Bixby in One UI 8.5
Samsung has announced that it is betting heavily on Bixby. Its own assistant has been around for quite a few years, but has increasingly faded into the background in recent years. After all, many options you could also access with the Google Assistant or now Gemini. Today, Samsung is presenting a new version of Bixby, which will be introduced with One UI 8.5.
The Bixby voice assistant is more emphatically portrayed in the new version as a tool that allows you to control your Galaxy device via natural conversations. The beta programme for this improved version has now been announced, but not for the Netherlands and Belgium.
With the new Bixby, you no longer need to know exact names of settings or specific commands. You can simply explain in your own words what you want or ask why something is happening on your device. Bixby understands the meaning behind your question and instantly adjusts the right setting. This saves you time and reduces the need to search through menus.
For example, if you say, "I don't want the screen to lock while I'm still looking at it", Bixby will automatically turn on the setting that ensures the screen stays active while in use. Bixby can also suggest several possible solutions based on your device's current settings. Say you ask why your screen stays on while your phone is in your pocket, Bixby can show relevant options such as Accidental Touch Protection, so you can turn it on immediately.
In addition, Bixby gets real-time access to information from the open web. Search results are displayed directly in the Bixby interface, without having to go to a separate browser or app. For example, if you ask to search for hotels in Seoul with swimming pools for children, Bixby will display the relevant results.
In terms of functionality, operation may vary by region and country. For now, Bixby only works in English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Spanish and Portuguese.
