Can Samsung bring ads with One UI 2.5 that lands with the Galaxy Note 20 release?
UPDATE: We got a tip about changes in the original post that hint the One UI lock screen with the video ad snippet may have been altered, so take the ads-on-Galaxy possibility anywhere but, say, the weather app, with a grain of salt. Whew.
Ads on Samsung phones' One UI interface
As discovered by one Tizenhelp source, the next One UI version could also introduce ads on the lock screen, similar to what Chinese phone makers do sometimes while selling phones at cost.
Not that we are expecting Samsung flagships to do this, or any Samsung phone outside of Asia, for that matter, given where the One UI 2.5 leak is coming from but it at least shows that Samsung is toying with the idea.
The ad shown below is detailed as a 15-second video clip of you have to watch before unlocking the phone, and we can only think of very little other ideas that would be more annoying than this, unless that phone has been given to you free or at a great discount.
Ads on Samsung's One UI lock screen
Granted, Samsung's market share in the world behind the Great Wall is virtually non-existent, for instance, so any little bit helps but this ad is for a fast food joint in Korea, so we'll keep an eye on whether it takes this major step when the next One UI edition lands anyway.
Expected new Samsung One UI 2.5 update features
- System level Android navigation gestures support for third-party launchers
From less notification or pop-up distractions, a strict separation of the viewable and interaction areas, more high-contrast and hearing aid accessibility features, as well as new apps for Dark mode to reign in, One UI 2 is better than one, and it has already arrived on most Galaxies as we speak.
Samsung's One UI 2 started to land just a month after Google released the final image to manufacturers so they can start painting their overlays on top of it. This has never been done so fast by Samsung and other phone makers have similarly ambitious release schedules, so it might be that Google has finally mastered the art of timely Android updates to its motley crew of manufacturers.
Beforehand, Samsung had gesture navigation, too, but they had to be downloaded as a separate app from the Play Store, called One Hand Operation+, and then applied to your Galaxy. Since Android 10, however, the standard swipe up/left/right/hold gestures are built in on system level which results in a much smoother performance.
With the next One UI 2.5 iteration, however, Samsung may introduce another big thing when it comes to these gestures - allowing them for third-party launchers. Tucked in a Samsung Korea forum moderator post is this gem of a home screen revelation for One UI 2.5:
Hello, I am in charge of the Home operation. Are you using 3rd party launcher? Currently, the new Google gesture is not available on other launchers, so the More button option button is disabled. When updating One UI 2.5, we are using Google gestures in the third-party launcher. Please note that the exact schedule for One UI 2.5 update for each model is not confirmed.
While that particular gesture support expansion sounds really great if you are not a fan of the stock Samsung launcher and want to try something else out, the ad-driven One UI is hopefully just a test, and we won't come on anything different than, say, the M series in China. We know a few folks that'd be pretty pissed to see their beloved One UI riddled with lock screen ads or any other ads, for that matter. What do you think?
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