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Samsung Galaxy S7, Galaxy S8, and Galaxy Note 8 can now run Android 13, unofficially
An early build of LineageOS 20 based on Android 13 is now available for the Samsung Galaxy S7, Galaxy S8, and the Galaxy Note 8. Read on!
Google officially announced the stable version of Android 13 last month and uploaded the source code to AOSP. Although Android's newest iteration is available to only a handful of devices so far, the aftermarket development community is already hard at work releasing custom ROMs for older smartphones. Over the last few weeks, a bunch of phones have received custom ROMs based on Android 13. The venerable Samsung Galaxy S7, Galaxy S8, and the Galaxy Note 8 are the latest to join the Android 13 custom ROM party.
Samsung Galaxy S8 isn't dead yet, receives November 2021 security patch
Samsung is now rolling out the November 2021 security patches to the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus, according to a report.
Samsung released the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus all the way back in 2017, packed with Snapdragon 835 or Exynos 8895 chipsets (depending on where you bought it) and Android 7.0 Nougat. The phones were removed from Samsung's security update schedule in May of this year, bu the phones don't appear to be completely abandoned yet.
Samsung removes the Galaxy S8 from its security update schedule
Samsung has removed its 2017 flagships, the Galaxy S8 and the Galaxy S8+, from its security update schedule, ending software support for the devices.
While on the one hand, Samsung is doing a great job of rolling out the latest security updates to its newest devices. On the other, the company is removing older phones from its security update bulletin. In February this year, Samsung removed four phones from 2017 from its security updates list -- the Galaxy J3 Pop, Galaxy A5 2017, Galaxy A3 2017, and the Galaxy A7 2017. Its flagship phone from 2017, the Galaxy S8, is now getting a similar treatment.
Samsung Galaxy S8 and Galaxy Note 8 can now run Android 11, unofficially
The Samsung Galaxy S8 and Galaxy Note 8 have received an unofficial port of Android 11, courtesy of the Project Sakura custom ROM. Read on!
Samsung’s flagship Galaxy S and Note lineup are usually offered in two different processor variants around the world. While devices in the US, Canada, China, etc. receive the Qualcomm Snapdragon chipset, most other regions receive devices with an Exynos chip. The bootloader unlocking situation on the Snapdragon-powered models is somewhat complicated, thus the custom ROM development for the Galaxy devices is normally centered around the Exynos variants. This is exactly what happened with Samsung's 2017 flagships. If you own an Exynos Galaxy S8, Galaxy S8 Plus, or Galaxy Note 8 and have been itching to try out a closer-to-stock version of Android 11, well, you now can.
Many Samsung Galaxy S8 and Note 8 users are reporting GPS tracking issues
Many owners of the Samsung Galaxy S8 and Galaxy Note 8 are reporting GPS tracking issues, unable to get a location fix Google Maps.
Many Samsung Galaxy S8 and Galaxy Note 8 owners are reportedly experiencing GPS tracking issues, and these complaints have been bubbling for the past several months.
Samsung Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ will now receive security updates quarterly instead of monthly
Samsung has demoted the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ to quarterly security updates, down from the previous monthly security updates. Read on to know more!
The Samsung Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ were launched back in March 2017 as the premier flagships from Samsung. At the time of their launch, these were some of the best devices you could buy in the market, with excellent performance across the board. But time is a cruel mistress, and what were once amazing flagships, are now older devices in an ever-expanding portfolio. Samsung's usual update policy promises regular monthly security updates for flagships for three years since their launch, and quarterly updates after that point. Sadly, for the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+, these devices have now reached the threshold, and hence, will be moved to a quarterly release schedule.
Developers port Windows 10 on ARM to the Samsung Galaxy S8 and other Snapdragon 835-powered phones
A homebrew UEFI firmware enables the Snapdragon 835-powered Samsung Galaxy S8 to boot the ARM version of Windows 10. Read on to know more!
Developer-friendly OEMs like OnePlus and Sony are known for publishing kernel sources as well as device trees; the latter serves as a mechanism to describe the hardware to the Linux-based kernel of Android on ARM platform as soon as the primary bootloader boots. Operating systems like Microsoft Windows, however, utilize the Advanced Configuration and Power Interface (ACPI) for the same task, while the low level hardware initialization is handled by the Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) nowadays. Interestingly, it is possible to port UEFI and ACPI support to existing ARM devices with ample hacking, thus you can technically boot Windows 10 on devices like the Raspberry Pi.
