A report from "CNET" mentioned that the pandemic has given Samsung many ideas to improve the user experience of its smartphones through a new update. The American site noted that the new update for Galaxy phones focuses on enhancing privacy, ease of use, and communication—elements that the Korean company has noted have become important with increased time spent on smartphones due to lockdowns from the COVID-19 pandemic.
On Monday, Samsung Electronics officially announced the launch of a new update called "One UI 4," which will first be rolled out to the Galaxy "S21" series, with plans to expand to other Samsung phones soon. The report said that the latest update for Galaxy phones is another example of the broader shift happening across the tech industry, where companies are designing their products to facilitate remote work and social interaction.
Samsung’s Vice President and Head of Research and Development, Hyesung Sally Jeong, stated, "We looked at existing features and understood the needs that arise from new usage patterns due to the pandemic, and we enhanced them." One of the features included in the latest update is the ability to record audio and video during group calls, an addition that emerged due to the shift to remote learning during the pandemic. Jeong added, "We realized that our users might want to record audio or video while interacting remotely. Teachers want to record audio or visual lessons to review the classes they have taught to students."
CNET highlighted that the biggest change in Samsung's strategy with the new update is adapting to the increased actual time users spend on their smartphones. The new update provides greater eye comfort through software changes, reduced colors, and adjustments to font sizes and designs, in addition to collaborating with Google to enable greater screen dimming than previously possible in low-light usage.
Hyun Kim, Head of the Core User Experience Group, explained, "Regarding visual design, we made many decisions related to comfort. Reducing eye strain has become more important than ever." A recent study published in the "JAMA" medical journal found that smartphone usage among teenagers has doubled during the pandemic, not including virtual learning.
