Samsung Galaxy S27 Ultra release date expectations, price estimates, and upgrades
Galaxy S26 Ultra for illustrative purposes. | Image by PhoneArena
Galaxy S27 Ultra: what to expect
What's expected to change vs the Galaxy S26 Ultra:
- Possible first-ever battery capacity of 6,000-7,000mAh for Galaxy phones, leveraging silicon-carbon technology
- Variable aperture
- Custom-made Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 Pro processor (2nm process)
- New "Polar ID" feature for authentication and security
- Samsung may replace all three cameras on the phone
- All-new, upgraded camera setup with a brand-new main sensor
- Battery over the 10,000 mAh mark tested by Samsung
- No 3x telephoto camera
- Design to remain the same
- S Pen to remain unchanged
- A Galaxy S27 Pro may accompany the Ultra – no S Pen support and smaller display
Expected release timeline:
- The Galaxy S27 Ultra is likely getting unveiled in January or February 2027.
- The flagship may come with the Galaxy S27, the Galaxy S27 Plus, and potentially a Galaxy S27 Pro.
Expected price:
- No leaks are indicating the S27 Ultra pricing just yet.
Jump to:
Galaxy S27 Ultra release date
The South Korean tech giant may unveil the Galaxy S27 Ultra, S27, and S27 Plus in February 2027. As per tradition, new Galaxy S flagships get announced in the beginning of the year.
A recent rumor also claims a Galaxy S27 Pro may also come, which would be very similar to the Ultra minus the S Pen and with a smaller display.
| Device family | Announcement | Market release |
|---|---|---|
| Galaxy S27 series | February 2027* | February-March 2027* |
| Galaxy S26 series | February 25, 2026 | March 11, 2026 |
| Galaxy S25 series | January 22, 2025 | February 7, 2025 |
* - probable dates
Expect an in-person Unpacked event, which will be broadcast online, for the announcement of the 2027 Galaxy S.
After the event, there will likely be a 10-day or so pre-order period before the phone and its smaller siblings hit the shelves officially.
Galaxy S27 Ultra price and deals
We have had no leaks detailing the price of the Galaxy S27 Ultra so far. However, Samsung did raise the prices for the S26 and S26 Plus by $100. The S26 Ultra's 512 GB version was raised by $80, and the 1 TB option was raised by $140 over the S25 Ultra.
| Galaxy model | 256GB of storage | 512GB of storage | 1TB of storage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Galaxy S27 Ultra | $1299.99* | $1499.99* | $1799.99* |
| Galaxy S26 Ultra | $1299.99 | $1499.99 | $1799.99 |
| Galaxy S25 Ultra | $1299.99 | $1419.99 | $1659.99 |
*- anticipated prices
We expect the same prices to return next year, but another price hike is not out of the question, especially since expectations point to an even bigger memory shortage in 2027.
Meanwhile, we have the mysterious Galaxy S27 Pro. If it is real, it is said to slide between the $1,099.99 of the Galaxy S27 Plus and the $1,299.99 of the Galaxy S27 Ultra.
Galaxy S27 Ultra deals to expect:
- Samsung: As usual, we expect generous trade-in deals to be offered by Samsung for the purchase of the S27 Ultra. This year, we got enhanced trade-in options and store credit for the S26 Ultra.
- Verizon: The carrier is likely to offer generous trade-in deals that could offer you the starting storage option for free (or almost). These will likely require an eligible trade-in phone or a new line.
- AT&T: AT&T is likely to also offer huge discounts with trade-in and a specific plan to get the S27 Ultra for as low as possible.
- T-Mobile: T-Mobile is also known to offer wonderful deals on new devices, and that would certainly include the S27 Ultra.
Galaxy S27 Ultra camera
The main sensor of the Galaxy S27 Ultra is reportedly getting upgraded to a larger 1/1.12-inch sensor named ISOCELL HPA. According to rumors, this new sensor may support LOFIC for a wider dynamic range.
Galaxy S27 Ultra expected camera setup:
- The main camera may keep 200 MP resolution but with a new sensor
- 50 MP ultra-wide camera
- 50 MP zoom camera
- 10 MP 3x optical zoom camera
- 12 MP selfie camera
Reliable leaker IceUniverse shared that the S27 Ultra might come equipped with a modified version of ISOCELL HPA. It might be called HP6 and measure just 1/1.3 inches — smaller in size when compared to the HPA, while retaining its impressive performance.
In a recent X post, Ice also suggests the 10 MP 3x telephoto camera may be going away, and the S27 Ultra may come with three cameras, not four as its predecessors did.
