There have been rumors in regards to the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S26 line of telephones for months now. For some time, it appeared like Samsung could possibly be changing its base telephone with the Pro. Then we heard that the Plus can be discontinued in favor of the S26 Edge, with the Ultra sticking round. And then there have been experiences that the S26 Pro can be the brand new S26 and that the S26 Plus would change the S26 Edge. It shortly turned complicated, to say the least.Now that the launch of the Galaxy S26 is imminent, it looks like leaks are settling down, with a couple of speculations lastly setting all the things straight.
This story is a part of Samsung Event, CNET’s assortment of stories, suggestions and recommendation round Samsung’s hottest merchandise.
Here’s a fast rundown of the most recent Galaxy S26 speak to make sense of all of it. The Samsung Galaxy S25 and Galaxy S25 Plus. James Martin/CNETGalaxy S26 sequence launch dateSamsung usually hosts a number of Unpacked occasions every year, with the primary often happening in both January or February. Most of this 12 months’s S25 handsets have been introduced at a Galaxy Unpacked occasion on Jan. 22, 2025, and launched on Feb. 7.This 12 months, nevertheless, it appears there is a barely delayed timeline. Multiple experiences have stated that there could possibly be a Galaxy Unpacked occasion on Feb. 25 in San Francisco. It’s additionally doable that extra S26 releases might happen all year long. In 2025, for instance, Samsung launched two extra S25 handsets — the S25 Edge and the S25 FE — at two separate occasions in May and September, respectively. The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra. Andrew Lanxon/CNETGalaxy S26 UltraWith all of the uncertainty surrounding the Galaxy S26 (or Pro) and the Galaxy S26 Edge (or Plus), the Galaxy S26 Ultra is the one mannequin that does not appear to be in flux. According to renderings uncovered by Android Headlines, the S26 Ultra seems to have a barely totally different design than its predecessor.The pictures seem to point out that the Galaxy S26 Ultra has curvier corners in comparison with its predecessor and a barely totally different digicam structure on the rear. The 4 cameras are positioned in the identical areas, however three of them are housed in a raised vertical bump. There’s additionally hypothesis that the Ultra could possibly be barely slimmer, at 7.9mm thick, which is 0.3mm thinner than the present S25 Ultra. Android Headlines additionally says that the telephone’s 6.9-inch show may use new M14 OLED panels, which might be brighter and extra energy environment friendly. New rumors recommend that the S26 Ultra may have related but barely upgraded digicam specs. ETNews claims that it will nonetheless embody a 200-megapixel fundamental digicam, a 50-megapixel ultrawide lens, a 10-megapixel 3x telephoto lens and a 50-megapixel 5x telephoto lens. The front-facing 12-megapixel digicam additionally seems unchanged. However, Android Headlines experiences that the S26 Ultra may have a wider aperture, permitting for higher low-light photographs. Like with the Galaxy S26, the Galaxy S26 Ultra is claimed to ship with the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 within the US and China, and with the Exynos 2600 chip in different markets. Other rumored specs embody 16 GB of RAM, as much as 1 TB of UFS 4.0 storage, a 5,000-mAh battery and quicker 60-watt wired charging. As for colours, Ice Universe not too long ago reported that the S26 Ultra would are available “black shadow, white shadow, galactic blue, and ultraviolet (or purple).” Leaker Evan Blass stated that the colours can be “black, white, silver shadow, sky blue, cobalt violet and pink gold.” There have been additionally earlier renderings that confirmed the S26 Ultra in an analogous orange hue to Apple’s iPhone 17 Pro, however that coloration would not look like within the lineup now. This is the Galaxy S25’s digicam array. James Martin/CNETGalaxy S26 For months, one of many largest rumors surrounding the Galaxy S26 was that it won’t exist in any respect. Internal construct code uncovered by Android Authority advised Samsung could possibly be scrapping the bottom mannequin solely and changing it with the S26 Pro. That would possibly sound unusual at first, nevertheless it may have signaled Samsung’s