00:00The Galaxy S26 Pro, the Galaxy S26 Edge, the Galaxy S26 Ultra to be the thinnest ever.
00:08Samsung appears in a mood with wasp-wasted devices. Do we even need super slim phones?
00:14Time is fast and at the very beginning of 2026, Samsung's next flagship family,
00:20the Galaxy S26, will be a reality. All three new models are said to be slimmer than their
00:26predecessors. We've heard similar accusations earlier, but now we have some solid numbers at
00:31our disposal. The new report claims that the three flagship models will allegedly shed several
00:37fractions of the millimeter. The goal is to come closer to Galaxy S25 Edge, the first super-thin
00:43Galaxy S phone. As far as the upcoming S26 Ultra goes, the source indicates this is how compact
00:50an Ultra model can get with the present built-in S Pen. So if future S Ultra phones want to go below
00:577.8 millimeters, they'll probably have to rely on an external S Pen, or a stylus that's significantly
01:03narrower than the one we have currently, or maybe drop the S Pen totally. If you're not a die-hard
01:10Samsung fan, you're probably asking what's with the Galaxy S26 Pro model and where's the traditional
01:16baseline Galaxy S26? Well, it happened so that the Galaxy S26 Pro moniker might be used for the
01:22Galaxy S26, simple as that. Samsung's Galaxy S series has historically followed to a three-model
01:30format, Basic, Plus, and Ultra, but the Galaxy S26 lineup may break convention. A GSMA database entry
01:39displaying the S26 Pro under model number SMS-942, formerly related to the standards 26, suggests
01:48at a simple rename rather than considerable hardware modifications. The Pro designation seems intended
01:55at matching Samsung's strategy with Apple and Chinese rivals, potentially justifying a price hike
02:01without considerable upgrades. Also, the Plus model could be replaced by the Edge variation.
02:06Regardless of the monikers, though, the Galaxy S26 variants might all be slimmer. Yes or no?
02:14Next, new Samsung internet update for Galaxy S26 with the One UI 8.5 is in the works.
02:21Moments ago, a Galaxy S26 Ultra firmware leak stated that Samsung is working on the next big software
02:27update for the forthcoming flagship, the One UI 8.5. We have received a hint that the business is
02:34preparing a new Samsung internet version for the S26 and the next iteration of One UI.
02:40This future Samsung internet version for the Galaxy S26 running One UI 8.5 may or may not contain an
02:47enhanced address and tab bar design. Samsung is quite early in development, so we can't be confident of
02:54any adjustments at the present. The One UI 8.5 is slated to launch alongside the Galaxy S26 series,
03:01the latter of which should be announced in early 2026. As usual, numerous Samsung apps will be
03:07upgraded to fit the One UI 8.5, but only time will tell what these improvements will entail.
03:13The One UI 8.5 is slated to launch alongside the Galaxy S26 series, the latter of which should be
03:20announced in early 2026. As usual, numerous Samsung apps will be upgraded to fit the One UI 8.5,
03:27but only time will tell what these improvements will entail.
03:31In terms of the screen, we're still anticipating a 6.9-inch AMOLED panel,
03:36though Ice Universe claims it'll include the third-generation anti-reflective glass.
03:41The S25 Ultra features a brilliant display that's excellent for watching videos,
03:46but the anti-reflective glass for the S26 Ultra could further decrease reflections while watching
03:51material under brighter conditions or outside. This would be amazing, but it'll be fascinating to
03:57watch if Samsung improves its brightness. That's because in our own tests, the S25 Ultra hit a
04:04peak brightness of 1,860 nits, making it one of the brightest in a flagship, only eclipsed by the
04:11Pixel 9 Pro XL with its 2,649-nit reach. Beyond that, it's impossible to determine what else Samsung
04:19could tweak or introduce around the display. Earlier in the year, Ice Universe suggested that
04:25Samsung would resuscitate the variable rate aperture with the S26 Ultra. It would be the first time such
04:31a feature had emerged on a Samsung phone since the Galaxy S10 in 2018. Although, Samsung did offer a
04:38virtual aperture control with the S25 Ultra. However, in August, Ice Universe stated that the main camera
04:45will employ an S-slash 1.4 aperture with the same 200-megapixels main sensor as the previous iteration.
04:53This, he later noted, should see 47% more light entering the camera, which should offer a decent
04:59boost to picture quality in low-light circumstances, with less noise. Samsung is testing a 12-megapixels sensor
05:06for the 3x telephoto snapper, boosting the megapixel count from the 10-megapixels lens seen on the
05:13previous iteration. The leaker also mentions a new laser, AF sensor for faster focusing speeds,
05:20as well as a next-gen Pro Visual engine to enhance picture processing. The 50-megapixels
05:26ultra-wide and 5x telephoto lenses are poised to remain the same. However, the front-facing camera
05:32will supposedly inherit features like 4K 120fps slow-motion video recording.
