The Android 16-based One UI 8 update is expected to arrive in the coming months. What makes this a bit hard to swallow is that One UI 7 hasn’t even fully rolled out to all eligible devices yet. But that’s just how Samsung is choosing to handle things this year. Amid this, the full One UI 8 software, along with a slew of updated apps, has already started to surface. That gives us plenty to share with you about what’s coming your way soon.
Phone app will introduce homescreen widgets in One UI 8
According to one such leak (via @GerwinvGiessen), the upcoming Phone app in One UI 8 will finally introduce widgets. In a screenshot, the tipster shows two widgets that should be coming with One UI 8, which, according to him, come in two sizes: 2×2 and 4×2. You can place these widgets on your home screen to check out any recent calls you’ve made. At the moment, there’s no such widget for the lockscreen, but there’s a chance Samsung could build one.
One UI 8 is still in the alpha phase (or pre-beta), which means it’s under development and not fully ready for deployment. Sure, it’s leaked, and you can flash it on your device to get an early look at everything. But it’s worth noting that the final (or stable) version will include improvements. We may see more widgets too, just an assumption, since One UI 7 was already a big leap. And Samsung probably won’t bring major changes again in such a short span.
That said, there are talks that Samsung won’t release One UI 8.1. The company is reportedly planning to skip it in favor of One UI 8.5. A recent report revealed that the Galaxy S26 series may now debut with One UI 8.5, which makes sense, given that the Galaxy Z Fold 7 and Flip 7 are rumored to launch running One UI 8.
