For this One UI 5 test, we installed Android 13 beta version on Galaxy S22 Ultra with One UI 5 test program. As the software is still under development, we do not recommend installing this version on your primary device. However, it should be noted that during our testing, Samsung One UI 5 beta 1 was very stable.
That being said, it’s pretty clear to me that UI 5 is a visual upgrade from previous Galaxy smartphones, with a more integrated color palette into the system. Additionally, we’re seeing a lot of optimizations that make the user experience smoother. But will that be enough?
Samsung will take ownership of the material in 2022
With Android 12, Samsung has integrated the system colors with the mobile phone’s wallpaper as well as compatible apps. However, a large part of the integration of these elements was still limited to Google Pixel devices. But in 2022, manufacturers will offer a wide range of themes and colors to match their skins.
So, Samsung has developed 16 new predefined color themes based on Galaxy phone wallpaper and 12 more color options. Moreover, the entire operating system seems to have changed, from the quick shortcut bar icons to the settings.
One example of this is the notification system in One UI 5. With the visual update, it’s now much faster and more intuitive to manage the type of notifications and alerts per app, as well as understand which categories of notifications each app can access. This is definitely an improvement that gives users more control.
Finally, the visual change that One UI 5 brings to Galaxy phones is to complete what was started last year with Android 12. It took Samsung a long time to offer a similar option to Google’s interface options, but now One UI certainly lives up to our expectations. You may disagree with me considering that design is subjective, but as a legitimate Samsung UI fan, One UI 5 is the cleanest and most intuitive interface I’ve used on any Galaxy device.
One UI 5 has become simpler and more intuitive.
Beyond the visual changes in One UI 5, we’ve got a number of small additions to the operating system, which combined make Samsung’s software smarter. For starters, you can arrange multiple widgets on the same field and navigate between them without leaving the same screen.
Like Apple, Samsung now allows the use of smart widgets, which means real space savings and better content management—like reminders and quick access to Drive documents, and more.
Smart with One UI 5 is Samsung’s default keyboard. As Android 13 does on Google’s Pixel devices, Samsung now offers content input through the phone’s camera. Samsung’s artificial intelligence, called ExtractText, recognizes written content and quickly inserts it into a text editor or message.
I’m also surprised that Samsung is closing the gap with Google when it comes to language capabilities in supported apps. This is because for the first time, Galaxy users can adjust the language of their choice in various apps from Settings. Being bilingual, this is truly an admirable feat.
Now, when it comes to the features that make UX more intuitive, functions like split screen and floating window have become central in the lab. Both options make a lot of sense on models like the S22 Ultra, which has a 6.8-inch diagonal screen and is now more logically arranged in the settings menu.
Finally, Samsung optimized the vibration motor, adding different intensities and allowing some actions. This type of system feature doesn’t particularly catch my eye, however, it is important as an accessibility feature.
But society is more…
Unlike my One UI 4 and iOS 16 beta analysis, this time I want to share the community’s perspective on Samsung’s next OS. Looking at the feedback from people testing One UI 5 in beta, it seems like Samsung got the visual changes right. However, the community is asking for advanced features like DeX mode and more freedom.
Also, native apps, which the manufacturer has been forcing on users for years, continue to be a source of complaints. People prefer the option of uninstalling services they don’t use rather than disabling them. And I agree that Samsung can provide a smarter option in this regard, without the dependent apps and services affecting the performance of the phones operating system.
Another point that caught my attention was some comments about the new features added to Samsung’s desktop feature, DeX. Among the most notable changes, I can mention text autocorrection support for the physical keyboard and taskbar improvements in One UI 5. However, the desktop mode is quite feature-limited when it comes to advanced work like audio editing.
So here it is clear that Samsung can go a long way to empower the user with 2-in-1 DeX-compatible phones.
Summary
A UI 5 is clearly what a UI 4 should have been last year. But as everyone knows: the devil is in the details. Overall, we have a number of small changes that make Samsung skins visually pleasing and more intuitive. But with every software update, Samsung seems to be missing one more thing—especially for those heavy users.
However, it’s important to remember that One UI 5 is still under development, and it’s likely that we won’t see more functionality added to the software until it leaves the beta stage. But now, I can say that by integrating more colors and themes, we have a more customizable UI, which gives users more benefits. And other optimizations were really good choices.
Also, the advantage for Samsung users is that the manufacturer has an excellent beta testing program, with the most stable version so far and probably the closest to the software that will eventually be shipped to all users. From A to S series, almost all Galaxy devices released in the last two years will get this update. And yes, this is a great achievement!
And for you: has Samsung offered enough so far? Is there still room for improvement? In which area?