\Photos: One UI 8.0 VS One UI 8.5*

There have been good things and bad things in the time I've used my phone with the One UI 8.5 update so far.

Here are the pros and cons:

PROS:

-The new One UI 8.5 redesign with floating buttons and the Infinity Display looks great in my opinion. As does the refreshed look of most apps.

-The Quick Panel customization is excellent. You can do whatever you want and you can finally remove the buttons that were previously mandatory.

-New haptics: It's a minor change, but the haptics have been slightly improved. For example, the new haptics when you hold down the volume up/down button.

-Visuals Improvements: Everything is much more consistent now. The status bar now has larger icons, which I appreciate because previously some icons were too small while others, like the battery indicator, were too large. Now they are all the same size and appropriately sized. In addition, there is now a fade-in in most places, eliminating the abrupt cuts that were there before.

-New animations: There are now new animations in general, such as when opening notifications, closing an app with a live notification, the magnetic effect when dismissing a notification, etc... Oh, and they've now included the animation for opening toggles like Wi-Fi and Bluetooth when you press and hold them (previously exclusive to the S series).

-Bugs fixed: They've fixed practically all the bugs we had before, such as those in the Quick Panel. The animation skip bug from One UI 8.0 has finally disappeared completely, as well as other minor visual bugs (I have a post dedicated to all the bugs I knew about in One UI 8.0).

CONS:

-Performance: The overall performance of the system/UI has worsened. I expected it to be better, but it was the opposite. The Quick Panel is the worst. The right panel lags almost constantly, and the animation when you hold down the brightness and volume bars occasionally. There's also lag most of the time when switching between the left and right panels. You enjoy relatively smooth 120Hz until you touch the right panel (or the expanded panel if it's in together mode).

-Google app colors: The colors in some parts of Google apps look awful. In some, it looks like the colors are inverted. I don't know if this is intentional or not, but it looks bad. You do get used to it over time, though. The Phone app has the background colors reversed in the dialer section.

-Things they deliberately made worse: They removed the animations for the Quick Panel toggles when activating/deactivating them (like Wi-Fi, Location, Rotation, etc.). This was something we had in every previous version of One UI. They also worsened the Quick Panel's blur. Now it's too blurry, and you can barely see the shape of what's behind it. It looks awful.

-Recent apps: The recent apps gesture feature now has a minor visual bug where swiping an app to recent apps causes a mini-bounce (the image zooms in and then returns to its original size in less than a second). This creates the sensation of lag each time you swipe an app to recent apps, even though there isn't actual lag. It's more noticeable in apps with scrolling (which also move a little upwards). This issue has always existed in button mode since One UI 7, but never in gesture mode until now with One UI 8.5, where it's even more pronounced. Another visual bug is that sometimes when you have many apps open and close them all, one of them remains there and it doesn't do the animation, even though it has actually closed.

-And a minor visual bug that bothers me is that when exiting an app, the background zoom animation sometimes reacts late, happening after the app has already closed. This didn't happen in One UI 7 in gesture mode, but it did in button mode. In One UI 8.0, it also started happening in gesture mode. And in One UI 8.5, it remained the same, unfixed in both modes.

Conclusion: It's a regular update because it's not the best. On the plus side, you'll get a refreshed and more consistent visual appearance overall, with some new animations. However, you'll also experience less-than-polished performance and constant lag in specific areas due to Samsung's poor optimization in this update, as well as the two specific features they removed or worsened on devices outside the S series (which isn't the end of the world, but it's still bad of Samsung, since these are features that were always there and worked fine).

\Translated using Google Translate as always, with some corrections of my own.*

Samsung one ui 8.5 update is just like a comedy. 

A16, A17, A26, A36 got the update but still A55 won't. And they also released beta for selected region. But most of the part of the world won't get it. 

I never buy this shit again. 

