Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra Review: Iterative Hardware, Magical Software

Value When Reviewed

From $1,299

Greatest Costs Right now: Samsung Galaxy S26 Extremely

Samsung’s newest flagship has landed, and as has been the development for the previous few years, it’s extra of an iterative replace than a reinvention, even for the Galaxy S26 Extremely I’m reviewing right here.

It has a extra rounded design, a wider aperture on a number of the cameras, sooner charging, the compulsory improve to the newest Snapdragon chip, and that’s about it for {hardware} adjustments.

Fortunately, there’s extra to discover than meets the attention. Samsung has given us a groundbreaking new display know-how known as Privateness Show, some superb software program additions to the digicam app, and loads of AI-powered options, too.

The query is, does the world-first display tech and software program tweaks provide sufficient to make this a worthy improve, or can S25 Extremely homeowners skip this one with out concern of lacking out? I’ve been utilizing it as my most important machine for the previous couple of weeks to deliver you the ultimate verdict.

Design & Construct

• A thinner, extra rounded design
• Sturdy with Corning Gorilla Armor 2
• New colors and an annoying S Pen tweak

The Samsung S26 Extremely appears to be like acquainted, however there are simply sufficient adjustments right here to distinguish it from its predecessors – in the event you look shut sufficient. The brand new telephone options extra rounded corners than the final, absolutely ditching the sharp corners of earlier Ultras, and matching the opposite telephones within the S26 lineup.

The S26 Extremely appears to be like good, however I can’t assist however really feel it has misplaced part of its identification. Prior to now, you would spot the Extremely instantly, because the sharp edges made it stand out from the remainder of the lineup. Now, although, you would simply get it confused with the S26+, because it’s solely the 2 small additional digicam rings that give it away.

it’s simply probably the most snug Samsung Extremely flagship to carry horizontally

On the plus aspect, it’s simply probably the most snug Samsung Extremely flagship to carry horizontally. The sweeping radius means you aren’t in for any uncomfortable palm-poking, and which may make all of the distinction throughout marathon Genshin Influence classes.

One other massive design change is with the digicam lenses. The three largest lenses are actually raised on slightly island, with their common site visitors light-style structure, and the bezels are a lot slimmer this time. 

It’s fairly much like the design of the Galaxy Z Fold 7, and I feel it appears to be like fairly good, nevertheless it does include a draw back. Once you place the telephone screen-up on a desk, it’s tremendous wobbly, extra so than any of the earlier generations and most rivals. A case could also be a should, even on this single respect.

As for the development, it’s largely much like the final technology. With anti-reflective Corning Gorilla Armor 2 glass on the entrance, and matt-finish Gorilla Glass Victus 2 on the rear. What has modified, although, is the body.

Samsung has quietly misplaced its titanium body, going again to the model’s common Armor Aluminium as an alternative. Apple did the identical with the 17-series, and nobody appeared to care an excessive amount of, so Samsung has gone the identical method. I can’t say I’m satisfied titanium made an enormous distinction to sturdiness, nevertheless it’s technically a downgrade nonetheless.

Stylus followers shall be happy to listen to that the S-Pen remains to be included, however the brand new form of the telephone means it now bends across the nook barely. Essentially, it really works the very same method, however you now have to recollect to place it within the appropriate orientation, in any other case it’ll stick out in an odd method.

I’ve discovered this alteration probably the most irritating, because it’s a lot simpler to knock the S-Pen and pop it out accidentally. After all, in the event you’re utilizing a case, even a super-slim one, then the issue shall be eradicated, however caseless warriors will should be cautious.

In the case of color choices, the S26 Extremely is accessible in 4 shades. There’s Black, White, Sky Blue, and Cobalt Violet. For those who order immediately from Samsung, there’s additionally Pink Gold and Silver Shadow to select from.

I’ve the hero Cobalt Violet mannequin in for testing, and I’m fairly keen on the look. The color shifts dramatically in several lighting situations; at occasions, it appears to be like virtually silver, and at others, the deep purple hues shine via.

Display & Audio system

• Basically the identical big 6.9-inch AMOLED panel
• New world-first Privateness Show function
• Upgraded stereo audio system

The fundamental show specs for the S26 Extremely match these of its predecessor; nonetheless, behind the scenes, some very intelligent engineering has gone into this panel.

It’s all to allow a brand new function known as Privateness Show, which is a mixture of {hardware} and software program and might stop your display from being seen at an angle. It’s good if it’s essential learn a delicate e mail on a prepare, for instance.

It’s good if it’s essential learn a delicate e mail on a prepare

As I perceive it, about half of the pixels (‘slim pixels’) on the display have tiny rings like lenses round them, which stop gentle from shining out to the perimeters. The opposite half (‘vast pixels’) behaves usually.

