Affiliate links on Android Authority may earn us a commission. Learn more.
Unlocked Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus in the US can finally access FM radio
- Samsung’s new software update for the unlocked Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus in the U.S. finally adds FM radio support.
- The ability to listen to FM radio stations was already supported on carrier-locked Galaxy S9 phones.
Samsung has not exactly treated unlocked Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus owners in the U.S. with a lot of respect. The company has neglected to release any software updates for those phones since they launched in March. Thankfully, that finally happened with this week’s rollout of the first OTA update for those devices.
Read more: Best Galaxy S9 cases | Best Galaxy S9 Plus cases
In addition to bringing the June 2018 Android security patches for those phones, SamMobile confirmed that the update also finally enables the FM radio hardware in the unlocked Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus. This means those phone owners can now listen to FM radio stations via NextRadio. This support is already available for people who bought a carrier-locked Galaxy S9 or S9 Plus, so it’s great to see support come to the unlocked versions as well. Keep in mind that in order to listen to your local stations, you will still need to plug in a set of headphones, as they also serve as the FM radio antenna.
This kind of slow software update support for unlocked Samsung phones in the U.S. is not a new issue; it’s one that has been a problem for years with previous unlocked Galaxy phones. There’s no word as to why Samsung continues to keep owners of these phones well behind their carrier versions in terms of software updates.