Galaxy S26 Ultra Review: Samsung Got Us..

You know how iPhone users always say they can never switch because they miss iOS or the ecosystem too much? Well, Samsung is starting to have that same lock-in effect. They've got their own ecosystem now, and once you get used to the customization and power user features in One UI, it's actually pretty hard to leave. And Samsung knows this. They know they've got people locked in, which might explain why the upgrades this year feel a little safe again. Because with the S26 Ultra, instead of focusing on the hardware improvements people have been asking for, Samsung is leaning into flashy marketing features like Privacy Display and Horizon Lock instead. But here's the crazy part. Even with their foot off the gas pedal, the S26 Ultra apparently shattered pre-order records for them. So from a business perspective, why mess with what's working? Remember when they stripped the Bluetooth and battery out of the S Pen last year? Well, this year's controversial step back is with the materials. Goodbye, titanium. Hello again, aluminum. Now, the pitch is that it's lighter and better for heat dissipation, which is true, but it's also going to be easier to damage. Ultimately, I don't think most will care since they'll end up in a case anyways. Design wise, they brought over the Fold 7 at Camera Island and rounded off the corners even more. Whether you like the look is subjective, but the tradeoff is that this phone wobbles way more than last year on a desk. And then there's the S Pen. Because of those rounded edges, the pen now has this awkwardly tapered backing. You can literally only push it in one way if you want it to sit flush. Otherwise, it sticks out like a sore thumb. The phone is also slightly thinner. And because of that, the pen itself is thinner, too. That's not exactly a great thing. It already felt a little dainty before. And if you have bigger hands, you're going to probably find this even less ergonomic now. The writing experience is still very good and ultimately is still a nice selling point for the Ultra. No Bluetooth sucks, but it is what it is. The headline feature this year is the privacy display. It's a toggle that limits the screen's viewing angles. So people sitting next to you can't see what's on your display. But from the front, it's perfectly visible. There are a few drawbacks from this new tech. When it's on, you'll notice a tiny dip in brightness, which is whatever. But even with it off, the viewing angles just aren't as good as last year's screen. I've noticed some minor color shifting, too, if you aren't looking at the phone dead on. Don't get me wrong, the phone is still stunning. And to be fair, most people won't care if the colors look a little off at an angle. But yeah, there's tradeoffs for the new feature. Anyways, after messing with the privacy display for a couple of weeks, I've got to say it's kind of underwhelming, though. It's not as good as I was expecting. If someone's sitting right next to you, they can totally still see your screen. It's just a little dimmer to them to actually get that blackout effect. You see in the commercials, you'd have to keep the phone much closer to your face to make the viewing angle as narrow as possible for them. Samsung does give you this maximum privacy toggle to beef it up, but the tradeoff is rough. It makes everything look hazy, almost like there's a thin fog over your display. Not something you want to keep on all the time. The saving grace here, though, is the automation. You can set it so privacy display only kicks in for sensitive apps or when you're typing in a pin or password. You can even set it to hide your notification bubbles. Once you set it up how you like it, it basically works in the background and you don't really have to think about it or notice it. It just adds a little extra privacy when you're out in public. It's nice to have, but yeah, it's not a must have for me personally. There are a few other changes to the display this year. Some good, some not so great. They finally ditched the polarizer. So if you wear polarized sunglasses, this is a huge quality of life change. No more of that annoying rainbow effect or the screen blacking out when you tilt it. On the downside, the anti-reflective coating feels a little different. Reflections aren't quite as tightly controlled as the S25 Ultra. You'll notice the spread around lights a bit more. But honestly, it's way better than almost any other phone out there. And then there's the punch hole. It's definitely bigger this year, which might sound like a downgrade, but there's at least a reason for it. They swap to a new sensor that has a much wider field of view. It makes group selfies easier to frame, and the processing is actually cleaner and less noisy. Yay if you take a lot of selfies. If you don't, I'm sorry, I guess. The phone still has a 5000 mAh battery, which honestly feels a little underwhelming for 2026. After using phones like the OnePlus 15 with this massive battery, it's hard not to compare. Even a lot of mid-range phones are starting to push bigger battery tech now. The good news, though, is that the new processor and more efficient display actually help it last a bit longer than last year. It's not a huge jump, but in my testing, the S26 Ultra does last longer. But hey, if the battery isn't getting bigger, at least it's finally charging faster. Samsung bumped the wire charging up to 60 watts, which brings the zero to 100 time down to about 46 minutes. Wireless charging also got bumped to 25 watts with a full charge taking around 67 minutes. In my testing, it technically supports Qi too, but there are no magnets built into the phone because they interfere with the S Pen. So if you want magnetic accessories or Samsung's charging pack, you'll need a case. Now, besides the battery, the cameras are another area where there's some frustration at the lack of upgrades over the years. The main sensor and the five times telephoto both got much wider apertures. We're talking f1.4 on the main and 2.9 on the five times. In plain English, that just means the lenses let in more light. And in lower light situations. Yeah, you can actually see the difference. It's low key, a very nice little upgrade. But honestly, the thing I was most curious about was whether this would finally solve Samsung's dreaded shutter lag. If you've used a Galaxy phone