Samsung Galaxy S21, Galaxy Z Fold 3, Z Flip 3 to get just two Galaxy AI features with one UI 6.1 update

The Samsung Galaxy S21 series is set to receive the One UI 6.1 update, along with the company’s Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Galaxy Z Flip 3 foldable phones. However, unlike the South Korean smartphone maker’s newer models, these three phones will only get support for two new Galaxy AI features. Over the past few months, Samsung has released One UI 6.1 for the latest Galaxy Z and Galaxy S series phones, with support for up to 10 AI-powered features.

The company confirmed on Friday, users of the Samsung Galaxy S21 series, Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Galaxy Z Flip 3 will get access to two Galaxy AI features: Circle to Search and Chat Assist. The company’s announcement also included a footnote stating that it will provide Galaxy AI features “for free until the end of 2025” — the same message that was displayed on the company’s website when the Galaxy S24 series was launched on -early this year.

With the One UI 6.1 update, owners of the Samsung Galaxy S21 series, Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Galaxy Z Flip 3 will be able to use the Circle to Search feature, which is currently exclusive to Samsung and Google smartphones. Users can log in, press the navigation pill to call up an overlay that lets them draw around, scribble, or highlight part of the screen to perform a visual search — without leaving the app they’re using.

Chat Assist, another AI feature that is designed to help users compose texts in different languages ​​by seamlessly translating incoming or outgoing messages, is also coming to all three phones. Samsung says the feature is designed to work with third-party apps as well, meaning users won’t have to open a translation app while messaging another user. Chat Assist is also designed to help users change the tone of their messages, according to the company.

Samsung’s announcement that it will update the Galaxy S21 series, Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Galaxy Z Flip 3 with these two features confirms that the company’s other Galaxy AI functionality will not make its way to these older phones. AI features that won’t be part of the update include Translator, Live Translator, Notes Assistant, Transcript Assistant, Browsing Assistant, Generative Editing, Suggest Editing, and AI-Generated Wallpaper.