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For years, base model Samsung Galaxy S phones had two things going for them — they were the smallest flagships on the market and were relatively affordable. With the Samsung Galaxy S26 bumping the price by $100 and growing the screen to 6.3 inches, it’s time for a new identity. After using it for two weeks, the Galaxy S26 is as confusing a device as ever.
On one hand, the Galaxy S26 offers a premium design with unparalleled performance powered by the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset. I preferred the smaller form factor of the Galaxy S25, but it’s clear that most consumers want larger phones. The real concern is the price hike combined with a lack of major upgrades. Sure, we got a new processor, but where are the upgraded cameras, Qi2 magnets, or connectivity boosts? They’re nowhere to be found.
The Galaxy S26 is available now, starting at $899.99 for the 256GB model, with the optional 512GB upgrade costing a whopping $1,099. This is $100 more expensive than the Galaxy S25 at launch. Although you get more base storage, the Galaxy S26 still costs more than the comparable 256GB model of the Galaxy S25 cost last year.
Keep in mind that the Galaxy S26 is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 processor in North America, China, and Japan. All other global markets will get the Samsung Exynos 2600 version.
|
Category |
Samsung Galaxy S26 |
|---|---|
|
Display |
6.3-inch FHD+ Dynamic AMOLED 2X, 120Hz |
|
Processor |
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy |
|
Memory |
12GB |
|
Storage |
256GB, 512GB |
|
Front Camera |
12MP, f/2.2 |
|
Rear Camera 1 |
50MP (wide), OIS f/1.8 |
|
Rear Camera 2 |
12MP (ultrawide), f/2.2, FOV 120˚ |
|
Rear Camera 3 |
10MP (telephoto), 3x Optical Zoom, f/2.4 |
|
Battery |
4,300 mAh |
|
Charging |
25W (wired), 15W (Qi wireless), 4.5W (reverse wireless) |
|
Connectivity |
5G, LTE, Wi-Fi 7, Wi-Fi Direct, Bluetooth 5.4 |
|
Biometrics |
Ultrasonic Fingerprint Scanner, Face Recognition |
|
Ingress Protection |
IP68, Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2 (front glass), Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2 (rear glass), Aluminum |
|
Dimensions |
71.7 x 149.6 x 7.2 mm |
|
Weight |
167 grams |
|
Software |
One UI 8.5 w/Android 16 |
|
Colors |
Cobalt Violet, Sky Blue, Black, White Online exclusive: Silver Shadow, Pink Gold |
The big Galaxy S26 change is one you can see and feel — a new design, complete with a larger 6.3-inch OLED display. It replaces the 6.2-inch screen found on the Galaxy S25, and that difference might not seem like much, but it looms large. The Galaxy S26 isn’t big, but the Galaxy S25 was small, and the new Samsung flagship conforms to the standard set by the Pixel 10 and iPhone 17.
The result of this change is that the Galaxy S26 is wider and taller than the Galaxy S25, and it’s slightly heavier too, at 167 grams. It’s still 7.2mm, which is certainly thin enough. Truthfully, it’s tough to notice the Galaxy S26’s larger footprint unless you have its predecessor handy for comparison. If you’re like me and enjoyed the Galaxy S25 and earlier models for their compact form factor, you might miss it more than most.
The other notable change is the rear camera bump, which is redesigned to place the three individual camera lenses on an oval-shaped pedestal. I like the look of this design much more than the Galaxy S25’s camera housing and its DSLR-style reflective lens cover, but there’s a flaw: it sticks out more, causing the Galaxy S26 to wobble even worse on a flat surface. It’s an odd change, especially since there are no camera hardware upgrades and the smartphone’s main body is just as thick as its predecessor’s.
You’ll also notice Samsung is still going with a boxy chassis, including flat sides and an almost nonexistent chamfer. One thing you won’t find, however, is a mmWave antenna window, because while the Galaxy S25 offers mmWave 5G support, it’s gone on the Galaxy S26.
It’s yet another way the Galaxy S26 features lackluster connectivity standards compared to the Plus and Ultra models. The base model doesn’t get mmWave, Bluetooth 6, or UWB.
I reviewed the Cobalt Violet and Black colorways of the Galaxy S26, and there are also Silver Shadow, Pink Gold, Sky Blue, and White color options. While I liked the deep colors, I noticed that they’re easy to scratch with drops and scuffs during normal use. This reveals the aluminum under the paint, and it’s an eyesore. If you care about your phone looking pristine, you might want to choose a lighter color, like Silver Shadow or White.
Aside from being larger, there’s not much new about the Galaxy S26’s display. It’s still a FullHD+ resolution panel that lags behind the QHD+ screen on the Galaxy S26 Plus and Ultra models in terms of quality. You do get a 120Hz refresh rate and 2,600-nit peak brightness, and I’ve actually found the base Galaxy S26 screen to be brighter than the Galaxy S26 Ultra’s in real-world use, due to the limitations of the Privacy Display technology used on the Ultra.
