Samsung played it safe with the Galaxy S25, but if we’re being honest, it ended up being a pretty compelling Android phone. I would’ve liked to see a more aggressive design revamp, better cameras, and improved battery and charging technology. Even without those improvements, the Galaxy S25 held its own as one of the best phones on the market in 2025.
I’m expecting big things from the Galaxy S26, although rumors and leaks suggest it might be a letdown. Samsung is following the launch of the iPhone 17 and the Google Pixel 10, which included trend-setting upgrades like higher base storage and magnetic charging support. To be competitive, Samsung needs to match these additions and more.
An even slimmer and lighter design with Qi2
I praised the Galaxy S25’s design for retaining a thin, light, and compact footprint, noting that it was the “last compact Android flagship,” but I didn’t know it might be the very last small Android flagship. Samsung is rumored to ship the Galaxy S26 with a slightly larger screen next year.
One thing I consistently loved about the Galaxy S25 throughout my year of testing was how great it felt in the hand. I eventually switched to the Galaxy S25 Edge for its thin feel, but the base Galaxy S25 is actually much more compact. At just 7.2mm thick and weighing only 162 grams with a 6.2-inch screen, the Galaxy S25 is incredibly pocketable and easy to hold.
For the Galaxy S26, I want to see Samsung prioritize keeping this in-hand feel intact while revamping the design. Following the introduction of Qi2 on the Google Pixel 10, magnetic charging is officially an essential feature for any Android flagship that wants to be taken seriously. However, Samsung should leverage its R&D might to challenge itself to add Qi2 (and potentially a larger screen) while minimizing changes to the Galaxy S25’s footprint, thickness, and weight.
Increasing the screen-to-body ratio and shrinking bezels are ways of getting more out of the same chassis. If Samsung can add a long-overdue Qi2 magnetic charging feature while still keeping the Galaxy S26 feeling small, it’ll have an edge over Pixels in 2026.
Intuitive AI features
Samsung’s AI suite is underrated, in part because of its strong relationship with Google, which brings Google AI and Galaxy AI features to Samsung handsets, and I need to see more of that in 2026. Circle to Search and multimodal Gemini Live, which arrived on Galaxy phones first, are the types of groundbreaking software features I want to debut alongside the Galaxy S26.
With the Galaxy S25, the company’s AI upgrades were a bit underwhelming. One year later, I still haven’t found game-changing use cases for the Now Bar or Now Brief. Meanwhile, Google is cooking up excellent Pixel 10 exclusives like Magic Cue and Camera Coach. Samsung should go back to the drawing board and perhaps call up Google to think big for the Galaxy S26’s software upgrades.
A completely revamped camera system
If I had to describe the Galaxy S25’s camera system in one word, it’s non-competitive. The hardware can be traced back to the Galaxy S22 series, and if Samsung doesn’t significantly upgrade the entire system for the Galaxy S26, it might be dead on arrival. At a time when Google, Apple, and OnePlus are making camera hardware tweaks on a yearly basis, Samsung risks falling even further behind if it doesn’t make aggressive changes.
A camera system riding on a 50MP primary sensor, a 12MP ultrawide with a 120-degree field of view, and a 12MP 3x telephoto lens feels substandard heading into 2026. The primary camera sensor is fine, but for a flagship, two middling secondary cameras aren’t good enough. In particular, the 3x optical zoom capability sticks out like a sore thumb compared to the Pixel 10’s 5x telephoto lens.
I’d also like to see Samsung pay more attention to its computational photography and color science — perhaps even more so than the hardware. Samsung phones tend to produce photos that can look dull compared to those from a Pixel or an iPhone. I don’t want Galaxy cameras to go too far and oversaturate, but finding a better middle ground would help the Galaxy S26 shoot better photos without any hardware changes.
More base storage (with no price hike)
Too often, Samsung is reactionary. We all know it’s capable of making great phones — just look at the Galaxy Z Fold 7 and Galaxy Z TriFold — but its best work usually comes after it’s challenged. One way Samsung can make its mark proactively on the Galaxy S26 is by shipping it with 256GB of base storage.
Apple made waves with the iPhone 17 by making 256GB standard without hiking the price. Samsung should do the exact same thing, giving it an edge over the Pixel 10. Not only does the Pixel 10 start with 128GB of storage, but it uses UFS 3.1 flash, unlike the UFS 4.0 you get with the higher-priced 256GB variant. Give us 256GB UFS 4.0 storage without raising the Galaxy S26’s price, and Samsung will immediately gain some goodwill with tech enthusiasts.
Better efficiency + battery life
Really, the one thing Samsung doesn’t have to touch on the Galaxy S25 is the phone’s processor. The Snapdragon 8 Elite is good enough, and although we’re expecting an upgrade to Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, the Galaxy S26 will be fast either way. Rather than higher benchmark scores or faster gaming performance, I’d rather see Samsung focus on keeping temperatures down and improving the Galaxy S26’s efficiency.
The Galaxy S25 only has a 4,000 mAh battery. With a power-hungry processor and display, the Galaxy S26 needs to find a way to bump battery life one way or another. It could do this by increasing capacity, improving efficiency, or delivering faster charging speeds to make midday power-ups easier.
But while these are my biggests asks, let us know in the comments what you hope to see in the Galaxy S26, which is expected to launch in just a couple of months!
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