Samsung S25/ S25 Ultra

[edubfromktown]

Unfortunately, that's where Samsung cannot copy Apple.

Apple deploys software to all their devices simultaneously... Samsung does it in stages, which you would think they could release it to the S25 series shortly after the event given it's to one set of group. But it's not necessarily too far off... next month the S26 series is released, then the following month One UI 8.5 is available.

Yeh, in my younger days I'd be waiting in anticipation. I was a beta tester for a number of software apps and programs in the past. These days I'm not in a hurry (use my S25U for personal and M365-containerized work stuff too). Reliability takes precedence for me over bleeding edge trail blazing anymore.

 

[yui4]

I assumed they’d release the S26 with 8.5 and S25 8.5 would release at a later date

 

[Sensamic]

My bet for the OneUI 8.5 update release is April at the earliest and May at the latest.

It's just the way Samsung does things, sadly.

 

[Sensamic]

So Samsung is again taking a lot of time to release its latest OneUI update to last years flagship.

Happened to me also with OneUI 7 and the S24. Now with OneUI 8.5 and the S25... I've read there's gonna be 10 betas for the S25... Must be a joke. They will take from December to May to release the update. Too much.

Makes me want to buy an iPhone or Pixel to have timely updates, but I just like how much useful stuff Samsung includes with OneUI.

But this is getting tired. It also seems no S26 features are coming with OneUI 8.5, but maybe with version 9. I remember Now Brief didn't come to the S24 with OneUI 7, but rather with version 8 I think.

So we might still get the new AI tricks later this year, but definitely not happy with how these manufacturers (Samsung... Apple...) are treating us as consumers, even those of us who pay big money for their flagship devices.

 

[edubfromktown]

So Samsung is again taking a lot of time to release its latest OneUI update to last years flagship.

Happened to me also with OneUI 7 and the S24. Now with OneUI 8.5 and the S25... I've read there's gonna be 10 betas for the S25... Must be a joke. They will take from December to May to release the update. Too much.

Makes me want to buy an iPhone or Pixel to have timely updates, but I just like how much useful stuff Samsung includes with OneUI.

But this is getting tired. It also seems no S26 features are coming with OneUI 8.5, but maybe with version 9. I remember Now Brief didn't come to the S24 with OneUI 7, but rather with version 8 I think.

So we might still get the new AI tricks later this year, but definitely not happy with how these manufacturers (Samsung... Apple...) are treating us as consumers, even those of us who pay big money for their flagship devices.

I prefer that they come out with a stable release in whatever timeframe is required.

Pushing the envelope often results in poor quality hyped nonsense that causes unnecessary headaches for the masses.

 

[Sensamic]

Seems like April 30th is when the stable update will be released, first in Korea, and a week later in other regions.

https://twitter.com/x/status/2041405886380532038

For OneUI 9 I really hope they do a big makeover to the lockscreen, making it more modern looking. OPPO and Xiaomi have amazing customization options for the lockscreen. I want depth effect, 3D parallax effect, better fonts for the clock and date, more widgets, new dynamic wallpapers, etc.

 

[sjsharksfan12]

I've lost track of pretty much any news when it comes to Samsung. I was thinking about the fact that it is now April and we haven't had the major update yet, but then all the "elite" and "cool" people have already had the update in beta form for like 6 months so it really doesn't matter anyway. Now I'm starting to see headlines talking about One UI 9 and at this point this stable release won't really matter. On to the next latest and greatest, which is probably exclusively more AI stuff anyway.

I think the most disappointing thing about this release was the now bar. I remember when they first talked about it and hoping other apps would get on board (It was like Android's version of Dynamic Island) and that really didn't happen. It actually feels like the software has stalled and like I said, it will be the next AI thing. Don't really know what to get excited about.

 

[The Game 161]

Samsung does this on purpose so they try and sell more s25 ultra units. They did this crap last year too

 

[Ludatyk]

For OneUI 9 I really hope they do a big makeover to the lockscreen, making it more modern looking. OPPO and Xiaomi have amazing customization options for the lockscreen. I want depth effect, 3D parallax effect, better fonts for the clock and date, more widgets, new dynamic wallpapers, etc.

I don't know about customization options for the lockscreen... there's LockStar and Wonderland to get more out of the lockscreen. But my main gripe with the lockscreen is media control especially with the Galaxy Fold... cover album needs to be bigger.

Compared to how Apple did with the iPad...

 

[Sensamic]

Finally received OneUI 8.5 today in Europe.

There are some small omissions, like not being able to put the "search" option in the home, or the option to "improve fingerprint accuracy" in the settings, which both come in the S26 and are not huge AI features, so don't understand why they're not here...