Unofficial LineageOS 17.1 brings Android 10 to the Samsung Galaxy S8 and Note 8
Unofficial ports of LineageOS 17.1 are now availble for the Samsung Galaxy S8, Galaxy S8+ and Galaxy Note 8, courtesy of XDA Recognized Member Stricted.
Samsung has been busy rolling out Android 10 updates to its flagship devices for the past few months now. The Galaxy 10 series was the first to receive the One UI 2.0 beta based on Android 10 in November last year while the Galaxy S9/ S9+ received their stable Android 10 update just yesterday. As for the Galaxy S8/S8+ and Galaxy Note 8, however, Samsung doesn’t appear to have any update planned. In fact, none of these devices are on the list of Samsung’s One UI 2.0 update schedule. This should hardly come as a surprise though, given all three devices are well past their standard 2-year software support window and have already received two major Android version updates during their run. So unless Samsung has any surprise planned, we are unlikely to see an official Android 10 update for the Galaxy S8/S8+ and Galaxy Note 8. But what if we tell you, you can still try out Android 10 on your device?
Sprint is fixing Samsung Galaxy phone screens for $49 regardless of carrier
The thing that everyone with a smartphone fears is the dreaded cracked screen. Sprint is offering a great deal on screen repairs for Samsung Galaxy phones.
The one thing that everyone with a smartphone fears is the dreaded cracked screen. If you've used smartphones for a while, there's a very good chance it has happened to you. While it is technically possible to repair a cracked screen on your own or have someone else do it, most people don't. One of the big reasons for that is cost, but Sprint is fixing that for several recent Samsung Galaxy models.
Some Samsung Galaxy flagships now support wireless Android Auto
According to a Google support page for Android Auto, a bunch of Samsung Galaxy phones can now take advantage of Wireless Android Auto. Read on!
Google announced Android Auto Wireless at CES last year. At the time, the functionality was restricted to Google Pixel and Nexus devices only. Although Google had promised to eventually extend the feature to all devices running Android Pie and above, it didn't make it past the Google devices for more than a year. We saw the first sign of Google enabling Android Auto Wireless for non-Pixel devices back in August. Now, we have an official confirmation about some new devices that can take advantage of Android Auto Wireless.
bxActions 6.0 adds per-app Bixby button remapping, camera shutter action, and more
The Bixby remapping app bxActions was updated to version 6.0 and it adds per-app Bixby button remapping, camera shutter action, and more.
Two years ago, Samsung introduced us to Bixby, their take on a personal virtual assistant for all Samsung Experience users. Most of the discussions surrounding the topic of Bixby on the Samsung Galaxy S8 was about it having a dedicated Bixby button, which (initially) couldn't be remapped drifted slightly towards the negative.
Custom themes are once again possible on One UI devices like the Samsung Galaxy S10
Custom themes are possible again using Custom OneUI Theme Installer. The methods include replacing a free theme from the theme store or root access.
When Samsung released the Galaxy S10, it came with a nasty surprise. Samsung finally merged the Android changes in Android Pie that blocked rootless custom themes. This change was present on the Galaxy S10 series at launch and was included in updates for older devices like the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy Note 8. This blocked the most popular apps like substratum and Swift installer. For a while, there was absolutely no way to install themes which weren't on the Samsung theme store. Now, custom themes are possible using Custom OneUI Theme Installer. The methods for using this are replacing a free theme from the theme store or root access.
Samsung has now rolled out stable One UI with Android Pie to the Galaxy S8/S8+ and Galaxy Note 8 on all major US carriers and unlocked models
One UI based on Android Pie for the Samsung Galaxy S8 and the Galaxy Note 8 is rolling out on all major US carriers and unlocked models now.
One UI is the newest version of Samsung Experience, the company's own take on the Android mobile operating system. It has a huge amount of changes that focus on creating a great user experience for those using bezel-less devices. All of the non-interactable UI elements like headers and other text are relegated to the top of the display, while functional aspects are lower and easier to reach. This type of layout accommodates one-handed usage so that users don't feel that bigger displays are harder to use. An update to One UI also means an update to Android Pie. We saw the company roll out a beta for unlocked Samsung Galaxy S8 devices in the US, but now it's rolling out for devices on the stable channel too on all major US carriers.
