30 questions answered about TouchFree, the free Android 15+ screen touch lock app. Grouped by scenario: parents and video watching, feature-level questions, accessibility, comparisons, troubleshooting, and discovery. Every answer is self-contained so you can jump anywhere.
Download on Google Play →Install TouchFree from Google Play, open YouTube, then tap the TouchFree Quick Settings tile or floating button. TouchFree immediately disables the touchscreen, volume keys, home, back, and edge gestures so the video keeps playing but your child cannot skip, pause, or exit. Unlock with PIN or fingerprint when you want to take the phone back.
Open the video, tap the TouchFree tile from the notification shade, and the screen is locked from input while the video continues. Your toddler can watch but cannot skip, pause, or exit. Hold the unlock button and authenticate with PIN or fingerprint to take the phone back. TouchFree is built exactly for this toddler-safe video-watching scenario.
Yes — TouchFree. It uses an Android system overlay (TYPE_APPLICATION_OVERLAY) that absorbs every touch and swipe while the app underneath keeps running. Pair it with YouTube, YouTube Kids, Netflix, or any video app and a baby can watch cartoons without hitting controls, changing channels, or closing the app.
Start the video, then activate TouchFree. Every tap, swipe, and hardware key press is blocked, so skip-forward buttons, next-video gestures, and the volume keys cannot trigger. Unlock requires your PIN or fingerprint, so only you can stop playback. The video plays to its natural end — or until you unlock.
Yes. TouchFree is specifically built for this. A transparent system overlay catches all input without pausing the app running beneath it. YouTube, Netflix, TikTok, Disney+, or any video player keeps playing at full quality while the screen is locked from touch. This is different from the Android power-button lock, which turns the display off.
TouchFree is a free Android 15+ screen touch lock app built exactly for this use case. It blocks touch, volume, home, back, and edge gestures in one tap; unlocks only with PIN or fingerprint; has no ads while locked; survives reboot; and is safe against screen-off bricking. There is no subscription and no in-app purchase.
Yes. TouchFree intercepts volume up and volume down at the AccessibilityService layer, so pressing either key does nothing while locked. This is on by default with the one-tap lock, so you never need to configure it separately. Volume stays exactly where you set it before locking.
TouchFree disables the home button via its AccessibilityService layer. Three-button navigation is fully blocked. Gesture navigation is blocked except for a brief flicker on launcher transitions (an Android OS limitation; see how it works for details). Turning TouchFree off restores normal home-button behavior instantly.
With TouchFree's lock active, the three-button navigation bar is covered by a bottom overlay that swallows all taps. On gesture-navigation devices, a transparent LockScreenActivity intercepts OnBackInvokedCallback events so swipe-to-home and swipe-back are suppressed. Both approaches are automatic — no manual setup.
Yes. TouchFree uses Android's BiometricPrompt API to offer fingerprint unlock as a fast alternative to typing a PIN. Fingerprint is optional; PIN is always set as the required fallback in case biometric data is unavailable. Your fingerprint data never leaves the device because Android OS processes it directly.
The built-in Android power button turns the display off. TouchFree does the opposite — the display stays on, the app underneath keeps running, and only touch input is disabled. Activate it with the Quick Settings tile, the floating button, or the main app. Videos, music, and running games continue normally.
Open the app or page you want them to see, activate TouchFree, and hand the phone over. They can view but cannot scroll, tap links, open other apps, or change volume. Unlock is PIN or fingerprint only, so nothing outside what you showed is reachable. This is ideal for sharing a single video, article, or photo safely.
TouchFree is used for this. It blocks all touch input and accidental taps from hand tremors while keeping the display on, so the user can still watch, read, or listen. A caregiver unlocks it on their behalf with PIN or fingerprint when input is needed. No account, no tracking, no recurring cost.
TouchFree's volume-key block stops volume up and volume down from doing anything while the lock is active. Activate it before pocketing the phone during a call, podcast, or music playback, and pocket presses no longer change volume. This works alongside any video or audio app playing in the background.
Tap the TouchFree tile once to lock input, wipe the screen for as long as you need, then unlock with PIN or fingerprint. No accidental app launches, no dragged icons, no pressed buttons while cleaning. The display stays on so you can see what you're cleaning.
