Galaxy S26 FE May Not Have a Snapdragon Variant: Exynos Globally

Samsung’s next Fan Edition smartphone, the Galaxy S26 FE, could be an all-Exynos affair. The device could be powered by last year’s Exynos 2500 globally, with no Snapdragon variant. It is expected to arrive in the second half of the year, around September or October, running Android 17-based One UI 9.

Exynos 2500 could power the Galaxy S26 FE worldwide

Samsung’s flagship phones have had a more structured chip strategy lately. The company uses Qualcomm’s Snapdragon chips in the Fold and Ultra models, and splits base, Plus, and Flip models between Snapdragon and Exynos. The Fan Edition smartphones, meanwhile, run Exynos globally. The story may remain unchanged this year.

Earlier in the year, Samsung launched the Galaxy S26 Ultra with the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5. The Galaxy S26 and S26+, on the other hand, got the Snapdragon in some regions and the Exynos 2600 in most parts of the world. The company is now gearing up to launch the Galaxy Z Fold 8 and Wide Fold with the same Snapdragon chip globally, and the Flip 8 in both Exynos and Snapdragon variants.

Now, a new leak suggests the Galaxy S26 FE would only come in an Exynos variant. The source doesn’t specify the chipset, but it’s likely to run on the 3nm Exyno 2500 everywhere, including the US. The device previously appeared with last year’s Samsung chip on Geekbench.

While Samsung has already introduced the Exynos 2600, its first 2nm SoC, it’s not coming to FE phones until next year. This has been the company’s strategy in recent years. The latest Exynos debuts with new Galaxy S flagships and then comes to Flip phones later in the year. It finally trickles down to the FE lineup next year. More details about the Galaxy S26 FE should surface in the coming weeks.