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Samsung bringing Galaxy S21 features to Note 20, S20, more with One UI 3.1

By Joshua Swingle

Published: Feb 17, 2021, 9:00 PM

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Samsung bringing Galaxy S21 features to Note 20, S20, more with One UI 3.1

The Galaxy S21 series debuted last month with Samsung’s One UI 3.1 and a bunch of new and improved software features pre-installed. Now the South Korean brand has announced plans to bring the update to older devices.

Which Galaxy phones will receive One UI 3.1 and when?

Samsung One UI 3.1 is officially coming to the Galaxy Note 20 line and the entire Galaxy S20 series, including the original devices and the newer Galaxy S20 FE model. Owners of Samsung’s foldable smartphones are in luck too.

The brand has committed to offering One UI 3.1 to all owners of the ultra-premium Galaxy Fold and Galaxy Z Fold 2. The same can be said for the foldable Z Flip series, which consists of the Galaxy Z Flip and Flip 5G.

Don’t worry if you’re using an older smartphone either. One UI 3.1 is coming to the Galaxy S10 and Galaxy Note 10 devices, in addition to the Galaxy A71 and Galaxy A51. Other smartphones receiving the new software include the Galaxy A90, Galaxy A80, Galaxy A70, and Galaxy A50.

Samsung One UI 3.1 is available starting from today, but availability may vary by region and carrier.

New features and improvements coming with One UI 3.1

Eye Comfort Shield

In a nutshell, Eye Comfort Shield is basically a fancy blue light filter. When enabled, it automatically adjusts the blue light based on the time of day and the content you’re viewing. Samsung will also take into account your bedtime to reduce fatigue.

Single Take and Object Eraser

The Single Take feature has been available on Galaxy devices for some time, and One UI 3.1 introduces an improved version. For those of you that don’t know, Single Take allows you to capture several photos and a video of up to 15 seconds with one tap.

In One UI 3.1, this feature is coupled with a new one called Object Eraser. It’s an ai-powered tool that, as its name suggests, allows you to remove an unwanted part of a photo by sampling tapping on the area.

Touch Autofocus and Autoexposure Controller

This feature has been around since the original One UI 3.0 update and One UI 3.1 brings an updated version that makes it easier to adjust the focus, according to Samsung. The brand has made editing the brightness of photos before taking them easier too by letting you swipe anywhere on the display.

Multi Mic Recording

Samsung is only enabling this feature on the Galaxy S20 series, Galaxy Note 20 line, Galaxy Z Fold 2, and Galaxy Z Flip 5G. So if you don’t own one of these devices, skip to the next feature.

Multi Mic Recording means you can simultaneously record audio through your phone and wireless earbuds when in Pro Video Mode.

Remove Metadata

Samsung is continuing its efforts to improve privacy on Galaxy devices with the option of removing metadata from photos before sending them. Private Share can also be used to control who can see the content and for how long.

Auto Switch for Galaxy Buds

As an added bonus for Galaxy Buds Pro, Buds Live, and Buds+ users, Samsung has introduced a new feature called Auto Switch with One UI 3.1. It will automatically switch your audio between Galaxy devices when it detects changes.

For example, if you’re listening to Spotify on your phone and then move over to a YouTube video on your Galaxy Tab tablet, Audio Switch will automatically switch the audio on your earbuds to the latter. The opposite works too.