plan to place the S26 lineup as a extra premium providing than its predecessors.Now, nevertheless, it looks like the S26 Pro rumors weren’t true. New experiences point out that Samsung is sticking to conference and can name its upcoming flagship the Galaxy S26 in spite of everything.Leaked renders of the S26 present a design similar to the S25, with one key distinction: the rear digicam. The S26 seems to have a vertical bump on the again housing three digicam lenses, whereas the S25 has no bump in any respect, with its lenses fitted instantly into the physique.According to Android Headlines, the S26 may have a 50-megapixel ultrawide digicam, representing a major improve from the S25’s 12-megapixel ultrawide digicam. There have been conflicting rumors about this, although. Others have speculated that the S26’s digicam specs will stay unchanged from the S25. Other speculations in regards to the S26 embody a barely larger 6.3-inch display screen, together with an total barely bigger and slimmer construct. And Android Headlines experiences that the S26 may have a 4,300-mAh battery, as much as 12 GB of RAM and as a lot as 512 GB of storage. Watch this: Don’t Buy the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra. Save Money With a Used S24 Ultra Instead
07:54 As for the processor, Samsung’s VP of its Mobile Experiences Division, Daniel Araujo, stated in an earnings name that the S26 lineup will “revolutionize the user experience with user-centric, next-gen AI, a second-generation custom AP, and stronger performance, including new camera sensors.” This concentrate on AI could possibly be why Samsung would possibly maintain its Galaxy Unpacked occasion in San Francisco, which is extensively considered the middle of the AI motion. This is a robust indicator that the Galaxy S26 sequence shall be powered by the Exynos 2600 processor at the least in some areas, in accordance with Android Headlines. However, rumors recommend that the S26 will use Qualcomm’s newest Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset within the US and China. According to Qualcomm, the brand new Snapdragon chip is about 20% quicker and 35% extra energy environment friendly than its predecessor. As for potential software program updates, one significantly main leak is that Samsung’s One UI 8.5 (anticipated to debut on the S26) may have a “Privacy display” function that narrows viewing angles when on delicate apps like banking in order that passersby cannot peek at your non-public info. The skinny Galaxy S25 Edge. Jesse Orrall/CNETGalaxy S26 Edge and PlusThe Galaxy S25 Edge debuted with lots of fanfare this 12 months, due to its ultraslim type, so it isn’t a stretch to think about Samsung will come out with a successor subsequent 12 months. However, there have been conflicting rumors about whether or not it will occur in any respect. For months, there have been leaks suggesting Samsung would change the Galaxy S26 Plus with the Galaxy S26 Edge. The S26 Edge was anticipated to have a super-slim profile of round 5.5mm, making it 0.3mm thinner than the S25 Edge. That’s additionally 0.1mm thinner than the iPhone Air. There was additional hypothesis that it will have the identical 6.7-inch display screen, a bigger 4,200-mAh battery and the newer Snapdragon processor. Now, nevertheless, this rumor seems to be on shaky floor. According to SamMobile and 9to5Google, the corporate could possibly be dropping the Galaxy S26 Edge from its 2026 lineup because of poor gross sales of the Galaxy S25 Edge, particularly compared to the remainder of the Galaxy S25 sequence. Instead, Samsung could possibly be changing the S26 Edge with the Galaxy S26 Plus.
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See all pictures According to a leak acquired by Android Headlines, the Galaxy S26 Plus has a flat 6.7-inch show with skinny bezels surrounding it. On the again, three cameras are set inside a raised vertical bump, just like how the S26 is rumored to have them. Android Headlines estimates that the S26 Plus shall be 7.35mm skinny, which is slim however actually not as skinny because the beforehand rumored Edge. Other rumors in regards to the S26 Plus embody the inclusion of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 processor in some areas and Samsung’s personal Exynos 2600 processor in others.
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