One UI 9 Lets You Set Motion Photos as Lock and Home Screen Wallpapers on Samsung Phones

One UI 9 debuted alongside the Galaxy Z Fold 8 series and Z Flip 8, and it did not bring a massive overhaul. However, it did bring a few customisations to the table, including a new way to use Motion Photos on the lock and home screens of Galaxy smartphones and tablets.

Spotted first by SamMobile, One UI 9 lets users set their captured Motion Photos as live wallpapers. This can be done by navigating to Samsung's Gallery app and setting a Motion Photo Clip as a dynamic background for the lock screen, the home screen, or both.

Motion Photo option in the long-press menu on the home screen — Image Credit: SamMobile

During the setup process, the system provides a live preview showing exactly how the animation will look on the display. Besides, a dedicated option allows users to quickly enable or disable the animated effect, giving them full control without needing to swap out the image.

Currently, this dynamic wallpaper feature is exclusive to Samsung's newest foldables running One UI 9 out of the box, like the Galaxy Z Flip 8, the Galaxy Z Fold 8, and the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra.

Interestingly, SamMobile says it is currently missing from the One UI 9 Beta 5 build running on the Galaxy S26 Ultra. That said, the feature could potentially roll out to traditional slab flagships once the stable version of the OS is officially released.

The feature itself may not remain exclusive to premium Galaxy smartphones for long. With Samsung testing its upcoming release for all One UI 9-eligible smartphones, the ability to set live pictures as wallpapers should roll out by the end of 2026 with the One UI 9 stable update.

That said, One UI 9's customisability could extend to the Quick Settings panel, where users could rearrange and customise the panel and resize the brightness, volume and media player sections. Those using the latest beta can try out these One UI 9 features.