It appears details of Samsung’s upcoming One UI 8.5 update have been leaked, revealing the wave of new features the software installment will likely bring to your current Galaxy handset – and potentially what the Galaxy S26 series will launch with.
The information was posted on X by leaker Tarun Vats (via Android Police), who claims to have exclusively got hold of the One UI 8.5 changelog detailing what appears to be pretty much every change.
While we can’t be sure this leak is accurate, take what it reveals with a pinch of salt, it does appear to fall in line with rumors and reports to date.
What’s new?
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the leak claims the One UI 8.5 update will expand AI capabilities within the software, including “Continuous image generation” which the notes say “lets you generate AI images using different Photo assist features without saving each iteration. When you’re done, you can review all your creations in your history and pick your favorites.”
Samsung’s own AI assistant, Bixby, could also become more useful, with the ability to understand natural language requests – meaning you shouldn’t need to be quite so prescriptive when you’re asking it to do something, plus it might be able to deliver quick answers faster.
Samsung Health also appears to be in line for some updates, with enhanced weekly reports, upgraded sharing, and improved watch controls.
And for those of you who like to keep an eye on the forecast, the weather widget is set to be enhanced with precipitations graphs, while pollen index information is also tipped to be added.
According to the leak, there will also be enhancements when it comes to connectivity, accessibility, battery, security and privacy.
What this leak doesn’t mention though, are any model-specific updates which might arrive with One UI 8.5. Sometimes we see certain devices get focused updates around their cameras, battery or other key features. So there could be more to come if you own the Galaxy Z Fold 7, Z Flip 7, or one of the Galaxy S25 handsets, for example.
When One UI 8.5 does become available, don’t expect it to hit all Galaxy phones and tablets at the same time. Samsung could well follow the staggered rollout it did for One UI 8, with the S25 series first in line, with the update arriving on older devices over the following weeks and months.
In terms of when you can expect One UI 8.5 to hit your phone, its release is still unconfirmed. There are reports saying Samsung could open its beta program for the update as soon as December 8 for users in the United States, the United Kingdom, Korea, and Germany, but the firm hasn’t said anything officially yet.