I dismissed these 3 Samsung Galaxy features as bloat until I actually tested them properly

Samsung Galaxy phones have a reputation for being filled with bloatware, and some of that reputation is earned. There are questionable pre-installed apps, duplicate Samsung and Google features, and carrier bloat that often come with Galaxy phones straight out of the box. However, Galaxy phones are ocassionally treated unfairly as the robust capabilities of One UI software are used against them. In an Android skin as versatile as One UI 8.5, there are sure to be features and options that some users find unnecessary or wasteful.

To others, those same features are indispensable. After initially hating Samsung’s software experience in the Android 11 and One UI 3 days, I’ve come around to enjoy what One UI has evolved into. I always give the devices I test a fair shake, and that means changing my mind. These are the three One UI 8.5 features I considered bloatware until I started using them — now I don’t want them to go anywhere.

Now bar

I don’t find the Now brief useful, but the bar is another story

Credit: Pankil Shah / MakeUseOf

Samsung went all-in on two AI-powered features starting with One UI 7, and they’re the Now bar and Now brief. Only one of them is actually worth using, but I mistakenly lumped the two features together for too long. For most people, the Now brief is a waste of screen space (and your time). I’ve yet to come across a situation where my Samsung phone presented information that was genuinely useful in the Now brief. All I ever see is weather, news, and YouTube content — and already have widgets, the Google Discover page, and an app for that.

As you can probably guess, I’m not the biggest Now brief fan, and I consider it to be AI bloat that lives on my phone. The similar names and branding made me write off the Now bar for a while, but I couldn’t have been more wrong. This tool surfaces information only when you need it, and is practically invisible when you don’t. The pill-shaped Now bar can show media controls, live sports notifications, navigation updates, timer status, and more. Basically, the Now bar adapts to whatever you’re using your Galaxy phone for, while living on your lock screen and status bar.

It’s like Apple’s Dynamic Island, but better. Samsung’s version is easier to reach and more versatile thanks to its prime positioning near the bottom of your lock screen.

Edge panel

It’s a productivity powerhouse I ignored for too long

For a while, I only thought of the Edge panel in One UI as the “handle” that pokes out of the side of your screen. Or, the annoying feature that I’d accidentally activate while trying to do something else. That’s until I realized that the Edge panel on my Samsung phone hides a clever feature called AI Select. It essentially lets you select anything on your screen and save it to your device. That includes capturing screenshots, screen recordings, and even GIFs. AI Select does the cropping and trimming before you capture content on your screen, streamlining the process.

It only got better once I gave the Edge panel a chance. It also offers easy access to the Samsung Finder, otherwise known as the central search bar for your Galaxy phone. You probably interact with it most in the app drawer, but it can also locate contacts, calenders, media, and more data types. It’s a lifesaver for multitasking, as you can use the Edge panel and Finder to add an app to a split-screen window layout.

Beyond the defaults, you can add dedicated Edge panels for Apps, People, Tasks, Weather, Tools, Clipboard, and Reminder categories. You’ll find all the customization options for the Edge panel in the Settings app under the Display → Edge panels menus. Adding custom apps to the Edge panel makes rapid app launching easier, and I’ve added Chrome, Messages, Maps, Apple Music, Mail, and Slack for that reason. Now, the Edge panel is the most powerful software tool on my Samsung Galaxy phone.

Samsung Find

It’s not better than Find Hub, but it’s better than losing your device

Samsung’s biggest bloatware problem is the duplicate apps and features that seem to overlap with Google’s own offerings. It began to trim some of this overlap by sunsetting Samsung Messages in favor of Google Messages, but there’s another conflicting set of services. Google Find Hub is the Android ecosystem location-tracking network, and Samsung offers its own Samsung Find platform in addition. SmartThings Find is specifically designed to help you find Galaxy devices — this could seem redundant when Find Hub does the exact same thing.

I neglected to use SmartThings Find, as Google’s Find Hub seemed like the better platform-agnostic option. Now, I’ve come around to realize that there’s no such thing as having too much protection in the event your device is lost or stolen. You can use SmartThings Find and Google Find Hub. It’s not an either-or scenario. Like Find Hub, the SmartThings Find ecosystem can help you locate offline devices, share location with others, and get location-based device arrival or departure notifications.

If there’s even a chance SmartThings Find can help me locate a lost or stolen Galaxy device, I’ll gladly use it in addition to Google’s Find Hub.

Don’t mistake features for bloatware

Samsung bloatware is certainly not a myth — my personal Galaxy S25 Edge has Shop Samsung and LinkedIn conspicuously pre-installed. I’ve noticed similar bloat on review units, like the Galaxy S26 Ultra I recently tested. Still, it’s worth remembering that One UI’s best features are easily mistaken as bloat until you give them a try.

SoC

Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5

Display

6.9-inch Dynamic Super AMOLED 2X

RAM

12 or 16 GB

Storage

256GB, 512GB, or 1TB

Battery

5,000 mAh

Operating System

Android

Samsung’s latest Galaxy S26 Ultra is yet another iterative upgrade, but the small changes make a big difference. The brand took risks by adding innovative features like Privacy Display and Horizontal Lock. Performance and battery life are great, with the Galaxy S26 Ultra charging up to 75% in just 30 minutes over a cable. All told, it’s a true flagship in every way but one — missing Qi2 support looms large.