Samsung Electronics is currently in the process of developing Android 8.0 Oreo builds for its smartphones and will start pushing them out in early 2018, Samsung Turkey’s outlet Güncel Miyiz revealed earlier this month. The firm didn’t specifically mention a preview program for the beta version of the operating system which is reportedly in the making and is still expected to launch before the end of the year, just like it was the case in late 2016 when Samsung debuted an Android 7.0 Nougat beta test. The Turkish unit of the original equipment manufacturer didn’t provide a more specific time frame to accompany its announcement, though the previous iteration of Google’s mobile OS was introduced this January when it started rolling out to the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge before making its way to non-flagship offerings from the Seoul-based company.
Samsung already started updating some of its mobile apps with support for Android 8.0 Oreo and a number of the OEM’s devices were previously sighted in databases of mobile benchmarking tools running the latest major version of the omnipresent OS. The tech giant’s 2017 flagships are expected to take precedence over non-premium models as far as general availability of the upcoming firmware is concerned, i.e. owners of the Galaxy S8, Galaxy S8 Plus, and Galaxy Note 8 should be the first to start receiving the new software package before it begins rolling out to other devices from the South Korean consumer electronics manufacturer. Major OS rollouts usually take months to be completed and Samsung’s latest high-end smartphones may not be running Android 8.0 Oreo in all parts of the world before spring 2018, just like it was the case with the Galaxy S7 lineup this year. Depending on where you’re located, your mid-range Galaxy A or Galaxy C-series device may even receive the Android 8.0 Oreo update before Samsung and its wireless carrier partners update all of the company’s flagships.
The OS itself doesn’t ship with a major redesign but features numerous system improvements and performance enhancements that should ennoble the overall user experience of a compatible smartphone. Granular control for notifications is part of the Android 8.0 Oreo package, as is a full-fledged picture-in-picture mode, improved Bluetooth audio, and a new set of options for regulating background app activity.