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Samsung’s new budget handsets are getting One UI 7 before the Galaxy S24 Ultra, and I’m as confused as you are

March 10, 2025
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  • The Samsung Galaxy A26, A36, and A56 are due to launch with One UI 7
  • Users of the Galaxy S24 and older are still waiting for their update
  • One UI 7 gets its stable release in April this year

Samsung revealed three new mid-range A-series phones, the Galaxy A26, Galaxy A36, and Galaxy A56, at the end of February, and we now know that every model will ship with One UI 7 (aka the latest version of Samsung's mobile operating system) out of the box.

One UI 7, which is based on Android 15, was first made available with the release of the Samsung Galaxy S25, Galaxy S25 Plus, and Galaxy S25 Ultra in February – though in its current state, the software is still technically a pre-release build.

Samsung's new, One UI 7-compatible A-series models will be available on March 19 in the UK, with the Galaxy A26 and Galaxy A36 available from March 28 in the US (the Galaxy A56 will launch in the US at an as-yet unspecified date later this year). However, as Samsung recently confirmed, older Galaxy smartphones – even former flagships – won’t be getting One UI 7 until April.

That’s got to sting for customers that shelled out up to $1,649 / $1,549 / AU$2,799 for the Galaxy S24 Ultra as recently as February this year. With that kind of price tag, I’m sure many users would expect Samsung to prioritize updating their previous flagship devices over issuing the new software to more budget-conscious users.

The Samsung Galaxy A56 in the hand

Samsung's new A-series phones, including the Galaxy A56 (pictured), are due to launch in March (Image credit: Future)

The Samsung Galaxy A26 starts at $300, with the Galaxy A36 starting at $400 and the Galaxy A56 starting at $500. This year marks the first time a Galaxy A5-series phone has landed in the US, which is a big deal as the Galaxy A55 currently features on our list of the best UK cheap phones.

These new mid-range phones are likely to be decently powerful devices for their respective price brackets, and as PhoneArena notes, Samsung’s diverse portfolio begets a wider range of hardware specifications that need to be accounted for and tested with any new software.

Still, I reckon users of the best Samsung phones from years past will feel somewhat left out with the release of these new A-series handsets.

The wait for One UI 7 continues

The wait for One UI 7 is starting to feel rather long indeed. Even compared to Apple’s half-baked launch of Apple Intelligence and iOS 18 late last year, Samsung is making a hash of this rollout.

Though Samsung’s latest Android wrapper is admittedly excellent, with a stylish new look and a very smooth user experience, it doesn’t excuse taking almost an entire update cycle to release it – indeed, Android 16 is likely to be out shortly after One UI 7 makes it to stable release.

You don’t have to look far online to find discontent within the Samsung fan community, either – Reddit user Healthinfoman theorizes that the update has been “intentionally delayed to promote the [Galaxy] S25 as the only device with One UI 7." Other forums and posts are full of frustrated comments.

There is, however, an end in sight. As mentioned, One UI 7 is due to launch in April – but I fear this staggering rollout may have already overshadowed its eventual release. Let us know what you think about the One UI 7 rollout in the comments below.

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