Galaxy S8 Android 8.0 Oreo beta: How stable is it?
Well, it’s stable enough for a beta, but it’s not perfect as a daily driver. You weren’t expecting a different answer, were you? Beta software is never without its quirks, and as we have noticed in the day or so that we have been using the Oreo beta on a Galaxy S8, there’s some work left to be done. A lot of our readers have asked how the beta works, and those who like a short answer could do without reading further.
So what’s the problem with the Oreo beta?
The bugs we have faced on the Oreo beta aren’t too significant, except for the phone randomly freezing now and then. The freezing issues don’t need a restart to be fixed, but they are part of the early Oreo experience, even on a Galaxy S8 that was factory reset before the beta was installed. There’s also an odd bug that may or may not affect folks who are using the beta. Sometimes, if we go into the system settings from inside an app and then press the back button, the phone just drops us back into the settings menu.
This can also happen when we, for example, are in WhatsApp and open the keyboard’s settings. Again, it’s an odd bug, but it’s there. One issue that’s more easily noticeable is with rendering. As you can see in the screenshot of the Always On Display settings, the interface can be messed up in some places. Maybe it’s to do with the resolution settings that Samsung offers on its flagships or just a regular issue that crops up on test versions of newer versions of Android; we’re not sure. However, we guess it will be an easy fix.
It’s not all bad, though. Our Galaxy S8 is now running faster and smoother than it was on Nougat. It remains to be seen if the phone will slow down after a few months of usage, but right now, it’s a joy to use the phone as far as general performance is concerned. Well, at least until it freezes, which is when we’re reminded there’s some ways to go before the stable version of Android 8.0 Oreo rolls out to users.
Before that happens, there will be a few updates to the beta, which will fix current issues and no doubt introduce new ones. As we said before, it’s only been a day since we have had access to the data, so it’s likely we haven’t discovered all the problems in the first beta. We’ll keep looking, and in addition to updates on its stability, we’ll keep reporting on all the new features and changes that Oreo introduces.
Have you managed to enroll in the Android 8.0 Oreo beta? If yes, what has your experience been like? Any major bugs or issues affecting your Galaxy S8 or Galaxy S8+? Let us know by leaving a comment!
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Mine is dead in the water. Stuck at the recovery screen. I would avoid it. COmplete lack of support
Hello Abhijeet @ Sammobile, any news on Beta2 as rumors going round about it is releasing around 11am UK time today?
Please advise.
Oreo beta test india confirmed by samsung india during samsung live chat. Samsung oreo beta might be next month
Finally back on 7.0 and I’ve found that the call quality has deteriorated again compared to the buggy 8.0. OK I know it’s a beta, but it does surprise me in the sound quality difference, I hope that it’s carried through to the final product along with some of the other tweaks.
Overall Oreo does seem to have some promise.
Just dumped it I’m getting an increasing number of irritating glitches, so restoring to 7.0 although that’s proving to be an issue as well, with Smart Switch not backing up all of the apps that I had and having to use Google Play to restore them all.
Good job I’ve got unlimited data on my broadband account.
Our Galaxy S8 is now running faster and smoother than it was on Nougat.
I dont think so – mine is very slow and laggy sometimes it takes 1min to open a notification app
Restoring to latest official firmware as we speak. I found quite a few issues personally, like 40+ auto notifications in the quick launch settings, settings menu not opening properly from apps that link to them, some quite extensive lag with Google Play Store (sometimes it wouldn’t start at all unless I rebooted) and I also couldn’t set Google Now launcher as default, no matter what I tried! It’s definitely a beta experience for me!
Just found out that all of a sudden Android Pay has stopped working.☹
Using since day one only problem I had with bixby…voice activation does not work most of the time…
Not experienced any freezing so far.
Only problem I’ve run into is that Android Pay no longer works. Found that out trying to buy my train ticket to work.
Had it since Thursday afternoon (uk) and found it v smooth generally better than nougat. Occasional stutter and Android Pay doesn’t work but that’s being worked on for the next release.
Screw Samsung…. I enrolled early on and was kicked out for no apparent reason. Their customers service is useless, just saying they’ll forward it to their research team. My previous experience with their “research” team is that nothing is accomplished unless you call them constantly, and even then, it takes months for a simple request. A BBB claim helps push it along, barely.
to go back to 7.0 how would I go about that ?
odin & firmware from here would that trip the counter ?
any info welcome cheers.
I’m not sure how, but I think downgrading is possible but it will wipe your data
Last year with the Nougat beta on the S7 you could go back with Smart Switch. Probably it will show you, that a new software update is available and this is will install 7.0 again.
Hello. How about the multitasking? Is it better now? I know that multitasking on s8 is much better than IT was on s6 or s7, but some apps are still refreshing from time to time. How about that in oreo? Thanks
I got it on my S8+. No major issues. I am using it as my daily driver as well. Some cosmetic issue as to be expected and FB crashing. With any beta , it is a good idea to restart your phone once daily. Wiped cache after installation. Some of the features seem unfished but as far as stability, it is good as a daily driver for me.
Mine has been quite buggy. When a notification comes in sometimes it will automatically open it without me even wanting to. And it starts out fast but after a while it becomes VERY slow and laggy to the point it takes a couple of minutes to open a notification, long after I’m fed up of waiting for it
et la sortie en France de la beta oréo galaxy s8 c est pour quand ?
Got a S8+ & so far I have had no major issues, I’ve found one or two games seem a little stuttery (Candy Crush Soda/Candy Crush) but nothing vital.
No freezes or temporary hangs so quite happy Bixby seems a bit better too, no issues with Samsung Pay either which I thought may be an issue. Call quality seems to drastically improved.
Hi,,, I’m live out UK ! can you register if Service provider (BTU/BTU/AFR) ??
No exist SIM card UK in my device .. I’m changed CSC and Service provider but when register in beta program there message say ” Your SIM card doesn’t match the service provider software on your phone.”
You have to be in the UK with BTU firmware; they know when you have flashed your phone and will not accept it into their beta. you can maybe flash the 8.0 beta firmware from a third party but Samsung will not support you.
When choosing an app to open a file, the prompt comes up that says you can change your default app in the settings. This happens when I hit “only once”.
Music doesn’t automatically resume over car Bluetooth after ending a call.
My phone as you said it’s faster nad smoother than before. I have only problems with FB app.
Believe it or not I haven’t had any issues on my S8+. It’s been super smooth with no bugs for me thus far. I’m pretty sure with a few more days of use something might show but, but so far so good it’s been kind of perfect. In fact on Nougat I had issues with AoE: Castle Siege always freezing after starting it, but now it works flawlessly.
It’s also worth mentioning that the messaging app now supports GIF’s from keyboards or copy/paste. This was one of the biggest gripes I had with the stock messaging app.
The first major update in a while which focuses on fixing bugs and performance and adding new smaller but useful things. Very nice of Samsung indeed! I’m hoping that Oreo will mean a UI change for us S7 users (to SX ver 9.0) as well as performance improvement.