Why Hasn’t Samsung Made Gesture Navigation Easier Yet? This Major Update Finally Fixes Everything!

Will Samsung Finally Stop Making You Hunt for Gesture Navigation? (One UI 8.5 Brings Game-Changing Setup Choice!)

Samsung Galaxy phones work differently than other phones. Most phone makers let you pick how to move around your phone when you first set it up. Samsung doesn’t do this. They make you use buttons at the bottom of your screen instead of swiping gestures.

This creates a problem. Many people never learn about the better way to use their phone. They stick with the old button system because Samsung hides the gesture option deep in the settings.

What Makes Samsung Different

When you buy a new Samsung phone today, you see three buttons at the bottom. There’s a back button, home button, and recent apps button. This looks old compared to other phones.

Google changed how Android phones work back in 2019. They made swiping gestures the main way to move around your phone. Most phone companies followed this change quickly. Samsung didn’t.

Why Samsung Kept Using Buttons

Samsung likes to do things their own way. They kept the button system as the default choice for several reasons:

• Easy recognition: The buttons make Samsung phones look different from other phones
• Marketing appeal: Their ads show the buttons, so people know it’s a Samsung phone
• User familiarity: Some people find buttons easier to understand at first

But this choice comes with costs. The buttons take up screen space. They make phones look older than they really are.

The Big Change Coming Soon

Samsung plans to fix this problem with One UI 8.5. This update will let you choose between buttons and gestures when you first set up your phone.

Here’s what will happen:

• New phone setup will show both options
• You can pick gestures right away
• No more digging through settings menus
• Both choices stay available later

How This Helps Users

Making this choice easier helps in several ways:

1. More screen space: Gestures give you more room to see your apps and content.
2. Modern feel: Your phone works like most other new phones.
3. Better experience: Swiping feels smoother than tapping buttons.
4. Faster navigation: Moving between apps becomes quicker with gestures.

What the Gestures Do

If you choose gestures, here’s how your phone works:

1. Go home: Swipe up from the bottom
2. See recent apps: Swipe up and hold
3. Go back: Swipe from the left or right edge
4. Open assistant: Swipe from the bottom corners

When This Change Happens

The navigation choice feature isn’t ready yet. Samsung tested it in early versions of One UI 8, but it didn’t make it to the Galaxy Z Fold 7 and Flip 7.

Reports suggest it will arrive with One UI 8.5. This update should come with the Galaxy S26 series next year.

Why This Matters

This change shows Samsung finally listening to how people actually use phones. Most Android users prefer gestures once they try them. Samsung’s old approach forced people to stick with outdated navigation.

The update doesn’t remove buttons completely. People who like them can still choose them. But offering the choice upfront helps users find what works best for them.

What Users Think

People who switch to gestures usually don’t want to go back. The extra screen space makes a big difference, especially on large phones. Videos and apps look better without buttons taking up space.

Some users worry about learning new movements. But the gestures become natural quickly. Most people adapt within a few days of switching.

The Technical Side

Samsung already built gesture navigation into their phones. The feature works well once you turn it on. The company just needed to make it easier to find.

Current Galaxy phones let you:

• Switch between navigation types anytime
• Adjust gesture sensitivity
• Customize which gestures work where
• Block gestures when using the S Pen (on applicable models)

Looking Forward

This change puts Samsung in line with other Android phone makers. It removes a barrier that kept users from trying better navigation methods.

The update shows Samsung balancing tradition with progress. They’re keeping what users like while making improvements easier to discover.

One UI 8.5 represents more than just a navigation change. It signals Samsung’s willingness to modernize default settings that affect daily phone use.

For new Samsung users, this means getting a more current phone experience from day one. For existing users, it shows the company values user choice over forcing specific preferences.