05:39For the past few generations of the Ultra, Samsung has counted on Qualcomm to power its flagships.
05:45However, there could be a change with the Galaxy S26 Ultra, because it's believed to employ the
05:51Snapdragon 8 Elite 2 chipset, and perhaps an in-house Exynos one for select markets.
05:58However, the leaker goes on to claim that, due to reportedly low yield,
06:02it is likely to be equipped mainly in European models. If accurate, this would be a return to
06:08a previous norm for Samsung, where it supplied flagship models with the Exynos CPU in select regions,
06:14and Qualcomm-made Snapdragon silicon in others, like as the US. Meaning the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra
06:22should be ready to employ the next Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 2 CPU.
06:28Digital Chat Station claims that the CPU will run at 4.6GHz, with the GPU clocked at 1.2GHz,
06:36while leaked software for the S26 Ultra points at the Snapdragon 8 Elite 2 chip as well.
06:42In recent years, Samsung has been relatively consistent with the release date of its S-series phones,
06:48while the phones used to come in spring, as late as May 29, in the case of the Galaxy S3.
06:54Starting 2019, the devices have been issued no later than March 6, with launch events conducted in
07:01January or February. It's been trending earlier too. The Samsung Galaxy S25 released on February 7,
07:09whereas the S24 premiered on January 31. In other words, it's quite likely that the Samsung Galaxy S26
07:16Ultra will be on shelves by mid-February, with an event roughly two weeks before release day.
07:22The key question is whether Samsung will want to hike the price in 2026.
07:27The S25 Ultra launched at $1,299, escalating to $1,419 for 512GB storage, or $1,659 for 1TB,
07:42which is the same set of manufacturer's suggested retail price as its predecessor.
07:46The three Ultra handsets before that started at $1,199, so perhaps it's a good omen that things
07:54will stay unchanged for another year. Another bright sign. It's been rumored that the Qualcomm
08:01Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 2 expected to power the upcoming phones won't cost Samsung more than the
08:06Gen 1. If true, there's one less added expense that Samsung might pass on to the consumer.
08:12Samsung's Galaxy Ultra phones haven't changed their design too much in recent years,
08:18and so far there's little evidence to suggest the S26 Ultra will look drastically different either.
08:24However, there are a few of tiny adjustments that could provide some added style points.
08:29For starters, it sounds like the phone will be becoming thinner. The trusted tipster Ice Universe
08:35says that the phone will be between 7 and 8mm thick with a slightly increased width and height.
08:41For perspective, the S25 Ultra is 0.32 inches thick, suggesting the change might barely be
08:50noticed or quite a huge difference, depending on where exactly it lands.
08:55Worryingly, for aficionados of the S Pen, this new thinness might be achieved by limiting the
09:00adaptability of the stylus. In June, the Leaker Panda Flash Pro said that Samsung will be deleting
09:07the S Pen digitizer, which is responsible for features like pressure sensitivity and hovering
09:12choices, though he later claimed that Samsung were disappointed with test results. So presumably that
09:18means it's safe for now. More radically, the Korean Leaker Crow has projected the S26 Ultra to be the
09:25first non-folding Samsung phone to employ an underscreen camera, abandoning the hole punch-sized
09:31notch that's resided at the top of the screen on the company's phones since 2019. Given Samsung
09:38discontinued the 4MP underscreen camera from the previous Z Fold 7, that's certainly one to take
09:44with a pinch of salt, however. The second tip comes from SamMobile, which observed that China's
09:50Quality Certification Center has issued a certification for a battery, believed to be
09:55destined for the Galaxy S26 Ultra. It has a rated capacity of 4885mA, which is the same as indicated
10:04for the S25 Ultra, albeit with an eventual advertised usual capacity of 5000mA. On one level, this is no
10:12surprise, given Samsung has kept battery capacity steady since 2020's Galaxy S20 Ultra, and indeed both
10:19Galaxy Club and Ice Universe have previously forecast no advance on capacity. But it's still disappointing
10:26considering earlier sources indicated that Samsung's planned adoption of silicon carbon batteries might
10:32lead to a capacity of between 6000mA and 7000mA, should the firm choose to use a comparable sized cell.
10:40This means either the technology isn't available, or Samsung has chosen to remain with the same capacity
10:46with a smaller size. Disappointment aside, it's worth remembering that the S25 Ultra's battery life
10:53is very strong as things stand, with the phone attaining a solid 17 hours and 14 minutes in our
10:58regular battery test, rising to 18 hours and 35 minutes in 60Hz mode. In addition to this, we may yet
11:06get a battery-related consolation prize. Last month, leaked code from the One UI 8.5 update revealed that
11:14charging speeds will improve from 45W to 60W on the Galaxy S26 Ultra, meaning less time at the power
11:21outlet if you're in a rush. So, that's it for today's video.
11:26Thanks for watching and don't forget to hit that like button and subscribe to our channel for more tech
11:31news and updates.
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