- By Alex David
- Wed, 23 Apr 2025 06:43 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
Samsung is already working on One UI 8.5, and it’s reportedly being developed for the upcoming Galaxy S26 series—even though One UI 7 hasn’t reached many users yet. This rapid pace of development comes as leaks for One UI 8 continue to surface online, showcasing early builds and minor refinements over the current version. The news of One UI 8.5 in progress has taken many users by surprise, especially as a large portion of Samsung’s global user base is still waiting for the One UI 7 rollout. With One UI 8.5 expected to launch alongside the Galaxy S26 lineup, Samsung seems to be gearing up for a refined and more stable update cycle. Here’s everything we know so far.
The Return of .5 Updates
A report from the Sammy Police team finds mentions of One UI 8.5 in the code for Samsung’s software system, which means that they are likely going to skip version 8.1. They have also not released a “.5” One UI update since 2.5 back in 2020.
Moreover, Samsung has never issued a “.5” revision since 2020’s One UI 2.5. The shift to One UI 8.5 marks a return to this practice after five years. Unlike the “.1” or “1.1” updates that are fairly routine and trivial, “.5” editions tend to denote a more significant level of upgrade. For that reason, One UI 8.5 is expected to deliver more than just minor enhancements but rather substantial changes.
Samsung One UI 8.5
There are reports Samsung is starting to work on One UI 8.5 for the Galaxy S26 series, even as they are still rolling out One UI 7 to the remaining devices. They are also expected to reveal One UI 8 later this year, and with the expectation of 8.5 succeding the usual “.1” update of past years.
Though still speculative, the Galaxy S26 series alongside UI 8.5 is expected to launch on Samsung’s schedule. At the same time, the Galaxy Z Fold7 and Z Flip7 rumors suggest a release sometime in July-August, which is said to run on Android 16 based One UI 8.0.
As per a recent report, Samsung, alongside One UI 8.5, plans to add an ‘overhauled AI features’ and different visual identity to 8.5. Another tipster, Ice Universe, suggested that Samsung is planning to co-release One UI features with Google’s Android releases. Thus, we’d see One UI 8.0 with Z Fold7/Z Flip7 and 8.5 with S26 series.