Newsletter
Yesterday, Samsung updated the carrier-locked versions of the Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Galaxy Z Flip 3 to the January 2023 Android security patch in the US. A day later, the new security update is available for factory-unlocked units of the two foldables. The latest SMR (Security Maintenance Release) has already reached several other Galaxy devices globally.
Users with an unlocked Galaxy Z Fold 3 in the US are getting the new update with firmware version F926U1UEU2EWA2. That for unlocked Galaxy Z Flip 3 units is F711U1UEU3EWA2 (via). The update appears to be limited to a few carriers initially. But, it should just be a matter of time before Samsung widely rolls out the January SMR for the 2021 foldable duo stateside.
The latest update for the Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Galaxy Z Flip 3 is unlikely to bring major user-facing changes. There may be a few bug fixes and optimizations, but don’t expect any new features. Samsung is only pushing this month’s vulnerability patches to the foldable duo. The company has already revealed that the January SMR patches more than 70 vulnerabilities. While none of them were labeled “critical,” about 60 patches this month were of “high” severity. So, you should install this security update as soon as you can.
As far as new features are concerned, these devices are coming fresh from the Android 13-based One UI 5.0 update. It brought a host of goodies, including a minor UI redesign and smoother system animations. Both the Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Galaxy Z Flip 3 will soon get One UI 5.1 with a few more goodies, though not as many as they got the last time. The new One UI version will debut with the Galaxy S23 series next week. All Samsung flagships that launched since 2020 will receive the One UI 5.1 update. We will let you know when the rollout begins.
The Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Galaxy Z Flip 3 get the January 2023 update
Samsung has been rolling out the January security patch to its devices since the first week of this month. The company has updated dozens of Galaxy smartphones and tablets to the new SMR since then. The Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Galaxy Z Flip 3 also picked up the new release in some international markets earlier this month. Yesterday, the rollout began for the carrier-locked versions in the US. Users with unlocked units also now have it. If you’re using either of these Samsung foldables, you can go to Settings > Software update and tap on Download and install to check for updates manually.