A few weeks ago, rumors began circulating that the Galaxy S25, S25+, and S25 Ultra would be the first Samsung flagship phones to feature Android’s seamless updates. Now, a report from Android Authority adds more weight to that speculation, claiming access to leaked files from the Galaxy S25 Ultra that confirm support for the feature.
This development isn’t exactly shocking. Eight years after Google introduced seamless updates, Samsung has finally started to adopt the technology, beginning with a Galaxy smartphone this year. It was only a matter of time before the feature made its way to Samsung’s flagship devices.
Seamless Updates Finally Coming to Samsung Flagships After Eight Years
Seamless updates, also known as A/B updates, operate by utilizing two system partitions. The device’s operating system is installed on both partitions, but it runs from only one at any given time, leaving the other as a backup. When a software update becomes available, it is installed on the unused (backup) partition. Upon restarting, the device switches to the updated partition, leaving the other one as the new backup.
This dual-partition approach allows updates to be installed in the background, eliminating the need for users to wait through a lengthy reboot process. In contrast, non-seamless updates interrupt usage, locking users out of their devices—sometimes even preventing emergency calls—until the update is complete. For many, this lack of convenience in non-seamless updates has been a persistent frustration.
The Galaxy A55 Paved the Way for Seamless Updates on Samsung Devices
As of December 2024, the Galaxy A55 remains the only Samsung smartphone to support seamless updates. While implementing dual system partitions technically reduces available internal storage space for users, Samsung found a clever workaround with the Galaxy A55. We can only hope the same innovative solution is applied to the Galaxy S25 lineup, ensuring users can enjoy seamless updates without compromising storage capacity.
With Samsung’s flagship Galaxy S25 series set to embrace this long-overdue feature, it marks a significant leap forward for the company. Users can finally enjoy the convenience of background updates without sacrificing usability—a feature that feels as essential now as it did when Google first introduced it nearly a decade ago.
