Samsung recently released One UI 8.5 with several features, including its "Now Nudge" proactive assistant, on-device notification summaries powered by Gemini Nano, and completely redesigned 3D app icons.
The update also introduced Call Screening, a feature that allows your phone"s AI to answer a call on your behalf when you cannot talk. The system plays an automated greeting to the caller and then provides you with a live text transcription of what they are saying, letting you decide if the call is worth your time.
That all sounds good, but there was a huge catch at the time of the initial announcement. The advanced AI-powered Call Screening was pegged as an exclusive for the new Galaxy S26 devices, completely skipping the barely a year old Galaxy S25. Fans were pissed as the hardware in the S25 is more than capable of handling these on-device AI tasks.
There was a bit of pushback, and now, Samsung is backtracking on its original plan with a new (translated) notice posted on the Korean Samsung Members forum confirming that the company will bring the feature to the Galaxy S25 series with the One UI 8.5 update:
Regarding the One UI 8.5 update
Thank you for using Samsung Galaxy smartphones. We are preparing a software update so that Galaxy users can experience more advanced Galaxy AI features.
Through this update, various AI features such as call screening, as well as usability enhancement features, will be applied to major models including the Galaxy S25 series.
This update is scheduled to roll out in conjunction with the release of One UI 8.5, and the detailed schedule and applicable models will be announced at a later date.
In other Galaxy news, the beloved Samsung Messages app is getting discontinued. The app, which has been a staple on Galaxy phones for over a decade, will be shut down this July, after which you will no longer be able to send or receive standard texts (except for emergency communications).
Samsung is recommending that its users switch to Google Messages touting benefits like universal RCS messaging for better media sharing with both Android and iOS users, deep integration with Gemini AI for generating smart replies and filtering spam, and superior multi-device syncing across your phone, tablet, and watch.