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Samsung brings the absolutely massive One UI 2.1 update to the Galaxy Note 9

By Adrian Diaconescu

Published: Jun 10, 2020, 4:04 AM

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Samsung brings the absolutely massive One UI 2.1 update to the Galaxy Note 9

Commercially released back when One UI was not a thing yet, the Galaxy Note 9 scored its first big software update with Samsung's latest Android skin applied on top around 18 months ago.

The Android 10-based One UI 2.0 promotion followed in early January 2020 in select "international" markets and just a month later as far as the US unlocked variant was concerned, which was a pretty amazing turnaround time for such an old (albeit still incredibly popular) high-end device.

The highly anticipated update is live in only one country... for the moment

While Samsung is rumored to deliver a 2.5 version of its increasingly beloved proprietary user interface with the Galaxy Note 20 series in August, there's also a One UI 2.1 update going around the company's existing flagship portfolio. Pre-installed on the Galaxy S20, S20+, S20 Ultra, and Galaxy Z Flip, this quickly made its way over-the-air to the Galaxy S10, S10+, S10e, Note 10, Note 10+, and even the S10 Lite and Note 10 Lite.

Naturally, we all expected the Galaxy S9, S9+, and Note 9 to follow suit shortly thereafter, but a scary rumor suggested that might never happen a couple of months back. As it turns out, there was nothing to be afraid, as the software update is now rolling out to one of the three aforementioned 2018-released high-enders in at least one European market.

More than 1.2 gigabytes of significant user experience gains definitely qualify this as a major update

We're talking about Galaxy Note 9 units in Germany, and in case you're wondering how big of a deal this update is for actual end users, the handset's dedicated subreddit is pretty self-explanatory, having been flooded with a bunch of elated reports within the space of just a couple of hours.

Obviously, we fully expect the rollout to go global in a few days, and the same probably goes for the S9 and S9+, which haven't been promoted to One UI 2.1 anywhere in the world yet.

Here's why One UI 2.1 is such a big deal

While the Note 9 update is not quite as feature-packed as the software running on the Galaxy S20 family right off the bat, there's plenty of cool stuff headed your way OTA, starting with two features called Quick Share and Music Share.

The former essentially allows you to, well, quickly share files with multiple people nearby, while the latter extends your phone's paired Bluetooth connection so that you don't need to disconnect for someone else to play their music on a speaker or car stereo.

Quick Share and Music Share pictured on the Galaxy S10 (left) and Note 10 (right)

Then you have Single Take, an extremely convenient (and complex) AI-based technology enabling the capturing of multiple stills and videos simultaneously, the best of which are automatically selected so you don't need to lift a finger to impress your friends with some professional-looking photography skills.

Speaking of pro photography and videography, the One UI 2.1 update also adds a handy set of tools to the Galaxy Note 9 including manual controls over shutter speed, exposure level, and ISO settings to help aspiring filmmakers effortlessly refine their craft.

Tipping the scales at a hefty 1.2GB or so, the hot new goodie pack includes unspecified "device stability improvements and bug fixes" too, as well as June 2020 security patches fresh out of Google's oven. If this doesn't prove Samsung has managed to vastly improve its software support game in recent months, we don't know what will. Now if only the company were able to commit to three OS version updates for the Note 9, unlike for the Note and S8 duo.

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Adrian, a mobile technology enthusiast since the Nokia 3310 era, has been a dynamic presence in the tech journalism field, contributing to Android Authority, Digital Trends, and Pocketnow before joining PhoneArena in 2018. His expertise spans across various platforms, with a particular fondness for the diversity of the Android ecosystem. Despite the challenges of balancing full-time parenthood with his work, Adrian's passion for tech trends, running, and movies keeps him energized. His commitment to mid-range smartphones has led to an eclectic collection of devices, saved from personal bankruptcy by his preference for 'adequate' over 'overpriced'.