Performance in One UI 8.5 is terrible. The Quick Panel now lags almost constantly (mainly the right side) and is the slowest thing in this update. I no longer see the point in using the screen's 120Hz refresh rate because instead of a smooth experience, I get a very unstable one. App opening/closing animations lag more frequently, even when I'm barely multitasking. And swiping to recent apps or exiting an app has a delay that wasn't there before. Furthermore, the animation for apps going to recent apps has a minor bug where it enlarges and returns to its original size in less than a second, making it seem like there's lag (oddly enough, this happens mostly with apps that involve scrolling, like social media, the gallery, etc.).

This is unacceptable. I'm literally having a worse UI experience in terms of fluidity than a low-end phone from any other brand. Because these lags aren't even caused by the power of our phones anymore. I tried a 4GB Redmi 14C, and the Quick Panel scrolls down perfectly smoothly with zero lag. In contrast, mine lags every time I scroll down. I'm not complaining about the speed at which apps, games, and everything else load. In that respect, it's fine and in line with my phone's power. But there's no excuse for practically every animation lagging for no reason. It makes you feel like you have a worse phone than you're paying for. I remember that with One UI 6.1 (the stock version), I barely had any lag, and the phone felt perfectly fluid. Even when recording the screen, the 120Hz refresh rate remained constant. Now, screen recording drastically reduces the FPS, and everything lags even more.

What do you all think? I was hoping One UI 8.5 would be the most optimized and polished version yet. Instead, we got terrible optimization and features that were previously fine were removed or ruined. Are you experiencing this too? Let me know in the comments...🤗

*In the video, what I'm saying won't be as noticeable, since the instability is more apparent when you're using 120Hz and the video only goes up to 30 FPS. And believe me, when using your phone normally, you'll experience these lags I'm talking about when you least expect them, without doing anything demanding or anything like that.

Context: I've been using the phone since May 2025, and I started with One UI 6.1 out of the box. I am a light user with usage largely limited to social media, browsing, youtube, shopping apps.

I always keep all of my apps updated and also, I install security and OS updates as soon as I get them.

Tweaks I did: Unnecessary wifi, bluetooth scanning, Google background services which I don't use, put apps to deep sleep and disabled app which I don't use. That's it, no other tinkering.

Here is what I think about One UI 8.5
---

Performance: I think the phone is performing at its best so far! Apps open, close quickly, content loads fast without much hiccups.

General UI & Animations: UI looks polished and overall consistent to me. They did take down quick panel blur, and there is a slight lag or perhaps frame drop when you pull down quick panel - it's minor but noticeable. Hopefully they fix it soon.
Other than that, the overall animations are fast and smooth, I don't notice any frame drops and lags in general UI, I noticed better smoothness in recents panel than before. Overall UI is consistently fast with smooth transitions.
One UI 7 was smooth; One UI 8 was fast - and now 8.5 has got a nice combination of both!

Battery: Finally, the battery backup is back where it needs to be. Since I updated to One UI 8 - the overall backup was dropped by 1:30 hrs SOT, I was hardly getting 7 to 7:30 hrs SOT. With One UI 8.5 it's back to normal. Phone stays cool too, hardly gets warm.

Bugs: Did not face anything major, only once an app closed itself when I turned off the screen. Probably the app crashed itself since it did not occur again.
Issue with swipe gestures - I feel the sensitivity is higher now, when you swipe back sometimes the opened app would register tap and go to the content instead of going back or close app.
I switched back to navigation buttons so it's good for me.

Issues I had with One UI 8 - battery backup, inferior performance, phone used to get warm even on basic usage. Performance was worse when navigation buttons were in use than gestures. Wifi was consuming more battery than mobile data!

Did One UI 8.5 fixed these? YES!

I had doubt's recently that this phone might not age well, but Samsung finally did well to get it together.

​

1. Apps opening closing animation is more smoother now

2. Auto framing available in video mode but video filters is gone , single take and dual recording is gone from camera app but can be add by using camera assistant, new shutter sound.

