Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra review: Frustratingly the best Android phone I’ve tested

ZDNET’s key takeaways

• Professionals: Privateness Show is really distinctive and sensible, well-rounded efficiency and battery, nice long-term software program help
• Cons: AI instruments should not essentially the most dependable, Samsung’s cameras are not the most effective, lack of Qi2 magnets

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Samsung has been utilizing a tried-and-tested components for its S-series flagships since 2024: it pairs a quality-of-life show improve with a processor enhance, slimmer design, new (typically questionable) AI options, and barely higher cameras. The newest Galaxy S26 Ultra follows this similar script. 

The S26 is not a revolutionary improve over the Galaxy S25 Ultra, which wasn’t a serious overhaul of the Galaxy S24 Ultra. Nevertheless, the components appears to be working, but once more.

Additionally: Samsung Galaxy S26 vs. S26 Plus vs. S26 Ultra: I compared every model to help you decide

As a lot as I would like Qi2 magnets, larger digicam sensors, and extra battery capability, the Galaxy S26 Extremely is a well-rounded flagship. I have been utilizing it since launch, and options like Privacy Display, quicker charging, and Horizontal Lock make for a greater consumer expertise. Are they sufficient to warrant an improve from its predecessor? No. However is the Samsung Galaxy S26 Extremely one of many best phone experiences obtainable proper now? Sure.

An enormous cellphone that feels gentle, however…

Samsung continues to slash the load and thickness of its premium cellphone. It has shaved 4 grams off the Galaxy S25 Extremely, bringing the S26 Extremely to 214 grams. The thinner, 7.9mm design is down from 8.2mm on the predecessor. As compared, the iPhone 17 Pro Max (8.75mm) weighs 233g, and the Google Pixel 10 Pro XL (8.50mm) is 232g. 

In the event you like an enormous display however cannot go from a 6.3-inch cellphone to a 6.9-inch one due to weight, think about the Galaxy S26 Extremely. It’s, actually, the slimmest and lightest amongst its fast rivals.

Nevertheless, Samsung is holding the sharp sides on the again for one more yr. The Galaxy S26 Extremely is thinner and lighter however not significantly simpler to carry than the Galaxy S25 Extremely. As I used the cellphone in each day life, I noticed it wasn’t snug to carry for lengthy. 

I take advantage of my cellphone with out a case, so the sharp sides dig into my palm and fingers. Apple added slight curves to the iPhone 17 Pro this yr, and I want Samsung had too. That stated, in case you put your new cellphone in a case, that is not a problem.

Additionally: Samsung confirms smart glasses capabilities to compete with Meta Ray-Bans – what’s coming

I like the truth that Samsung flagships include simply three buttons (quantity rockers and a aspect button) as an alternative of including a redundant Digital camera Management or Motion Button copy. You get the S Pen within the backside left nook. It’s thinner than final yr’s and is slanted on one aspect to match the curvature of S26 Extremely’s nook. 

The Galaxy S26 Extremely contains a clear structure with the signature boxy look and a vertical (barely modified) digicam module on the again.

One of the best display on a cellphone I’ve seen

The Samsung Galaxy S26 Extremely has a 6.9-inch AMOLED show with help for a 120Hz adaptive refresh fee and a 3120×1440-pixel decision. It’s housed contained in the anti-reflective Corning Gorilla Armor 2 cowl glass. It’s brilliant, vivid, and the most effective display on a cellphone proper now — thanks largely to Samsung’s anti-reflective coating and execution of its new Privateness Show characteristic.

Theoretically, Privacy Display works like a privacy screen protector — it limits the viewing angles to guard your on-screen content material from shoulder surfers. However in contrast to a third-party accent, Samsung affords a spread of customization choices to fine-tune the expertise.

You’ll be able to toggle it on for every little thing or simply for sure apps. As an example, I’ve it arrange for my banking and messaging apps in addition to for my passwords and PINs. Every time I enter a password in an app, the system activates the Privateness Show characteristic to guard my delicate info.

In the event you allow Privateness Show for particular apps, pop-up notifications from these apps might be protected as effectively. That is particularly helpful while you’re utilizing your cellphone in public, and a notification pops up. Whereas it’s going to stay seen to you, anybody taking a look at it from a aspect angle will see a blacked-out field within the higher portion of your display.

I like this characteristic due to Samsung’s meticulous implementation. In contrast to a third-party display protector, you may management apps, settings, and notifications to set when and at what depth you need to restrict your display’s viewing angles. Privateness Show is a type of quality-of-life options I want each cellphone firm would copy. It’s the better part concerning the Galaxy S26 Extremely.

Clean as ever and lasts a complete day

Samsung’s new top-of-the-line flagship is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy chipset. It’s paired with 12GB of RAM on the bottom variant with 256GB of storage, and 16GB of RAM on the 512GB and 1TB fashions. It runs Android 16-based One UI 8.5 out of the field and is promised to get seven years of software program and safety updates.

Additionally: 5 Samsung bloatware apps I always uninstall first (and why you should do the same)

In my time with the cellphone, it hasn’t stuttered as soon as. The Galaxy S26 Extremely is quick and responsive. I used the Samsung cellphone the identical means I take advantage of my iPhone 17 Professional Max — messaging, social media, taking images, and navigating virtually each day. It did not get heat to the contact (the iPhone will get sizzling once I’m open air and multitasking between apps) and carried out wonderful below direct daylight, too. 

