Samsung Pay gets Android 8.0 support: Galaxy S8 Oreo beta incoming?

Samsung began launching beta programs for major software updates with Android Marshmallow in 2015. This provided an opportunity for the company to test the software on a small scale and receive consumer feedback before its final roll out. It was followed by the Android Nougat beta program for the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge last year, which launched in the US on November 9 and ran through to late December.

Since Google’s Android Oreo announcement on August 21, we’ve been waiting for news of an Oreo beta program hitting Samsung’s latest Galaxy S series phones — the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus. We came across a hint that Samsung was working on the Oreo beta a couple of weeks ago, and today we’ve received a further indication that it’s gearing up for its deployment.

Samsung fansite Sam Mobile reports that the Samsung Pay app has been updated to include support for Android Oreo on one of its Galaxy S8 models located in Sweden. This update is likely landing on other S8 and S8 Plus devices in the region too, which would suggest that Samsung is preparing its apps for compatibility with the upcoming Oreo beta.

This beta program is likely to hit the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus simultaneously, and given the timelines for the software rollouts last year — Nougat appearing on August 22 and Samsung Nougat’s beta on November 9 — we may see it land in the next four to five weeks.

Samsung’s Nougat beta was open to owners of the S7 and S7 Edge on Verizon, T-Mobile, and Sprint last year, while AT&T and Unlocked owners weren’t able to take part. It’s not yet known how the rumored beta program would be handled this year.