Once you activate Privateness Show, you’re primarily or solely utilizing the slim pixels, which makes the display seem like it’s turned off when seen from round 45 levels off-axis and better (each horizontally and vertically).

Clearly, there’s a caveat right here. For the reason that display isn’t utilizing all the out there pixels with Privateness Show activated, it’s decrease decision and dimmer, too. Because of this, it’s not one thing you’d need to go away enabled all the time.

Fortunately, the software program makes that straightforward to handle. You possibly can rapidly toggle the function on and off within the fast settings panel, or you’ll be able to set it to robotically allow throughout sure occasions.

I set mine to activate at any time when I opened my banking app, and in addition had it shield pop-up notifications and password fields. I feel it’s particularly cool that the function could be confined to sure areas of the show. As soon as it’s all arrange, you would possibly overlook it’s doing something – however nosey neighbours received’t.

There have been some early complaints concerning the high quality of the S26 Extremely’s display, even with the Privateness Show switched off, together with blurry textual content and eye pressure, however I’ve not had these issues and Samsung additionally refutes these claims. There’s an opportunity, like 3D, that some customers could not get on with how the show works.

Other than this intelligent new trick, which is the primary motive to purchase (or maybe keep away from) the telephone, the show is just about equivalent to final 12 months’s.

Samsung is aware of a factor or two about shows, and though the S26 Extremely won’t provide a spec bump to excite the display nerds, I nonetheless assume it’s one of many best-looking screens available on the market.

It’s vibrant sufficient for the outside, it’s crisp, detailed, and the colors are wealthy and vibrant. What’s to not like? Plus, you get that superior anti-reflective glass coating, which remains to be unique to the Extremely, and makes a noticeable distinction in comparison with conventional glass shows.

Samsung’s ProScaler know-how has been upgraded for this technology, too, and it makes low-res content material look even higher, because it robotically upscales and sharpens every little thing in your display.

The audio system appear to be the identical as they have been on the previous few Samsung Extremely telephones, and that’s alright with me. They’re nonetheless among the many better of any telephone, with loads of readability, no distortion, and extra bass than most.

Sadly, my chief criticism stays related. The precise speaker may be very straightforward to muffle along with your palm (when held in panorama mode) – I think the S-Pen is accountable for this awkward positioning, nevertheless it continues to be an annoyance.

Specs & Efficiency

• Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy
• As much as 16GB RAM
• As much as 1TB storage

The S26 and S26 Plus obtained the Exynos therapy in Europe, however the Extremely nonetheless will get Qualcomm’s newest and best SoC. As common, it’s a particular “For Galaxy” model, which basically equates to a slight overclock, and will give this telephone an edge over different Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5-powered handsets.

The RAM and storage choices are the identical as final 12 months, and if you’d like 16GB of RAM, you’ll have to shell out for the expensive 1TB mannequin. The opposite variants are solely out there with 12GB of RAM. I’ve been testing the bottom mannequin for the needs of this evaluation.

To noone’s shock, the Samsung Galaxy S26 Extremely is a rocket

To noone’s shock, the Samsung Galaxy S26 Extremely is a rocket. You possibly can simply max out the settings in just about any Android sport, and heavy computational duties like enhancing a number of streams of 4K video aren’t any challenge in any respect.

Samsung has re-engineered the thermal resolution for this mannequin. It options the most important vapor chamber that Samsung has ever put in a telephone, and the Thermal Interface Materials has been repositioned, which ought to make the telephone keep cooler for longer.

With my regular use, the telephone hardly ever bought too heat, however regardless of Samsung’s greatest efforts, it nonetheless appears considerably thermally constrained. Operating the 3DMark Wildlife Excessive Stress Take a look at, the telephone bought tremendous sizzling and posted a stability rating of simply 59.5%. It’s not the worst we’ve seen, nevertheless it’s notably decrease than the Honor Magic 8 Professional, for instance.

Actually, you solely should be fearful about that in the event you’re actually pushing the efficiency to the boundaries. I performed loads of Genshin Influence on the very best settings for hours, and it by no means grew to become uncomfortable to carry. However hey, in the event you’ve bought ambitions to emulate Steam video games, it’s price realizing about.

Samsung Galaxy S26 Extremely benchmarks

Cameras

• Virtually the identical {hardware} as earlier than
• New picture processing
• Thoughts-boggling new stabilisation mode

These days, it appears like Samsung has been upgrading one digicam with every technology of Extremely, and I used to be virtually sure that it will be the 10Mp 3x lens’ flip this 12 months. Nevertheless, that’s not what occurred, and Samsung has taken a really completely different strategy with the S26 Extremely.