The Galaxy S26 Extremely packs the identical 5,000mAh battery capability as earlier generations. I used to be disenchanted to see this on the spec sheet, particularly since rival manufacturers are utilizing silicon-carbon anode batteries to extend the cell measurement of their telephones. We’ve the OnePlus 15, the Oppo Discover X9 Professional, and extra telephones with 7,000mAh+ batteries. 

Nevertheless, whereas the Galaxy S26 Extremely would not final so long as these gadgets, it’s surprisingly environment friendly. With medium use, you may count on the Galaxy S26 Extremely to final you a complete day. I charged it to full within the mornings and used it to doomscroll on social media apps, watch Reels, textual content on WhatsApp and Instagram, navigate for quarter-hour on Google Maps, and take just a few images. My utilization was break up between Wi-Fi (~75%) and 5G (~25%). 

On such days, I obtained to bedtime with 25% or extra battery left. It’s going to deplete quicker in case you’re gaming, navigating for longer, or capturing 8K movies. 

If you find yourself needing to cost your Galaxy S26 Extremely in the midst of the day, Samsung has improved its charging fee. The brand new cellphone helps 60W quick charging, enabling it to go from 5% to 75% in half-hour. 

It could additionally cost wirelessly at 25 watts, however there are not any Qi2 magnets for alignment. Samsung says it needed to omit the magnets to maintain the cellphone skinny. You will want a suitable case to allow Qi2 magnetic charging and help magnetic equipment. 

All of the AI you’d want (after which some)

Samsung has packed its new telephones with contextual AI options. For instance, Now Nudge makes use of Galaxy AI to floor real-time ideas based mostly on what’s in your display. In case your good friend asks you for images from, say, London, the Samsung Keyboard will recommend taking you to the Gallery with London images already looked for you.

Nevertheless, like Google’s Magic Cue characteristic, Samsung’s Now Nudge was inconsistent all through my evaluation interval.

Additionally: Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra vs. S26 Ultra: Should you upgrade to the latest model after two years?

The Galaxy S26 Extremely now consists of an upgraded Audio Eraser characteristic that can be utilized on movies from third-party apps. I used it to attenuate the unreal crowd noise so I might hearken to the commentary clearly whereas watching my favourite sport. 

Samsung additionally up to date Bixby that will help you discover the settings you want from the house display. I enabled it to be my major assistant through the aspect key. And like most AI options, it’s also inconsistent. Bixby was in a position to activate Privateness Show on my command, nevertheless it searched the net for different comparable requests.

I favored one other AI characteristic, Doc Scan, within the Digital camera app. It reveals up if you find yourself taking a photograph of a doc and removes shadows or creases on the paper to present you a sharper picture. It’s also possible to export them as PDFs.

Samsung is heading in the right direction with options like Now Nudge and improved Bixby, nevertheless it must be extra constant to sway customers into its broader push for AI telephones. I adore it once they work, however there’s all the time that unreliability nonetheless breaking the sleek consumer expertise.

The cameras are…ok

Samsung says the Galaxy S26 Extremely has its “finest digicam system but.” The upgrades embrace a 200MP major digicam with a much bigger f/1.4 lens (vs. f/1.7 on S25 Extremely) and a 50MP telephoto sensor with 5x optical zoom and f/2.9 (up from f/3.4). These are paired with the identical 10MP f/2.4 3x telephoto sensor and a 50MP ultrawide-angle digicam as earlier than.

A serious digicam improve is a brand new GoPro-like Horizontal Lock characteristic that retains your movies regular even while you rotate the cellphone. In my assessments, it labored amazingly effectively, and I can not wait to place it up towards the GoPro Hero 13 Black on my subsequent journey.

The Galaxy S26 Extremely’s digicam system performs effectively in daylight situations. You get good readability, dynamic vary, and pores and skin tones stay near correct. Utilizing the 200MP mode provides you richer images with loads of element to crop. Colours stay constant throughout lenses.

At evening, it captures higher images with much less noise than earlier than, and it is on par with, and even higher than, the iPhone 17 Professional. Nevertheless, portrait photographs will be unpredictable. Generally they arrive out nice, different occasions they’ll look synthetic with robust blur and poor edge detection.

Additionally: Own a Samsung phone? I changed 10 settings to greatly improve its performance

The Galaxy S26 Extremely shouldn’t be a camera-specific cellphone or geared towards cell photographers just like the latest Xiaomi 17 Extremely or final yr’s Oppo Discover X9 Professional. As a substitute, you may count on the identical vibrant Samsung colours and wealthy particulars alongside enhancements in nighttime movies and images.

ZDNET’s shopping for recommendation

The Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra is likely one of the finest all-around flagship telephones that you could purchase proper now. It excels in a single space (show) whereas delivering a satisfying expertise throughout the opposite fronts. For $1,300, you get the most effective display on a cellphone, wonderful efficiency, long-term software program help, good battery life, and a flexible set of cameras. There are some sensible AI options too, however they are not constant sufficient to set off a buying choice.

You probably have the Galaxy S25 Extremely, there is no must improve. In the event you’re coming from an S24 Extremely or older technology, or just on the lookout for a dependable high-end Android cellphone, the brand new Samsung Galaxy S26 Extremely will serve you effectively. As a lot as I want for a greater set of cameras and Qi2 magnets, the general package deal stays simple to suggest.