![Which is the better upgrade: One UI 8 or Android 16’s Material 3 Expressive? [Gallery]](https://precisenews.us/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/One-UI-8-v_1748571028.webp)
Both bring a unique design, but Android 16 has gone a little further in the Material 3 Expressive upgrade.
Quick Settings tiles are now customizable in size, meaning the QS menu can be completely altered to fit the user.
Android 16 QPR1 doesn’t allow this, and at the widest split, the secondary app takes on a very small aspect ratio.
No more design surprises for a while Android 16 QPR1 introduced a massive design language change called Material 3 Expressive.
Between Android 16 and One UI 8 in their current forms, it’s hard to say which OS can claim a win.
Samsung’s foundation for the upcoming updates until the final release has been established with the release of One UI 8 in its earliest form. The release of Android 16 QPR1, which included some of Google’s eagerly awaited design changes, coincided with this update. Let’s take a closer look at how they compare.
Android 16 vs. A single user interface (UI) 8.
Although it was a while ago for Samsung, the Quick Settings menu and notification shade were among the most significant changes made to both of these Android builds. Although each offers a distinctive design, Android 16’s Material 3 Expressive update goes a bit farther.
Now that the Quick Settings tiles can be resized, the user can completely change the QS menu to suit their needs. In addition to lacking tile sizes, Samsung’s Quick Settings menu isn’t impacted by wide tiles in the first place. All of the icons have the same dimensions.
Overall, the Quick Settings page on Samsung is quite good. There are separate controls for Bluetooth and Wi-Fi in addition to additional controls at the bottom. Nevertheless, selecting this layout does direct notifications to a completely different page.
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Also, the new QS tile editing feature in Android 16 is a great improvement. Because those tiles aren’t categorized, finding them is much simpler and less stressful—especially when you’re configuring a new device. Third-party tiles are now recognized as such as well.
Samsung hasn’t made many changes to the way it handles the customization of the lock screen and home screen. There is still time for Samsung to make additional One UI 8 changes. Google did implement some significant changes that improve the user experience overall. While extra details like shortcuts are more clearly laid out, clock designs are simpler to locate and modify.
In terms of lock screen customization, One UI 8 still prevails because it allows you to rearrange the clock and other widgets to create a more aesthetically pleasing display. Wallpaper effects are available on Android 16, which adds a little flair.
The settings app is more colorful in both Android 16 versions, but this is a small detail with no practical use. Although Samsung had made this change some time prior, the switch to Android 16 meant that Pixel devices now have a more vibrant options hub.
Split screen is another significant change Samsung made to One UI 8. Users can now configure a 90:10 split, which is more like how OnePlus devices work. This is not possible on Android 16 QPR1, and the secondary app has a very small aspect ratio at the widest split.
Many of the One UI 8 changes made by Samsung were implemented as Android app updates. The Weather app, for example, now displays people rather than images of animals, and the Internet app has an improved shortcut menu.
For now, there won’t be any more design surprises.
Material 3 Expressive, a significant design language shift, was introduced in Android 16 QPR1. This change has an impact on the default collection of resources that Google provides developers. This influences the design of the Quick Settings tiles, lock screen components, and a lot more. In summary, that change has improved Android’s overall appearance.
On the other hand, One UI 8 doesn’t greatly alter its appearance. However, that is acceptable because Samsung changed the One UI 7 design in a similar way. The Quick Settings menu design and other One UI 8 components are particularly affected by this.
Since the designs of both of these operating systems have changed in the past year, it’s highly likely that there won’t be another big update for a while. Each of these Android builds gives us the same design.
Neither of these builds has reached the final stage of features. Before the changes are made public, some or many changes may be made. However, for the time being, a few significant distinctions must be noted.
And who wins?
It’s difficult to determine which operating system is superior between Android 16 and One UI 8 in their current iterations. Google has turned Android 16 into a contemporary operating system that resembles all other current iterations of Android, while Samsung has created a design language that is distinctly Samsung. Though Android 16 QPR1 may have a better appearance than the other, the design works well for both versions.