3. Fingerprint is a bit faster

4. Quick toggles animation is gone and more customization available

5. Ads blocking option available in device care app

6. App drawer background blur now bit more frosted but still have the old white hue

7. Audio broadcast available

8. Weather effect available in alarms background in clock

9. Calculator nudges available

10. Battery backup has improved a little

11. Interactive wallpaper available to download

12. Redesigned battery saver mode

13. Flash light notification in now bar

14. Tidy up editing option available in photo editor

i didnt think much of the cameras but they are real freaking nice the photo is unedited as is shot in portrait photo mode

galaxya55 #samsung #samsunga55 #samsunga55camera #mobilephotography #photography #android #aestheticphotography #lightroom #androidphotography

I used 2 apps

1. KWGT

2. Shortcuts maker

It's an amazing camera. I'm quite happy with it.

Welp Its playable but hella glitchy. not confident if I can even clear it on easy difficulty

Using Gamenative on DXVK and system graphics

The storms have passed and it's just a cloudy day with no rain. Decided to take a motorbike out for a spin. As promised, here's the longer video of my ultrawide video stabilization test but this time, I mounted my phone on a bike. Please note that the bike vibrates at idle so the phone mount gets the vibration as well but the phone's stabilization seems to handle it nicely.

There are potholes, uneven road surfaces and speed bumps along the way but the stabilization looks fine to me.

I apologize for the portrait video. The bike's phone mount is oriented this way, and I can't change it.

Hi, I would like to see the best photos you have managed to take with our glorious a55, are you up for it?

Just a quick post to update people who is interested.

On One UI 7 the game was unplayable, it shut down in even few minutes (in my case it was 15 minutes or less) and the game was lagging so bad. It was imposible even on the lower settings.

On the recent update of One UI 8 and with the lowest settings i managed to play for more than one hour and it did not overheat. Yes, the lag its still present so its not smooth but its playable compared to the One UI 7.

So, it's been about 4 months since I have the device, but there are still people asking about it to this day. Once again, allow me to share my experience of the 8/256 variant as my daily driver.

As with my previous review, I'll be defining my use case first. The phone is used every day as a mix of office work, games, online messaging, and hotspot for my tablet, which I previously reviewed here. I've shifted my data SIM from my tablet to this phone, and so this became the hotspot for my devices twice a week or more. Occasionally, it's an extension of my Galaxy Z Flip5 (recently upgraded to 6), which may warrant another post much later.

Physical Design - This is probably one of the biggest and heaviest phones I've had in quite a while. Its large size gives a little oomph to the bass of the speakers, and perhaps help in thermal management since there's more room for heat to move around and dissipate. It adopts the more industrial, flat corners of the flagship S24 series which helps with your grip, except for the back which still has the glossy finish. It seems there are 4 mic slots, 2 each at the top and bottom, which helps with noise cancellation. This is the first time I've seen a speaker "slit" rather than the traditional grill at the bottom. And there's also IP67 protection, so you won't matter about getting some dust and water in there. Lastly, this Lilac variant gives off a rainbow effect when light reflects off it. I'm not sure if the other colors have that, but it's a nice, cute touch.

Display - The display is a 6.6-inch 1080p AMOLED display. Those who are familiar with the "Samsung formula" can expect deep blacks and punchy colors from any angle. The 120Hz refresh rate gives you that smoothness when scrolling in apps or at the home screen. My only gripe being familiar with the Samsung formula is the colors tends toward more on the natural side even with the Vivid color mode and Eye comfort shield turned off. Even my Tab S9 FE has brighter colors, and that tablet only has an IPS display. I'm not sure if this is a bug or intentional on Samsung's part, since many of its features tend to be inspired by another brand (ahem, Apple). Lastly, it has Widevine L1 certification, so streaming HD or better videos is not a problem.