IceUniverse's post on X. | Image by IceUniverse on X
Meanwhile, the same leaker has previously claimed the South Korean giant plans to change three of the S27 Ultra's sensors: the main, the ultra-wide, and the front ones.
Basically, this means only the 50 MP telephoto camera may be the same as the one on the S26 Ultra. The periscope one is getting a wider lens aperture, but its exact specs have not been shared yet.
Recently, tipster Smart Pikachu suggested that the Galaxy S27 Ultra's new 200 MP main sensor may come with a variable aperture. The tipster didn't give more details about it, but the iPhone 18 Pro is also rumored to come with a variable aperture this year.
The variable aperture allows the camera lens to physically adjust the size of its opening and would give superior low-light images and a more natural background blur.
As for the purported Galaxy S27 Pro model, a recent leak states to expect a 200 MP primary camera and a 50 MP ultra-wide one. These cameras are said to be identical to the first and second cameras of the S27 Ultra itself.
These cameras could feature the "brand-new" sensors that are rumored for the Ultra.
Meanwhile, the Galaxy S27 Pro may come with an ALoP telephoto system capable of 3.5x optical zoom. The system was advertised by Samsung in 2024 but hasn't been adopted by Galaxy phones thus far.
ALoP stands for All Lenses on Prism, and it's a next-gen telephoto camera tech that should boost brightness and minimize noise while also reducing the camera module's height and length (and also thickness).
A comparison between traditional telephoto lenses we see in phones and the new technology. | Image by Samsung
The ALoP system may use an f/2.58 aperture. Currently, it is not clear whether Samsung will also use the technology in the Galaxy S27 Ultra's telephoto camera.
Galaxy S27 Ultra storage
Galaxy S27 Ultra rumored storage capacity:
- 256 GB
- 512 GB
- 1 TB
The current expectations are that the S27 Ultra may bring 256 GB, 512 GB, and 1 TB storage options.
Galaxy S27 Ultra design
Basically, the design is still a mystery at this point, and no renders have leaked just yet, but we don't expect anything revolutionary.
The Galaxy S26 Ultra did shake things up a bit by adding a camera island and unifying its look with the rest of the lineup. Those are not huge design changes, though; they're more small refinements.
The Galaxy S26 Ultra design for illustrative purposes. | Image by PhoneArena
Early rumors had previously insisted that Samsung may ditch the S Pen for the Galaxy S27 Ultra, then rumors claimed an upgrade was coming.
A recent report on the S Pen and Galaxy S27 Ultra sheds some light on the topic, claiming Samsung is not upgrading the S Pen but is instead keeping it the same and abandoning the idea of a new, digitizer-free display structure, which would have made the upgrade possible.
Removing the digitizer is what allowed for the Galaxy Z Fold 7 to be about 25% thinner than its predecessor, but it resulted in it losing its S Pen support. Luckily, the South Korean giant appears to plan to keep the S Pen for future Ultra phones.
Meanwhile, a new report from tipster yeux1122 indicates that a weight reduction is coming with the S27 Ultra. They don't specify by how much the weight would be reduced while claiming the thickness would remain the same as the S26 Ultra, which is 7.9 mm.
What's more interesting is another leak suggesting a new authentication option called Polar ID is coming to the S27 Ultra. It is said to work similarly to Face ID by Apple, minus the cutout at the front.
Polar ID may be able to differentiate between a living human being and a 3D mask. If true, you can expect stable performance in dark environments and improved security.
Galaxy S27 Ultra display
No leaks have detailed any upgrades for the S27 Ultra's display thus far. The size is not expected to change from the familiar 6.9 inches we know.
| Phone | Screen size | Brightness |
|---|---|---|
| Galaxy S27 Ultra | 6.9"* | 2,600 nits peak brightness* |
| Galaxy S26 Ultra | 6.9" | 2,600 nits peak brightness |
* - anticipated sizes
The Galaxy S26 Ultra brought a new, hardware-based feature called Privacy Display, which may or may not return for another year.
What the feature does is to allow the screen itself to hide its contents from anyone looking from the side. On the S26 Ultra, it comes with two modes you can choose from (hide the entire screen or hide the screen partially).
It's also configurable based on apps you'd like to hide, and it was the biggest display upgrade Samsung brought to its ultimate flagship in 2026.
How the new Privacy Display feature on the S26 Ultra works. | Image by PhoneArena
Apart from that, expect a Dynamic AMOLED 2x screen with an adaptable refresh rate from 1 Hz to 120 Hz.
