Galaxy S26+ Quick Review: The Awkward Middle Child

The Galaxy S26+ is a great device, released in a market full of flashier, more exciting rivals. It doesn’t win on specs alone, but can the software experience and overall package justify the hefty price?

Disclaimer: Samsung had no involvement in the creation of this Galaxy S26+ review, nor has the company seen it before publication.

Table of Contents

• Design & Display
• Software
• Performance
• Battery
• Cameras
• Pricing
• Should you buy?

Design & Display

Let’s start with the form factor. It’s a pretty standard build, with flat sides and rounded corners. It has the exact same dimensions as last year’s Galaxy S25+, the same 190g weight, and the same Armor Aluminium 2 frame.

The main difference you notice is actually the camera bump. The cameras live on their own island now, elevated higher on the device. It also means the phone wobbles on the table more than I’d like.

Switch the phone on, and you’ll see that the display on the Galaxy S26+ is actually really good. It’s a QHD+ 120Hz LTPO display — which us Brits would call “lovely jubbly”. It’s a bright screen too, getting up to 2600 nits at its peak. Very usable in the sun.

One UI 8.5 is incredible

If we’re being honest, the main reason you’d buy a Galaxy S26+ is for the software. You get all the flashy new features that the bigger Galaxy S26 Ultra gets, like AirDrop & Quick Share interoperability, Priority Notifications, Audio Eraser in third-party apps, and more. All that sits on top of One UI 8.5, which is starting to slowly release in beta form on older devices.

Some of these new features are gimmicky. I’ve never gone out of my way to use Creative Studio or merge my dog into an image using Photo Assist. But the smaller features are the most important. Priority Notifications take a week or two to adjust, but soon they start surfacing the stuff that actually matters. Work, Family, 2FA codes, all shoot to the top of my notifications.

I’ve had no stability issues with One UI 8.5 on the S26+. It’s been smooth, stable, and reliable day to day.

Performance is surprisingly good

The Galaxy S26+ brings a choice of two processors, depending on your region: the Exynos 2600 or the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy. I’ve been using the latter on a US unit, so keep that in mind.

For such a seemingly boring phone, it packs a serious punch. If you like the occasional gaming session, this phone has you covered. Emulation for more recent game systems, like Wii U, Switch, heck, even PC, is a fantastic experience on this device. I’ve enjoyed playing some of the lighter games in my Steam library using GameNative, either with an Xbox controller hooked up or with touch controls. It’s no Steam Deck replacement, but it comes in handy in a pinch.

Let’s get some numbers, shall we? I ran a couple of benchmarks, comparing the 8 Elite Gen 5 to last year’s Snapdragon 8 Elite in my Z Fold 7 (See my review for that device). In Geekbench 6’s CPU test, the newer chip crosses the 10k mark in multi-core and over 3600 in single-core. This is a respectable leap above the older 8 Elite.

I then ran the 3DMark Wild Life Extreme stress test. This tests raw GPU performance as well as how much it drops off under sustained load. After 20 loops, we see that the S26+ not only reaches a higher peak, but also keeps the score more consistent. This isn’t an apples-to-apples comparison, but a good point of reference.

Battery endurance

Battery life on the Galaxy S26+ has been surprisingly impressive. The 4900mAh battery paired with the efficiency gains from the SD 8 Elite Gen 5 helps this device last all day.

I’ve been averaging 7-8 hours of screen-on time (SOT) on an average day of moderate use. Light web browsing, social media, music playback. That endurance drops closer to 5-6 hours SOT with heavier usage, like using the cameras a lot or navigating the streets with Google Maps. Not industry-leading, but good enough for most users.

Cameras aren’t as bad as you think

The cameras are one of the most controversial parts of the Galaxy S26+. On paper, they look identical to many previous generations. You’ll frequently see comments online saying they’re identical to the aging Galaxy S22. While that’s partially true, Samsung’s real upgrade this year is software, which matters more than you’d expect.

Let’s start with photos. The default 12MP output isn’t bad by any means, but not special either. Switch to 50MP, and you’re stuck with the main 1x lens and larger file sizes. But there’s a new in-between option unlocked with Camera Assistant: 24MP.

This is where the balance between resolution, file size, and flexibility hits perfectly. While the Ultrawide and 3x Telephoto are not native 24MP, the software upscaling does an impressive job of subtly enhancing the output. All of that, while saving on storage compared to 50MP, meaning you can fit more high-quality photos on the 256GB base storage this device ships with. Here’s a comparison between 12MP and 24MP.

Switching to video, and the story is similar. On paper, it’s not anything special compared to the S26 Ultra. But Samsung’s software tuning and the new ISP in the 8 Elite Gen 5 make the camera system much more flexible compared to an older Galaxy device.

You can shoot Log on every lens (including the front camera), record up to 8K30 or 4K60, and use Samsung’s new Horizontal Lock feature. This uses your device’s various sensors to help stabilise the video, no matter how you’re holding the device. You can start a video horizontally, rotate the phone to vertical, and keep the video locked in horizontal. This eliminates the need for a separate gimbal for super steady video footage.

+1 to that

Btw here’s a video of me riding a bike along the beach, testing horizon lock

(I was holding the phone vertically most of the time) https://t.co/mfT5j6xLrm pic.twitter.com/uzj8Gn3ns9

— That Josh Guy (@thatjoshguy69) March 23, 2026

The point here is that while these aren’t the best cameras out there, and definitely not the best value camera system, it’s good enough for most people.

You can view more samples in this album.

Is the Galaxy S26+ overpriced?

Let’s finally address the elephant in the room. This phone is the awkward middle child, not only in Samsung’s lineup but in the smartphone world as a whole. It’s marketed to people who want something more than a midrange device, like the Galaxy A57, but less than a full-blown flagship. It competes in market positioning with the likes of the iPhone 17, Pixel 10, and various Chinese offerings.

But at $1,099 / £1,099, it’s fighting against the big boys. The iPhone 17 Pro, the Pixel 10 Pro XL, etc. This was probably done for a reason. The Galaxy S26 Ultra is priced at $1,299 / £1,279, and for a little bit more money, you get much better cameras, a fancy new Privacy Display, the S Pen, a larger battery, better cooling, etc. Samsung really wants you to buy the Ultra. 

The Galaxy S26, on the other hand, is significantly cheaper. At $899 / £879, you’re getting a very similar experience to this S26+, but with a smaller FHD+ display, a smaller battery, and features like UWB completely cut. You get an identical software experience, so anyone comfortable with a small phone should really go for the base S26.

Should you buy the Galaxy S26+?

This phone at MSRP is a tough sell. It’s fantastic, and you’ll be happy using it. But you’ll have the constant thought in the back of your mind that you could’ve gotten something much better for only a little bit more.

You’d only pick the S26+ if:

• You want the bleeding edge of One UI updates and features
• You can’t afford/don’t want the S26 Ultra
• You want a larger screen and battery than the base S26

My advice would be to wait a couple of months for this phone to go on sale. This phone at $899 / £899 or less would be a good deal for the hardware, with all the software benefits attached. You can also take advantage of carrier deals and trade-in offers to bring that cost down.