Samsung Galaxy S26 and S26+ review: Fast, steady, and quintessential premium Android flagships 

I liked the Galaxy S26 and S26+ for what they aim to be, though I am definitely a fan of the higher-end Galaxy S26 Ultra (read my detailed review), which offers a Privacy Display, a bigger battery, stronger cameras, and a higher price tag.

Samsung Galaxy S26 and S26+ are pitched as mainline Android flagships. (Image: The Indian Express/ Anuj Bhatia)

Now, with both the Galaxy S26 and S26+ also coming in at a higher asking price, the question is whether you can find value in them and which one you should buy, especially when the S26 Ultra remains the benchmark Android flagship.

Here is my review of the Galaxy S26 and S26+:

What: Samsung Galaxy S26 and S26+ | Price: Rs 87,999/Rs 109,999 for the base variant of the S26 and S26+

Disclaimer: Samsung sent me the Galaxy S26 and S26+ as loan units for review.

Clean and simple design

The Galaxy S26 and S26+ don’t feature a groundbreaking new design, which many, including myself, had expected. However, it appears Samsung has been sticking to the same design for the past three years, though I hope next year brings a major design shake-up. What you do get are slimmed-down phones with a minimalist look and a smaller camera bump than last year.

This year, the S26’s display has grown from 6.2 inches on the S25 to 6.3 inches, resulting in a slightly taller and wider body. Still, it’s one of the most compact smartphones on the market. I love it for that. The S26+ retains the same 6.7-inch screen as last year’s S25 Plus. Both phones (and the Ultra) come in cobalt violet, white, sky blue, and black.

You probably want the case, and trust me, you should get one. If you are curious, both phones have Gorilla Glass Victus 2 on the front and rear, a matte Armour Aluminium frame, and an IP68 dust- and water-resistant rating.

The S26 is lightweight and slides easily into the pocket. (Image: The Indian Express/ Anuj Bhatia)

As you know by now, the S26+ is a larger phone with a better display. The 6.7-inch screen offers a beautiful Quad HD+ resolution (versus Full HD on the S26’s 6.3-inch display), though it still pales in comparison to the S26 Ultra’s display. I think the Privacy Display should have been included on the S26+, and since it isn’t, I did miss it.

That being said, the S26+’s display looks and feels bright and colourful, and the 120Hz refresh rate (now standard across smartphones) makes everything feel smooth and satisfying, whether you are scrolling through WhatsApp and LinkedIn or even playing games. The S26’s 6.3-inch display isn’t a giant leap in brightness, but it’s still good for everyday tasks most people use their phones for.

The Galaxy S26+ packs a 6.7-inch screen. (Image: The Indian Express/ Anuj Bhatia)

My only issue with the baseline S26 is the lack of Gorilla Armor protection. The missing anti-reflective technology hasn’t yet made its way to the S26, which is really disappointing, especially given the higher price.

The stereo speakers also sound great. You will realise how important the feature is until you don’t have it.

Good performance and battery life 

These phones are fast. Inside both the S26 and S26+, at least the models sold in India, come with Samsung’s in-house Exynos 2600 chip. Samsung claims up to 39 per cent boost in CPU performance compared to its predecessor, and the NPU delivers 113 per cent boost. Both phones feature 12GB of LPDDR5 RAM, with two storage options: 256GB and 512GB.

A lot of people may say the Exynos 2600 can’t be compared to Qualcomm’s flagship Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 in benchmarks. But for me, given the kind of things I do on a phone, benchmarks don’t really matter and they shouldn’t if you are a regular user. Both the S26 and S26+ handle multitasking very well and remain responsive even when I have dozens of apps and too many Chrome tabs open at once.

Both S26 and S26+ come without a microSD card slot. You will have to choose a model with a higher internal storage. (Image: The Indian Express/ Anuj Bhatia)

The S26/S26+ are designed for daily tasks. Emails, web browsing, gaming, video calling, and gaming (yes, I ran Genshin Impact and I didn’t notice any slowdown or stutter on the S26+). These tasks run smoothly on both devices. However, if you want to shoot and edit super-crisp, high-definition video (say, as a content creator), you should consider getting the S26 Ultra.

I was surprised by the Exynos 2600, which is built on a 2nm process. It’s a technical achievement, but it doesn’t change the fact that Qualcomm and Apple’s flagship chips are equally good and powerful. Mobile chips are no longer the giant leap in performance they once were, which explains why everything now feels evolutionary rather than revolutionary, compared to a few years ago.

Both the S26 and S26+ offer reasonably long battery life, with the S26+ lasting longer thanks to its 4900mAh battery. It will comfortably last a full day, though don’t expect two days of battery life. The S26, on the other hand, has a smaller 4300mAh battery (up from 4000mAh), but in my tests, it lasts about an hour longer than the S25. Sadly, charging speeds haven’t improved on the S26 series. You are still getting 25W wired charging, which feels slow compared to what many Chinese smartphone brands are offering

The user interface is getting better on Samsung Galaxy phones lately. (Image: The Indian Express/ Anuj Bhatia)

The user interface on the S26 series (based on Android 16) has been refined; it’s cleaner, and everything feels more polished and animated. A major push in the One UI 8.5 experience is the updated AI features in Galaxy AI. However, not every AI feature works as advertised. There are hits and misses.

Now Nudge, which is built into Samsung’s keyboard and which I used extensively at first, felt great in the initial days, but my usage dropped off after that, and I haven’t really gone back to it since. My most-used AI feature on a smartphone to date remains Magic Eraser, a Google feature that removes unwanted objects from photos, along with the voice translation feature.

The Galaxy AI has some good features, but overall, I don’t find AI as useful as it’s been marketed. (Image credit: Anuj Bhatia/Indian Express)

Strong cameras

Although Samsung hasn’t changed the camera system on the S26 and S26+, the triple-camera setup is in line with what I expected. They take great photos, and every shot I captured had depth, sharpness, and good colour reproduction. Over the years, the oversaturation that many used to complain about in Samsung’s camera system has been reduced, but the results still aren’t on par with the iPhone or a Google Pixel. That said, both the S26 and S26+ have a strong camera system, whether you are shooting in low light, taking portraits of a cat or a person, or simply exploring photography at Humayun’s Tomb.

Samsung Galaxy S26+ camera sample. Image resized for web.

Samsung Galaxy S26+ camera sample. Image resized for web.

Samsung Galaxy S26+ camera sample. Image resized for web.

Samsung Galaxy S26+ camera sample. Image resized for web.

Samsung Galaxy S26+ camera sample. Image resized for web.

Samsung Galaxy S26+ camera sample. Image resized for web.

So, should you buy the Samsung Galaxy S26/S26+?

The Galaxy S26 and S26+ do everything they set out to do. I can tell you right away who should consider the S26/S26+. They are for those who don’t need a radically different flagship Android experience, but instead want something that maintains the standard of what a premium phone should be.

And there’s nothing wrong with that. I feel smartphones today are like Gillette men’s razors. They are popular (and a bit more expensive than others) and mostly work because they strike a balance between speed, safety, and smoothness.

I will leave it here and see you soon with another tech review. Happy reading indianexpress.com.