We’re approaching the time of year when Samsung traditionally holds a Galaxy Unpacked event to reveal a new generation of Galaxy S series flagship phones. And following the naming convention for generations, we expect this next line to carry the S26 moniker.
However, if you’re expecting big changes to the Galaxy S26 family compared to the current-generation Samsung Galaxy S25 phones, don’t hold your breath as the updates appear to be incremental rather than revolutionary.
Still, there are things to think about, so I’ve rounded up what I consider to be the most important rumors and information so far about the Samsung Galaxy S26 below.
1. Same design – but that’s not a problem
So far, most rumors and tips have pointed to the Samsung Galaxy S26 series having pretty much the exact same design as the Galaxy S25 family.
However, some minor changes were suggested. For example, there have been one or two hints that the phones would have more of a camera module, rather than raised lenses on the back, but we’ve already seen that with previous S series phones; I would love to see the return of the Contour Cut camera module that first arrived in the Galaxy S21, as it was an interesting design element.
However, keeping the same design is not a bad thing. Flagship phones have become rather iterative, which is boring for tech journalists but convenient for consumers and brand building because it makes models easily recognizable and sets a standard for what people can expect, especially those who go through upgrade cycles.
I also think the Galaxy S25 series is one of the most beautifully designed smartphones on the market, even the large Galaxy S25 Ultra looks sleek and refined, to the point where I think Samsung has nailed the large form factor phone better than anyone else.
That said, I would like cooler, more vibrant colors for the Galaxy S26 Ultra, as the S25 Ultra’s options were a bit disappointing; I’d love to see a British racing green option, for example.
2. New chips – of course
As night follows day, the Galaxy S26 series will come with a new chipset. Or even two of them.
Last year’s Galaxy S25 phones all used the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 4 chipset for Galaxy, while the previous year’s Galaxy S24 and Galaxy S24+ had Qualcomm chips for the US and China modes, and Exynos chips for the rest of the world.
This split could be back for the S26, only with South Korean models featuring the Exynos 2600 chip and other models featuring a Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chip, likely customized for Samsung.
Considering the performance Apple has squeezed out of its Pro A-series chips, you can bet that the Snapdragon chip at least will come out with decent improvements in power and graphics performance over its predecessor. How much of a difference this might make in real-world usage isn’t so clear, but as more AI features come to fruition, on-device performance could be the key to getting intelligent agents to provide quick responses.
These chips could also support improved modems and facilitate better satellite connectivity, and I imagine Qualcomm and Samsung will have made efforts to improve efficiency and therefore battery life.
3. Don’t expect camera hardware upgrades
There were rumors last year about new camera sensors for the Galaxy S26 lineup, but the jury is still out on whether that will happen. If so, then the sensors may be new, but there’s no real chatter on them, resulting in a big bump in megapixels.
Some early rumors suggest that the Galaxy S26 and S26+ could feature a 50MP ultra-wide camera, but we haven’t heard much about that lately.
That’s not a bad thing, as the Galaxy S25 series all feature powerful cameras and are worthy contenders for the top spots on our list of the best camera phones. And I think that rather than significantly upgrading the camera hardware, Samsung will likely work more to refine its computational photography and AI-powered photo features with the Galaxy S26 models, as well as tweak video capture.
4. Potentially bigger batteries
A series of rumors have hinted at bigger batteries for both the Galaxy S26 and Galaxy S26 Ultra, with increases of 300 mAh for the former and 200 mAh for the latter. These aren’t really major changes, but combined with the potential efficiencies brought by a new chip, these improvements could result in phones that last longer than their predecessors. But it looks like the Galaxy S26+ may lose out in the battery upgrade department.
Don’t expect a big increase in charging either, as there is no solid indication of an improvement in charging power. But that’s not a huge potential disappointment, as the last few generations of Galaxy phones have all charged pretty quickly without seemingly compromising battery longevity.
5. Likely launch in February
The last two generations of Galaxy S series phones launched in January, but all credible rumors so far point to a late February launch for the Galaxy S26 series. February 25 has been reported as the likely day for a Galaxy Unpacked event where we can expect the new phones to debut.
Samsung already launched Galaxy phones in February, so this isn’t a huge surprise, but it’s about four to six weeks later than usual. I hope this means we’ll get some ultra-refined flagship phones.
Safe to say, a price increase is also to be expected, but only between $30 / £22 / AU$45 and $50 / £37 / AU$75, compared to the previous generation. Given the price increases many products are currently subject to, this seems acceptable, although far from ideal.
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