[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] I upgraded from the S23 Ultra, and the S26 Ultra has been a noticeable upgrade. I use the phone casually daily, playing games, streaming audiobooks and music, and social media.
So far, the battery life has held up to my daily use. I'm a regular concert goer, and I'm interested to see how the camera and battery perform in that scenario.
Galaxy AI has been integrated into many aspects of the phone, but I don't feel they are necessary, and I ignore and disable them when I am able. I was also thrown by the forced use of Google messages as the SMS default app, but I have gotten used to that!
The S26 Ultra is a solid phone. I think the most unique feature is the built in privacy screen. I never felt the need for a privacy screen protector in the past, but I have the built in screen enabled for my banking apps now, and it's nice to have.
Should have stayed with my S25 Ultra! I feel misled over the so calked10bit display. Privacy screen, not so private. Samsung has forced their customers to use Google messaging, which sucks, I Hate it! MAKE SAMSUNG MESSAGES COMPATIBLE! Went from titanium to aluminum frame.
Response from Samsung USBy R&R Team, April 6, 2026
Hello G Pollet, we appreciate you sharing your experience of your Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra with us. We understand how frustrating it can be when your new device is not meeting your expectations in appearance or features. We would love to help you adjust the settings of your device to your preferences for the best possbile experience with your new phone. We have provided a link to the complete manual for your device that highlights the different settings options for the new Privacy Display that has a more intense setting, as well as the ability to adjust to only enable for specific apps or notifications to help you get the brightness you may be seeking along with the privacy you need at times. This can also help you adjust the messaging settings to best align to your usage preferences. Lastly, we have provided a link to the Samsung Support Team to assist you any time you have questions about your new device. We appreciate you being a Samsung customer. -Elizabeth Product Manuals https://www.samsung.com/us/support/downloads/ Samsung Support smsng.us/Samsung-Support Samsung Community smsng.us/Samsung-Community Facebook smsng.us/Facebook-Messenger X https://smsng.us/X-Messages
I have been buying Samsung for years now. I can't wrap my head around the idea that someone thought it was a good idea to remove the SPen camera shutter feature on its newest Samsung Ultra 26.
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Response from Samsung USBy R&R Team, April 3, 2026
Hi there Joicall, thank you for sharing your experience of your Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra with us. We understand how disappointing it can be when features you have used in the past with your device have been changed in some way. We have provided a link to the complete manual to assist you with the hand gestures and voice commands you can use with your device for the remote control of your camera. We have also shared a link to the Samsung Support Team to assist you further if you have questions as you continue using your device. We appreciate you being a Samsung customer. -Elizabeth Product Manuals https://www.samsung.com/us/support/downloads/ Samsung Support smsng.us/Samsung-Support Samsung Community smsng.us/Samsung-Community Facebook smsng.us/Facebook-Messenger X https://smsng.us/X-Messages
[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] The new privacy feature is a game changer. I don't need to buy a privacy screen protector now. Also the ability to select what apps that automatically open with the privacy feature on is amazing!
I love how this new S-pen now is more responsive and seems to be faster than the previous ones. My last one had some lag time but not for this one.
The night mode in the camera is very much brighter and clear. Hopefully as more updates come to the phone, the photo quality does not drop as it has done with ALL on the previous Samsung Galaxy phones!
Overall, it's a great upgrade from my previous Samsung Galaxy s24 ultra.
[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] I love the camera on this phone. She takes wonderful pictures. I use her for all my work needs also.
[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] This phone has great features. I had my phone for 2 weeks and constantly keep finding new features to explore. AI has made to easy to find anything.
I am enjoying the privacy feature. I love the fact I didn't have to purchase a screen protection for privacy, it's built in the phone is amazing.
[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] I Really Love this Device This phone has maximum Gaming Features With High performance and Also Cooked Everyone With All features like cameras The zooming the Quality and Even Super massive amoled display Privacy in Display feature I Think it is not important if you are gamer photographer or Tourist I recommend must to get this s26ultra Which gives Performance in Every thing