Ultra enough for 2026? The Samsung Galaxy Book6 Ultra in a daily-use test

A 16-inch Dynamic AMOLED display, a dedicated RTX 5070 and a price at which my tax advisor briefly stands up and opens the window: the Galaxy Book6 Ultra wants to tell me that it can easily keep up with a MacBook Pro. I tested it intensively for a month, not in a lab but where I really work: between editing software, content planning, Excel spreadsheets and three invoices I should actually have written last week. I am interested in what the device can do in real daily life, not on the spec sheet.

Design and ports

The case is made of sleek, angular metal and only 1.5 cm thin. The thin display is easy to lift and open with one hand without the rest of the laptop following. It is nicely balanced, and despite the thin display nothing wobbles when typing and clicking. I have experienced it differently before and find that an absolute horror.

• Left: two USB-C and one HDMI port
• Right: one USB-A, a 3.5 mm headphone jack and an SD card slot. My creator heart is happy about that, because memory cards with camera footage need no adapter.

The keyboard has flat keys with a good pressure point and a dull stop and makes a solid, high-quality impression. The touchpad is quite oversized, but handy when you do not have a mouse with you.

As a 16-inch device, it is not something for a small evening bag. That was the biggest adjustment for me, because I have been using the Huawei MateBook X Pro, small, slim and light. At 1.89 kg, the Galaxy Book6 Ultra is a real hefty lump in comparison. I work a lot in cafés, at train stations and at airports, my laptop has to come along everywhere, and the extra weight in the bag is undeniable.

Display

The display is a 16-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X with 2880 x 1800 pixels, an anti-reflective coating and up to 1,000 nits in HDR mode. True black is a smash hit in daily use. When editing video and putting thumbnails together, I can see the color gradations of the footage really well. After export and upload to YouTube there are no surprises, and I have to correct much less afterwards. The adaptive refresh rate of up to 120 Hz makes for smooth scrolling, but we know that from smartphones, and for me it is standard and no longer a highlight.

The highlight is the touch display. I often have to sign NDAs, contracts and other things, and with touch that is super handy: finger on the display, done. The display gets nicely bright, is big enough that I can comfortably edit videos on it, and works well for working on the go.

Performance and battery

Under the hood are an Intel Core Ultra 7 and a dedicated Nvidia RTX 5070. I have the variant with 1 TB of storage and 32 GB of RAM. In daily use it is simply fast. For a normal office day with Outlook, browser and Teams sessions, it is overkill. The device is interesting for gamers because of the dedicated graphics card and the display, but that is not me. I need the power for video editing with lots of large 4K videos. Noise reduction, color correction and export are the moments when I used to go get a coffee with my old laptop. Now it goes so fast that I stay seated at my desk.

Whether I edit with Filmora or DaVinci Resolve, have Chrome open with what feels like 40 tabs alongside, research, invoices and Canva for thumbnails, and open Claude in between to talk things over: the Galaxy Book stays relaxed, nothing stutters or hangs. The fan does not simulate a volcanic eruption. In the current heat I noticed that it quietly kicks in even for everyday tasks like Outlook, but you can completely overhear that. It only really blows during video export, which takes just a few minutes.

The battery with 83 watt-hours lasts a full workday in my normal editorial routine of writing, research, video calls and occasional image editing, without me thinking about the charging cable. With the editing software it visibly drains, but that is normal. With the included charger and Super Fast Charging, I get enough juice for the next few hours in just under half an hour.

Camera and sound

The 2-megapixel front camera does not invite cinematic shots, but it is perfectly sufficient for professional daily life. The speaker system with Dolby Atmos, two tweeters next to the keyboard and two woofers, sounds really good: rich, full sound for video calls, movies and videos, so I do not necessarily need headphones.

My points of criticism

I was interested in the Galaxy Book6 Ultra mainly because I use Samsung smartphones privately. I had hoped to unlock special features that way. That is not the case.

• Samsung integration: Communication between the Galaxy Book and my Z Fold 7 works just as smoothly as with any other Windows laptop. I use Quick Share constantly to transfer videos from my smartphone, but I have Quick Share and Link to Windows on all other Windows laptops too.
• Galaxy AI: I had hoped to see it here in a useful form. There is the preinstalled app AI Select, which lets you quickly select images or texts, copy them and have them translated. Otherwise it is a normal Windows laptop with a lot of power. I had thought it would be somehow smarter, for example by including content from my smartphone.
• Positive: My beloved Samsung Notes app works better on the Galaxy Book because it belongs to the Samsung ecosystem.
• Copilot+ PC: Here too, the use cases in my daily life are limited.

Price and verdict

The configuration with an Nvidia graphics card, 32 GB of RAM and 1 TB of storage costs €3,799 in the Samsung online shop. It may be cheaper elsewhere. You should only spend that much money if you need the power: as a gamer, hardcore AI user, developer or, like me, as a designer, graphic artist and content creator with large files. Otherwise, buy one of the smaller Samsung models.

The advantage over other manufacturers is neither Galaxy AI nor the connection to the Samsung smartphone. What you get instead is a sharp, bright display with touch, a very big advantage for me, though it does not have to apply to everyone. On top comes the classic, modern design: many laptops with this power are explicit gaming laptops with wild designs, neon lighting and even more weight, which I do not want. For anyone who wants a classic design with a mega display and really good power, the Galaxy Book6 Ultra is a real option with, I think, little competition. With it, Samsung occupies a niche that Apple in particular has otherwise served: classic design, comparatively light and with ultra crazy power. Not everyone wants a MacBook, and that is exactly where the Galaxy Book6 Ultra hits the mark.