Galaxy S27 may come with a shocking change to the main camera

With the announcement of the Galaxy Z Fold 8, Z Fold 8 Ultra, and Z Flip 8 behind us, it’s time to look forward to Samsung’s upcoming devices. Leaving the Galaxy S26 FE rumors aside, that means it’s time for some fresh Galaxy S27 leaks, which come with truly surprising claims.

Some Galaxy S27 models could use a Sony sensor on their main cameras

Samsung could switch to a Sony sensor for the main camera of some of its upcoming flagship smartphones. According to a Galaxy Club report (translated source), the company could use a new 50MP sensor on the vanilla Galaxy S27 and the Galaxy S27 Plus.

This could turn into the most significant camera upgrade for the base models since the launch of the Galaxy S22 series. Since 2022, the company has been using its own 50MP ISOCELL sensors for the main cameras of its flagship.

However, that won’t be the first Sony sensor in a Samsung flagship. The ultra-wide cameras of all models since at least the Galaxy S23 have been using the 12MP Sony IMX564 sensor.

Far from the only camera upgrade for the Galaxy S27 series

Earlier rumors suggested that the whole Galaxy S27 series may enjoy some interesting camera upgrades across the board. Several credible sources claimed that the higher-end Galaxy S27 Pro and the Galaxy S27 Ultra could feature a new 16MP front-facing camera.

This would be the first upgrade to the Galaxy S series selfie camera since the Galaxy S23. However, it is still unclear whether the base and Plus models will enjoy the upgrade. It would make sense for Samsung to keep it exclusive to the most expensive phones.

Probably the most significant changes would be to the camera on the back of the Galaxy S27 Ultra, which is expected to be matched by the S27 Pro. While sticking to a 200MP main sensor, the S27 Ultra is expected to lose a camera and drop from a quad sensor setup to a configuration with three lenses.

Besides the monstrous main camera, there is rumored to be a brand new 50MP ultra-wide camera, as well as a 50MP telephoto sensor. It’s a bit too early to know any details about these cameras, but they should come with some meaningful updates over the last several models.

This could be a crucial test for Samsung’s flagships, which have been getting relatively subtle updates recently. In his in-depth reviews of both the Galaxy S26 and S26 Ultra, my colleague Victor couldn’t see any major improvements in the camera performance. The sole exception was the better exposure on the top-tier model, but this wasn’t related to the hardware.

Several other major changes could be on the way

Besides the new cameras and the new Pro model, Samsung is expected to make several other major changes to its flagship lineup. One of those is rumored to be the introduction of the Privacy Display hardware across the whole line, including on the base models.

Even more importantly, Samsung is expected to rely on a Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 Pro chipset for the Galaxy S27 Ultra and the US versions of the other three models. This trio may get Samsung’s own Exynos 2700, which may end up outperforming Qualcomm’s best processor.

It’s time for a shakeup, Samsung

It’s been years since we’ve seen Samsung trying something truly different with its flagships, but it appears the time is finally coming. I’d love to see some major camera changes, but I really hope there are other changes, too. If not to the S27 Ultra, then at least the brand-new S27 Pro could be the breath of fresh air that’s been missing for so long.

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