Samsung opens One UI 4 beta: See availability, changelog, and new features

Samsung has launched the highly anticipated One UI 4 beta program. Users can now register to try out the new software on their Samsung Galaxy S21, S21 Plus, and S21 Ultra devices through the Samsung Members App.

One UI 4 is based on Android 12. Samsung says it introduces a number of improved customization and privacy capabilities. The beta program will be available in China, India, Germany, Poland, South Korea, UK, and the US. The release date of the software can vary by each market. However, users in the aforementioned locations can now check the Samsung Members app to sign-up for the beta.

Related: How to join Samsung’s One UI 4 beta program

Participants in the One UI 4 beta program will be able to preview the design and new features of the skin. Speaking of, Samsung has detailed some of the new experiences headed to One UI 4.

Samsung One UI 4 beta features

There’s a big focus on customization this time around. Users will get “a wealth of theme options” that let them adjust the look and functionality of their devices. You’ll be able to personalize things like home screens, icons, notifications, wallpapers, and much more. Samsung is possibly referring to Android 12’s Material You wallpaper-based theming options.

Samsung has also redesigned widgets to offer deeper customization — from visibility to appearance. You can see a screenshot of what some widgets will look like in the image above. Users also get access to a more diverse array of emojis all in one place, so they can easily navigate their options.

Furthermore, One UI 4 brings some new privacy and protection features to the table. Indicators alert users to app, camera, and microphone usage, a core privacy feature of Android 12. One UI 4 also expands on Android 12’s permission options, allowing users to view their permissions history from the last seven days, not just the last 24 hours. They can also check the current data usage of both their permissions and their apps.

Of course, there will be much more to One UI 4 than what’s mentioned above. Tipster Tron has shared the complete changelog of the One UI 4 beta update. The update is 2.4GB in size and also contains the September security patch for the Galaxy S21 series.

Some of the key new One UI 4 features listed in the changelog, apart from the ones mentioned above, include the following:

• Ability to change the audio output to a different device from the lock screen
• Ability to decrease screen brightness to Extra Dim (An Android 12 feature)
• A new voice recorder widget for the lock screen
• A monthly calendar on the calendar widget
• Ability to set Always-on Display to turn on whenever you get a notification
• New animated stickers
• New visual effect for charging
• New writing assistant in Samsung keyboard powered by Grammarly
• New multitasking options
• Improved Settings search to find related features depending on what you search for
• Cleaner Camera app layout
• Your phone’s overall status is shown as an emoji on the main screen
• Improvements to Samsung Health.

You can also view images of how some of those new features look like in the gallery on top of this section. We’ll be sure to get you a hands-on with the new software once we get access to it.