Android 9 One UI beta UK launch to take place on November 20

The Android 9 One UI beta UK launch will be exactly one week from today. Samsung announced last week that it will launch an open beta program for One UI in November. One UI is what the company is now calling its custom skin for Android. This is actually the beta program for Android 9 Pie that many of you have been waiting for.

Samsung also confirmed that the program will be launched first in Germany, South Korea and the United States. It said that the UK will be part of the second phase. This launch date shows that we may not have to wait that long for the second phase like we had to for the Oreo beta.

Samsung website reveals One UI beta UK launch date

A support page on Samsung’s official website for the United Kingdom mentions when the beta program will go live. “The One UI Beta Programme (running Android 9.0 Pie) will be available for the Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus in the UK from 20 November 2018,” it says.

There’s no reason to doubt this One UI beta launch date since it comes from the proverbial horse’s mouth. This also suggests that the other markets due to get this beta in the second phase will receive it around the same time as well. They include China, France, Poland, Spain and India.

A report last week suggested that the beta program might kick off starting November 15, at least for Germany. Those who want to participate will be required to sign up through the Samsung Members app. We reported yesterday that the Samsung Members app has now been updated with support for the One UI beta.

Samsung will only be offering the beta program for the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+. Galaxy Note 9 owners are out of luck. They will be able to get a slice of Android Pie on their devices once the update is released. Samsung is planning to do that in January 2019.

Thanks, Tom!

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Specs comparison: Galaxy J4 Core vs Galaxy J2 Core

No one had expected Samsung to be making an Android Go smartphone, but it did. In fact, Samsung has announced Android Go smartphones within a span of three months. The Galaxy J2 Core came first, and the Galaxy J4 Core was officially outed on the company’s website earlier today.

The Galaxy J2 Core was quite the basic affair when it came to specs, but contrary to expectations, it came with Samsung’s usual customizations instead of stock Android 8.1 Oreo. That’s the case with the Galaxy J4 Core as well, but Samsung has managed to throw in a few spec upgrades to make its second Android Go outing stand out.

And if you’re wondering how the Galaxy J4 Core compares with the Galaxy J2 Core, we have a nice little specs comparison table below for you to check out. For more information on these phones, do check out our devices section.

Galaxy J4 Core vs Galaxy J2 Core specs comparison

	Galaxy J4 Core	Galaxy J2 Core
Display	6-inch TFT LCD, 720×1280 pixels (720p)	5-inch TFT LCD, 540×960 pixels (qHD)
Processor	Snapdragon 425, Quad-core 1.4GHz, Adreno 308 GPU	Exynos 7570, Quad-core 1.4GHz, Mali-T720MP1 GPU
RAM	1GB	1GB
Rear Camera	8-megapixel CMOS, F2.2 aperture	8-megapixel CMOS, F2.2 aperture
Front camera	5-megapixel CMOS, F2.2 aperture	5-megapixel CMOS, F2.2 aperture
Storage	16GB, microSD slot (up to 512GB)	8GB, microSD slot (up to 256GB)
Software	Android 8.1 Oreo (Go edition), Samsung Experience UX	Android 8.1 Oreo (Go edition), Samsung Experience UX
Battery	3,300 mAh	2,600 mAh, removable
Connectivity	Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n (2.4GHz), Bluetooth 4.2, USB 2.0, GPS, Glonass, BeiDou	Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n (2.4GHz), Bluetooth 4.2, USB 2.0, GPS, Glonass, BeiDou
Sensors	Accelerometer, Proximity	Accelerometer, Proximity
Dimensions	160.6 x 76.1 x 7.9mm, 177g	143.4 x 72.1 x 8.9mm, 154g
Color options	Black, gold, blue	Black, gold, blue

 

Galaxy J4 Core

• Model: SM-J410F
• Dimensions: 160.6 x 76.1 x 7.9mm
• Display: 6.0" (152.4mm) TFT
• CPU: Qualcomm Snapdragon 425
• Camera: 8 MP, CMOS F2.2

More specifications

Galaxy J2 Core

• Model: SM-J260G
• Dimensions: 143.4 x 72.1 x 8.9mm
• Display: 5.0"(126.4mm) TFT
• CPU: Exynos 7570
• Camera: 8 MP, CMOS F2.2

More specifications

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Galaxy S9, S8, Note 9, Note 8, Note 7 FE Wi-Fi-certified with Android Pie!

Could Samsung be working on a surprise release of Android Pie to all of its Galaxy S and Galaxy Note flagships (the eligible ones) in January? Well, that’s what we’d like to think. The Wi-Fi Alliance has certified the Galaxy S8, Galaxy Note 8, Galaxy S9, Galaxy Note 9, and even the Galaxy Note 7 Fan Edition with Android Pie on-board. It’s rather early for these certifications – the Galaxy S7 got its Oreo certification in April, a month or so after the official Galaxy S8 Oreo update had been widely released!

Of course, this may just be Samsung starting work on Android Pie early because of the new user interface. Samsung’s One UI is a big refresh for the company’s Android phones, so it would make sense for more comprehensive testing to ensure that the Pie update doesn’t have any major issues after release. The problems Oreo had despite months of beta testing are still fresh in our minds, after all. And rather than start a beta program for more than just the Galaxy S9, Samsung is probably looking to get things done as quickly as possible.

Wi-Fi certifications do suggest the Pie update could come out quicker than usual for all of these flagships, but we would prefer not getting too excited since it’s not how Samsung does things. Thankfully, it won’t be long before Galaxy S9 and S9+ owners in the US, Germany, and South Korea will be able to get an early taste of Android Pie and One UI. Samsung is expected to start the Galaxy S9 Pie beta program on November 15th, with the rollout of the final update slated for January.