The telephone makes use of the identical stack of sensors as final 12 months, except the aforementioned 3x telephoto. Bizarrely, this tiny 10Mp sensor has been made even smaller, shrinking from 1/3.54-inch to 1/3.94-inch. I can’t fathom why. This lens was already underperforming, and this transfer is unlikely to enhance issues.

In any other case, the one {hardware} change is with the lenses. Each the 200Mp most important digicam and the 50Mp 5x telephoto get a wider aperture, which ought to assist enhance low-light efficiency. The principle digicam has gone from f/1.7 to f/1.4, whereas the telephoto has gone from f/3.4 to f/2.9.

The picture processing pipeline has been modified for the selfie digicam, too. It now advantages from the identical AI-powered sign processing because the rear cameras and the identical object-aware engine for portrait mode pictures.

So, whereas the {hardware} adjustments could also be minimal, the output has the potential to be fairly completely different. However might I see a distinction in actuality? I took a lot of images aspect by aspect with the older mannequin, and actually, the images look virtually equivalent.

The S26 Extremely tends to look slightly brighter in low gentle situations, and the noise discount has been elevated barely, nevertheless it’s a delicate change. The newer mannequin appears to favour barely longer exposures, which is usually a good or a nasty factor, relying on the scenario.

I seen the most important distinction in images of individuals: faces seem barely brighter than earlier than, and particulars are barely sharper

I seen the most important distinction in images of individuals: faces seem barely brighter than earlier than, and particulars are barely sharper in the event you pixel-peep. It’s not a night-and-day change, nevertheless it’s noticeable.

With all that stated, Samsung images regarded nice on the earlier mannequin, they usually proceed to look nice right here. So whereas I might like to see some innovation, the S26 Extremely remains to be an extremely dependable pocket digicam.

Video mode provides us extra to get enthusiastic about. There’s a model new horizontal lock stabilisation mode, which can hold the horizon stage regardless of how a lot you tilt the telephone. You possibly can even spin the telephone 360 levels, and the ensuing video will seem like you’re simply holding it regular.

When you have skilled video ambitions, the brand new APV codec will make the most important distinction to your footage. It’s basically Samsung’s reply to Apple’s ProRes, offering larger picture constancy, enhancing flexibility, and humongous file sizes. It received’t be for everybody, however in the event you’re the target market, you’re going to like it.

Battery Life & Charging

• The identical 5000mAh battery
• Quicker 60W wired charging
• Quicker 25W wi-fi charging, with out Qi2 magnets

The Galaxy S26 Extremely, moderately disappointingly, has the identical battery capability as final 12 months’s telephone. A 5000mAh cell is nothing to be sniffed at, however with Chinese language manufacturers providing 7500mAh SiC (Silicon-carbon) and past, the S26 Extremely’s battery doesn’t impress an excessive amount of.

In use, although, the S26 Extremely battery is completely adequate. I can’t get two days from this telephone like I can with the Oppo Discover X9 Professional, nevertheless it nonetheless hardly ever fails to get me to the top of the day, even on journey days with a lot of screen-on time.

In the case of charging, we get some welcome upgrades. The S26 Extremely now costs at as much as 60W with a wire, which may take you previous 50% charged in simply quarter-hour, or above 80% in half an hour. It’s a formidable exhibiting – lastly.

The S26 Extremely now costs at as much as 60W with a wire, which may take you previous 50% charged in simply quarter-hour

Wi-fi charging has been improved, too. The S26 Extremely now helps 25W wi-fi charging, up from 15W. This implies you’ll be able to take full benefit of Qi2-compatible chargers, however the magnets usually are not inbuilt as we and also you hoped they might be, so you could decide up an acceptable magnetic case as soon as once more.

As ever, there’s no charger within the field, only a cable, so that you’ll have to purchase quick sufficient ones to hit these speeds.

Software program & Apps

• One UI 8.5, based mostly on Android 16
• New Galaxy AI options and apps
• Bixby is again

The Samsung Galaxy S26 Extremely runs One UI 8.5, which relies on Android 16. Essentially, it appears to be like and appears like the identical Samsung software program that we’re all accustomed to, however there are boatloads of latest options to get caught into, in addition to extra in-depth customisation than ever earlier than.

There’s a lot to play with right here that the most important problem turns into remembering all of the issues your telephone can do

Now you can fully customise the structure of your Fast Settings shade. You possibly can resize the icons, change the orientation of the sliders, the choices are virtually limitless. The iOS affect is noticeable right here, nevertheless it appears to be like good, and it’s very sensible, so I’m absolutely on board.

Samsung has added much more to its already packed lineup of AI options and productiveness instruments. There’s a lot to play with right here that the most important problem turns into remembering all of the issues your telephone can do, and the place to seek out each.

One of many largest adjustments is that Bixby has returned, and it’s now a super-charged LLM-powered assistant. Handily, it ties into your telephone’s settings slightly higher than Gemini does, so you’ll be able to ask it about your telephone’s capabilities or to vary a setting, and it ought to be capable of assist.

