A new version of Android is released every year, but every manufacturer also makes changes and tweaks that are specific to its devices.
One UI is the most well known of these ‘skins’, as it’s what you’ll find on all recent Samsung smartphones and tablets.
Android 14 is now official, and it wasn’t long before Samsung revealed the new version of One UI that will run over the top of it. Plenty of new features were announced, but it’s not yet clear when One UI 6 will be arriving on your devices.
Here’s everything you need to know about the upcoming version of Android for Samsung devices.
When will OneUI 6 be released?
On 5 October 2023, during the Samsung Developer Conference (SDC23), the company unveiled detailed plans for the the future of its ecosystem. One of the main talking points at the keynote was One UI 6 and the improvements it’s going to bring about.
Unfortunately, even though we got to hear a lot about new features, there was no concrete information about the release date. However, with a ninth beta launching in late October, Notebookcheck believes a final version could be ready very soon.
One thing we do know is that it’ll be running on the upcoming Galaxy S24 series, which is expected to launch around late January 2024. After that, it should slowly make its way to all the models that will be eligible for the upgrade, as well as other upcoming models such as the Galaxy A55 and Galaxy A35.
Which phones will get One UI 6?
Along with their detailed plans for all the features in One UI 6, Samsung also announced a list of devices that will get the next version. Here are all the devices that can expect the update at some point after its release.
Galaxy S series
- Galaxy S23 Ultra
- Galaxy S23+
- Galaxy S23
- Galaxy S22 Ultra
- Galaxy S22+
- Galaxy S22
- Galaxy S21 FE
- Galaxy S21 Ultra
- Galaxy S21+
- Galaxy S21
Galaxy Z series
- Galaxy Z Fold 5
- Galaxy Z Flip 5
- Galaxy Z Fold 4
- Galaxy Z Flip 4
- Galaxy Z Fold 3
- Galaxy Z Flip 3
Galaxy A series
- Galaxy A73
- Galaxy A72
- Galaxy A54
- Galaxy A53
- Galaxy A52 (A52 5G, A52s)
- Galaxy A34
- Galaxy A33
- Galaxy A24
- Galaxy A23
- Galaxy A14
- Galaxy A13
- Galaxy A04s
Galaxy M series
- Galaxy M54
- Galaxy M53 5G
- Galaxy M33 5G
- Galaxy M23
Galaxy F series
- Galaxy F54
- Galaxy F23
- Galaxy F14 5G
Galaxy Xcover series
Galaxy tablets
- Galaxy Tab S9 Ultra
- Galaxy Tab S9+
- Galaxy Tab S9
- Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra
- Galaxy Tab S8+
- Galaxy Tab S8
What new features does One UI 6 have?
One UI 6 is set to be quite a substantial change, introducing several new features and notable quality of life improvements on Samsung phones and tablets. Here are the most important ones:
Quick panel
youtube.com / Samsung
The biggest UI change in One UI 6 is the Quick panel, Samsung’s take on the quick settings menu. It introduces a new button layout which will make it easier to access the most useful features first, like Wi-Fi and Bluetooth toggles. The panel itself is now divided into the most important part at the top, a customisable panel in the middle, and a visual options panel at the bottom.
There are more layout changes, such as an improved album art display in the panel and the ability to quickly access brightness controls. One UI 6 also makes it much quicker to access the full Quick panel, as it requires just two swipes down to get all your options.
New personalisation options
youtube.com / Samsung
On eUI 6 also focuses on personalisation. You’ll now be able to reposition the clock on your lock screen, as well as add different watch faces.
You can also customize it with routines, allowing it completely different based on the time of day. This means not only different watch faces or wallpapers, but also shortcuts to different apps.
Camera and editing improvements
youtube.com / Samsung
Samsung also announced lots of One UI 6 features for taking better photos and videos, but also editing them using AI and machine learning (ML).
Firstly, you can now add custom camera widgets to your home screen, each opening the app in different shooting modes and with the options of your choosing. You’ll also have much easier access to options such as resolution settings, video size menu or effects, making customising your photos and videos much easier.
There are also options which allow you to decide quality your photos will be saved at. This allows you to choose how much post-processing is to be done to your photos, giving you more freedom to shoot the way you like.
The Gallery app has also got some attention. It will analyse photos using AI and has new features such Photo Remaster (for improving the quality of photos and GIFs) and Object Eraser (for removing objects you’d prefer not to be in the frame.
Elsewhere, a new video editing app called Samsung Studio aims to make it quick and easy to edit video directly on your phone.
Galaxy connected experience
youtube.com / Samsung
Samsung is also trying to unify its ecosystem even more. Sharing content between Galaxy tablets and smartphones was already easy, but One UI 6 makes it just as easy between Android and Samsung’s Galaxy Book laptops.
You can even control all these devices with the same mouse and keyboard, making the experience seamless and allowing you to, for example, copy and paste content between these devices without any issues.
New system font
youtube.com / Samsung
One change that might not affect the way you use your phone, but you will notice, is the new system font. One UI Sans will be the new default system font, and is designed to make it feel more modern and improve readability.
Other interesting features
There are a lot more small changes that the update will bring to Samsung devices. The full list can be found on Samsung’s website, but here are a few worth mentioning:
- New weather widget with personalised tips based on the weather
- New schedule view for the Calendar app
- Samsung Internet can now play videos in the background
- New Smart select tool for pinning image to the screen, resizing it and selecting only a portion of it
- New accessibility options: magnification customisation and cursor thickness settings