Speaking of Privacy Display, it’s something I wish were on every Galaxy S26 phone. Yes, the data shows the Galaxy S26 Ultra screen isn’t as sharp or as bright, but Privacy Display is a feature you don’t want to live without once you start using it. If you’re even remotely intrigued by it, you need to consider the Galaxy S26 Ultra over the Galaxy S26.
Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset is the best in its class, and Samsung paired it with 12GB of memory for good measure. Performance, as you’d expect, is stellar. The Galaxy S25 was already a top performer, and the Galaxy S26 is even better. I saw Geekbench 6 single-core and multi-core scores roughly 1,000 points higher on the Galaxy S26 compared to the Galaxy S25.
More importantly, the phone is more stable under load. The Galaxy S26 turned in a stability percentage of 72% in the 3DMark Steel Nomad Light Stress Test, up from 62.4% on the Galaxy S25. In fact, I regularly saw the base Galaxy S26 post benchmark results better than even the Galaxy S26 Ultra. In other words, this phone will last you for years to come and handle just about anything you throw at it.
Unfortunately, the cameras are by far the most disappointing aspect of the Galaxy S26’s hardware. Samsung made zero camera upgrades for another year, meaning the Galaxy S26 has the same hardware as the Galaxy S22. You get a triple-camera system with a 50MP main camera, a 12MP ultrawide, and a 10MP telephoto lens with 3x optical zoom. On the front, there’s a 12MP, f/2.2 selfie camera.
Samsung says it worked with Qualcomm to make the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 “for Galaxy,” and that those customizations specifically included image-processing pipeline upgrades. Fortunately, that isn’t just marketing, it’s the real deal. The Galaxy S26 offers the best color accuracy and dynamic range I’ve seen from a Samsung phone camera in years.
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The more light you give the Galaxy S26 camera system to work with, the better the results. Detail and quality start to fall off in low-light performance, but daytime sharpness is stellar. To be clear, this doesn’t excuse the Galaxy S26’s lack of hardware upgrades, but I have to give credit where it’s due.
The one clear deficiency is the Galaxy S26’s telephoto camera. It’s not really good at anything — the 10MP resolution isn’t sharp, and the 3x optical zoom length isn’t impressive either. It’s the area where the Google Pixel 10 camera will crush the Galaxy S26 camera thanks to its 5x optical zoom lens.
Samsung gave the Galaxy S26’s battery a welcome bump to 4,300mAh, but battery life is still shaky. The runtime is absolutely fine — I got 7.5 hours of screen-on time and used 127% battery capacity on my most intensive day — but the experience falls apart when it’s time to charge. The Galaxy S26 only charges at 25W wired and 15W wirelessly. After using the 60W wired charging on the Galaxy S26 Ultra, everything else feels painfully slow.
Oh, and there still aren’t any built-in Qi2 magnets on the Galaxy S26. You’ll need a case to unlock full functionality. There’s not much to say about that, other than it’s simply unacceptable after Google added MagSafe to the Pixel 10.
Finally, there’s the AI and software features. I’ve found One UI 8.5 to be reliable and smooth, more so than iOS 26 and on par with Android 16 on Pixel. There are still some things that are frustrating, like duplicate Samsung apps, pre-installed bloatware, and the unreliable Samsung Keyboard. They’re all easily fixed, though. I always swap Samsung Keyboard out for Gboard when setting up a new Galaxy, and the Galaxy S26 was no exception.
The new Galaxy AI features didn’t land for me, but I’m glad they’re here. Now Nudge is Samsung’s version of Magic Cue on Pixel, and both features aim to surface and suggest relevant information and actions in real time. Frankly, I’ve never found it to be useful even once on either the Galaxy S26 or the Pixel 10. Bixby got a few upgrades, but you’ll probably use Gemini anyway, and the “Hey Plex” wake word for Perplexity integration was oddly removed with no replacement in sight.
I’ve used every Samsung Galaxy S26 model briefly, and spent weeks testing the cheapest Galaxy S26 and the most expensive Galaxy S26 Ultra. I have a hard time recommending you spend $1,299 on the Galaxy S26 Ultra, as it’s a lot of money for any phone, but it’s clearly the better value compared to the $899 Galaxy S26. At least the Galaxy S26 Ultra offers faster charging, new cameras, Privacy Display, and better connectivity.
The Galaxy S26 looks like it’ll be a great value when it receives its first round of discounts in a few months. At full price, it’s difficult to recommend. The Ultra model stole the show this year, casting a shadow over the Galaxy S26 and Galaxy S26 Plus. I have to hope that Samsung finally adds new camera sensors and magnetic charging to the next generation of Galaxy phones. If that’s the case, why buy a Galaxy S26 now?
Not so small anymore
Historically a tiny flagship with a cheaper price point, the Samsung Galaxy S26 leaves both of those identities behind. It’s $100 more expensive, and larger by every measure thanks to its bigger 6.3-inch display. While the performance and software are major wins, the lack of camera and connectivity upgrades make the Galaxy S26 feel like a questionable value.
