Samsung’s new One UI 7 update based on Android 15 has a lot to offer, and one of my favorite features (even if it’s a bit half-baked) is the new “Now Bar” on the Galaxy S25. This week, Samsung started pushing out a much-needed update to improve the Now Bar, likely ahead of the broader One UI 7 release next month.

What Is the Now Bar on Galaxy Phones?

Unless you have the Galaxy S25 or are running one of the new One UI 7 betas, you probably don’t know much about the Now Bar. It’s similar to Apple’s Dynamic Island, and it can display all sorts of helpful information at a glance on Galaxy phones.

The Now Bar can display live notifications, music, maps, remote controls, and sports at the bottom of the lock screen and often in the notification shade. You can read more about it in our Galaxy S25 Ultra review. It updates automatically, depending on the information available, and it’s pretty great when it works. Once the One UI 7 arrives for more phones, additional people will be able to take advantage of it.

However, it’s pretty clear that Samsung rushed the feature. You can’t customize anything, and most users don’t even know how to add sports to the card. Thankfully, a new update this week added additional information, a setup guide, and more.

Samsung’s Now Bar Update

This week, Samsung updated its Always-On Display app, which controls the new Now Bar. The update changelog notes a “Google Sports settings guide” along with an “improved Google Sports-related GUI.” Samsung changed the UI a bit, and I’ve noticed sports scores look a little better on my Galaxy S25+ screen. This change appeared with the v8.8.25.5 update to the Always-On Display app for Samsung.

However, the bigger change is that the Now Bar sports setting is easier to understand. Prior to the update, the only way you’d see sports scores on your phone was if you’d already followed sports or teams you’re interested in on your Google account. If not, the Now Bar doesn’t show anything. Now, when you tap on the “Sports from Google” feature in the Now Bar Settings, you’ll get more information that reads:

“To see Sports from Google in the Now bar, you need to go to the Sports from Google settings and follow teams or leagues.” Then, there are two links for more information on how to set things up and a dedicated button to jump right into the Sports from the Google settings menu. Additionally, you can go to Google Discover, scroll to the right at the top until you see “Your Sports Teams and Leagues” and follow the teams you’re interested in.

Once you do that, Samsung’s One UI 7 update and the Now Bar will pull that information from Google and show sports alerts on the screen. You’ll get a little pop-up on the lock screen and notification shade before a game starts, live updates throughout, and a persistent notification showing the score and information.

Unfortunately, I still have one complaint. If you accidentally swipe away the Now Bar sports card, it’s gone—and you can’t get it back. I’ve tried removing and re-adding teams to my list with no luck. Instead, it’ll simply appear again the next time a team you follow is playing. Clearly, Samsung still has some work to do.

Either way, this is a small but very useful change to how the Now Bar works in One UI 7. I have a feeling it’s not the last, either, and Samsung will likely continue to improve the experience as it prepares to release the Samsung Galaxy One UI (Android 15) update for more phones in April.

Source: Android Central