Samsung Galaxy S26, S26 Plus and S26 Ultra: Leaker compares almost all specs with Galaxy S25 counterparts – NotebookCheck.net News
Many details about the Galaxy S26 Ultra, the Galaxy S26 Plus and compact Galaxy S26 are already known at this point, so it is time to compare them with their predecessors. A leaker is sending a clear message to Samsung fans around the world, because the upgrades will probably not be major in most cases.
Alexander Fagot (translated by Enrico Frahn), Published 🇩🇪
For months, the Chinese leaker Ice Universe has focused on criticizing Samsung and its CEO TM Roh, who is apparently cutting back on innovation in the Galaxy smartphone lineup in order to increase profits. As a small piece of “evidence”, the leaker has now shared a comparison of the rumored specs for all three Galaxy S26 smartphones and their predecessors. Some details are still missing, but the specs are rather plausible at this point and clearly show some stagnation, especially since the design of next year’s Samsung flagships is also not expected to change much.
Galaxy S25 vs. Galaxy S26
For the compact Galaxy S26, the display size increases slightly from 6.2 inches to 6.3 inches, but the AMOLED panel and brightness remain the same. The same applies to the RAM and storage, apart from the finally discontinued 128GB version. Battery capacity gets a bump of 300mAh, while the chassis might become a bit thinner. The latter rumor is still controversial. The main changes are the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 in the US and the Exynos 2600 for the rest of the world. There will likely be two new camera sensors, but the pixel counts remain the same as last year at 50/12/10/12.
After development of the Galaxy S26 Edge was halted at the last minute, a direct successor to the Galaxy S25 Plus is now rumored to hit the market after all, although it will mainly differ from Samsung’s current flagship when it comes to the processor. With the Galaxy S26 Plus, even more specifications appear to be completely identical to those of the Galaxy S25 Plus, although this spec sheet also does not contain details on the camera sensors. There could still be some surprises, especially since the Plus model will likely get the same triple cam as the Galaxy S26, which might get two new sensors.
Last but not least, we also have a comparison between the two high-end flagships of 2025 and 2026. There is finally more to report about the successor to the Galaxy S25 Ultra (from $999 on Amazon). Samsung is switching to a new 6.9-inch M14 AMOLED panel, although it probably will not get much brighter. European users will likely only get 12GB RAM, compared with 16GB in other regions such as China. At least Samsung fans around the world will probably get to enjoy the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 instead of the Exynos 2600.
While the battery capacity is not expected to change, there could be something close to a small breakthrough in terms of fast charging. Samsung will likely increase the charging speed to 60 watts, which has previously been limited to 45 watts for years. In addition, the Galaxy S26 Ultra may become a bit slimmer at roughly 0.27 inches. While the camera sensors themselves will see disappointingly few changes, the leaker did not fully incorporate his own leaks, since both the main camera and the 5x telephoto are said to become significantly brighter thanks to much larger apertures, which should have visible effects on photos and videos.
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Editor of the original article: Alexander Fagot – Managing Editor News – 11164 articles published on Notebookcheck since 2016
As a young tech enthusiast with a history involving assembling and overclocking projects, I ended up working as a projectionist with good old 35-mm films before I entered the computer world at a professional level. I assisted customers at an Austrian IT service provider called Iphos IT Solutions for seven years, working as a Windows client and server administrator as well as a project manager. As a freelancer who travels a lot, I have been able to write for Notebookcheck from all corners of the world since 2016. My articles cover brand-new mobile technologies in smartphones, laptops, and gadgets of all kinds.
Translator: Enrico Frahn – Managing Editor Accessory Reviews, Tech Writer – 5809 articles published on Notebookcheck since 2021
My fascination for technology goes back a long way to the Pentium II era. Modding, overclocking and treasuring computer hardware has since become an integral part of my life. As a student, I further developed a keen interest in mobile technologies that can make the stressful college life so much easier. After I fell in love with the creation of digital content while working in a marketing position, I now scour the web to bring you the most exciting topics in the world of tech. Outside the office, I’m particularly passionate about motorsports and mountain biking.
Alexander Fagot, 2025-11-30 (Update: 2025-11-30)
