Samsung is expected to debut the Galaxy S26 Ultra and the rest of the S26 family at a Galaxy Unpacked event in mid- to late-January 2026, with retail release two weeks after. We could see 2026’s leading flagship in a few weeks. Rather than buy a nearly year-old Galaxy S25 handset today, what benefits are there to waiting?
The Galaxy S26 Ultra’s Local AI
One of the biggest is to take full advantage of the rising capabilities of artificial intelligence to run locally on your smartphone. Assuming a linear increase in performance and potential, the time to process AI requests would be reduced. Yet the likes of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon or Samsung’s Exynos chipsets know they are being leaned on for AI-powered results, so you can expect even more optimisation of the silicon in addition to the general performance uplift.
There are also discussions of Samsung bringing Perplexity into Bixby and Galaxy AI. That’s likely a software change, and while the South Korean company has been swift to bring new features to older models, it still takes some time.
If you are looking for cutting-edge AI in your next smartphone, you’ll need bleeding-edge hardware to do so.
The Galaxy S26 Ultra’s Charging Speeds
Those looking for fast charging on their smartphone will be delighted by the news that the S26 Ultra could step up from the S25’s 45W fast charging to 60W over a wired connection. Details in Samsung’s One UI code refer to “Super Fast Charging 3.0.”
Given that Samsung does not use proprietary fast-charging technology, this code likely refers to the next step up in the USB Power Delivery standard: 60W.
There’s also new battery chemistry coming in smartphone batteries in 2026, with both Apple and Samsung expected to use silicon-carbon batteries to reduce the battery sizes while increasing capacity. Forbes contributor Janhoi McGregor takes a closer look at these changes:
INSERT JANHOI VIDEO https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=haMIlvjbExM
The Galaxy S26 Ultra’s New Camera Feature
Smartphone manufacturers continue to stress the power and flexibility of their cameras. It’s an area where chances can be readily apparent to the naked eye, and investment can be amortised over the entire portfolio.
The Galaxy S26 Ultra is expected to feature new hardware in the main camera. While the imaging sensor is expected to remain steady, reports indicate that Samsung will add a variable-aperture main camera. This will help the S26 Ultra adjust to different lighting conditions by physically altering the optics. Variable apertures have been featured on smartphones before, but have fallen out of fashion.
Samsung looks set to bring them back into fashion.
Software Support For The Galaxy S26 Ultra
It’s also worth remembering the smaller side effects. For example, while the Galaxy S25 family will receive seven years of software updates and support, that period is measured from the device’s launch, not from when you buy one. So the S26’s support window — which is likely the same seven years — will have an extra year on the clock.
And if you wait for the Galaxy Unpacked launch and are underwhelmed by the S26 offerings, there’s every chance that the Galaxy S25 family will be available at discounts that should rival, and potentially exceed, the current Black Friday deals.
Now read more about the Galaxy S26 Ultra and smartphone news from around the world in Forbes’ weekly Android news digest…
