The One UI 7 beta has started rolling out to Galaxy S24 series handsets in some regions and the software is based on Android 15. As usual, the latest One UI update brings some exciting changes to those Galaxy phones that are eligible to receive the new interface. Originally created to help those with large-screened phones navigate their devices with one hand, One UI moved interactive elements on the screen closer to the bottom where they could be more easily pressed while holding the device with a single hand.
One UI 7 arrived late to the party this year, but it did still arrive. One cool new feature allows you to access your apps by scrolling vertically up and down on the display instead of the traditional side-to-side swiping that you’re familiar with. That is going to make it feel different when browsing your home screen and looking through your installed apps. One thing about this seems certain; when you need to find an app as quickly as possible, you should be able to search for it faster by scrolling vertically than if you’re swiping horizontally.
The reason why scrolling is faster than swiping has to do with the momentum that is generated at first. When that momentum slows down and the scrolling loses speed, the screen still gives the illusion of moving quickly. Also, the vertical scrolling has less resistance than the horizontal swiping resulting in a smoother and faster experience, especially on a tall and thin display. To the right of the search bar at the bottom of the screen is a three-dot overflow menu icon. Tapping on that will bring up an option you can tap on that will allow you to arrange the apps on your screen in alphabetical order.
Interestingly, reports that Samsung would offer vertical scrolling for the app drawer with One UI 7started to hit the rumor mill back in April. That’s when a moderator revealed in a Samsung Community forum post that One UI 7 would feature the big change to the way users can browse through their app icons. Pixel users already have a vertical app drawer on their phones.
If for some reason you’d prefer to keep using the traditional horizontal swiping for app titles on your One UI 7-enabled Galaxy phone, you do have that option. Sticking with the old school horizontal app drawer requires you to tap the three-dot overflow menu icon and pressing on the custom layout option. While you’re thinking about which way you’d prefer to view your apps, you can check out our One UI 7 Beta preview that we released earlier on Friday.
Check out the above video to see the One UI 7 vertical app drawer in action with a tip of the ol’ hat to Android Authority.