The Galaxy S26 Ultra is almost here: upgraded fast charging and 7 other upgrades to look forward to

The much-anticipated Galaxy S26 lineup release is now drawing closer, and as we approach the potential release timeframe, more and more rumors about the devices are showing up. 

We expect the Galaxy S26 Ultra to be the star of the show, and leakers are giving us plenty of reasons to look forward to the model. Samsung seems to be planning some serious upgrades for its top flagship, which will reportedly come in either January or February. 

Faster 25W wireless charging, finally

The Galaxy S26 Ultra is rumored to get an upgrade in wireless charging speeds. Leaks indicate that the device's wireless charging capabilities are going to be bumped to 25W charging speeds, which should make topping the battery wirelessly faster. 

That capability is related to another rumored upgrade to the Galaxy S26 Ultra, and that's real Qi2 support. More on that, later. 

60W wired charging

Samsung may make the Galaxy S26 Ultra beast in charging speeds, and rumor has it that the wired charging speed is also getting a boost this time around. 60W wired charging is a notable upgrade over the 45W on the Galaxy S25 Ultra, and if true, will help anyone who's impatient with charging their phone. 

The battery size itself may not be getting an upgrade with the S26 Ultra, which is a bummer, but at least it should now be even quicker to top it up. 

Exynos and Snapdragon: both expected to be excellent 

Apparently, the Galaxy S26 Ultra may see a difference in its processors by regions, as Samsung has done in previous years. Some models are likely getting the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 while others are getting the Exynos 2600. 

Before you frown at 'Exynos', keep in mind that this time around, things may be different when it comes to Samsung's own chip. The chip is built on a more advanced 2nm process, and rumor has it that it may be able to beat the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 as well as Apple's A19 Pro chip. At least, it seems it won't lag behind as much as its reputation would have you believe. 

Display upgrade: M14 and privacy 

The Galaxy S26 Ultra is said to be getting a privacy display. Multiple sources indicate that the Ultra will be able to hide the contents on its display from curious eyes. 

And on top of that, that may happen automatically without you having to do anything: basically, the S26 Ultra may monitor your surroundings and hide content if someone glancing at your phone is detected. 

Meanwhile, Samsung has reportedly prepped another display-related upgrade for the king of the S26 series as well. 

Rumor has it that we're going to get an M14 OLED panel, the most advanced panel yet, which should make the display more power-efficient and brighter. Galaxy S devices already have amazing displays, and that upgrade will take things to a whole new level. 

Improved low-light photography 

Leaked Galaxy S26 Ultra renders, and more specifically, the protruding camera island on the rear, have some sources believe that the flagship phone may come with larger apertures. 

The sensors for the cameras are likely to remain the same, but the larger aperture would make the phone more capable of capturing clear, detailed shots in challenging conditions such as low light.

Selfie camera upgrade

A new rumor that has recently shown up online is that the Galaxy S26 Ultra may feature an improved selfie camera. The sensor is said to remain the same 12MP one as on the predecessor, but there's reportedly going to be a new lens, which could offer an 85-degree field of view.

That would be up from the 80 degrees on the S25 Ultra. It may not seem like a lot at first glance, but in the photography world, it will allow you to fit more people in for a group selfie and take in more of your surroundings.

The AI experience gets an upgrade too

Reportedly, the Galaxy S26 Ultra is going to bring some upgrades on the AI front as well. We expect a "user-centric" AI upgrade, which means that the AI may become more proactive in suggesting actions or tasks. 

On top of that, there may be some more cool AI features exclusive to Galaxy flagships coming next year. After all, the industry's still hot about AI, so expect some interesting stuff on that front with the S26 Ultra. 

A fresh design 

The Galaxy S26 Ultra is also reportedly getting a refreshed design. Leaked renders show the flagship with rounder corners and flat sides, with a revamped camera island. Now, the camera lenses are likely to be unified on one platform for a more aesthetically pleasing view. 

The Galaxy S26 Ultra is also said to be a tad slimmer than its predecessor. According to leaks, Samsung may have managed to make the flagship thinner by around 0.4mm, which is quite impressive in itself, given that the S25 Ultra also improved on that aspect from previous generations. 

Qi2 support 

The Galaxy S25 series brought Qi2 Ready support, but the Galaxy S26 is rumored to take things to the next level and bring real Qi2. The difference here is that with the former, you need a specific case with magnets, while with the latter, the magnets are in the body of the phone itself, similarly to Apple's MagSafe.

That should open the door to a whole new world of smartphone accessories like power banks, car mounts, magnetic wallets, and all sorts of fancy stuff that you can snap easily to the back of your Galaxy S26 Ultra.

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