One UI 6.1 could supercharge lock screen customization on the Galaxy S24

Summary

• Samsung is expected to unveil its flagship Galaxy S24 lineup and a new version of its Android 14-based One UI interface at the upcoming Samsung AI Unpacked event.
• One UI 6.1 will likely introduce better lock screen customization features with downloadable fonts, allowing users to personalize the appearance of their lock screen clock.
• The feature is expected to be available on the Galaxy S24 series out of the box and will likely be rolled out to other premium Samsung phones with future updates.

The Samsung AI Unpacked event is just around the corner where the company is expected to announce its flagship Galaxy S24 lineup. While a bunch of leaks have already given away what the Galaxy S24 phones are going to look like, Samsung is also likely to unveil a new version of its Android 14-based skin — One UI 6.1 — at the same event. According to the latest leak, this One UI version will introduce better lock screen customization features with downloadable fonts.

Android 14 added lock screen customizations along the lines of what iOS brought to the table the previous year. With these options, you can pick how the clock looks, change its font and colors, and select the lock screen shortcuts to open, say, the camera directly in video mode. However, there are only a handful of clock fonts and designs to choose from in the current implementation. Samsung is reportedly fixing that with the upcoming One UI 6.1 update.

Noted leaker @UniverseIce tweeted a close-up image (included above) of a Galaxy S23 Ultra allegedly running One UI 6.1. The photo shows its lock screen with the clock prominently visible in a font you don’t have on the current One UI version. The leaker further states that One UI 6.1 will let you download new fonts from the Samsung App Store to tweak this clock’s appearance, practically enabling unlimited customizations for the lock screen. You can pair this with existing options to tweak the lock screen to make it look exactly the way you like.

Since One UI 6.1 is expected to debut with the Galaxy S24 series, the phones are likely to get this feature out of the box. However, other premium Samsung phones, including the Galaxy S23 line and older flagships, should get the feature with future updates.

In an older leak, we learned that One UI 6.1 will also add better battery protection with multiple levels to keep your phone’s battery safe from trickle charge, thereby extending its longevity. Like what Apple brought to the iPhone recently, Samsung might add an option to limit the battery’s charge to 80%, among other options.

All these leaked features should go official when Samsung announces the Galaxy S24 lineup on Wednesday, January 17. The announcement will likely focus only on the phones as the company isn’t rumored to introduce other accessories at this early 2024 event. You can watch the event online, while we’ll also keep a close eye to bring to you the latest updates from the event.