Samsung announced today that a handful of devices won't jump from One UI 5.1 straight to One UI 6.0. The company wants to bring One UI 5.1.1 to more devices first. One UI 5.1.1 debuted with the Galaxy Z Fold 5, Z Flip 5, and Tab S9 tablets, and Samsung told us it plans to release the update to older models.
The company says that One UI 5.1.1 will go live for the Galaxy Z Fold 4 and Z Flip 4 “starting this month,” whereas older models, such as the Galaxy Z Flip, Z Flip 3, Z Fold 2, and Z Fold 3, should be “receiving the update sequentially.”
Through One UI 5.1.1, these foldable devices will gain access to new features, such as two-handed drag-and-drop of content from one app to another, the ability to open an app in a pop-up window over another app and then hiding that pop-up window at the side of the screen for quick access later, quick switching between pop-up view and Multi Window mode for supported apps, and more. The GIF files embedded below will give you a good idea of how some of these new features work.
One UI 5.1.1 is planned for numerous Galaxy tablets
In addition to the foldable phone lineups, Samsung will also release One UI 5.1.1 for a bunch of Galaxy tablets across different ranges. And the list isn't limited to high-end models, surprisingly enough. The company didn't reveal a timeframe for when the update might go live for tablets but confirmed that Tab devices eligible for One UI 5.1.1 include:
- Galaxy Tab S8, Tab S8+, and Tab S8 Ultra
- Galaxy Tab S7, Galaxy Tab S7+, and Galaxy Tab S7 FE
- Galaxy Tab S6 Lite
- Galaxy Tab A8
- Galaxy Tab A7 Lite
- Galaxy Tab Active 3 and Galaxy Tab Active 4
Although One UI 5.1.1 won't bring things like the Flex Mode panel to the tablets mentioned above, the update will include all the same multitasking improvements and the enhanced taskbar, the latter of which now allows faster switching to up to four recently used apps.
Needless to say, if you don't want to wait for Samsung to gradually roll out the One UI 5.1.1 update, you can experience these software improvements if you buy the Galaxy Z Fold 5 or Galaxy Z Flip 5, or one of the tablets from the Galaxy Tab S9 lineup. But if you don't feel like upgrading your hardware, sit tight, and Samsung will eventually upgrade your experience through new firmware.