Unofficial LineageOS 16 is now available for the Exynos Samsung Galaxy S8 and Note 8
You can now download the unofficial build of the latest LineageOS 16 ROM for the Exynos variants of the Samsung Galaxy S8/S8+ and Galaxy Note 8
LineageOS can easily be titled the holy grail of Custom ROMs. As one of the most sought-after software experiences on a smartphone, LineageOS has many takers. Since the release the latest version i.e. LineageOS 16 based on Android 9 Pie, the custom ROM has been made available on a long list of devices - both old and new. And for those that haven't, there's the unofficial version of LineageOS 16 is available. A month ago, unofficial Lineage OS 15.1 based on Android 8.1 Oreo was made available on the Exynos variants of Samsung Galaxy S8/S8+ and the Galaxy Note 8, and now this is being updated to the latest version.
"Complete One UI Project" is a Substratum overlay pack to fix annoyances in Samsung's Android Pie software
Complete One UI Project fixes many of Samsung One UI's smaller annoynaces, making it more consistently dark and better for one handed use. Read on!
Samsung's One UI brings together several refinements, as well as Android Pie, to the custom UX present on Samsung devices. As a successor to Touchwiz and Samsung Experience, One UI brought features like improved usage with one-hand, a system wide dark theme and more, most of which we largely appreciated in our review for the same. But despite best efforts, software experiences still have room to improve, especially considering the fact that experiences center around subjective opinion.
Latest Windows 10 Insider build lets you mirror Android apps from your Galaxy S8 or S9
Windows 10 Android app mirroring is part of the Your Phone app. Once you have your Android device set up, you can run apps on the PC.
Microsoft has been talking about greater synchronization between Windows 10 and Android devices for a while now. We first heard about their "Your Phone" Windows app nearly a year ago, but it didn't become usable until late Summer. The app is still pretty basic compared to other services that do the same thing. One of the more exciting aspects was Android app mirroring, and now Windows Insiders can finally try out this feature.
Customize One UI on the Exynos Samsung Galaxy S8, S8+ and Note 9 with this Xposed Module
XDA Senior Member firefds's Firefds Kit Xposed Module lets you customize the One UI based on Android Pie on Exynos Samsung Galaxy S8, S8+ and Note 9.
One UI has been the highlight of Samsung's Android Pie rollout, bringing in a much more refined experience that has been well received by a lot of people. The refreshed UI has begun rolling out for the Samsung Galaxy S8, Galaxy S8+, and the Galaxy Note 9, but despite the improvements it brings, there's still a lot more that users desire.
Samsung Good Lock gets updated to support Galaxy devices running One UI
Samsung said they would be updating Good Lock for One UI just in time for the launch of the Galaxy S10 family. Today, Samsung released that update.
Samsung’s Good Lock was first released in 2016 and it allowed users to tweak how TouchWiz looked on Android Marshmallow. With Android Oreo, Samsung brought Good Lock back with a whole lot more features. Last week, Samsung posted on their official forums that they would be updating Good Lock for One UI just in time for the launch of the Galaxy S10 family. Today, Samsung released that update.
Latest Tasker beta makes it easy to remap the Bixby button to anything
The developer of Tasker has made it even easier to remap the Bixby button to just about anything you could want in the latest beta.
The enthusiast community has had a love/hate relationship with the dedicated Bixby button on the recent Samsung devices. Some like it as Bixby can actually do things that Google Assistant cannot (since it's baked deeper into One UI) but there's been an issue for those who want to use the button for something else. Many chose to use apps including bxActions or Tasker to get the job done. But with the release of the Galaxy S10, Galaxy S10+, and the Galaxy S10e they finally started to allow it. Sadly, it could not be remapped to the Google Assistant (or any other virtual assistant).
How to remap Bixby to Google Assistant on the Samsung Galaxy S10, Note 9, and other One UI devices
Samsung released an update with Bixby button remapping, but they decided to block Google Assistant. Luckily, we have an easy fix for that.
At Samsung Unpacked, Samsung announced their new Samsung Galaxy S10 series and Galaxy Fold. After the press discovered a new option in Bixby, Samsung confirmed that the button would be natively remappable. With an update released to the Bixby app on older One UI devices today, this is finally possible. However, it wasn't all good news. Samsung is limiting the apps you can launch with the button. That means the Bixby button can't natively launch Google Assistant, but we have a solution.