Immediate lock

[gwinegarden]

One of the things that I have noticed about WP is the lack of some rather simple things.

One example is the ability to lock your phone, immediately, and require a password, when you feel the need. I have done some research and cannot find any way to do so. Yes, I can set my phone to require a password every time or after a certain period of time, but this can be overkill. It still would be nice to be able to do this when needed.

I am surprised that nobody has written an app for this, or is there no way to do this, from an app?

 

[Pete]

Um..

Just use the power button to turn off the display and set a PIN on your lock screen.

Settings->Lock screen and set "Require a password after" to "each time".

Now, every time you tap the power button, your phone is locked.

I don't really understand why you'd need anything other than that.

 

[Poirots Progeny]

Um..

Just use the power button to turn off the display and set a PIN on your lock screen.

Settings->Lock screen and set "Require a password after" to "each time".

Now, every time you tap the power button, your phone is locked.

I don't really understand why you'd need anything other than that.

Agreed - works for me!

 

[tk-093]

You guys are totally missing what he is asking for. He specifically said what you suggested is overkill.

He wants a quick way to lock the phone in a pinch. It's no different then my work PC. The auto lock will kick in after 15 minutes but if I get up to run to the bathroom or anything else, I just hit Windows - L on my keyboard and BAM, instalock.

That is exactly what he is asking for on his mobile device. It's a fair request. I have not found any app that does this. Could be there is no API to take advantage of.

 

[Al_2]

This is a roundabout way but if you activate Kid's Corner, lock your phone and then go into Kid's Corner, it'll lock the main part of your phone. Not really a great solution but if you wanted to lock your phone quickly without setting it to lock every time you could try this.

 

[gwinegarden]

You guys are totally missing what he is asking for. He specifically said what you suggested is overkill.

He wants a quick way to lock the phone in a pinch. It's no different then my work PC. The auto lock will kick in after 15 minutes but if I get up to run to the bathroom or anything else, I just hit Windows - L on my keyboard and BAM, instalock.

That is exactly what he is asking for on his mobile device. It's a fair request. I have not found any app that does this. Could be there is no API to take advantage of.

Thank you for understanding my issue :smile:

 

[hopmedic]

One of the things that I have noticed about WP is the lack of some rather simple things.

One example is the ability to lock your phone, immediately, and require a password, when you feel the need. I have done some research and cannot find any way to do so. Yes, I can set my phone to require a password every time or after a certain period of time, but this can be overkill. It still would be nice to be able to do this when needed.

I am surprised that nobody has written an app for this, or is there no way to do this, from an app?

Unfortunately, no, there is not a way to do this from within an app. Microsoft has not exposed an API to lock the phone. The only way I can think of is the above suggestion to use the Kids' Corner.

 

[jmshub]

I'm not sure why you want to lock your phone, but leave the display on. If you walk away from the phone or otherwise wish to lock it, the quickest way is to hit the power switch to blank the screen.

 

[hopmedic]

I'm not sure why you want to lock your phone, but leave the display on. If you walk away from the phone or otherwise wish to lock it, the quickest way is to hit the power switch to blank the screen.

What he's looking for is a way to lock it right away if the lock setting isn't the same as the screen off setting. I have mine set for the screen to time-out after 3 minutes, and lock after five. If I turn my phone off, it won't require the PIN for the first five minutes. That's how I like it. But it would be handy if there were a way to tap something and have it lock right away, if there was a reason to leave my phone sitting somewhere.

 

[jmshub]

My sense of personal security is such that when my devices are not in use, they should require a password to operate. Every time. I better understand the question of OP, but I still fail to see why you would want that. I said before, your phone is now a device that carries a TON of personal information. I'd think you'd always want this thing locked when it's not in your hand.

 

[foxbat121]

The only thing I found on Android is you can configure the power button as lock key on Nexus 5 with Kit Kat. Otherwise, it is pretty much the same from iOS to Android to WP8. With iOS7, you are required to have a unlock PIN (not sure if you can bypass) and you will be asked to enter it everytime you unlock the device.

