Bixby gets new app shortcut to start voice commands

Bixby was rumored to get dozens of new features and major improvements with One UI 7.0. However, those improvements were restrictred for China. It is now getting a minor improvement that makes accessing the assistant in your preferred interaction mode easier.

Bixby seems to have started getting a new update to version 3.7.12.18 for some users. It brings two app shortcuts, one for letting you type your command and the other for allowing you to say your command. You can access them by long-pressing the Bixby app's icon in the app drawer. The shortcut to access Bixby settings was present earlier as well.

Earlier, you could access Bixby's Discover and Quick Commands sections via app shortcuts. Now, those shortcuts have been removed. Samsung has also posted changes and improvements with an official notice in Bixby's Notices section.

According to the changelog, you can now access Bixby by long pressing the side button, but once Bixby is active and listening, you can let go of the button and Bixby will keep listening to you. You don't need to keep holding the side button, which makes the whole process easier.

In addition to these changes and improvements, Samsung says that it has brought “additional function improvements and bug fixes” to its AI-powered digital voice assistant. Currently, we are unable to access this new version, and the new improvements were spotted by X user @theordysm, while the changelog was noticed by @thatjoshguy69.