The iPhone 15 Pro Max has titanium and USB-C, the Pixel 8 Pro leans on AI, and the Galaxy S24 Ultra sits somewhere in between. Samsung’s current Ultra is a very good slab, but it feels like a carefully refined S23 Ultra, not a bold step forward. So if Samsung wants the Galaxy S26 Ultra to stay in the flagship conversation, it needs more than another small spec bump.
Right now the Galaxy S24 Ultra wins on versatility and raw features, while Google undercuts it on smart software and Apple pushes polish and long-term support. The Galaxy S26 Ultra has to respond to all three fronts at once. That’s a big ask, but it’s not impossible.
Galaxy S26 Ultra: what needs to change first
Before adding wild new tricks, Samsung has to fix the fundamentals for the Galaxy S26 Ultra. The S24 Ultra’s Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for Galaxy is fast and efficient, but the experience still feels held back by heat, camera consistency and software cruft.
First, Samsung has to tame thermal throttling under sustained load. Long gaming sessions or 4K video recording still push the S24 Ultra hard, especially in warmer climates. With a likely move to Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 or 8 Gen 6 by 2026, cooling will matter more than raw benchmarks.
Second, battery life has to improve without relying on a bigger cell. A 5,000mAh battery is already standard for large flagships. Instead, Samsung should pair a more efficient chip with an adaptive refresh algorithm that can actually sit around 1-10Hz aggressively when reading or idling, not hover higher than needed.
Third, Samsung needs to clean up One UI. One UI 6.1 is powerful, but it layers too many overlapping features and settings. By the S26 Ultra, One UI 8 or 9 should feel lighter, with smarter defaults and fewer pre-installed partner apps. In daily use that matters more than one extra AI trick.
Display and design: time to move beyond minor tweaks
The Galaxy S24 Ultra already rocks a 6.8-inch QHD+ LTPO OLED panel at 120Hz with up to 2,600 nits peak. It’s bright, sharp and very usable outdoors. However, rivals are catching up, and by the Galaxy S26 Ultra’s launch, this spec sheet will look familiar, not ambitious.
For the S26 Ultra, Samsung should push brightness to around 3,500 nits peak for HDR and sunlight, while tightening minimum brightness for late-night reading. Meanwhile, a slightly smaller diagonal, perhaps 6.7 inches with slimmer bezels, could improve ergonomics without sacrificing content space.
On build materials, titanium was the big talking point for 2024. The S24 Ultra uses a titanium frame but still feels closer to a heavy glass slab than a balanced work tool. For the S26 Ultra, Samsung should rework weight distribution and maybe shave 10–15 grams while keeping durability.
Additionally, a more pronounced matte finish on both frame and back glass would cut fingerprints. Little changes like a less slippery back and slightly curved edges on the frame, not the screen, could make a major difference in hand feel.
Camera: huge hardware, inconsistent decisions
On paper, the S24 Ultra camera setup is stacked: 200MP main, 10MP 3x telephoto, 50MP 5x periscope, and 12MP ultrawide. In reality, image processing still swings between great and frustrating. The Galaxy S26 Ultra has to target consistency, not just flexibility.
Samsung needs to tighten color science between lenses first. Switching from main to telephoto often shifts white balance and contrast noticeably. Meanwhile, the Pixel 8 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max tend to keep a more uniform look, which feels more polished.
Next, Samsung should finally nail motion and low-light photography together. Pixel phones still beat the S24 Ultra for quick indoor shots of kids and pets, particularly in mixed light. For the S26 Ultra, faster multi-frame processing and smarter motion detection would help.
Zoom needs work too. While 5x and 10x shots from the S24 Ultra can be impressive, results in the 8–19x range vary a lot. A refined hybrid zoom pipeline that leans more on the 50MP 5x sensor and better upscaling could make those in-between focal lengths more reliable.
Video is another area ripe for improvement. The S24 Ultra supports 8K, but stabilisation and rolling shutter can still be an issue. For 2026, I’d rather see cleaner 4K 60 with better dynamic range and audio than another resolution bump. If Samsung wants creators to trust the S26 Ultra, video quality has to step up.
Performance, storage and AI: more brains, not just brawn
Looking ahead, the Galaxy S26 Ultra will almost certainly ship with a newer Snapdragon flagship chip, likely built on an even more efficient process node than 4nm. Raw performance will be fine. The question is how Samsung uses that power.
AI is the obvious pitch. Galaxy AI already tries to match Google’s tricks with features like live translation and generative photo editing. Some of it works nicely, some feels like filler. By the S26 Ultra, these tools need to be faster, more reliable and, ideally, processed on-device.
More local processing means Samsung should consider a dedicated neural processing unit or at least sharper tuning of the integrated NPU. This would keep sensitive data on the phone, reduce lag and help battery life. It also future-proofs the device for whatever Android 17 or 18 brings.
On storage, the baseline 256GB with 12GB RAM is fine for 2024, but less so for a 2026 flagship. I’d like to see 12GB and 512GB as the standard tier for the S26 Ultra, with optional 16GB RAM on higher models. MicroSD is probably gone for good, but if so, onboard storage must scale.
Software support is another big factor. Google now promises seven years of OS and security updates on the Pixel 8 series. If Samsung wants the Galaxy S26 Ultra to compete long-term, matching or beating that commitment would be huge. Longer support may matter more to buyers than another minor speed bump.
Charging, battery and the features Samsung keeps ignoring
Charging is where Samsung is falling behind badly. While some Chinese flagships push 80W–120W wired charging, the S24 Ultra plods along at 45W and 15W wireless. Truthfully, that feels outdated in this price bracket.
For the Galaxy S26 Ultra, Samsung does not need 200W charging, but 65W wired and at least 30W wireless would hit a solid balance of speed and battery health. A full charge in around 35–40 minutes wired would be reasonable for a $1,200 class phone.
Battery endurance should also improve via smarter software. A genuinely adaptive battery mode that learns individual use and throttles background apps more aggressively would help. Paired with LTPO refinements and a more efficient Snapdragon, a two-day runtime for moderate users is realistic.
Meanwhile, a few ignored features deserve attention. Dual physical SIM plus eSIM flexibility, a stronger vibration motor for more precise haptics, and more flexible screen-off gestures could all help. None of these sells phones in ads, but they shape daily experience.
The last quiet upgrade I’d like is a better speaker setup. The current stereo array is good, but slightly fuller mids and less distortion at high volume would benefit gaming and video.
So, should you wait for the Galaxy S26 Ultra?
If you own an S22 Ultra or older, the S24 Ultra is already a big jump and worth a look today. However, if you’re on an S23 Ultra or a recent Pixel or iPhone, I’d probably hold off and see what Samsung does with the Galaxy S26 Ultra.
Right now, the S24 Ultra looks like a very refined, very expensive known quantity. The S26 Ultra needs to be smarter, cooler and more consistent, not just slightly faster. There is a path for that, but Samsung has to prioritize long-term support, camera reliability and meaningful charging upgrades.
Ultimately, if Samsung delivers these changes, the Galaxy S26 Ultra could become the default Android flagship for power users again. Until Samsung proves it in real hardware though, the S26 Ultra is only a promising idea, not a guaranteed upgrade.