C. Scott Brown / Android Authority
Samsung is the most popular smartphone manufacturer in the world. Therefore, many people use Samsung devices. If you think of yourself as one of them, then you already know One UI—the software that provides support for your Android phone or tablet.
You can also take a look: The best Samsung phones you can buy right now
In the following article, we will provide you with a crash course on Samsung Android skins. For those who are new to the Samsung mobile phone world, this should be a good primer. However, even for long-term Samsung fans, there may be some cool information here.
Editor’s note: This article is updated to August 2021. As Samsung reveals more information about its Android skins, we will add/remove content.
A user interface is clear at a glance
Robert Triggs/Android Authority
Samsung launched One UI for the first time at its annual developer conference at the end of 2018. Soon thereafter, the company launched a beta program for existing Samsung devices. The first brand new smartphone series to install the skin is the Samsung Galaxy S10 series, which landed in March 2019.
Every year, One UI gets a new numbered version. During that year, Samsung usually releases a point version with small updates. One example is One UI 2.5, which was launched with the Samsung Galaxy Note 20 series, bringing new photography, stability and gesture features.
You can also take a look: What is Android?
Compared with other Android skins, Samsung has adopted a “kitchen sink” approach to One UI. The skin incorporates various functions, allowing users to fine-tune their phones to behave in almost any way they like. Of course, the disadvantage of this is some important “function creep”, that is, a large number of functions actually end up making users more confused.
In any case, One UI is one of the most popular and popular Android skins on the market. Its stability, rich features and cross-device unity help Samsung firmly maintain its status as the king of smartphones.
The latest version of One UI
C. Scott Brown / Android Authority
Samsung releases a new numbered version of the Android skin every year. 2018 is One UI 1.0. In 2019, we saw the release of 2.0. We see version 3.0 landing in 2020, and we are now preparing to launch One UI 4.0 sometime in 2021.
The latest stable version of the skin is One UI 3.1. This was first launched with the Samsung Galaxy S21 series. Since then, it has entered many other Samsung devices, including older flagship products, mid-range products, etc.
Before we see the stable release of version 4.0, we may see a new point skin version. If so, it is likely to land with the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 launched on August 11.
How to check your version and updates
Dhruv Bhutani / Android Authority
If you don’t know which version of One UI you are using on your Samsung device, you can easily check it. Here are the steps:
- Go to settings by clicking the icon in the app drawer or the gear icon in the notification bar.
- Scroll to the bottom of the list and tap “About phone.”
- Next, click “Software Information”.
- The first list at the top of this page tells you which version of One UI you are using.
If you are running an older version of One UI, there may be updates waiting for you. You can use the following steps to check for software updates:
- Go to settings by clicking the icon in the app drawer or the gear icon in the notification bar.
- Scroll to the bottom of the list and click “Software Update”.
- On this page, click “Download and Install”.
- Your phone will check for any updates and guide you how to install them.
If your software is up to date, but you do not have the latest version of One UI, it means that your phone has not received the update. Your phone may also be too old to get new updates.
A brief history of One UI
As mentioned earlier, Samsung launched One UI in 2018, but before that, the company has released a number of smartphones. These early Samsung phones had different Android skins.
Samsung’s first skin is called TouchWiz. It lasted from the early Android smartphones to 2016 and Android 6 Marshmallow. TouchWiz is colorful and cartoonish—not the most beloved skin.
Samsung’s first skin is called TouchWiz. This evolved into a Samsung experience, and then became a user interface.
People breathed a sigh of relief when Samsung launched its next skin, the Samsung Experience. It landed in 2016 and first landed on a device running Android 7 Nougat. The experience is more refined than TouchWiz, and provides an elegant and simplified UI.
A user interface finally adopts the overall appearance of the experience and further adjusts it. Samsung may replace One UI with different skins in the future, but for now, the response to the software is positive, and we don’t think it will appear anywhere anytime soon.
What does a UI look like
This is a gallery of screenshots to let you know what to expect from One UI.
5 unique features of One UI
Eric Zeman/Android Authority
Each Android skin has its own mark on the software. Here are five things that a UI can do but most other skins cannot.
Theming
Samsung has added many themes and customization options to One UI. There is a complete shop where you can buy or get free themes. You can install custom always-on display widgets and designs, and you can easily change fonts, icons, etc. If you like the look of your Android phone, Samsung can provide you with the tools you need.
Dex
Modern flagship phones are as powerful as some laptops. So why can’t you treat your cell phone as a cell phone? Samsung’s Dex mode does just that. Simply connect your phone to the monitor, mouse and keyboard via wired or wireless connection, and then the boom: your phone becomes a computer. Dex looks a lot like Windows and can launch all your favorite mobile applications and games. Unfortunately, Dex is only equipped with certain high-end Samsung devices.
Side button customization
Samsung refers to the power button as the side button. You can choose to make this button do all kinds of things, which is why Samsung doesn’t like to call it the power button. You can use the side button to launch Samsung’s artificial intelligence assistant Bixby, double-click it to launch the camera, and so on.Even third-party usage This allows you to further customize the key.
Edge panel
You may be accustomed to using navigation gestures at the bottom of your phone. However, for some Samsung devices, you can swipe in from the upper side of the display to access the edge panel. This is essentially a multifunctional widget from which you can launch applications, tools, messages, or other shortcuts. Advanced users are big fans of this feature.
Galaxy Store
Finally, one of the most unique aspects of Samsung phones is the Galaxy Store. The storefront works similarly to the Google Play Store, but offers apps and games you won’t find there. It’s worth noting that the Galaxy Store comes with Fortnite, which no longer appears in the Play Store.
This is all you need to know about Samsung One UI! Be sure to bookmark this page as we will update it when Samsung changes the Android skin.