Samsung’s One UI 8, based on Android 16, introduces an upgrade to the existing Now Bar feature, specifically enhancing the Now Brief functionality. This new feature, called Listen Brief, allows users to listen to their daily summaries—covering weather, calendar events, traffic, and news—through audio instead of merely reading them. Users can select either Samsung’s or Google’s text-to-speech engines and control playback with options to pause, replay, or stop the audio. However, the Now Brief still lacks integration for sports scores, emails, and package tracking, which users hope will be added in the future.
A key new addition in Samsung’s One UI 7, built on Android 15, is the Now Bar featuring the Now Brief. The forthcoming One UI 8, based on Android 16, may introduce a fascinating enhancement to this feature.
As revealed by a teardown of the One UI 8 firmware, users will now have the capability to listen to their Now Brief, rather than just reading it. This feature will be aptly named Listen Brief.
Listen Brief code snippets in One UI 8
The Now Brief provides a concise overview of your morning, afternoon, and evening, covering aspects like weather, calendar events, traffic updates, and news. With Listen Brief, you’ll receive all this information in an audio format.
Options will include choosing between Samsung’s and Google’s text-to-speech engines, along with the ability to pause, replay, and stop the briefing audio at your convenience.
However, it’s worth noting that Now Brief is still lacking several potentially useful features, such as sports scores, email integration, package tracking, and more. We hope these additions will be implemented in future updates.
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