The headline act was, of course, the Galaxy S26 lineup: the S26, S26+, and S26 Ultra. While they look familiar, the hardware upgrades are anything but incremental although I will not be upgrading.
Galaxy S26 Ultra: The Privacy Powerhouse
The Ultra stole the show with a world-first hardware feature: Privacy Display.
Camera: The 200MP sensor returns, but with a new Expert RAW Ocean Mode perfect for those holiday snaps if you’re brave enough to take it diving.
Privacy Display: By double-pressing the side button, the screen “tunnels” the light. This means if someone is snooping over your shoulder on the Tube, the screen looks completely blank to them, while staying crystal clear for you.
Performance: It’s kitted out with the custom Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy, boasting a massive boost for on-device AI tasks.
Charging: Samsung has finally listened! We’re now getting 60W wired charging, hitting a 75% charge in just 30 minutes.
Galaxy S26 & S26+
Battery: The base S26 gets a welcome bump to a 4,300mAh battery, which should actually last a full day now.
Price Hike: Unfortunately, the cost of living hits tech too. Both models have seen a £100 price increase compared to last year.
Design: Smoother, more rounded corners and a unified camera module that looks a bit more refined.
🤖 Galaxy AI: More Than Just a Chatbot
Samsung is moving away from a single assistant. The S26 series is now a “Multi-Agent” hub:
Perplexity Integration: Alongside Google Gemini and Bixby, Perplexity AI is now a native option. You can set it as your default and trigger it with “Hey Plex.
One UI 8.5 & The New Bixby: Bixby has had a proper overhaul. It’s now “agentic,” meaning it can handle complex tasks across different apps (like booking a table and adding it to your calendar) without you having to prompt it for every single step.
Live Call Screening: A brilliant feature that handles spam calls and gives you a live summary of what the caller wants before you even pick up.
🎧 Galaxy Buds4 & Buds4 Pro
The audio lineup has also been refreshed with a focus on “Intelligence Meets Sound.”
AI Controls: You can now toggle your preferred AI assistant (Gemini or Perplexity) directly from the touch controls on the buds.
Adaptive ANC: The Buds4 Pro adjust their noise cancellation in real-time based on the shape of your ear and how loud your surroundings are.
🗓️ UK Pricing & Availability
Pre-orders have opened today (25 Feb), with the devices hitting British shelves on 6 March 2026.
Galaxy S26 – £879 or £33.63 a month.
Galaxy S26+ – £1099 or £45.80 a month.
Galaxy S26 Ultra – £1279 or £53.30 a month.
Galaxy Buds 4 – £159 or £13.25 a month.
Galaxy Buds 4 Pro – £219 or £18.25 a month.
*Prices are from Samsung.com*
