Following Android 6.0 update rollouts from companies like LG and HTC, it’s time for Samsung to begin pushing Marshmallow, too.
Samsung says that starting today, February 15, it will begin updating the Galaxy S6 and S6 edge to Android 6.0. Separate announcements will be made for each market when the updates are ready to roll, so if you’re wondering when your GS6 or GS6 edge will get its serving of Marshmallow, you’ll have to wait until Samsung says that your region’s update is ready.
If you're wondering when your Galaxy phone will get updated, Samsung says that upgrades for other Galaxy devices "will soon follow."
As for what’s included in the Android 6.0 update, Samsung has made several improvements to the Galaxy S6 edge’s edge panel functionality. The most basic tweak is that it made the edge panel larger, bumping it up from 260 pixels wide to 550 pixels so that more content can be displayed. You can also now customize up to nine edge panels to include things like People edge and Apps edge.
Speaking of specific panels, those have been upgraded, too. The People edge now includes the names of your contacts below their photo. Apps edge uses the wider edge panels included the Android 6.0 update to double the app shortcuts from five to 10, and you can also add entire folders of apps if you’d like. There’s a new Tasks edge panel to give you shortcuts for setting an alarm, creating an S Planner event, or writing a text message, as well as a Quick tools panel that includes things like a ruler, compass, and flashlight.
Finally, you can customize the Edge handle that you use to open all of these fancy new edge panels. You can head into the Settings app on your GS6 edge to tweak the Edge handle’s size, transparency, and placement.
Samsung may be starting its Android 6.0 rollout after some of its competitors, but it looks like the company is making up for it giving Galaxy S6 edge owners a few new features to play with. As for Galaxy S6 users, you’ll still get new Marshmallow goodies like improved app permissions and Doze battery saving, so you have something to look forward to as well.
