The system works entirely on your device, no carrier required
In the quiet weeks before a major product launch, Samsung has released the fourth beta of One UI 8.5 — a software update less concerned with spectacle than with the slow, careful removal of friction. Available to Galaxy S25 users across five countries, the update patches small but persistent annoyances and introduces Direct Voicemail, a live transcription feature that works independently of carriers. It is the kind of methodical refinement that speaks to a company preparing not just a new phone, but a polished experience to accompany it.
- Samsung is in the final stretch before the Galaxy S26 launch, and every beta release now carries the weight of a deadline.
- A handful of quiet but maddening bugs — a drifting clock, a broken search tap, rogue Bluetooth call-switching — have been hunted down and eliminated.
- The standout addition, Direct Voicemail, lets users screen calls in real time with live transcription appearing directly in the Phone app, no carrier required.
- Galaxy S25 beta users in South Korea, India, Germany, the UK, and the US can pull the roughly 1.5GB update now through their software settings.
- The pattern across four betas is deliberate: Samsung is betting that a frictionless experience will matter more to users than any single headline feature.
Samsung released the fourth beta of One UI 8.5 this week, pushing the update to Galaxy S25 users across South Korea, India, Germany, the UK, and the United States. Carrying firmware version ZZAL and weighing roughly 1.5 gigabytes, the release bundles the February 2026 security patch with a focused set of bug fixes and one notable new capability.
The fixes are modest in scope but meaningful in practice. A lock screen clock that had been slowly drifting downward is corrected. A tap-through failure in the Phone app's search history is resolved. Bluetooth headsets that were hijacking calls under certain conditions have been reined in. A paste-to-keypad glitch and an AI Select tool that refused to close after copying have both been addressed. Individually minor, collectively these are the kinds of rough edges that wear on users over time.
The more significant addition is Direct Voicemail, now built into the Phone app itself. The feature allows incoming calls to be routed to voicemail automatically after a chosen delay — or immediately, if preferred — while displaying a live transcription of the caller's message as it's being recorded. Users can even intercept the call mid-message if they reconsider. Crucially, the system runs entirely on-device, bypassing any carrier dependency. It's a capability that Pixel and iPhone users have long enjoyed, and Samsung is now folding it into its own ecosystem.
This is the fourth beta since One UI 8.5 development began in earnest, following a third iteration in December. The cadence has been measured and deliberate — prioritizing stability over novelty. With the Galaxy S26 launch approaching within weeks, Samsung appears to be using this window to ensure the software arrives polished, trusting that the absence of friction will speak louder than any single new feature.
Samsung is putting the finishing touches on One UI 8.5. The company released beta 4 this week to Galaxy S25 users across South Korea, India, Germany, the UK, and the US—a move that signals the software is nearing its official debut alongside the Galaxy S26 series, expected within weeks. The update, which carries firmware version ZZAL and weighs around 1.5 gigabytes, bundles the February 2026 security patch with a collection of targeted fixes and a genuinely useful new feature.
The changelog reads like the work of engineers hunting down small but persistent annoyances. There's a lock screen clock that was drifting downward—fixed. A glitch in the Phone app's search history that broke when you tried to click through—resolved. Bluetooth headsets were causing calls to switch devices under certain conditions; that's been patched. When you pasted a phone number into the keypad after clicking a call link, something went wrong; now it doesn't. And AI Select, Samsung's selection tool, was refusing to close properly after you hit copy—that's been addressed too. None of these are catastrophic failures, but together they represent the kind of friction that accumulates in daily use.
The more interesting addition is Direct Voicemail, a feature that Samsung has integrated directly into the Phone app. The capability lets you route incoming calls to voicemail automatically after a set duration, or send all calls straight to voicemail if you prefer. What sets this apart is the live transcription: as a caller leaves a message, you see both the audio and a text version appearing in real time inside the Phone app. You can even pick up the call while someone is still recording their message if you change your mind. The system works entirely on your device, within the Phone app itself, which means you're not dependent on your carrier to make it function. It's the kind of feature that Pixel and iPhone users have had for a while, and Samsung is bringing it to its own ecosystem.
For Galaxy S25 owners enrolled in Samsung's beta program, the update is available now through Settings > Software update > Download and install. This is the fourth beta iteration since work on One UI 8.5 began in earnest, following the third beta that arrived in December. Each release has been methodical—less about flashy new features and more about stability and refinement. That approach makes sense given the timing. Samsung is clearly using these final weeks before the Galaxy S26 launch to iron out the software experience, ensuring that when the new phones arrive, One UI 8.5 feels polished and ready. The company is betting that users will notice the absence of friction more than they notice any single new capability.
Notable Quotes
Users can automatically send calls to voicemail after a set period or route all incoming calls directly to voicemail, with live transcription visible in the Phone app— Samsung's Direct Voicemail feature description
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why does Samsung keep releasing beta versions so close to the actual launch? Isn't the software supposed to be done by now?
Not quite. These late betas are about real-world testing at scale. You find bugs in the lab, but you find different bugs when thousands of people are actually using the phone in their homes and cars and offices. Samsung's using the S25 user base as a testing ground.
So the Direct Voicemail feature—is that new to Samsung, or are they just catching up to Apple and Google?
Catching up, mostly. But the implementation matters. Samsung's doing it entirely on-device, no carrier involvement. That's actually cleaner than some competitors' versions because it means it works the same way for everyone, regardless of your phone plan.
The fixes in this beta seem pretty minor. A clock moving down, Bluetooth switching. Are these the kinds of things that would actually bother someone?
Individually, maybe not. But they add up. If your lock screen clock drifts every time you unlock your phone, or if your Bluetooth headset keeps disconnecting during calls, that's the kind of thing that makes you feel like the software isn't quite finished. Samsung's trying to eliminate those paper cuts.
How much longer until One UI 8.5 is actually released to everyone?
Probably a few weeks, timed with the Galaxy S26 announcement. These betas are the last checkpoint. If nothing catastrophic shows up, the final version goes live alongside the new hardware.