A new app attempts to make the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip3 case screen more useful.

CoverScreen OS is a specialized launcher designed to work within the narrow confines of the 1.9-inch screen on the front of the Galaxy Z Flip3. The app was released this month on the Play Store, reports 9to5Google, and it adds options to access quick settings toggles, view home screen widgets, manage and respond to notifications, and even run entire apps on the small screen.

This adds considerable functionality to the cover display, which is mainly used to show notifications, control music, show alarms and times, or take quick selfies. It can display some widgets, but only a few.

Currently, the app has a number of negative reviews, which cite stability issues. But the developer – IJP – says that CoverScreen OS is currently in alpha stage, so bugs are to be expected. “The Play Store update review process is taking time due to the pandemic,” IJP says in response to the notices. “With each update it becomes more stable; the latest version is alpha_1.3.7, which has not yet been approved by Google.”

Despite the state of CoverScreen OS, it has a $10/month subscription or $99 one-time fee to unlock all of its features, according to 9to5Google. The developer says the fee goes towards developing what they admit is a “very niche app.” IJP however seems quite active on the project and maintains an XDA-Developers forum and a Telegram group for updates, technical support and to provide updated APK files ahead of Google Play releases.

Galaxy Z Flip3 owners with security concerns should approach an app like this with some caution. The app asks for permissions for access to notifications (needed to show them on the cover screen) and, more importantly, the accessibility service. On the app’s Google Play listing, the developer explains that the Accessibility Service is “exclusively used to interact with the device’s cover screen.”