Anyways, it's a great update, very feature-packed.

Let's see what Android 17 brings tomorrow. It's supposed to be one of the biggest Android updates ever, per Google themselves.

 

[sjsharksfan12]

Finally received OneUI 8.5 today in Europe.

There are some small omissions, like not being able to put the "search" option in the home, or the option to "improve fingerprint accuracy" in the settings, which both come in the S26 and are not huge AI features, so don't understand why they're not here...

Anyways, it's a great update, very feature-packed.

Let's see what Android 17 brings tomorrow. It's supposed to be one of the biggest Android updates ever, per Google themselves.

I keep checking and haven't gotten it yet. Not a fan of Samsung's release schedule. At least with Apple you knew when updates would happen.

 

[Sensamic]

I keep checking and haven't gotten it yet. Not a fan of Samsung's release schedule. At least with Apple you knew when updates would happen.

Yeah, I'm not a fan either.

It seems the norm for older flagships is to wait between 2 and 3 months after the official release to get the update.

I don't even understand why some small features, like the ones I mentioned before, are not there for older devices.

 

[sjsharksfan12]

Yeah, I'm not a fan either.

It seems the norm for older flagships is to wait between 2 and 3 months after the official release to get the update.

I don't even understand why some small features, like the ones I mentioned before, are not there for older devices.

I'm getting the update this morning. Currently being downloaded.

 

[SteveJUAE]

Yeah, I'm not a fan either.

It seems the norm for older flagships is to wait between 2 and 3 months after the official release to get the update.

I don't even understand why some small features, like the ones I mentioned before, are not there for older devices.

I'm not sure Apple is that squeaky clean when it comes to updates re recent class actions and pending payouts etc 🙂

However re your 2 features you noted:

You can add finder which is more powerful IMO with search bar to your home screen using goodlock

My Fold 7 on 8.5 has "improve fingerprint accuracy" so I would be surprised if not there

 

[TheBigKing]

Anyone in USA got the update? I am on latest beta and i sm not getting stable

 

[edubfromktown]

Anyone in USA got the update? I am on latest beta and i sm not getting stable

I did 12+ hours ago (T-mobile unlocked/MVNO). So far it seems to be working fine.

 

[rhinosrcool]

I'm on Verizon, and I just got the 8.5 update.

 

[Sensamic]

Received the june update, which includes priority and summarize notifications. Almost on par with the S26 in regards to AI features now. Very nice, although not a huge feature anyways...

My phone still feels extremely fast and fluid, battery is still at 100% after a full year and 265 cycles, etc. But, being a tech addict, I really want to upgrade to something even better, even though I don't see the perfect phone to change to.

OPPO Find X9 and Xiaomi 17 are some nice options, but I'm sure those silicon carbon batteries will degrade faster than my S25, and I would still have to wait months for updates... Pixel 11 might be another option if Tensor G6 improves a lot, also video recording quality must drastically improve.

 

[MarkX]

Received the june update, which includes priority and summarize notifications. Almost on par with the S26 in regards to AI features now. Very nice, although not a huge feature anyways...

My phone still feels extremely fast and fluid, battery is still at 100% after a full year and 265 cycles, etc. But, being a tech addict, I really want to upgrade to something even better, even though I don't see the perfect phone to change to.

OPPO Find X9 and Xiaomi 17 are some nice options, but I'm sure those silicon carbon batteries will degrade faster than my S25, and I would still have to wait months for updates... Pixel 11 might be another option if Tensor G6 improves a lot, also video recording quality must drastically improve.

The Xiaomi 17 battery is rated to still have around 80% health after 1600 charge cycles according to Xiaomi themselves.

Given that, on my xiaomi 17 I'm sometimes stretching a charge to 2 days on lighter use, more commonly 1.5 days on regular use though.

 

[Sensamic]

I really hope OneUI 9 brings optimization and bug fixes.

OneUI 8 was much better for me than 8.5. There's lag in the quick settings panel, the color scheme in Google apps is broken (also in S26), black theme in phone app is grey, etc.

 

[edubfromktown]

I really hope OneUI 9 brings optimization and bug fixes.

OneUI 8 was much better for me than 8.5. There's lag in the quick settings panel, the color scheme in Google apps is broken (also in S26), black theme in phone app is grey, etc.

I must be old because I didn't notice much difference between 8 and 8.5 on S25U.

Turned 60 years of age recently... some things matter less now. I'm celebrating that body parts don't hurt too badly 😉

 

[Sensamic]

I must be old because I didn't notice much difference between 8 and 8.5 on S25U.

Turned 60 years of age recently... some things matter less now. I'm celebrating that body parts don't hurt too badly 😉

Trust me, I feel the same way most times.