Samsung Said to Have Begun Testing One UI 8.5 Update on the Galaxy S24+

Samsung recently announced the release schedule of the One UI 8 update for Galaxy devices in India. Now, the South Korean tech conglomerate is said to have begun testing its next iteration, dubbed One UI 8.5, for select older models. As per a tipster, the latest build of the Android 16-based firmware has been spotted on an internal test server for one of the handsets in the Galaxy S24 series.

One UI 8.5 for Galaxy S24+

This information comes from Tarun Vats' post on X (formerly Twitter). The tipster spotted One UI 8.5's internal test build on Samsung's server, which was officially listed as a “newfound test firmware”. It is said to come with the build versions S926BXXU9DYIA/ S926BOXM9DYIA/ S926BXXU9DYIA.

As per the tipster, this particular firmware is for the international variant of the Samsung Galaxy S24+, bearing the model number SM-S926B.

Notably, this discovery builds upon recent sightings of the One UI 8.5 test build for the international variant of the Galaxy S25 (SM-S938B) and the Galaxy Z Fold 7. However, merely the listing on the Samsung server does not hint towards the release timeline of One UI 8.5 firmware, although it does confirm the development of the firmware for the aforementioned Galaxy models.

Previously, a leak of the One UI 8.5 firmware shed light on several of the upcoming features. One of the major changes is likely to come to the Phone app, with a revamped design. Dialer, Call Logs, and Contacts tabs do not occupy the entire width of the screen. Instead, they are reportedly placed inside a pill-shaped capsule at the bottom.

The app is also said to get a new feature called Direct Voicemail. As per the leak, it works similarly to Live Voicemail on iOS and also provides a live transcription of the recorded message.

Like the Phone app, the Studio app in One UI 8.5 may also get a new navigation bar. There is also another tab at the bottom of the screen, called Stories, which joins the existing Pictures, Albums, and Search options.

Other changes reportedly include revamped UI in the Device Care section, a new splash screen in the Galaxy Store app, and an updated version of the app launcher.