Samsung has recently launched a beta program in china, south Korea, and the united states that are dubbed as the New Note UX. It might look like an upgrade to the firmware of the existing note phones such as the Note 5 and the Note 4 but there’s more than that to the story.
It is being reported that this user interface is very similar to the existing TouchWiz on the galaxy phones but with some added enhancements such as the color schemes and notification panel. There are some improvements for the s-pen productivity features too.
A curious thing to note is that there is no app drawer like in the normal galaxy phones. We have also seen reports in the past that the next major version of the android dubbed as N is also ditching the app drawer for a cleaner look similar the one on the iOS devices.
Users who have participated in the beta program have also mentioned that this user interface may not be exclusive to the note phones. This means that Samsung might be with the thought of bringing the s-pen functionality to devices other than the note 5. Potential devices could be the Galaxy S6 family and the S7 family.
We also know that the Korean giant is quietly developing a specialized stylus called as the C-pen that will be similar to the S-pen but will work on all android phones. If that is the case, then I am excited for the productive capabilities that my S6 active would gain.
This UX will see the light of the day in august. That the time period of the release of the Note 7 and maybe Samsung might have some surprises in store.