After all, you’ll be able to nonetheless use Google Gemini in the event you favor (although it may possibly’t entry settings), or flip-flop between the 2 as you see match.

One other spotlight is the brand new Name Screening function (much like Google’s on Pixel telephones), which speaks to unknown callers with an AI-powered voice, asking who they’re and why they’re calling. It then provides you a abstract, and you’ll select whether or not you need to decide up or not.

Now Nudge is a good time saver that’s constructed into Samsung’s keyboard. For those who give it the required permissions, it is going to take your predictive textual content recommendations to an entire completely different stage. As an illustration, if somebody sends you a WhatsApp message asking for the images from final evening, Now Nudge will pull the related pictures out of your gallery and recommend sending them.

After all, there’s the standard AI social gathering tips inbuilt, and also you’ll most likely use them as soon as after which overlook they ever existed. Photograph Help now helps you to add issues to pictures by typing, and Inventive Studio is Samsung’s reply to Apple’s Picture Playground, whereby you’ll be able to create stickers, wallpapers, and generate loads of different slop to bother your mates with.

My most important criticism of Samsung’s One UI is simply how cluttered it has turn out to be. Samsung provides an increasing number of options yearly, hardly ever eradicating any, and it tends so as to add all of Google’s newest, too. For example, it’s not precisely clear whether or not Samsung expects Galaxy homeowners to make use of Bixby or Gemini, and why. The identical goes for lots of different options and apps, too.

What I can’t criticise is the performance. This OS does every little thing you would ever want it to, and lots extra moreover. It does so whereas wanting recent and feeling quick as could be.

Plus, Samsung continues to supply a number of the greatest software program assist phrases within the enterprise, promising seven years of OS updates and safety patches, matching Google Pixel.

Value & Availability

The Galaxy S26 Extremely is accessible in three varieties. The bottom mannequin comes with 256GB of storage and 12GB of RAM for £1,279/$1,299. The 512GB+12GB mannequin prices £1,449/$1,499, and the 1TB mannequin, which comes with 16GB of RAM, prices £1,699/$1,799.

A reminder that buying from the Samsung retailer will get you entry to 2 unique colors and for a restricted time, together with retailers like Amazon, you’ll be able to double the storage without spending a dime.

This makes it one of the vital costly flagship telephones available on the market (ignoring foldables), placing it in competitors with the likes of the Google Pixel 10 Professional XL, iPhone 17 Professional Max, Xiaomi 17 Extremely and others.

Take a look at our information to the perfect telephones out there proper now.

Must you purchase the Samsung Galaxy S26 Extremely?

For the previous few years, I’ve felt the identical method each time I evaluation a Samsung flagship telephone. The keynote leaves me underwhelmed and puzzled. As an illustration, why, when there’s a lot innovation occurring elsewhere, does Samsung {hardware} really feel so stagnant? And extra particularly, why can we nonetheless have that uninspiring 10Mp 3x telephoto digicam?

However then I really begin utilizing the factor, and it wins me over but once more. The expertise is premium all through, and it leaves me with no doubts that the Galaxy S26 Extremely is among the greatest Android telephones out there right this moment. It’s extremely fast, it’s full of tons of helpful options, and it nonetheless outperforms most of its rivals for video capturing.

After all, we additionally get the superb new Privateness Show know-how, which is exclusive to this telephone. It’s one of many largest improvements in show tech we’ve seen lately, and it’s no gimmick, although has some downsides. Anybody who makes use of public transport will adore this function. Samsung is main the cost with its AI options, too.

So, whereas the Galaxy S26 Extremely isn’t the earth-shattering improve I hoped for, it’s a telephone that’s greater than the sum of its components. It’s an absolute delight to reside with, and the one strategy to really perceive that’s to strive it for your self.

Specs

• One UI 8.5, based mostly on Android 16
• 6.9-inch, 1440 x 3120, AMOLED, 120Hz
• Privateness Show
• Ultrasonic fingerprint scanner
• Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy
• 12/16GB RAM
• 256/512GB/1TB storage
• Cameras:
• 200Mp most important sensor
• 50Mp ultrawide
• 10Mp 3x telephoto
• 50Mp 5x telephoto
• 12Mp selfie digicam
• As much as 8K @ 30fps rear video
• Stereo audio system
• Twin-SIM + eSIM
• Wi-Fi 7
• Bluetooth 5.4
• 5000mAh battery
• 60W wired charging
• 25W wi-fi charging 
• 163.6 x 78.1 x 7.9mm
• IP68 licensed
• 214g
• Colors: Cobalt Violet, Sky Blue, Black, White
• Samsung.com unique colors: Silver Shadow, Pink Gold