Samsung Galaxy S26 series was officially unveiled on February 25, 2026, at Samsung’s Galaxy Unpacked event in San Francisco. The lineup includes the Galaxy S26, S26 Plus and S26 Ultra, with pre-orders starting immediately and retail sales beginning March 11.
This year, Samsung focuses more on software and AI features than major hardware upgrades. The Ultra model brings the biggest changes, including a redesigned rounded body, a 10-bit display, faster 60W charging and a new Privacy Display feature that limits screen visibility from side angles.
Performance gets a boost thanks to new processors, though Samsung again uses different chips by region (Snapdragon in the US, Exynos in Europe). The Ultra model uses Snapdragon globally. Camera hardware remains largely the same, with minor improvements to aperture and image processing.
Prices have increased across the lineup. The base Galaxy S26 now starts at $900 for 256GB, while the S26 Plus begins at $1,100.
On the software side, the phones launch with One UI 8.5 based on Android 16 and introduce a strong AI focus. Users now get multiple assistants – Google Gemini, Samsung Bixby and Perplexity – plus new tools like Photo Assist, improved call screening, scam detection and smarter automation features.
Overall, the Galaxy S26 series refines Samsung’s flagship formula with incremental hardware changes and a major push toward AI-powered user experience.
Source: Android Authority
