Samsung Galaxy Note 7 Updated TouchWiz UX Looks Like Android N; Includes New S-Pen Feature  

Gold Galaxy S7 with shortcut toggles drawn
Gold Galaxy S7 with shortcut toggles drawn Fionna Agomuoh

Samsung fans are reeling after the major Galaxy Note 7 design leak that surfaced recently. However, there is a lot more to the upcoming smartphone than its curved display and color options. A new leak gives a first look at the updated TouchWiz user interface, expected to run on the Galaxy Note 7.

The video, shared by Zaryab Khan of the YouTube channel XEETECHCARE not only goes through the basic interface changes users can expect to see on the Galaxy Note 7, it also does a quickly comparison to the TouchWiz interface on the Galaxy S7.

Samsung has long been criticized for its heavy customization of the TouchWiz interface. With each flagship release -- Galaxy S6 and later -- the manufacturer has aimed to make their software more visually appealing and user friendly.

The Galaxy Note 7 TouchWiz interface includes an updated look to the quick toggles, drop-down menu, including smaller icons, a new feature called Blue Light Filter, which gives the handset screen a tint for better visualization, similar to Night mode on the iPhone, and a search bar, which can also be users with voice control.

Khan notes that the full settings area bears a great resemblance to Android N, with all the options in a single list, as opposed to separated into sections. In comparison to the Galaxy S7 settings, the Note 7 settings feature lighter colors and a less cartoonish look.

New software accompanying the Galaxy Note 7 S-Pen stylus includes a feature called Glance, which allows users to see a mini pop-up of an application that has been opened through the feature. Users can employ the S-Pen to hover over the pop-up and pull up the app once more (instead of going into recents, for example). The pop-up will remain on-screen until the Glance feature is turned off. The Galaxy Note 7 include several well known S-Pen features, including Action Memo, Screen Write and Smart Select.

At this time it remains unknown whether the Galaxy Note 7 will feature Android 6.0 Marshmallow or Android 7.0 Nougat. Khan rooted a Galaxy Note 5 handset running Android Marshmallow in order to test the Galaxy Note 7 TouchWiz UX, but that doesn’t confirm the Galaxy Note 7 operating system.

Typically, Galaxy Note smartphone don’t release with the newest Android software because they release before the Google’s latest OS rolls out. However, the Android Nougat name was announced last week and the software is expected to release in the summer. The Galaxy Note 7 is expected to launch Aug. 2.

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