Here are the links for the Android Pie Wi-Fi certifications: Galaxy S9 | S9+ | S8 | S8+ | Galaxy Note 8 | Note 9 | Note 7 Fan Edition

Galaxy S9

• Model: SM-G960F
• Dimensions: 147.7 x 68.7 x 8.5mm
• Display: 5.8” (146.5mm) Super AMOLED
• CPU: Exynos 9810
• Camera: 12 MP, CMOS OIS (F1.5/F2.4)

More specifications

Galaxy S8

• Model: SM-G950F
• Dimensions: 148.9 x 68.1 x 8.0mm
• Display: 5.8” (146.5mm) Super AMOLED
• CPU: Exynos 8895
• Camera: 12 MP, Dual Pixel F1.7 OIS

More specifications

Galaxy Note 9

• Model: SM-N960F
• Dimensions: 161.9 x 76.4 x 8.8mm
• Display: 6.4" (162.5mm) Super AMOLED
• CPU: Exynos 9810
• Camera: 12 CMOS Dual OIS (F1.5/F2.4) & Telephoto: 12MP AF F2.4)

More specifications

Galaxy Note 8

• Model: SM-N950F
• Dimensions: 162.5 x 74.8 x 8.6mm
• Display: 6.3" (160.02mm) Super AMOLED
• CPU: Exynos 8895
• Camera: 12 MP, 2x, 1 telephoto F2.4 and 1 wide angle F1.7 OIS

More specifications

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Official specs and images released for Samsung’s new Android Go phone

Samsung has made its second Android Go smartphone official today. The company isn’t saying where the phone will launch and when, and neither is a price tag mentioned, but Galaxy J4 Core specs and images can now be found on Samsung’s press website. We have already been made privy to the spec sheet thanks to an early retailer listing, so this is just official confirmation of the same.

A more competent package than the Galaxy J2 Core

The Galaxy J4 Core is an Android Go phone, so it has only 1GB of RAM. But in other respects, it’s got better specs than the Galaxy J2 Core. It has a 6-inch 720p LCD display, a 1.4GHz quad-core processor (a Snapdragon 430), 16GB of internal storage, 8-megapixel rear camera, 5-megapixel front camera (both cameras have F2.2 aperture), and a 3,300 mAh battery. It runs Android 8.1 Oreo with Samsung’s custom user interface and Go versions of popular Google apps.

The Samsung Galaxy J4 Core is likely to be released in the same markets as the J2 Core. Pricing is likely to be somewhere below $150, but we will need to wait for official details to be sure. Color options should include blue, gold, and black, as indicated by the device’s pictures.

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Samsung may bring adoptable storage support with Android Pie update

The Android Pie update for the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy Note 9 may bring a new feature that was, er, introduced to Android three years ago. Yes, we’re talking about adoptable storage, which came to Android with Marshmallow back in 2015. Adoptable storage allows a phone to treat the internal and external storage as one unified storage, and Samsung chose to exclude the feature on its devices, citing the fact that adoptable storage is mostly just beneficial for budget phones. But it may finally come to Galaxy devices with Android Pie.

Adoptable storage finally arriving on Galaxy devices

The leaked Galaxy Note 9 Pie firmware has the option to format the microSD card and use it for extended phone storage. This was discovered by one of the members of the XDA Developers forums. It doesn’t work properly at the moment, but that should change on the final version of Pie (or on the beta versions that Samsung will release for the Galaxy S9 and S9+).

Samsung may be too late with bringing adoptable storage to its devices, though. It was a necessary feature when Marshmallow came out because of the limited internal storage you would find on budget Galaxy devices back then, but Samsung is now offering at least 16GB of internal storage on most of its smartphones.

And since none of the old devices with low internal storage are eligible for the Pie update, we wonder why the Korean giant is bringing adoptable storage support here in 2018. Not that we are complaining. Adoptable storage is still a useful feature that’s also a default part of the Android OS. Here’s hoping it’s functional on the first official Android Pie beta that Samsung will release for the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ later this month so we can test it out.

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Ice Blue is a new gradient color option for the Galaxy S9

Samsung only recently embraced gradient color options for its smartphones. They have largely been limited to its mid-range devices like the new Galaxy A9. Samsung is yet to offer flagship smartphones in gradient hues but that’s set to change.

It has launched a new color option for the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ in China. It’s called Ice Blue. The images clearly how the gradient effect, making it a unique offering among the different colors available for the flagship smartphone.

Galaxy S9 gets a gradient color option

Samsung often releases new color options for flagship smartphones a few months after they hit the market. It’s a good way to reignite sales for the device. Samsung’s design labs identified gradient colors as a major market trend for this year. This is why it has adopted them for mid-range devices and will eventually offer them for flagships as well.

The Ice Blue gradient color option for the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ is a step in that direction. Samsung is expected to offer gradient colors for the Galaxy S10 right from the get-go next year. Many of its fans will certainly be very happy if it decides to do that.

They won’t be happy to hear that the Ice Blue Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ have only been announced in China so far. There’s nothing to suggest right now that Samsung could offer this color option in other markets across the globe. Customers in China will be able to purchase the Ice Blue Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ starting tomorrow for 5,499 ($790) and 6,499 ($930) CNY respectively.

Would you be interested in purchasing a Galaxy S9 or Galaxy S9+ if Samsung launches it in your market with this gradient color option?

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