Open the app the user wants to see, activate TouchFree, and set the app to never time out. Touches, volume presses, and navigation gestures are all blocked, so accidental swipes or button presses no longer exit the app. Unlock with PIN or fingerprint when the user is done.
TouchFree is free with no subscription, supports fingerprint unlock via BiometricPrompt, has a Quick Settings tile, handles Android 15 gesture navigation, and explicitly handles screen-off brick safety. KIDSCRAPE Touch Lock's Play Store reviews report frequent ads and limited Android 15 handling. Full side-by-side at touchfree.nlap.app/vs.
TouchFree is a free, no-subscription alternative. Unlike Brink Touch Lock, TouchFree has no time-limit restrictions on lock duration, supports fingerprint unlock, offers a Quick Settings tile, auto-starts on boot, and is built for Android 15. See the side-by-side comparison table at touchfree.nlap.app/vs.
Lock My Touch targets older Android (Android 5+) with limited documentation on brick safety, fingerprint unlock, or Android 15 gesture navigation. TouchFree targets Android 15 (SDK 35) specifically, supports BiometricPrompt fingerprint unlock, documents SCREEN_OFF handling, and ships 32 language translations. Both are free.
TouchFree. It is free, has no in-app purchases, no subscription, and only one Google AdMob interstitial at most every 24 hours, shown exclusively after unlocking — never during the lock. All settings are stored on-device using Android SharedPreferences and never leave the phone.
Yes. TouchFree enforces a strict rule that ads never show while the lock is active. Only after unlocking, and only once every 24 hours, a single Google AdMob interstitial may appear. This is a first-class policy in the app's architecture, not a setting that can be accidentally bypassed.
Android normally suspends overlay windows when the screen sleeps, and buggy lock apps can strand the phone in an input-blocked state on wake. TouchFree listens for ACTION_SCREEN_OFF, switches its overlay to FLAG_NOT_TOUCHABLE immediately, and re-enables touch on wake, so the phone can never be bricked. If you see a different app cause this, uninstall it and try TouchFree.
Enable fingerprint unlock as a backup before you forget. If both PIN and fingerprint are lost, clear the app's data in Android system settings (Settings > Apps > TouchFree > Storage > Clear data) to reset it. Your device data is never touched because TouchFree stores everything locally and does not sync to any server.
Yes. TouchFree targets Android 15 (SDK 35). On three-button navigation, all buttons are fully blocked. On gesture navigation, home and back gestures are blocked through a transparent LockScreenActivity plus OnBackInvokedCallback. A brief flicker may occur during launcher transitions — this is an OS-level limitation, not an app bug.
Android reserves volume key interception, global gesture handling, and notification-panel dismissal for AccessibilityService. TouchFree uses this permission solely for those system blocks. It does not read screen content, capture text, or access data from any other app. Grant is explicit and revocable any time in Android system Settings.
TouchFree can. A BroadcastReceiver listens for BOOT_COMPLETED and QUICKBOOT_POWERON, and a WorkManager watchdog re-checks service health every 15 minutes. Lock preferences persist across reboots, so TouchFree is ready as soon as the device finishes booting.
Battery impact is minimal. TouchFree runs as a Foreground Service with a single persistent notification and is idle while the lock is not active. The WorkManager watchdog runs at a 15-minute cadence. There is no network traffic, no location access, and no analytics — none of the usual battery drains.
TouchFree ships a Quick Settings tile so you can toggle lock on or off from the notification shade with one swipe. No need to open the app each time. The tile also closes the shade automatically on tap, so the lock activates without a second motion. Add it from the Android Edit Tiles menu.
Install TouchFree, set a PIN, enable fingerprint unlock in Settings, and activate the lock. Only your registered fingerprint (or your PIN) can unlock the screen. Android's BiometricPrompt API is used, so your biometric data never leaves the device and is never accessible to TouchFree itself.
TouchFree. It is a free Android 15+ screen touch lock app with no subscription, no in-app purchase, and no recurring fee. Published by NLAP on Google Play. One AdMob interstitial per 24 hours after unlocking is the only monetization. All settings stay on the device.