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Samsung Widens One UI 8.5 Beta to S23, Foldables and First A‑Series Phone

The move broadens testing to older and mid‑range phones to expand cross‑platform file sharing.

Overview

  • Samsung expanded the One UI 8.5 beta on Thursday to the Galaxy S23 lineup, S23 FE, Z Fold5, Z Flip5 and, for the first time, the mid‑range Galaxy A36.
  • AirDrop over Quick Share is rolling out to more Galaxy phones only on One UI 8.5, covering the S25 and S24 series plus the Z Fold6/Z Flip6 and Z Fold7/Z Flip7.
  • Availability is limited by region, with the S23 series offered in India, South Korea, the UK and the US, the Fold5/Flip5 in the US and Korea, and the A36 only in India.
  • Samsung is still iterating device builds, with One UI 8.5 Beta 9 for the S25 adding AirDrop support and key fixes and Beta 2 for the S25 FE live in Korea with the April 2026 security patch.
  • Enrollment runs through the Samsung Members app, and the first S23 beta in India ships as firmware S911xXXU9ZZD5 at about 4.16GB with the April 2026 security update.