Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority
TL;DR
- The latest One UI 8.5 beta introduces an adaptive clock that adjusts its size and color dynamically according to the wallpaper content.
- Lock screen weather effects now interact with objects in the wallpaper.
- A smaller, floating search bar appears in the app drawer, accompanied by a new expanding animation.
Samsung’s next big software update is starting to take shape, and early testers have already spotted some cool cosmetic upgrades in the latest One UI 8.5 beta build. Some well-known leakers experimenting with the new version have revealed several design changes to the lock screen wallpaper and the app drawer.
The most striking change comes to the lock screen clock. As seen in videos shared by Ice Universe on X, including the YouTube Short above, One UI 8.5 introduces an adaptive clock that automatically adjusts to the wallpaper behind it. The clock can now recognize the main objects — not just people and animals — and resize itself so it doesn’t cover them. For example, the clock is shown shrinking or shifting position to avoid overlapping a hot air balloon or a flower in the background. It also adds a subtle frosted-glass effect and can automatically pick harmonious colors to match the wallpaper.
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Ice Universe also pointed out a new weather effect option on the lock screen wallpaper selector. While weather animations have appeared in Samsung’s software before, the latest version seems to take it a step further, as the effects interact with the wallpaper itself. In the clip below posted to X, raindrops appear to splash against the cat in the photo, suggesting some degree of depth mapping and object recognition at play.
One UI 8.5, I don’t know if this is new.
Now you can set the weather effect when you lock the screen wallpaper. pic.twitter.com/OVC9JmEgme
Beyond the lock screen, One UI 8.5 also tweaks the app draw layout. As spotted by Tarun Vats on X, the search bar at the bottom is now “floating” and is noticeably smaller. The leaker posted the side-by-side comparison shown in the images below.
When the search bar is tapped, it expands into a full search interface, as we see in One UI 8.0, before shrinking back when closed. See it in action below.
One UI 8.5 brings a new search bar animation — still unfinished 👀
The animation is described as “unfinished.” We hope that’s the case, as it’s pretty clunky in the demo, particularly when the search screen is closed. You’ll also notice that the placeholder text “What are you looking for?” now displays in Google Gemini’s gradient colors.
Samsung hasn’t announced when One UI 8.5 will roll out more widely, but the first beta program is reportedly set to begin next month, and the full rollout is expected to coincide with the launch of the Galaxy S26 early next year. Given the growing number of interesting features that have already come to light, it should be worth the wait.
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