Samsung's latest foldable flagships, the Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Z Flip 6, have hit the market with impressive specs and innovative features. However, early reports suggest these premium devices lack support for seamless updates - a feature that has become increasingly common on Android phones.
No Seamless Updates for New Foldables
Seamless updates, introduced by Google nearly a decade ago, allow Android devices to install system updates in the background without interrupting usage. Unfortunately, initial tests indicate the Z Fold 6 and Z Flip 6 don't support this convenient feature.
The omission is surprising, especially since Samsung's mid-range Galaxy A55 became the company's first phone to adopt seamless updates earlier this year. Experts speculate the lack of support may be due to the larger firmware sizes of flagship Galaxy devices, which could leave insufficient space for a dedicated update partition.
For users, this means updates will require the traditional reboot process, leading to a few minutes of downtime with each installation. Given Samsung's commitment to seven years of software support for these devices, owners can expect numerous such interruptions over their phones' lifespans.
One UI 6.1.1 Brings AI Features to Older Flagships
While the new foldables may lack seamless updates, there's good news for owners of older Samsung flagships. The company has confirmed that its One UI 6.1.1 update, which debuted on the Z Fold 6 and Z Flip 6, will be coming to a wide range of Galaxy devices.
The update brings several AI-powered features and camera enhancements to devices including:
- Galaxy S22 series
- Galaxy Z Fold 4 and Z Flip 4
- Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Z Flip 5
- Galaxy S23 series (including S23 FE)
- Galaxy Tab S8 and S9 series
- Galaxy S24 series
Some of the notable features coming to older devices include:
- Auto Zoom feature for the Galaxy Z Flip 5
- Instant slow-motion video for Z Fold 5, Z Flip 5, Tab S9, and S23 series
- Galaxy AI capabilities like Live Effect, Portrait Studio, and Sketch to Image
While Samsung hasn't announced a specific release date for the One UI 6.1.1 update on these devices, the confirmation should reassure users that they'll soon have access to many of the software improvements introduced with the latest foldables.
As the mobile landscape continues to evolve, it's clear that software updates and AI-powered features are becoming increasingly important differentiators in the premium smartphone market. Samsung's approach of bringing new capabilities to older flagships helps maintain the value proposition for existing users, even as it pushes the envelope with its latest hardware offerings.