Samsung releases first beta of One UI 9 and Android 17 for Galaxy S26 Ultra

After the first beta version of Android 17 for Google Pixel smartphones was released in mid-February, Sammobile editor Tarun Vats was able to find an internal beta version of One UI 9 based on Android 17 for the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra ($1,299 on Amazon) on Samsung's server.

The beta version is intended for the global version of the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra with the model number SM-S948B, the download is around 2.6 GB in size. Sammobile has already been able to install the beta version on a Galaxy S26 Ultra, but as is usual with a first beta version, it only includes a few new features. Android 17 is supposed to make numerous improvements under the hood, which should improve performance and battery life, among other things, while app developers will be forced to optimize apps for wider displays, for example for foldable smartphones, when they are sold in the Google Play Store.

It is also exciting that Google is finally to introduce an alternative to Apple's "Handoff" function. For example, if the same app is installed on both a smartphone and a tablet, the currently open file can be displayed on the other device with a single click to continue working there. This should also work with browser tabs and should also include system apps, which should make it possible to display an email opened on a smartphone directly on a tablet or a Android laptop, among other things.