Samsung S26 Ultra First Impressions… 🤔
(Singapore - 26 February 2026) - What really sets the S26 Ultra apart from other devices (including from Samsung) is that new Privacy Display. It effectively replaces the need to apply privacy screen protectors by dimming specific pixels on the screen, except the pixels that are directly beaming light towards the user. This blocks viewing the screen from four different angles.
I’ve tried it, and the result is a very effective form of screen privacy that cannot be spied from the sides. This is a feature that can be turned on easily in the control center - Probably my favorite feature of the S26 Ultra so far!
Comparing the physical dimentions of both devices, the S26 Ultra is clearly thinner, but has a thicker camera bump than the S25 Ultra.
Aside from that, there are both hardware and software upgrades over the S25 Ultra. Here’s a high-level summary of the key upgrades over the S25 Ultra.
Key upgrades
The S26 Ultra runs on the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 Mobile Platform for Galaxy, which Samsung claims increases CPU performance by up to 19%, NPU performance by up to 39%, and up to 24% boost in GPU performance over the S25 Ultra.
The S26 Ultra also sports a redesigned Vapor Chamber with thermal interface material positioned along the sides of the processor This allows heat to spread more efficiently across a larger surface area, improving heat dissipation to keep the device cool, even during demanding activities such as gaming, multitasking and video capture.
Galaxy S26 Ultra also brings Super-Fast Charging 3.0, minimising downtime by reaching up to 75% charge in just 30 minutes.
ProScaler6 improves image scaling so photos and videos appear richer and clearer at a glance by sharpening text and fine detail while smoothing textures. Additionally, Samsung’s mobile Digital Natural Image engine (mDNIe) delivers more subtle and lifelike colours thanks to image processing with four times the precision compared to the previous generation.
Camera
What’s different about the camera this time is that the S26 Ultra now has wider camera apertures, allowing 47% more light input on the 200MP Wide camera and 37% more on 50MP Telephoto (5x Optical Zoom). This should allow for better low light performance compared to the S25 Ultra.
The front selfie camera now also has improved AI ISP signal processing so that it captures shots skin tones and fine detail more consistent with the main cameras.
To improve capture in low light or fast paced situations, the S26 Ultra also has enhanced Nightography Video capture and upgraded Super Steady stabilization. Galaxy S26 Ultra is the first Galaxy device to support APV, a new professional video standard and codec designed to deliver efficient compression for high-quality production workflows. For creators who care about quality, this means visually lossless video quality that stays true even after repeated editing.
There’s a lot more to talk about which will be covered in my full S26 Ultra review, so get subscribed to the main channel for the latest content. What would you like me to cover? Comment below!
Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra Specs
