Samsung Galaxy S27 Ultra vs Galaxy S26 Ultra preview: Main differences to expect
As 2026 slowly draws to a close, it's time to turn our heads to 2027 and the devices that will mark the start of the 2027 flagship season.
The first major device that will make the rounds next year is the Galaxy S27 Ultra, and for the first time in a while, Samsung is giving us a visual redesign. This one will bring a camera plateau, a magnetic charging ring in the back, and an overall visual refresh that is a definite move away from the clean minimalistic design of previous Galaxy phones.
The device will likely feature Qualcomm's most powerful Snapdragon chip, the Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6 for Galaxy, though reports claim some regions might get the allegedly better-performing Exynos 2700 chip. There's also finally the possibility for a larger battery!
Aside from that, the rest of the specs and features will remain familiar and won't deviate that much from the Galaxy S26 Ultra. In this article, I will be highlighting the expected differences between the upcoming Galaxy S27 Ultra and its predecessor.
Should you upgrade? Should you stick with the Galaxy S26 Ultra for now? Remains to be seen, but for now, the Galaxy S27 Ultra is shaping up to be more of a design overhaul rather than a complete revolution.
Samsung Galaxy S27 Ultra vs Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra expected differences:
| Samsung Galaxy S27 Ultra | Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra |
|---|---|
| A massive visual redesign with an iPhone-like camera plateau | The classic Galaxy S Ultra design with separate camera rings |
| Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6 for Galaxy on deck, Exynos 2700 also likely | Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy on board |
| 6.9-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X with Privact Display feature | Also a 6.9-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X display with a Privacy Display feature |
| Possibly a larger battery (5,700 mAh) | A standard 5,000 mAh battery |
| Just a single 50 MP periscope camera with 5X optical zoom | 50 MP 5X periscope and 3X 10 MP telephoto cameras |
| 16 MP selfie camera | 12 MP selfie camera |
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Design and Size
Major changes, but mostly visual
The most significant change with the Galaxy S27 Ultra will be the new camera plateau in the back of the phone, which will follow Apple's recent iPhone design language. The camera modules get pushed up to the top, and their vital hardware components will undoubtedly take up most of the internal space beneath the plateau.
This leaves precious real estate for a magnetic Magsafe ring below, as well as a larger 5,700 mAh battery, a much-needed upgrade for the Galaxy S Ultra lineup, which has historically been relying on the same 5,000 mAh battery since the start of the decade.
Let me repeat that: every Galaxy S Ultra phone since the range's inception has been powered by the same battery.
Aside from the redesigned rear, the Galaxy S27 Ultra will largely continue utilizing the same flat aluminum design language with slightly rounded corners, just like the Galaxy S26 Ultra.
In terms of size, leaked dimensions suggest the Galaxy S27 Ultra could be slightly thicker and wider than the Galaxy S26 Ultra, but you might never notice. The upcoming phone is reportedly 163.8 x 78.3 x 8 mm, whereas the Galaxy S26 Ultra measures 163.6 x 78.1 x 7.9 mm.
The S Pen stylus remains a staple here. No Bluetooth on the stylus, though.
Display Differences
As of now, the Galaxy S27 Ultra isn't expected to feature any hardware changes for the display. The device will retain the same 6.9-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X display with a 120 Hz refresh rate and probably won't feature much higher peak brightness than the Galaxy S26 Ultra's 2,600-nit one.
Two returning features are the antireflective coating and the Privacy Display, which emulates a privacy screen protector and skews your on-screen content from prying eyes when viewed from the side. It's a useful feature, but the overall screen quality deteriorates due to the extra pixel-layer needed to emulate the privacy screen.
Both phones rely on ultrasonic fingerprint sensors as well as picture-based 2D face unlock.
Performance and Software
Bob's your uncle
The Galaxy S27 Ultra will most certainly arrive with the most powerful chipset in Qualcomm's lineup so far, the Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6. As is tradition, this one will probably be a slightly tuned-up "for Galaxy" flavor that will push the clock rate of the fastest chip cores even higher. Hopefully this doesn't lead to excessive thermal throttling, which is always a possibility with dense 2 nm chips like this one.
The Galaxy S26 Ultra relied on the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy, and this one is still a flagship-grade chip. It's fast, efficient, and perfect for gaming. The Galaxy S27 Ultra will likely feature 12 GB of RAM, just like the Galaxy S26 Ultra, and will be available with 256, 512 GB, or 1 TB of storage, with no option for further expansion.
The Galaxy S27 Ultra will possibly launch with an upcoming version of One UI 9, which will deliver any possible new features on board. I am thinking One UI 9.5, because Samsung's Galaxy flagships usually launch with x.5 incremental versions.
The Galaxy S26 Ultra currently runs One UI 9, as most Samsung flagships already do, and it's a decent update that brings Android 17 to the Samsung flagship. It's not all roses, though: Samsung omits some key features like app bubbles, and gives a comically large and uncustomizable pair of sliders in the quick settings panel that are quite unapealling.
