06/10/2021
Android 12 officially launched yesterday, even if it’s not quite ready for most of us to use just yet. Still, phone manufacturers are making good time on testing builds for their respective devices. OnePlus 9 owners gained an invite to an Open Beta yesterday, and now it’s Samsung’s turn to extend the offer. Nearly a month after the One UI 4 testing program launched, a new beta is here with plenty of enhancements in tow.
The most significant change here, bar none, is the addition of Material You support. We’ve wondered for a while how much of Google’s slick dynamic theming engine would make its way to other devices, but it seems Samsung is among the group taking advantage of the feature. SamMobile reports they had to reboot more than once to apply changes to their phone, so don’t be surprised if it’s not in perfect working order just yet.
It’s not a 1:1 port of Material You, however. Samsung has renamed it “Color theme” under wallpapers in settings, and the hues seem to be more vibrant to fit One UI’s look better. We’ll have to wait and see how it fairs in the final release set for later this year, but for now, it’s great to see one of the biggest changes in Android 12 brought over.
Otherwise, this is your typical “second beta release,” fixing as many bugs from the initial launch as possible and adding a few more minor features that didn’t make the original cut. A new mic mode toggle promises to improve video calls, Samsung’s keyboard should be more accurate when typing, and “RAM Plus” adds virtual RAM to your device to help improve performance (at the cost of some storage space). October’s security patch is also included with this update.
As always, you can head over to Samsung’s developer preview site to see if your device qualifies. While you’re at it, check out everything we spotted in the initial One UI 4 beta release.
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