Curiously enough, rumors suggest the Galaxy S27 Pro, which is the phone supposed to be a compact S-Pen-free version of the Ultra, may come with a smaller 6.4-inch display. The most recent leak about this comes from ETnews and claims a 6.47-inch screen.
Galaxy S27 Ultra battery
Realistically, we can expect an approximately 7,000 mAh battery capacity for the Galaxy S27 Ultra thanks to silicon-carbon tech. However, it is important to remember that milliampere-hours (mAh) are relative.
Because silicon-carbon chemistry offers vastly higher energy density than traditional lithium-ion, it can cram significantly more capacity into the same physical space. This allows the phone to stay slim while dramatically extending real-world battery life.
Another rumor from a mysterious leaker claims a 6,000 mAh battery for the phone, while also claiming Qi2 charging is coming to the device. Take this with a grain of salt, though, as the info doesn't come from a reputable leaker in the industry.
As a fun side note, internal testing reports reveal that Samsung initially experimented with absurdly massive capacities. Engineers allegedly evaluated prototype cells rated at 12,000 mAh, 18,000 mAh, and even 20,000 mAh.
Ultimately, these giant configurations were dropped because they were too thick—with the 18,000 mAh cell measuring 12.3 mm thick, it easily exceeded Samsung's maximum 9.3 mm target for the phone.
Tipster yeux1122 says the tested enormous batteries may have had an issue with longevity, and that's why Samsung was holding off until now.
A battery test report from Samsung. | Image by Shrödinger
For example, the 12,000 mAh cell reportedly failed after 960 charge cycles (with a cycle target of 1,500).
The Galaxy S26 Ultra didn't bring an upgrade in the battery size, and we got the same 5,000 mAh battery cell as its predecessors. The charging speeds on the S26 Ultra did get upgraded, though, and are now 65 W wired. Likely, the S27 Ultra will come with the same charging speeds and potentially, Qi2 support.
Galaxy S27 Ultra features and software
One UI 9.5 on top of Android 17 is the OS expected for the S27 Ultra. We're likely getting a lot of Galaxy AI features to feast on, but the leak world is silent on those currently.
For reference, the Galaxy S26 Ultra came with an AI-powered screenshot analyzer. Now Brief and Now Bar were also refined.
Samsung's digital assistant, Bixby, also got upgraded with the S26 Ultra with natural language and online search support. The S27 Ultra is likely inheriting them.
Meanwhile, the South Korean giant is likely to keep its strategy of 7 years of software support for the S27 Ultra.
Galaxy S27 Ultra hardware and specs
Galaxy S27 Ultra's expected specs:
- CPU: Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 Pro
- RAM: 12 or 16 GB
- Battery: 5,000 mAh
- Charging: 65 W wired charging, 15 W wireless
- Storage: 256 GB, 512 GB, 1 TB
- Camera setup: 200 MP main, 50 MP ultra-wide, 50 MP 5x, 10 MP 3x, 12 MP selfie
Tipster Digital Chat Station has recently claimed the Galaxy S27 Ultra may be powered by a 2nm custom Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 Pro chip. Qualcomm is said to split the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 into a standard version and a Pro version this time around, with the Pro version reaching clock speeds of around 5 GHz.
Peak frequencies of even 5.5 GHz or 6.0 GHz are expected for the 8 Elite Gen 6 Pro chip, which, if true, would be extraordinary for a phone.
According to DCS, the non-Pro chip, which may be used in the vanilla Galaxy S26 in some markets, may have reduced cache and specifications and would be used in upper mid-range devices.
The Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 would be the successor of the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, which is the chip currently powering the Galaxy S26 Ultra in all regions.
The smaller siblings got a regional split between Exynos (the Exynos 2700's early benchmark scores recently leaked) and Snapdragon this year, but the Ultra kept only the Snapdragon chip worldwide. Potentially, the same could happen with the S27 Ultra too.
Should I wait for the Galaxy S27 Ultra?
- You should wait for the Galaxy S27 Ultra if you want the most streamlines Android experience that doesn't sacrifice power. The Galaxy S27 Ultra is also a great jumping-off point from iOS because One UI is very focused on the overall user experience, just like iOS. Also, if you're interested in S Pen/stylus features on a flagship phone with no compromises.
- You should not wait for the Galaxy S27 Ultra if you already have another banger Android flagship or if you're interested in more niche phones that have a clear focus on gaming or camera – the Galaxy S27 Ultra will clearly be great at both, but it won't feel like a specialty phone.
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