Google might step in and make TouchWiz faster and less buggy

By David Curry November 25, 2015

samsung focus news unpacked august 13 the note 5 and galaxy s6 plus expected — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Samsung has always been at ends with Google, pushing Android customization to the limit. Last year, the two reportedly clashed over Samsung’s Magazine UX, which was scrapped from the Galaxy Tab Pro series shortly afterwards.

Instead of removing items from TouchWiz this time, Google might be looking to optimize the custom Android UX. In a new report from Samsung Viet, the search giant is apparently interested in making TouchWiz faster and less buggy.

Google and Samsung have not commented on the report.

Samsung still sells the majority of Android smartphones, though Lenovo and Xiaomi are catching up. That means TouchWiz is the interface most Android customers will use — something Google no doubt doesn’t enjoy. Even on high-end smartphones, TouchWiz still has memory struggles, despite the Galaxy S6 and Note 5 being packed with 4GB of RAM each.

Partnering with Samsung might speed up the bug fixes and make sure TouchWiz isn’t lagging in any areas, giving customers a more enjoyable experience that might tempt them to buying a second Android phone.

At the same time, more Google influence on Samsung’s software team might improve and eventually move TouchWiz to a more “stock-like” interface. Motorola, OnePlus, and LG have already started sticking to Google’s prefered UI design, with small changes and improvements instead of massive customizations.

As Google pushes for more hardware standardization, it might also look for vendors to create less obtrusive and slow interfaces. We don’t think Google will go as far as to force Samsung to create a near-stock experience, but a trim of the fat might be the first step in speeding up TouchWiz.

The news comes a week after news that Google might built its own mobile device, a new move to sell the stock experience without any third-party input. That might make Samsung more hesitant about partnering with Google to fix bugs, if the two companies will soon be hardware competitors.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

Former Digital Trends Contributor

David has been writing about technology for several years, following the latest trends and covering the largest events. He is…

Mobile

When is my phone getting Android 13? Google, Samsung, OnePlus, and more

Android 13 has been available for Android phones since late 2022, and it's a pretty minor update from Google. Well, we say minor, but that's only in comparison to the positively gargantuan number of changes that were in Android 12 — and in light of Google's policy of trickling out improvements to Android apps over the course of a year as soon as they're ready. Android 13 is more of a tune-up to the engine that powers your phone than anything else. But it's still one worth getting excited for.

Tablet and foldable owners will see the most benefits, and there will be some updates to Material You to improve Android's customizability. There really isn't much else to say about Android 13. It's a very under-the-hood update, and that trend appears to be continuing with the upcoming Android 14 as well.

Mobile

How Android 14 is Google’s secret weapon to make Android tablets great

Galaxy Tab S8 sitting at an angle above the tenth generation iPad.

Over the years, Google has earned itself a bad rep for abandoning the cause of Android tablets. At its most generous, Google’s interest in redeeming Android on tablets can be described as an on-off romance. Apple, on the other hand, poured some serious energy into building up iPadOS as it continued to diversify its iPad portfolio — most recently with the iPad Pro (2022) and iPad 10th Gen.

Then came Android 12L, Google’s first sign that it was taking foldable phones and tablets seriously. With Android 13, the company doubled down on building a standout experience for larger screens that can also scale the UI for different aspect ratios without making apps look like a magnified mess.

Mobile

5 things that would make the Google Pixel Fold next year’s best foldable

Alleged renders of the Google Pixel Fold in black.

Google has been synonymous with the Android smartphone market, but even more so now thanks to its own Pixel lineup of phones. The latest releases, the Google Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro, have been a hit with most buyers, despite some minor flaws. If you’re looking for a pure Android experience, then the Pixel is the way to go. Even I, as a longtime iPhone-only user, prefer the Pixel so far over other Android smartphones based on my testing.

Now, it looks like 2023 may be the year we get the first foldable Pixel device, which may aptly be called the "Google Pixel Fold." This will be a highly anticipated smartphone, and recent leaks have given us a better idea of what Google’s first foldable phone will look like. Though nothing has been officially announced yet, here are some things we’re hoping to see on the Google Pixel Fold.
High-quality camera with photo-editing features