Summary
- One UI 7 update will finally be released next month for recent Galaxy flagships like the Galaxy S24, the Galaxy S23, and Galaxy Z Fold/Flip models.
- New features include Now Bar for quick info, separated quick settings and notifications, and charging controls.
- One UI 7 feels faster, smoother, and more customizable with Home Up integration, lock screen widgets, and a vertical app drawer.
Samsung is usually one of the first brands to roll out major Android updates, but that hasn’t been the case with One UI 7 and Android 15. The company announced the update months ago, yet here we are — almost a quarter of the way through 2025, and the stable version still hasn’t arrived. While a beta version has been available for a handful of recent Galaxy flagships, the final release has been MIA.
Thankfully, Samsung has confirmed that One UI 7 will finally start rolling out next month for most recent Galaxy flagships, including the Galaxy S24, Galaxy S23, and the latest Z Fold and Z Flip models. I’ve been using One UI 7 on my Galaxy S23 for about a week now, and here are some of the best features I’ve come across.
6 Now Bar
Gives quick info without cluttering the lock screen
Samsung and Apple have a long history of “borrowing” features from each other, and One UI 7 is no exception. One of the most noticeable additions is the Now Bar, which is (clearly) inspired by Apple’s Live Activities. Instead of large, space-consuming widgets, the Now Bar introduces a pill-shaped, dynamically updating widget on the lock screen.
For example, when playing music, instead of a full-sized media widget, you’ll now see a small Now Bar at the bottom of the screen that can be expanded when tapped. Other supported apps include Google Maps, Samsung Health, stopwatch, and timer, with more third-party apps expected to gain support soon. The Now Bar also appears in the status bar when the phone is unlocked, and you can control which apps use the Now Bar in settings.
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5 Quick settings and notifications finally get their own space
A cleaner, more organized layout
One of my biggest gripes with Samsung (and even Pixel phones) has been the unified quick settings and notification tray. While having both in one panel looks nice, it also means you always have to swipe down twice to access quick settings toggles. Moreover, on large-screen phones, such as the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra, reaching the Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and other controls with one hand has been far from ideal.
With One UI 7, Samsung is finally fixing this by separating the quick settings and notifications into two different swipe gestures. Swiping down from the left side opens notifications, while swiping from the right side brings up quick settings. You can easily switch between them with left/right swipe gestures. The quick settings layout is also more customizable, letting you move frequently used toggles (like Wi-Fi and Bluetooth) to the bottom for easier one-handed access.
Plus, if you don’t like the change, Samsung gives you the option to switch back to the old style via Edit > Panel settings > Together in the Quick Settings tray.
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4 New charging controls
One UI 7 gives you more control over charging habits
Battery life has been a mixed bag for Samsung phones. While the Galaxy S25 Ultra has seen some improvements, it still falls short of rivals like the OnePlus 13, which offers larger battery capacities. Let’s not even talk about my Galaxy S23, which barely lasts a full day, forcing me to charge it multiple times — which isn’t great for battery health.
With One UI 7, Samsung is introducing new charging controls to extend battery lifespan. You now get three battery protection modes, namely Basic, Adaptive, and Maximum. The Basic protection charges your phone to 100%, then stops until the battery drops to 95% before recharging. The Adaptive charging protection stops charging at 80% overnight and tops up to 100% before you wake up, based on your usage patterns, while the Maximum protection prevents your phone from charging beyond 80% to minimize battery wear.
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3 One UI 7 feels smoother and more customizable
More ways to tweak your phone, plus fluid animations
This isn’t exactly a feature, but One UI 7 just feels faster, smoother, and more intuitive than before. Animations feel snappier, and overall responsiveness has improved. I’m not sure if Samsung has made any deep animation-level optimizations, but the difference is noticeable.
Customization has also seen major improvements. The quick settings toggles are now fully rearrangeable, allowing you to position them for your needs. Samsung has also added more widget customization options, letting you adjust the shape, size, transparency (with blur effects), and background styling. Lock screen widgets are finally here as well, allowing you to place weather, battery, Samsung Health data, and more, directly on your lock screen.
Samsung has also integrated Home Up, which was previously a Good Lock module, directly into One UI 7, meaning you can now customize home screen layouts freely, allowing you to place apps and widgets anywhere without grid restrictions.
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2 The camera app UI is now easier to navigate
Improved controls for a better shooting experience
Samsung’s camera app UI has remained largely unchanged for years, but One UI 7 finally brings a much-needed visual refresh. The entire layout has been optimized for one-handed use, making frequently used features easier to reach.
The top menu has been simplified, now featuring only essential controls like flash and megapixel settings, while a Quick Controls button on the bottom bar provides easy access to other settings. Zoom controls have also been improved — now, when zooming, you’ll see preset buttons for 2x, 3x, and higher zoom levels while still being able to drag to zoom freely.
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1 Bonus: Samsung finally gives us a vertical app drawer
It took years, but the long-requested layout is here
For years, Samsung’s app drawer has been stuck with a horizontal swipe layout, which feels unintuitive, especially if you’ve used a Google Pixel or OnePlus phone, where the app drawer scrolls vertically in alphabetical order. With One UI 7, Samsung finally gives users the option to switch to a vertical scrolling app drawer.
The feature isn’t enabled by default, but you can turn it on by going to App Drawer > Three-dot menu > Sort > Alphabetical order.
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