Locking the phone is a privacy concern to prevent others peek into your personal information. But there is only so much way to slay a dragon (e.g. limited keys/buttons). I hated the way my Nexus 5 does because I use power button to put phone into sleep (blank the screen) more often than lock the phone. In the end, I let phone auto lock after 5 minutes. That's the best balance between convenience and privacy.

 

[tk-093]

My sense of personal security is such that when my devices are not in use, they should require a password to operate. Every time. I better understand the question of OP, but I still fail to see why you would want that. I said before, your phone is now a device that carries a TON of personal information. I'd think you'd always want this thing locked when it's not in your hand.

I don't need it locked when it's in my pocket and I'm grabbing it every few minutes because I'm obsessed with my phone, but if I have it plugged in charging at my desk and I want to run to the bathroom or to grab a pop, it would be nice to be able to lock it and just leave it charge like I can on my laptop. It would simply be a nice feature that would match features on desktop Windows. I think even WM 6.5 had it, but it's been so long I can't remember. I think if you held the power button down for a few seconds lock was one of the choices along with reboot and power down. You personally may not ever use that feature, but nothing wrong with having a choice.

The only thing I found on Android is you can configure the power button as lock key on Nexus 5 with Kit Kat. Otherwise, it is pretty much the same from iOS to Android to WP8. With iOS7, you are required to have a unlock PIN (not sure if you can bypass) and you will be asked to enter it everytime you unlock the device.

Locking the phone is a privacy concern to prevent others peek into your personal information. But there is only so much way to slay a dragon (e.g. limited keys/buttons). I hated the way my Nexus 5 does because I use power button to put phone into sleep (blank the screen) more often than lock the phone. In the end, I let phone auto lock after 5 minutes. That's the best balance between convenience and privacy.

iOS 7 still lets you choose a lockout time. My iPad 2 is set for an hour right now. (Don't ask me why, it usually is at like 15 minutes.. i just fixed it.) Maybe the fingerprint scanner on the 5S works different? Either way you're right about the 5 minutes. That's probably the best balance until there are more options... if ever.

 

[jmshub]

It still seems like you are arguing semantics. You can set the lock screen require a password after a certain amount of time. I'm kind of not sure what more you're looking for.

 

[gwinegarden]

Sorry, it's not semantics (it's English). Yes, I have it set to require a password, after a time, but, on occasion, I would like to lock it before the time is up. And, requiring a password every time I unlock the screen is total overkill.

 

[kesis01]

After activating children's corner, you can do it as follows:
1. Press power key twice to get the lock screen
2. First swipe to lelf, then swipe up: you enter the children's corner
3. Press the power key
Now, when,pressing the power key again, you get the lock screen; and when swiping up you are asked for the password.

A bit complicated, but it does the job.

-Martti

 

[ShreyansShah]

After activating children's corner, you can do it as follows:
1. Press power key twice to get the lock screen
2. First swipe to lelf, then swipe up: you enter the children's corner
3. Press the power key
Now, when,pressing the power key again, you get the lock screen; and when swiping up you are asked for the password.

A bit complicated, but it does the job.

-Martti

yes. it does the job. i was gonna suggest this way out.
actually its a bit long, but, basically, windows / msft thinks that we r gonna keep our phones in hand at least for 30 seconds after pressing power button.:winktongue:

 

[gwinegarden]

Actually, I just found an app to do what I was looking for.

Simple Screen Locker | Windows Phone Apps+Games Store (Canada)

On tap and the phone is locked.

 

[kesis01]

That app doesn't password lock the phone, but otherwise it's just great! :smile:

 

[gwinegarden]

That app doesn't password lock the phone, but otherwise it's just great! :smile:

It, definitely, password locks my phone.

 

[kesis01]

That's weird, it doesn't work for me. I have to change to "always require password" in settings in order to make it require a password.