SamFwGalaxy S24 was just announced by Samsung at the Galaxy Unpacked event with many new features that come with Galaxy AI. Besides, the company also mentioned upcoming features on One UI 6.1, which was launched at the same time as the high-end phone line. However, during the event, the company was so focused on introducing AI tools and new phone products that it did not have time to mention some notable One UI 6.1 features. other. In this article, SamCafe will introduce to readers five new features available on One UI 6.1 and also mention a feature that Samsung has completely removed from this new update.
AI wallpaper creation feature
This is a new feature from Samsung that allows users to enter descriptive sentences to create an image using AI artificial intelligence and use it as a phone wallpaper. This feature has been used by Google on the Pixel 8 series and now the Korean technology empire is applying and perfecting it to make it more familiar to Samsung fans.
Similar to the Pixel 8's AI wallpaper design tool, this feature requires a data connection to work. Currently, you will not be able to create wallpapers directly on the device but will have to go through an online server to create an image on demand thanks to AI. You can then download it as your phone wallpaper. However, perhaps in the future, Samsung will release a new update that will allow you to create wallpapers directly on the device.
To be able to create an image by AI on your Galaxy S24 device, go to Wallpaper and Style> Change wallpaper > Creative.
Ambient wallpaper
Another wallpaper-related feature also added to One UI 6.1 is Photo ambient wallpaper - ambient wallpaper. It allows overlaying weather data onto any of the user's static wallpapers. You give Samsung a photo or graphic, and it overlays the weather effects happening in your area like whether it's snowing, raining, sunny or cloudy... This allows You can quickly view and update the current weather situation through your phone's wallpaper.
Currently, this feature is part of Labs on One UI 6.1. The reason is that it can reduce the quality of some original images or cause small errors in different locations. To use this feature, go to Settings > Advanced features > Labs, then enable the ambient wallpaper feature. Once done, you add a background image just like you normally would by going to Backgrounds and Styles. You'll find a new photo environment option next to the general AI option.
Lock screen widget
Lock screen widgets also get significant improvements in One UI 6.1. In One UI 6.0 and earlier, while lock screen widgets were viewable, you needed to click the clock icon to see them. However, in this new version, widgets will automatically appear on the lock screen when you pull it up. You can only see them in the small box area below the watch, but this allows you to get a lot of data quickly without having to unlock the phone or even touch it.
Always on Display wallpaper
Always on display (AOD) mode will change in this new version of One UI. If users are bored with AOD's background which is only pure black, in the new update, AOD can use the lock screen's wallpaper but blurred, making your surrounding screen look personal much more transformed.
With this change, it will likely consume more battery than the traditional black background. However, if it doesn't drain the battery too much, this trade-off is well worth it. In case you want to disable this feature to save battery, simply go to Settings > Lock screen and AOD > Always-on display, then turn off the Show lock screen wallpaper setting.
Samsung Find
Samsung Find is a brand-new app that you won't find on older Galaxy devices. It is similar to Apple's Find My iPhone and Google's Find My Device, helping users easily track and find the device if accidentally lost through positioning, in addition to enhancing internal data security. It also combines some of the features you usually see in the SmartThings app and adds some other new features.
In the application, there will be three sections including People, Devices, and Items. The People section allows users to share their location with others, similar to a feature available on Google Maps. In the Devices section, users will find and track their Samsung devices, such as smartphones, tablets, laptops, etc. Finally, the Items section allows you to track and Control or find objects with your Smart Tags attached.
Currently, this application is available on the Galaxy S24 series. However, you can manually download this app on your old Galaxy device once it has been upgraded to the One UI 6.1 version.
The feature to hide the navigation bar has been removed from One UI 6.1
In this new version, Samsung decided to remove the feature of hiding the navigation bar. The navigation bar appears at the bottom of the screen when you enable gesture navigation. On previous versions of One UI, you could hide this section if you thought it was an eyesore.
The reason for this removal is that One UI 6.1 will now have a new search feature, Circle to Search. When selecting gesture navigation mode, users need to press and hold the navigation bar to use this AI feature. Therefore, if you hide the navigation bar, the Circle to Search feature will be disabled.
Therefore, Samsung decided to remove this feature of hiding the navigation bar. However, this will cause dissatisfaction for users who use gesture navigation and hate navigation bars. For those using the three-button navigation system, there won't be any changes.
One UI 6.1 is coming to Galaxy devices soon
Currently, One UI 6.1 is available on Galaxy S24 and it is expected that Samsung will release this software update on some devices before the end of the first half of this year. Devices include the Galaxy S23 series, Galaxy S23 FE, Galaxy Tab S9, Galaxy Z Fold 5, and Galaxy Z Flip 5. With the remaining products in the expected list, users can still experience One UI 6.1. However, Samsung cannot promise it will be released in the first half of this year.
