Samsung’s new Direct Voicemail feature is here, and I tried it out

Source: Android Authority

Overview

Samsung has released a new One UI 8.5 beta, and the new build finally introduces a feature that was leaked several months ago. Direct Voicemail aims to overhaul voicemail in the same way Apple did in iOS 17 with Live Voicemail and Google did with its updated Call Assist features from the end of 2025. So, how does One UI 8.5’s Direct Voicemail stack up, and is it worth enabling over your carrier’s voicemail service?

Will you use Direct Voicemail?

What is Direct Voicemail on Samsung Galaxy phones?

Direct Voicemail bypasses your carrier’s voicemail service and instead runs the voicemail on your device. It integrates with Samsung’s Text Call service, using AI to transcribe and summarize incoming calls you didn’t pick up. You can also manually send a call to Direct Voicemail by tapping the “more options” button in either the full‑screen call UI or the pop‑up at the top of the screen.

Once you’ve sent the call to Direct Voicemail, you’ll see a transcript of the message the person is leaving in real time as they speak, and you can pick up the call if you wish. After a voicemail has been left, you can access it from the recent calls screen. The call card will show you the voicemail length and a snippet of the transcription.

AI features

• Summarise – At the top of the transcript screen you can tap to get a concise summary, which is handy for longer messages.
• Audio Eraser – In the bottom‑right corner you can enable Audio Eraser, which filters out distracting background noise to make the caller’s message clearer.

If you don’t want to send calls to Direct Voicemail manually, you can have a call directed there automatically after a preset amount of time has elapsed. The default options are 5, 10, and 20 seconds, but you can set a custom time if those don’t suit your needs.

Samsung’s Direct Voicemail vs Google’s Take a Message

Google introduced a similar feature called Take a Message to its phones last year. How does Samsung’s attempt compare?

• Activation – Take a Message is easier to activate; once enabled, a Pixel automatically uses it whenever you reject a call, without needing to press a specific button.
• Transcription quality – Pixel’s transcriptions tend to be more reliable, especially with mumbling or background noise. Samsung’s Text Call, which Direct Voicemail relies on, can make more mistakes under those conditions. While my early tests with Direct Voicemail produced accurate transcriptions for clear speech, I expect the Pixel to maintain an edge in noisy environments.

Will you switch from your old voicemail service to Direct Voicemail when you get One UI 8.5, or would you rather keep AI away from your call inbox? Let us know in the comments.