Samsung One UI 7 beta: 5 new features you can try out now on your Galaxy S24
- Samsung’s first One UI 7 beta is rolling out to Galaxy S24 devices
- It heralds some major Galaxy AI updates, including call transcription
- In addition to AI, One UI 7 also makes some UX changes
Finally, Samsung has started rolling out a beta version of its One UI 7 software update for Galaxy S24, S24 Plus, and S24 Ultra devices.
Based on Android 15, One UI 7 – which will debut in finished form next year alongside the Samsung Galaxy S25 series – overhauls a number of key Samsung UI elements, including default app icons, the Quick Settings box and the Galaxy camera interface.
Samsung users who own a Galaxy S24 in the US and South Korea can download the One UI 7 beta now, while other regions will follow in the coming days. Below we’ve rounded up five new features that you can check out once you’ve installed them.
Samsung kicked off the Great Smartphone AI Craze of 2024 in January with its Galaxy AI feature suite, and the company has continued to improve its AI features with each new update to One UI.
That trend continues in One UI 7, with AI-powered writing tools (Chat Assist, etc.) the subject of the latest software-based facelift. Galaxy AI users can already summarize content, check spelling and grammar, and automatically format notes into bullets, but One UI 7 now allows users to increase their productivity by selecting texts, without having to switch between applications, says Samsung .
We’ve reached out to the company for confirmation on what exactly that means, but it looks like One UI 7 will make Samsung’s existing AI-powered writing tools more easily available (i.e. usable) in more apps.
AI-powered conversation transcription
Owners of top Samsung phones have had access to a built-in phone call recording tool since Android 9, but until now there was no native method for transcribing phone calls on Galaxy devices.
One UI 7 finally introduces an AI-powered call transcription feature, meaning users can now choose to have their recorded calls automatically transcribed for later use. Apple rolled out a similar Apple Intelligence-based feature in iOS 18.1, as did Google for the Pixel 9 series, so we’re happy to see Samsung joining the pack.
At launch, Samsung’s AI-powered call transcription feature will support 20 languages, including English, Spanish, Chinese and Korean.
The Nu bar
The most interesting new One UI 7 feature of the bunch is the Now Bar, a new notification system that “highlights relevant activities in various functions such as Interpreter, Music, Recording, Stopwatch and more.” Samsung says this new widget – which can be accessed from your phone’s lock screen – “reduces the need to constantly unlock the device and allows users to interact with important information effortlessly.”
You can think of the Now Bar as Samsung’s version of Apple’s Dynamic Island, but bigger and capable of displaying a larger number of notifications.
A redesigned camera UX
Good news, photography fans: One UI 7 introduces a redesigned camera UX. Samsung says camera buttons, controls and modes have been “reorganized (in One UI 7) to make it easier to find the features you need and to give you a clearer preview of the photo you’re taking or the video you’re watching records. .”
The layout of the manual settings has also been simplified in the Pro and Pro video recording modes, meaning it should be easier to focus on your subject, and a new zoom control has also been added to help you control the zoom speed for smoother transitions. Neat!
Streamlined home screen
In addition to making changes to notifications, Galaxy AI features, and the Camera app, One UI 7 also streamlines the Galaxy Home screen. The update brings a “significant new look” and a “simple, impactful and emotional design” to One UI widgets, app icons and the lock screen, which Samsung hopes will encourage customization and clean up previously cluttered pages.
In the past we’ve been critical of Samsung’s approach to app and menu presentation, so we’re glad to see the company taking a leaf out of Apple’s book in this regard. Samsung CEO Patrick Chomet told Ny Breaking in January that his “dream for Galaxy AI (is to reach a point where he doesn’t) ever have to go into settings,” and One UI 7 brings the Galaxy ecosystem a step closer. that utopian vision.