Samsung launched the Galaxy S24, Galaxy S24+, and Galaxy S24 Ultra with several exciting upgrades. On the software front, the new flagships run One UI 6.1, which brings a welcome upgrade for Samsung's Always On Display (AOD) feature: you can now force Always On Display to show your lock screen wallpaper and widgets.
Naturally, folks have been wondering how battery-friendly showing the wallpaper on AOD is going to be. Battery drain certainly is going to be higher compared to the old all-black Always On Display, but Samsung has built-in a neat power-saving setting that erases the background in photos that have people and objects as the subject so that only the person or object is shown on AOD, allowing for parts of the screen to remain completely dark.
We have also learned that the new and improved displays on the Galaxy S24, S24+, and S24 Ultra consume less power than the displays on their predecessors, which further helps reduce battery drain when AOD is active. Yes, that applies to even the base Galaxy S24, as for the first time, all three models of a Galaxy S lineup have displays with a variable refresh rate that goes as low as 1Hz (they also all have the same maximum brightness).
AOD wallpaper requires the Galaxy S24 series' power-efficient displays
Unfortunately, it seems older devices, including the Galaxy S23 and others launched in the last year, will miss out on AOD wallpapers because their displays aren't as efficient. Samsung hasn't officially confirmed this, but based on information we have received from a trusted source, that's the main reason why wallpaper support on Always On Display is meant to stay exclusive to the Galaxy S24 lineup.
It would have been great if Samsung left it to its users to decide if they think the AOD wallpaper feature is worth the extra battery drain instead of denying them access to it outright, but it is what it is, and we will just have to keep our fingers crossed the company changes its mind.
Some other features that debuted with the Galaxy S24 series and One UI 6.1 may also be exclusive to the new flagships, though at this time we don't know which features will make the cut and which of them won't. Mid-range and budget Galaxy phones will likely get considerably fewer features, especially those that are based on AI, as mid-range and budget devices don't have enough horsepower under the hood.
We'll let you know when we learn more about Samsung's plans for bringing Galaxy S24 and One UI 6.1 software features to existing devices. Until then, take a gander at our One UI 6.1 feature breakdown in the video below!