Camera
A major shakeup for the Galaxy S27 Ultra
The Galaxy S27 Ultra is coming with a very different camera setup in comparison with earlier Galaxy S Ultra devices. The short 3X telephoto camera is getting dropped from the equation, so the Galaxy S27 Ultra will be a triple-camera phone.
The phone will get a 200 MP main, 50 MP ultrawide, and a 50 MP periscope with a 5X optical zoom. That's a sleek and modern setup that drops the mostly useless 3X telephoto that's still present on the Galaxy S26 Ultra.
So far, there are only rumors as to what camera sensors will be used on the Galaxy S27 Ultra. Rumors have it we might get the ISOCELL HP6 behind the main camera, the ISOCELL JN3 for the ultrawide, and the JN3 beneath the periscope as well.
Battery Life and Charging
Look, an upgrade!
I can't really recall the number of times I've criticized Samsung's reliant usage of the same old 5,000 mAh li-ion battery for so long that I know for a fact I sound like a broken record already.
But finally, finally, after six years of 5,000 mAh batteries in Samsung's Galaxy S Ultra flagships, we are getting an upgrade! The rumor mill and most insiders are convinced Samsung is using a 5,700 silicon-carbon battery in the Galaxy S27 Ultra.
The Galaxy S26 Ultra, as you might infer, has a 5,000 mAh battery, and the battery life is great, but definitely could be better. Here's to hoping the higher capacity and faster chip make the Galaxy S27 Ultra a flagship with better endurance.
Specs Comparison
Here's a quick rundown of the specs between the Galaxy S27 Ultra and the Galaxy S26 Ultra.
|
|
| Samsung Galaxy S27 Ultra | Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra |
| Dimensions | |
|---|---|
| 163.8 x 78.3 x 8 mm | 163.6 x 78.1 x 7.9 mm (~12.33 mm with camera bump) |
| Weight | |
| 214.0 g | |
| Size | |
|---|---|
| 6.9-inch | 6.9-inch |
| Type | |
| Dynamic AMOLED, 120Hz | Dynamic AMOLED, 120Hz |
| System chip | |
|---|---|
| Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6 SM8975 (2 nm) | Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy SM8850-1-AD (3 nm) |
| Memory | |
| 12GB (LPDDR6)/256GB (UFS 5.0) 12GB/512GB 16GB/1024GB | 12GB (LPDDR5X)/256GB (UFS 4.0) 12GB/512GB 16GB/1024GB |
| OS | |
| Android (17), up to 7 OS updates | Android (16), up to 7 OS updates |
| Type | |
|---|---|
| 5700 mAh | 5000 mAh |
| Charge speed | |
| Wired: 60.0W | Wired: 60.0W Wireless: 25.0W |
| Main camera | |
|---|---|
| 200 MP (OIS, PDAF) Sensor name: Samsung ISOCELL HP6 |
200 MP (OIS, PDAF) Sensor name: Samsung ISOCELL HP2 Aperture size: F1.4 Focal length: 23 mm Sensor size: 1/1.3" Pixel size: 0.6 μm |
| Second camera | |
| 50 MP (Ultra-wide, PDAF) Sensor name: Samsung ISOCELL JN3 | 50 MP (Ultra-wide, PDAF) Sensor name: Samsung ISOCELL JN3 Aperture size: F1.9 Sensor size: 1/2.5" Pixel size: 0.7 μm |
| Third camera | |
| 50 MP (Telephoto, OIS, PDAF) Sensor name: Samsung ISOCELL JN3 Optical zoom: 5.0x |
10 MP (Telephoto, OIS, PDAF) Sensor name: Sony IMX754 Optical zoom: 3.0x Aperture size: F2.4 Sensor size: 1/3.94" Pixel size: 1.12 μm |
| Fourth camera | |
| 50 MP (Telephoto, Periscope, OIS, PDAF) Sensor name: Sony IMX854 Optical zoom: 5.0x Aperture size: F2.9 Focal Length: 115 mm Sensor size: 1/2.52" Pixel size: 0.7 μm |
|
| Front | |
| 12 MP (PDAF, HDR) | 12 MP (PDAF, HDR) |
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Summary
The Galaxy S27 Ultra is Samsung's admission that the Galaxy lineup has been running in idle for quite a while and kind of lagged in terms of upgrades, whereas most of its rivals have been way more adventurous with major overhauls and upgrades.
The camera and the battery are the two areas in which Samsung devices are way behind the competition right now, and I'd be more than happy to see the company address these with the rumored updates.
That said, no matter what upgrades Samsung delivers, the Galaxy S26 Ultra will still remain a mighty powerful flagship that will by no means getautomatically outdated once the Galaxy S27 Ultra launches.
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