Yesterday, Samsung released the January 2023 Android security patch for the Galaxy Z Flip 4 in the US. Its Fold counterpart is also now getting the latest security update stateside. The Galaxy Z Fold 4 recently received the new SMR (Security Maintenance Release) in some international markets as well. This month’s security patch for the latest Flip model is still exclusive to the US market, though.
The January SMR for the Galaxy Z Fold 4 is currently rolling out to unlocked units in the US. The new firmware version for the big foldable is F936U1UES1BWA2. The update is live on several carrier networks, including T-Mobile, AT&T, Tracfone, MetroPCS, Cricket Wireless, Nextech, Bluegrass Cellular, and US Cellular. Units on the remaining few networks shouldn’t be left behind for much longer. Users with a carrier-locked Galaxy Z Fold 4 should also get the January security update in the coming days.
This update doesn’t bring anything notable to the Galaxy Z Fold 4 in terms of user-facing changes. This isn’t surprising since the foldable recently picked up the Android 13 update with a plethora of new features and improvements. But behind the scenes, Samsung is pushing dozens of vulnerability fixes to the device with the latest release. The company has already confirmed that the January SMR patches more than 70 vulnerabilities in Galaxy devices. Not every issue exists on every device model, but the majority do
This month’s security release contains 20 Galaxy-specific patches and over 50 “high-severity” patches that are part of Google’s latest ASB (Android Security Bulletin). These issues affect every Android device that makes use of the compromised component. The patches come directly from Google or the vendor that supplied the partner component.
The Galaxy Z Fold 4 may soon get the One UI 5.1 update
This could be the last firmware build based on One UI 5.0 for the Galaxy Z Fold 4. The next update may bring One UI 5.1 to the foldable. Samsung is already testing the new One UI version for it. The rollout won’t begin until sometime in February, though. That’s because One UI 5.1 will debut with the Galaxy S23 series on February 1 with a few new features. We will let you know when the Galaxy Z Fold 4 gets it.
In the meantime, if you’re using this foldable in the US, you can check for the latest security update. Go to Settings > Software update and tap on Download and install to see if the January SMR is available for you. If not, wait a few days and check again. You may also get a notification when the OTA (over the air) update reaches your Galaxy Z Fold 4.