Samsung Galaxy S9 update improves one of its newest features

When the Galaxy S9 and S9+ launched back in March the smartphones brought a number of new features to the table.

A variable aperture lens allowed for better low light photography, supercharged internals brought snappier performance and new slow-motion video features made for some of the biggest reasons to grab the Samsung flagship.

But the company also introduced AR Emoji, a feature using the front camera to create digital avatars based on the user’s appearance.

The functionality appeared to take cues from Apple’s Animoji that mimicked user movements in the form of different characters.

But the Samsung feature was incredibly divisive with some users revelling in the GIFs that could be produced from the virtual character while others saw it as a gimmick.

In our review of the Galaxy S9 and S9+ we said the feature was “fun” but admitted it was probably “a bit of a waste of time”.

Express.co.uk said: “AR Emojis use a data-based machine learning algorithm, which analyses a 2D image of the user and maps out more than 100 facial features to create a 3D model that reflects and imitates expressions, like winks and nods, for true personalisation.

“In real-life it’s fun but all a bit of a waste of time especially as we’ve had some hugely mixed results.

“Even when it does work it’s hard to know what to do with the unique emojis and we’ve got a feeling this feature is one that most users will enjoy for a very limited time.”

But now Samsung is bringing a host of new customisation options to the divisive feature.

The forthcoming update will allow users to alter their AR Emoji’s personal features with a greater level of detail and precision.

Samsung hopes the new features will allow the AR Emoji to look more like the user it is imitating.

In a blog post the company said: “With the update, after users snap a selfie to generate their AR Emoji, they’ll be able to easily make detailed adjustments to their AR Emoji’s hair, ears and facial features.

“This means that, for instance, when a child creates an AR Emoji, they’ll be able to adjust the shape of their face so that it more closely mirrors their own.

“And if you feel like your AR Emoji’s eyes, nose, lips, cheeks or other facial features are in need of a touch-up, the new My Emoji Editor function offers simple tools to fine-tune these distinguishing characteristics.”

The South Korean tech giant also claimed the update will enhance “AR Emoji’s face-tracking function with a 65-percent increase in ‘landmark detector’ points”.

This means face tracking should work much better once the new update rolls out.

No official release date for the update has yet been provided.