I spent a month with One UI 9, and these are the 9 best features you need to try

Android 17-based One UI 9 is finally rolling out to eligible Samsung phones, and there’s a lot to like about it. I’ve been poking around the beta builds for over a month now, and a few of the features have genuinely stuck with me.

Most of these are buried a few menus deep, so here’s a quick roundup of what you shouldn’t miss.

Customize the Quick Settings panel

One of the first things you’ll probably notice after installing One UI 9 is the Quick Settings panel. The big change here is that the dark mode and sound mode toggles are no longer stuck inside the brightness and volume sliders. They’re separate now, so you can move them around just like any other toggle. The brightness and volume sliders themselves are now flexible too. You can resize them down to a compact 2×1 tile or even place them vertically.

Another big highlight is that the media player can now be resized. You can enlarge it to see the album art and controls clearly or shrink it down to a compact tile. Overall, the panel looks prettier and is more flexible than ever.

Show network speed on the status bar

This is the one feature I’ve wanted on my Galaxy phone for years: you can now finally add a network speed indicator on the status bar. It shows your internet speed in real time, though it doesn’t differentiate between upload and download.

Another catch is it’s not a native One UI setting. You’ll find it buried inside Good Lock’s QuickStar module. To enable it, head to Visibility of Indicator Icons inside QuickStar and flip on the Network Speed toggle.

Disable internet access for specific apps

One UI 9 also brings a feature called AI Network Guard, which basically lets you block internet access for specific apps. It’s technically pitched as a parental tool to help kids stay focused, but there’s no reason you can’t use it on yourself.

This option is buried in One UI’s Connectivity Labs menu, which is hidden by default. Head to Connections -> Wi-Fi, tap the three-dot icon, and choose Intelligent Wi-Fi. Tap on Intelligent Wi-Fi seven times, and it’ll unlock the Connectivity Labs option. Tap it, head into AI Network Guard, set up a PIN, and choose the apps you want to cut off from the internet. There’s also a Downtime option in here that blocks internet access during specific hours of the day.

Replace swipes with taps

By default, answering a call or dismissing an alarm on your Galaxy phone requires you to swipe the icon across the screen. It makes sense, but it’s a bit frustrating when your hands are slightly wet or when you’re holding something.

One UI 9 has a fix for this. You can now swap those swipe gestures for calls, alarms, and alerts with a tap. It’s technically an accessibility feature, but I think it’s useful for most people. To enable it, head to Settings -> Accessibility -> Interaction and dexterity, and turn on Replace swipe with single tap.

Use My FanCam in videos

My FanCam lets you take any video you’ve already shot, pick a specific person in it, and have Galaxy AI reframe the whole clip to keep them centered and in focus. It’s perfect for group shots where you want to focus on one person. Unlike most other Galaxy AI editing features, this one doesn’t generate any new content — it simply shifts focus to the person you choose and follows them through the clip.

To use it, open the video inside Samsung Gallery, tap the Galaxy AI icon, and choose My FanCam. It’ll detect all the faces in the video. Select the person you want to focus on, choose the aspect ratio, and let AI do its thing.

Create custom Now Brief cards

Now Brief does a decent job of showing personalized information based on the content you like. With One UI 9, though, you can build your own cards around weather, health, or videos, and decide exactly what each one shows. You can even control when these cards appear.

Head to Settings -> Galaxy AI -> Now Brief -> Custom cards to get started. You can create cards by specifying the information you want to include, and it’ll show a preview so you can see exactly what the card will look like before it appears.

Check Driving Report for insights

With One UI 9, your Galaxy phone can track your trips and driving habits. The Driving Report feature starts automatically when you connect your phone to the car via Bluetooth. It logs details like the route you took, distance covered, total driving time, average speed, and more. It uses your phone’s sensors to do all of this, and can even detect rapid acceleration, sharp turns, or phone usage while driving.

It packages all this and sends you a notification once your trip ends. You can also check previous reports manually by heading to Settings -> Connected devices -> Driving report.

Try Motion Assist

This one isn’t technically from Samsung — it’s from Google. Anyway, I’m glad it’s there. One UI 9 brings Android 17’s Motion Assist feature to help with motion sickness while using your phone in a moving car or bus.

It basically shows floating shapes around the edges of your screen that move in sync with your vehicle. This gives your brain the visual motion cue it’s missing. To turn it on, head to Settings -> Google services -> All services -> Motion Assist. You can even add its shortcut to the Quick Settings panel for easy access.

Check the “Warranty and care” menu

This is something you probably won’t need often, but the Settings app now shows a Warranty and care menu. Tap it to check your Galaxy phone’s warranty details and what’s actually covered.

If there’s something wrong with your phone, you’ve got a few ways to sort it out right from there. You can run diagnostics, ask Bixby for help, or use the remote management option to have a Samsung tech consultant take control of your phone and walk you through the fix. It also shows FAQs for common issues and lets you request a repair at a Samsung store from the same menu.

That’s it for this list. These were the highlights, but there’s plenty more packed into the One UI 9 update. If you’ve already got your hands on it, I’d love to hear what you think. Drop your thoughts in the comments.