notification pop-up style”.

3. Scroll down and select “Edge lightning style”.

Once you’re in the Lighting Style settings, you can choose your preferred effect and color for the edge lightning notifications.

After selecting the effect and color, tap on the Advanced tab. Here, you can increase the edge lightning duration and width (if available) as you want. Set the transparency to low to make the edge lightning more noticeable.

Finally, restart your Samsung Galaxy S20 device to apply these changes.

Fix 03: Allow Apps to Show as Brief

You can choose to have Edge Lighting effects for some apps but not for others. If you’re not seeing Edge Lighting for a particular app, such as Messages or Facebook, it’s possible that the app is not set to display Edge Lighting notifications. 

You’ll need to change this in the “Allow apps to show as brief” setting.

Here’s how to do it:

1. Open the Settings app
2. Scroll down and tap on Notifications.
3. Tap on the “Notification pop-up style”.

4. Tap on “Apps to show as brief”.

5. You will see a list of all the installed apps on your phone. Find the app that you want to enable Edge Lighting for.
6. Tap on the switch next to the app to allow it to show as brief. If the switch is blue, that means the app is allowed to show brief popups.

Fix 04: Configure In-App Settings for Edge Lightning Feature

Certain apps, such as WhatsApp, allow you to control whether notification popups should be enabled or disabled. If you are not receiving edge lighting notifications from a particular app, you may need to adjust the settings within the app itself.

Here’s how you can do this for WhatsApp:

1. Open the WhatsApp app.
2. Tap on the three dots in the top right corner to access the “Settings”.
3. From the Settings menu, select “Notifications”.
4. Under the “Messages” section, ensure that the “Popup notification” option is set to “Only when screen “on” or “Always show popup”.

Note: If you are experiencing issues with other apps, you should check their individual settings as well.

Fix 05: Turn Off “Remove animations” in Accessibility Settings

The Accessibility Settings on your Samsung Galaxy S20 include a feature called “Remove animations”. This feature, when enabled, disables all animations on your device, including the Edge Lighting notifications. 

If are still experiencing issues with Edge Lighting not working, it’s possible that this setting is enabled and causing the problem.

To check and disable the “Remove animations” feature, follow the steps below:

1. Open Settings.
2. Scroll down and tap on “Accessibility”.

3. Under the Visibility enhancements section, find “Remove animations”.
4. If the toggle next to “Remove animations” is turned on, tap on it to turn it off.

Fix 06: Reset App Preferences

Resetting app preferences will fix software glitches that may be causing the Edge Lighting feature to malfunction.

Follow the steps below to reset app preferences:

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Scroll down and tap on Apps.
3. Tap on the More option (three vertical dots) at the top right corner.
4. Select “Reset app preferences” from the dropdown menu.

5. Tap on Reset to confirm.

Fix 07: Check Animation Settings in Developer Options

If you have enabled Developer Options on your Galaxy S20, it’s possible that changes to the animation settings could be affecting the Edge Lighting feature.

In Developer Options, there are three settings related to animations:

• Window animation scale
• Transition animation scale
• Animator duration scale

If these have been altered from their default settings, you need to reset them to their default values.

Here’s how you can do it:

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Scroll down and tap on Developer Options.
3. Scroll down to the Drawing section.
4. Here, find the following settings and ensure they are set to 1x:
   • Window animation scale
   • Transition animation scale
   • Animator duration scale
5. If they are not set to 1x, tap on each option and select 1x from the popup menu.

After making these changes, restart your device and check if the Edge Lighting feature is working properly.

Fix 08: Do a Software Update

If edge lighting is still not working on your Samsung Galaxy S20, it could be due to an outdated software version. 

Software updates come with bug fixes that can resolve existing issues on your device, including problems with the edge lighting feature.

To check for available software updates and install them, follow the steps below:

1. Open Settings.
2. Scroll down and tap on “Battery and device care”.

3. Scroll down and tap on “Software update”.

4. Tap on “Download and install”. Now your device will check for updates. If an update is available, you will be notified to download it.

5. Follow the on-screen instructions to install the update.

After updating, your Galaxy S20 will restart automatically and then you will see the edge lightning feature working perfectly.