before, you probably know what I'm talking about. Pets, kids, anything that moves quickly half the time. The photo ends up a little blurry. The good news is that it's better now. I'm seeing less blur on the main lens. It's not perfect. And I think the pixel still handles movement better. But it's an improvement. And then there's the three times telephoto, which actually got a sneaky downgrade this year. Samsung switched to a slightly smaller sensor. Thankfully, I'm not noticing a major difference in quality, but like, why are we going backwards? Right. OK, so there's actually a hidden upgrade for photos inside the camera assistant app. There is a new toggle in here that unlocks a 24 megapixel resolution, which is the sweet spot if 12 megapixel feels too soft and 50 megapixel files are too big. 24 is also the default resolution for iPhones. So it's nice that we finally have that option here, too. Video is where things actually get more pro this year. First up, we have the APV codec. It's Samsung's answer to ProRes, a high bitrate near lossless format that gives you a ton of flexibility for color grading without the footage falling apart. Be careful, though. The files are massive, so you'll probably need to record straight to an external SSD. They've also added real time LUT previews. If you're shooting in the flat log profile, you can now see the final graded look on your screen while you're filming instead of just staring at a washed out gray image. There's like five looks to choose from. I'm a big fan of this move. It basically makes a pro feature way more accessible for beginners or people who have no interest in editing after the fact. Then there's the new horizon lock built into super steady. It's like stabilization on steroids. You can literally tilt or rotate the phone while running and the horizon stays perfectly level. It's basically like having a built in gimbal. At first, I was like, whatever. But this might end up being the most talked about new feature on the phone. Now, one of my personal favorite new features is the virtual reflector. This is also hidden. So you'll need to download Samsung's expert raw app to access it. If you've ever seen a photo shoot where someone is holding one of those big shiny boards to bounce light onto a person's face to fill in shadows, especially in backlit situations. This is basically the digital version of that. You can control the color and placement of the reflector. Even the strength of the reflected light. I got to say it was pretty well. Now, if you love this and don't want to buy a new phone, Google Photos actually has an editing feature that simulates it. It's not real time like on the Galaxy, but we'll still get you fairly good results after the fact. Under the hood, it's running the latest Snapdragon processor. Yeah, it's obviously more powerful, but in day to day use, you're probably not going to notice a huge difference unless you're coming from a much older phone. Flagships have been excessively fast for a while now. I do want to give them credit for how smooth everything feels. Software, processor, whatever it is they did. It's good. Samsung also put a bigger vapor chamber in here and paired with that aluminum frame helping to dissipate heat. Things like video recording, Android Auto in a hot car or heavier gaming should feel smoother for longer. One UI has really become a big reason why people can't move away from Samsung. The software is just packed with all sorts of power user stuff. There's good luck if you want to go deep with customization modes and routines for automation, edge panels for quick multitasking, even decks if you want a full desktop setup. There's honestly a lot here. With One UI 8.5, it's mainly about refinements, but there are a few nice improvements. First, the quick settings is finally fully customizable. You can move, resize or just delete buttons entirely. So if you're picky about your layout, you've finally got full control. This is also one of the first phones to get circle to search 3.0, which as the option to find the look, you just circle an entire person and the A.I. breaks down the outfit piece by piece. Samsung also gave Bixby some new life. Yeah, I know. But hear me out. They're positioning it as an on-device agent now. That's basically an expert on your phone's internals. You can say things like open YouTube and the browser and split screen. Why is my phone dying so fast? Your phone's battery is draining quickly because Wi-Fi and Bluetooth are currently on, which can consume significant power. You can optimize battery consumption. Turn on extra dim. I enabled the extra dim menu. Turn it off. I disabled the extra dim menu. Open mobile hotspot settings. Here are the mobile hotspot settings. On top of that, they've brought in perplexity to handle web searches through Bixby, so it's not as helpless as it was before. It gives you smart source answers for things like flight info or local recommendations. It's still Bixby, so it'll still mishear you occasionally. And for general knowledge, Gemini is probably still the better bet. But I kind of respect that they're not throwing in the towel. So look, after spending a few weeks with the S26 Ultra, here's my takeaway. If you're coming from an S25, S24 or even an S23 Ultra, there just isn't enough here to justify the jump. That's a given, though. Phones are just too good and too expensive to be switching that often. At this point, it feels like they're just polishing the experience and finding clever ways to trim costs where they can. Unless you really want that privacy display or the new pro video tools, you're probably fine where you are. Now, if you're coming from a much older phone or switching brands entirely. Yeah, this is an incredibly well-rounded phone. It might not have the best cameras or the biggest battery, but no one who picks this up is going to call it anything less than a really solid flagship phone. It's also got a feature list that only Samsung can deliver. But the last few years have been a reminder that Samsung is in a very comfortable position. When you're breaking pre-order records, there just isn't much pressure to take big risks. So if you're waiting for the next big thing from Samsung, the Ultra might not be it anymore. You'll probably have to look toward the foldables. As usual, thank you so much for watching. Until the next one, I'm out here. Bye.