One UI 8.5 seems like a mid-cycle firmware update, but it is a meaningful refresh of Samsung’s emoji stack, aligned with the latest Unicode standards. Samsung’s One UI 8.5 update brings 133 new emojis from Unicode Emoji 17.0.

133 new emojis finally land on Samsung keyboards

The headline feature here in One UI 8.5 is support for Unicode Emoji 17.0, bringing a total of 133 new emojis into Samsung’s native font for the first time. Courtesy – Emojipedia

Some of the more noticeable additions include:

• Distorted Face, a chaotic expression that feels tailor-made for reaction culture
• Fight Cloud, the classic cartoon dust-up visual
• Ballet Dancer, now with expanded skin tone options
• Orca, a long-requested marine addition
• Hairy Creature, essentially Samsung’s take on Bigfoot-style folklore
• Trombone, Landslide, and Treasure Chest

Multi-person skin tone combinations now extend to People Wrestling and People With Bunny Ears.

The part Samsung got wrong, Apple Core vs Pickle

One UI 8.5 ships with an Apple Core emoji mapped to the Unicode code point U+1FADD. Apple Core concept was part of early Emoji 17.0 drafts but got scrapped in 2025. Unicode later reassigned that exact code point to a Pickle in the Emoji 18.0 draft.

Simply put, Samsung is showing the wrong emoji for a code point that has already moved on. So if an app expects a Pickle, your Galaxy device currently shows an Apple Core instead.

Subtle UI polish across existing emojis

Samsung has tweaked several existing emojis beyond new additions. A few notable changes:

• Pizza drops the odd toppings like olives and onions, looks cleaner now
• Bank replaces text signage with a clear dollar symbol
• Cyclone is simplified into a more readable spiral
• Ship now faces left instead of head-on
• New Moon Face and Full Moon Face lean toward a smirking expression style

Apps like Gboard or X have been using Google’s Noto Color Emoji fallback for years. One UI 8.5 simply brings everything into Samsung’s native emoji keyboard, making it consistent across the system.

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