The next Samsung Galaxy software update could borrow a lot from the iPhone

Samsung is known for making lots of changes to Android, and when Android 15 rolls out later in the year, Samsung could make changes to One UI 7 that seem to take inspiration from the iPhone.

Android 15 is likely to "go gold" in August, with Pixel devices getting the update almost immediately, but for owners of Samsung phones, there's going to be a lot more happening. That's because Samsung will be pushing One UI 7 to its devices and it's One UI that will contain all the changes.

According to details coming from X / Twitter user Chun Bhai (via 9to5Google), Samsung is making a range of tweaks to One UI 7. The biggest revelation is that Samsung might be looking to implement some sort of system like Apple's Dynamic Island.

Dynamic Island was introduced on the iPhone 14 Pro in 2022, looking to make use of the elongated camera and sensor cutout at the top of the screen. It's basically a place to append other things happening in your phone, like navigation and music, so they are accessible with a tap. On Android, those things often lie in the notifications area, so just a swipe away.

The source gives no detail about how Samsung's version of Dynamic Island might work, but previously outlined that Samsung planned on splitting the swipe-down Quick Settings and Notifications into two different panes. Again, some might see this as inspired by Apple's iOS, but it's similar to HyperOS used by Xiaomi.

Samsung also appears to be making changes to its icon styling. One icon in particular that's caught the attention of Reddit users who have been more than happy to express their disappointment, is the photo gallery. The new gallery icon appears to be a cheap copy of the iOS Photos app.

The icon shapes and finishes look to be moving towards Apple's design, in what seems like a strange move from Samsung.

In recent times, we've seen the launch of the Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra and Galaxy Buds 3 Pro - both of which seem closely related to Apple's alternatives - and let's not forget that Apple and Samsung had a 7-year patent dispute that was only resolved in 2018.

Android 15 and One UI 7 is expected to land on recent Samsung devices in October 2024 at the earliest.