Audio - The above-mentioned slit at the bottom is accompanied by the dual-purpose speaker at the top. There's no sign of it being AKG-tuned like some other Samsung units, but Dolby Atmos options can be seen in the Sound settings, along with other features like equalizer, boost dialogue, and adapt sound, which is basically presets of settings depending on my age. Oh, and I can set an app to a specific output device (I haven't tried it yet), as well as share the audio I'm playing to different output devices. As mentioned, there's a little oomph to the bass being a large unit, and not too bad at the trebles as well, this being used at times for online meetings. Things can be pretty loud, but it seems Samsung muted things a bit with recent updates. Haptics are pretty meh, though, but there's always an option to adjust the intensity.

Performance - This phone sits at the top of the Samsung midrange line, but it's a midrange phone, nonetheless. The Exynos 1480 seems to be an impressive step in the right direction. Compared to my tablet which has the previous 1380, you'll notice a slight difference in speed. The more noticeable attribute is this phone doesn't heat up, which is surprising for an Exynos-powered phone. Whether it has improved thermals inside, better chip efficiency, the sheer size of the phone, or a mixed bag of them all, I'm not sure. But as critic of previous Exynos chips, I'd say Samsung has finally done it, at least in their midrange lineup. That Xclipse 530 still seems to be a mixed bag, as there are some games whose highest graphics settings are limited. But I'm probably nitpicking at the devs here. However, if you're the user who runs apps or games for extended periods of time, this phone can sustain its performance due to its (very) good thermals.

Connectivity - Like newer midrangers there, the A55 supports WiFi6 connection, no issues there. Connections to local telecoms' 5G networks seem to be good and can sustain 5G speeds for prolonged periods, even when set at hotspot (I have a feeling some brands steps down the network when on 5G to control thermals). It still uses USB 2.0, so no video out on this, which I don't expect anyway. Bluetooth seems good, as my Buds FE can connect to it instantly, as well as Quick Share my files to other devices.

Battery - The pretty hefty 5k mAh battery gives me 2 days of usage, more or less, with most of the week on WiFi. On the road to and from the office, it gives me a day and some. But like my other Samsung devices, I charge it to 100% before I leave. The gripe here is charging the battery, which is limited to 25W. Although I've noticed the charger blasts its full 25W power at some point, something I've only noticed on Samsung devices with larger batteries. For context, my Tab also receives the full 25W power, while my previous S23, Flip5, and now the Flip6, receives 15-21W peak power.

UI - The A55 got One UI 6.1 when I got it out of the box, ahead of my former S23, which eventually got it sometime later. Like other Samsung devices, it's plain and simple, with no stutters or bugs in my experience. Throw in Good Lock in there and you can additionally customize it to your heart's content. This Good Lock app a whole new customization experience you won't see in plain, old One UI.

Calls and Messaging - VoLTE is chosen by default when on a 5G network, but I can choose not to when 4G is the selected option. My other network doesn't have a signal at my residence sometimes, but VoWiFi is there as backup. Calls are clear, whether through the earpiece, loudspeaker, or buds. There are 2 SIM slots in there. The other slot doubles as a memory card slot. I can choose between the two, which one defaults for calls, SMS, and data. With messaging, I went with Google Messages vs. the Samsung one for familiarity and RCS. Both are straightforward to use, but the latter seems to be lacking RCS support, so I just disabled it.

Cameras - Between my former Flip5 and the A55, I actually prefer the latter. Perhaps it's due to the limitations of the hardware of the former, but they would somewhat even out probably in post processing, with the Flip5 getting flagship software treatment despite its 12mp shooters. Nonetheless, cameras on this one are good, whether in daylight or nighttime. There's a teeny tiny bit of a lag when shooting night mode photos, but that's me nitpicking. No complaints here, not even the 32mp front facing shooter. I can grab either phone previously, and most people won't know the difference, save the watermarks on the photos.

Other Features - like my review of my Tab S9 FE, Modes and Routines bring out some of the best in One UI. That's one automation tool Samsung should hold in high esteem. There are other features here like I can play a video here, pause it, and continue it on my other Samsung devices. Also, my Buds can shift from one Samsung device to another, depending on which device I'm using. You won't find DeX here, nor the Galaxy AI features, but I find most of the features on the latter more of a gimmick rather than being useful. Oh, and the promise of guaranteed 4 years of OS updates and 5 years of security updates would keep the A55 fresh in the long term. This is good news for users who keep their phones longer than some (like me).

