Client
Samsung
Year
2023
Service
UI/UX · Design Strategy · Visual Design

Samsung OneUI

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↳ Project Overview
02

Beyond
Functional
Excellence

"Samsung needed to evolve beyond functional excellence — it must now resonate emotionally with its users."

We partnered with Samsung's UX team to set a new standard for OneUI — defining what emotionally resonant products feel like for their next generation of users.

Samsung's UX team identified a unique challenge: shifting from a hardware-focused company to one centered on experience. I helped conduct qualitative research through stakeholder interviews, customer interviews, a product audit, and competitive analysis — inputs that framed our Emotional Design Principles and gave Samsung a new lens for evaluating design decisions across their product team.

We used these frameworks to influence a series of experience prototypes showcasing emotionally resonant interactions, alongside a tool that helped Samsung assess their products from a new perspective.

↳ Product Audit

Four Ways OneUI
Falls Short

Current State
OneUI 4 audit process
↳ Finding
Appeal
OneUI's visual design isn't a compelling upgrade over standard Android — inconsistent animation styles create a fragmented impression, producing little affection among users.
↳ Finding
Feel
OneUI lacks a distinct feel that supports and elevates the experience. Microinteractions are snappy but mechanical — creating emotional distance between user and product.
↳ Finding
Flow
A lot of features make it easy to multitask, but access to those features is fragmented. The number of options increases cognitive load without a clear emotional payoff.
↳ Finding
Signature Moments
OneUI has opportunities for ownable moments but relies heavily on basic Android and Google features — its creativity doesn't allow it to stand apart.
↳ Research

Gen Z &
What They Want

Five strategic territories — each a direct line from Gen Z behavior to a Samsung design opportunity.

Gen Z research findings
↳ Design Framework

Emotional
Design
Principles

To help Samsung make the leap from a usable product to a lovable one, we crafted a set of emotional design principles — a framework for generating and evaluating every OneUI experience.

Emotional design principles
01
Offer Human Touch
Design interactions that feel crafted by hand — warm, imperfect, and alive rather than coldly mechanical.
02
Engage the Senses
Use motion, haptics, and sound together to create moments that are felt as much as they are seen.
03
Foster Dynamic Expression
Give users the tools to make the phone feel like theirs — a surface for identity, not just a utility.
04
Match the Moment
The interface should read the emotional context and respond in kind — celebratory, calm, or urgent.
05
Celebrate the Journey
Recognize milestones, reward habits, and make users feel that the phone is invested in their story.
↳ Experience Prototypes

Three
High-Frequency
Moments

We identified the three interactions users perform most — and redesigned each through the lens of emotional resonance.

Three high-frequency moments
↳ Visual Design

The
New OneUI

OneUI hero screens
Lock screen and home screen
OneUI widgets
↳ Motion Design

Interactions
Brought to Life

Built in Figma and After Effects — each prototype designed to feel alive, not executed.

OneUI lock screen interaction
Lock screen unlock
OneUI home screen interaction
Home screen expression
Next Project

Immersive
Imagination