Samsung added iPhone-style live voicemail to Galaxy S25 devices through the One UI 8.5 beta update. The Direct Voicemail feature arrived in Beta 4, which began rolling out to users in South Korea before expanding to Germany, the UK, the United States, and India this week.
The update enables real-time voicemail transcription inside the Samsung Phone app. Users can see text transcripts as callers leave messages, allowing them to screen calls without answering.
The feature works on-device, reducing dependence on carrier-supported voicemail services.
Galaxy S25 owners can manually send calls to voicemail or set automatic timers. The system offers customizable intervals from 1 to 20 seconds before redirecting unanswered calls. This differs from Apple's Live Voicemail, which automatically decides when to send calls to voicemail.
Samsung's implementation includes two advantages over Apple's system. The Direct Voicemail feature integrates with Galaxy AI's Audio Eraser technology, which cleans background noise from recorded messages. The same system previously applied only to Gallery videos.
The One UI 8.5 beta update measures approximately 1.5GB and includes the February 5, 2026 security patch. Samsung addressed multiple bugs in this release, including lock screen clock positioning issues, Bluetooth headset call switching problems, and number pasting errors in the dialer.
Beta testers must have Galaxy S25, S25 Plus, or S25 Ultra devices with One UI 8.4 beta already installed.
To enable the feature, users open the Samsung Phone app, tap the three-dot menu, select Settings, then turn on Direct Voicemail. Transcript Assist must be enabled for real-time message viewing.
The full One UI 8.5 update is expected to debut with the Galaxy S26 series. Samsung reportedly scheduled its first Galaxy Unpacked event of 2026 for February 25. The complete release may include additional features like Pro camera presets, Network Battery Saver, and expanded LockStar customization options.
