'This is one feature we can't wait to try' — 6 major Galaxy S26 updates for the Ultra and its siblings that could change how you use your phone

Buh-bye, titanium, hello, more AI

25 Feb 2026, 18:15 · TechRadar

News By Lance Ulanoff published 25 February 2026

(Image credit: Samsung)

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At a glance, the entire new Samsung Galaxy S26 lineup is incredibly uniform, which might not seem like a big deal, but it is a departure for the Galaxy lineup, as the Ultra is usually distinctly different from its sibling Galaxy phones.

This new, unified design is, in my opinion, the first major S26 update, and it counts as the first big reveal of today's Samsung Galaxy Unpacked February 2026 event in San Francisco, California.

New, unified look

For the Ultra, that design change means rounder corners and the end of titanium cases. In fact, all three phones now use aluminum, though Samsung tells us the Armor Aluminum on the S26 Ultra is more rigid than the aluminum found on the S26 and S26 Plus. The S26 Ultra is also thinner and lighter than ever (but with a taller camera array bump).

Not every update carries across all three new phones. The cameras on the S26 and S26 Plus are virtually unchanged from the previous S25 models. That's not the case with the S26 Ultra.

Brighter cameras

From one perspective, the Galaxy S26 Ultra update leaves its many cameras unchanged:

The main is still a 200MP wide
The ultrawide is still 50MP
The 3x telephoto is 10MP
The 5x telephoto is 50MP

But two of the lenses you use most often are, Samsung claims, significantly brighter; The 200MP lens is 47% brighter, and the 50MP 5x lens is 37% brighter. How did Samsung do this? It lowered the apertures on both lenses (200MP from f1.7 to f1.4, and 50MP from f3.4 to f2.9), making them wider and able to pull in more available light. This could pay dividends in low-light and nighttime shots.

You might gather better selfies across the entire S26 lineup. The 12MP front cameras on the S26 Ultra, S26 Plus, and S26 all now feature an 85-degree field of view (FoV).

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