Galaxy S26 series and Buds 4 Pro: all highlights in 10 minutes

The new Galaxy S26 series and, finally, new Galaxy Buds are here. I got to see the devices ahead of time at a press event, and here is my summary.

Galaxy S26 Ultra

For me, the S26 Ultra is the first highlight. It got a small visual makeover: even thinner, lighter than the S25 Ultra thanks to the Light Armor aluminum frame, and with much more rounded corners. It sits better in the hand, and the corners don’t dig into your palm as much.

The bezel around the S Pen slot is smaller, and the slot has moved closer to the edge. The S Pen has become narrower and feels a bit spindly to me. That matters for anyone who uses it a lot. You also have to pay attention to which way you insert it, because the cap is rounded. Inserted the wrong way around, it sticks out a little, but it still sits firmly. Because the body is slimmer, there is a camera bump similar to the Z Fold 7, and the device wobbles terribly on a table. The display glass is Corning Gorilla Glass Armor 2, the toughest on the market.

Privacy Display: My personal highlight. You turn it on in the quick settings under privacy settings, and then nobody can look at your display from the side anymore. You can also set it for certain areas only, for example to black out just incoming notifications or password entry from the side. Until now you had to buy a privacy screen protector for that. Samsung is the first manufacturer to build it into the display.

Charging: The S26 Ultra charges at 60 watts wired and 25 watts wireless via Qi2. There is still no magnet for Qi2 or Pixelsnap, because otherwise the device couldn’t have become this thin. For that you need a case with a magnet. That disappointed me a lot.

Ad: I’m using the new Q3 case from TORRAS.

Camera: The hardware has changed only slightly. It stays with a quad setup:

• 200-megapixel main camera with a slightly larger aperture for more light and better night shots
• 50-megapixel ultrawide
• 50-megapixel telephoto
• 10-megapixel telephoto

The new Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy has a major influence on image quality, so I still expect better shots. I’ll do a direct comparison with the S25 Ultra. I think the new Super Steady feature is cool: if you rotate the phone by up to 360° while recording, the video stays stable and level.

Galaxy S26 and S26 Plus

When it comes to hardware, this is quickly told: hardly anything has changed. The small S26 has gotten a bit bigger, which I find a shame, because there aren’t many compact smartphones left. Camera and the rest stayed the same, and the battery is a bit larger. The S26 and S26 Plus have the new Exynos 2600, the first Exynos built on a 2-nanometer process, with 40% more NPU performance, which matters for the AI features.

New software features

• Photo Assist: It can be controlled with prompts. You can add a cloud to a photo, remove people in the background, or turn a slice of cake with a bite taken out of it back into a whole one. That’s real magic.
• Now Nudge: This is where AI on the smartphone finally becomes truly helpful. It gives context-based information and suggestions about what you are doing right now. If a message asks you to meet tomorrow at 6 p.m., a pop-up appears above the keyboard saying that, according to your calendar, you don’t have time but you do the day after. If someone asks for photos from your vacation, the smartphone shows you the gallery with the vacation photos already grouped together, ready to send. The AI no longer only reacts to commands but gives hints on its own. I’ve been waiting for that forever.

Galaxy Buds 4 and Buds 4 Pro

After a year and a half, there are finally successors. With the new metal accent on the stem, the Bluetooth earbuds market gets a fresh design that doesn’t clone Apple. The case is new too: you simply drop the buds in, and they hold on magnetically by themselves. There are three colors. I like the beige Sand Gold variant, which is exclusive online. The sound is said to have been improved by a larger subwoofer, among other things, and so is the wearing comfort. I’ll test the buds extensively as well.

A big thank you to my colleague Alex from TECHSOME for recording together at the launch event.