Anticipation was high for Samsung’s One UI 7, and even when all of the delays and original issues with the new OS are ignored, it’s still pretty clear that some portions of Samsung’s software are lacking. The Now Bar might be one of Samsung’s biggest disappointments, not because of what it could have been, but because it fell far too short.
The Now Bar seemed to be an unassuming feature in One UI 7. When the software was first pushed to the Galaxy S24 in its beta version, the Now Bar was touted as a simple lockscreen widget that displayed different bits of data.
Essentially unchanged from when it was launched, the Now Bar still only shows limited information.
When the phone is charging, the Now Bar will display the charge levels even while the phone is turned off. When it’s awake, it’s a nice little reminder of your phone’s battery status. If media or a favorite sports team is playing, the Now Bar will display basic information and further details. The same goes for YouTube Videos. Even Google Maps gets access to the lockscreen widget, though the third-party integration stops there.
The Now Bar will also display access to Samsung’s Morning, Afternoon, and Evening Briefs. These quick AI rundowns give you information about the day or upcoming days, and will offer health data tracked from your Galaxy devices. The Morning Brief is a victim of the same unbaked state that the Now Bar suffers from, as we previously discussed.
Samsung’s inflated hopes
It’s understandable that a new UI and improved AI functions would open the doors to new features in One UI 7, but it seems like Samsung was blindsided by its own limitations.
In a blog post detailing One UI 7’s AI capabilities and how the company’s safety features are implemented in the Galaxy phone, Samsung offered a preview of what it thought the Now Bar would look like on the average user’s device. The thought screams futurism in the way that many envision how AI should work on smartphones.
A picture of the Now Bar and Morning Brief on a Galaxy S24 Ultra showcased so many features we have not seen in One UI 7. The optimistic image alludes to the Morning Brief being able to decipher that the user is on a trip and suggesting items based on those travel details. The information provided includes music suggestions, useful apps to use during the trip, and tips on money exchange.
To Samsung’s credit, there is some truth in this image. The Morning Brief will suggest that you exercise, and it should offer a departure reminder to catch your flight. But the devil is in the details.
Morning Brief is touted as being able to offer natural suggestions with AI, but we generally don’t see valuable information in Samsung’s feature that offers such spot-on tips. For instance, I don’t see the Morning Brief, right now, being able to provide a forecast for an upcoming destination. That’s the sort of information you’d expect AI to suggest, but it often falls short of offering the way it’s being used right now.
Digressing past Now Bar, the post also brings up the lockscreen widget in similar hopes. Samsung notes that the Now Bar will seamlessly integrate into everyday actions and the most-used apps. That part, we’ve yet to see.
Third-party apps simply haven’t been added to the Now Bar’s capabilities. We don’t know if this is because Samsung is making it difficult or if app developers just don’t have an interest. To be honest, the latter seems more realistic. When the Now Bar was first announced, it felt like third-party apps would be a massive part of its feature set, but the limited features it currently offers are easily forgettable.
Samsung is also reportedly looking into offering more third-party support for apps outside of the Google ecosystem. Apps like Uber would be prime candidates for a spot in the Now Bar. When Samsung could do this is up in the air, and a lot of it relies on how much the developers want to bring their app to Samsung’s lockscreen feature. These additions likely wouldn’t need to wait until One UI 8 to come to fruition.
One UI 8 could offer improvements
While disappointing, One UI 7 wasn’t the epitome of a smooth transition. New features that hadn’t been tested were everywhere, and the Now Bar and Morning Brief relied on AI being completely capable. In its current state, One UI 7’s Now Bar simply falls short.
One UI 8 could mean we see improvements across the board. Further details are lacking, but it seems like the Now Bar will, at the very least, adopt a new Do Not Disturb function that’s always accessible.
It’s an added function, but it isn’t news about third-party integration or better AI capabilities in Samsung’s AI briefs. We’ll have to wait and see what Samsung does to make these features more capable. As it stands, these functions feel like virtual paper weights.
What do you think about the Now Bar? Does it need more work, or is it useful to you as is?
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