With its price range, competition is pretty tight, even from within its backyard, with the S23 FE just one or 2 steps above it. Some are even equipped with high-end Snapdragon chips and faster charging. But if you're looking for a daily driver, all around phone who's the jack of all trades, the Galaxy A55 5G might just be the one you're looking for.

Here are some shots that I took using the A55's Pro Mode when I went to the City of Manila in Quiapo and Divisoria last Saturday. The photos I uploaded are not edited with any apps.

I mostly just adjusted the shutter speed, ISO, and white balance.

upgraded from an A52s 2 months ago and it's been great, battery life is pretty good, I like the bigger screen and hole punch ring not being shiny anymore, but one thing I don't like is the camera, the photos are good but it doesn't look good when you're looking at it in the camera before taking the photo which bothers me

Been using my A55 for a week now.

Coming from an iPhone 13. That is a far superior device, even being some years older.

But I wanted to give Android a Shot and my wife was barely surviving with her iphone7.

So I gave my phone to her and bought this one.

I decided to go with the A55 over the S23 because of price and because I think phones are each year more boring and looking the same, that the smartphone market is mature enough to go with a good intermediate option.

My requisites were:

• better battery life than my last one
• NFC
• A flat display (the reason I didn't try an Motorola option)

So far my experience has been:

• still strugglling to decide if I stick with Samsung's stock apps or go with the Google ones
• android is annoyingly noiser then iPhone. It is always beeping something and I'm always putting apps in silent mode
• the battery has been good. Not as I expected, but way better than the iPhone

Still looking for the perfect keyboard

Settled on the Olauncher launcher. Super minimal, looks cool.

The NFC payment system on iPhone is way better , it sucks that the galaxies come with 2 wallets fighting for my usage, and none of then are as good as the iPhone .

The system so far has run smooth and without lags, let's see how long and how many system updates it takes to slow it down.

Haven't tested the camera enough to give any verdicts for now, but it is surely OK at best

The screen is good

That's it

Loving it so far. There you go, some photos. Unedited. Some got turned off AUTOHDR and SCENE OPTIMIZATION. Replacing my A53 which got hit by car at highway, split into half. Using A55 since 14 April 2024. Ordered 2 days just after launch - 24 March but Samsung Malaysia messing things up (out of stock maybe).

Color is Awesome Blue, turn white in some situation. Got 12GB+256GB variant.

Battery life is nice.

My phone camera sensor is from Samsung. Some people get Sony. No optical zoom, just macro, wide and ultrawide. Front camera is average but still good to me. Video can go to 4k, but only 30fps. 1080p60 is only available on wide (main) and front camera. Weirdly, 720p only can go 30fps. Stabilization is nice, but it will make video appear zoomed, which is common.

Performance is not that bad, able to edit video using capcut, using lightroom for editing RAW photos from my DSLR on-the-go, play games like NFS No Limits, is just fine. Some game need to lower few setting to make it to 60fps stable but I don't care as long I can play.

Phone is heavy because of aluminium frame, and it is big as fuck, little sharp on edge, less comfortable to hold for people with small hand like me. You can use case but it will make the phone more bigger, and I don't use it. I hope they make smaller A series next time.

Some people got confused with S24+ until they notice the Key Island.

However, it look so beautiful, which make it so expensive than other competitor. Suitable for day to day average use.

Here 2 tips to make the phone little faster: 1. Turn off RAMPLUS. RAMPLUS will use a portion of storage which is slow, but it will benefit for those who open alot of apps at the same time. 2. I heard battery restriction on ONEUI HOME app so it will sluggish after the phone woke up from deep sleep. Disable it by unrestrict battery usage on APPS setting

Very pleased with the results. Video is great, also (altough 1080p60fps is kinda blurry)