Samsung Galaxy S26

At Rs. 256,999, the Galaxy S26 is a polished compact flagship, but a cautious upgrade. Its strengths are a light 6.3-inch body that is easy to use one-handed, a 3x optical zoom camera, Galaxy AI features and 7 major Android upgrades, plus strong brand and resale value.

The compromises matter at this price:

• The official Pakistani model uses the Exynos 2600, which trails the Snapdragon version in heat control and efficiency.
• Battery life is modest (around 6 hours of screen-on time in one test) and 25W charging is slow for a flagship.
• The display and camera hardware are largely carried over from the last few generations.

The Google Pixel 11 costs more but brings a larger 4985mAh battery, 30W charging and 25W magnetic wireless charging with the same 7-year update promise. The Apple iPhone 17 costs far more and offered longer battery life than the S26 in testing.

Verdict: a good buy for Samsung users who want a compact, well-supported phone with zoom. Owners of a Galaxy S24 or S25 gain little by upgrading.

The Galaxy S26 has a 6.3-inch Dynamic LTPO AMOLED 2X panel with 1080 x 2340 (Full HD+) resolution, a 120Hz adaptive refresh rate, HDR10+ and 2600 nits peak brightness, protected by Gorilla Glass Victus 2.

In use, colours are pleasing, brightness is good enough outdoors, and smoothness matches the S26 Ultra; colour quality and peak brightness are similar across the S26 range.

The limits: this is essentially the same panel Samsung has used for several generations. It lacks the anti-reflective coating and the privacy display of the S26 Ultra, and its resolution is lower than the 1.5K screens many rivals now use.

The official Pakistani Galaxy S26 runs Samsung's Exynos 2600 (2nm, 10-core) with 12GB RAM; some other markets get the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5. It scored about 3.14 million in AnTuTu, close to the S26 Ultra.

• Everyday use: apps and multitasking feel fast, and in daily use it is hard to tell which chip is inside.
• Gaming: PUBG Mobile supports its maximum settings, with 120fps at Smooth, 90fps in middle modes and 60fps at Ultra HD.
• Heat and efficiency: in longer tests, the Exynos 2600 heated up more than the Snapdragon version during gaming and 30-minute 4K recording, and was less power efficient.

For most users performance is excellent today; heavy gamers may prefer a Snapdragon-powered rival.

The S26 keeps the familiar triple camera: a 50MP main camera with OIS, a 10MP 3x telephoto and a 12MP ultrawide, plus a 12MP selfie camera.

• Photos: colours are vibrant and pleasing, but zoomed-in shots show limited detail and some grain.
• Night and zoom: ultrawide night shots look muddy, and telephoto shots are softer than leading rivals.
• Macro: the ultrawide has no autofocus and the telephoto cannot focus close, so there is no macro mode.
• Video: up to 8K 30fps and 4K 60fps, with Horizon Lock that keeps footage level even when you rotate the phone.

The hardware is largely the same as the last few generations, so the camera is good but not class-leading.

The S26 has a 4300mAh battery, slightly larger than before, but endurance is its weak point. One test averaged about 6 hours of screen-on time, enough to need a top-up by early evening with heavy use, and shorter than the iPhone 17 and other compact rivals in the same test.

Charging is 25W wired (about 55% in 30 minutes), 15W wireless and 4.5W reverse wireless, which makes it the slowest-charging compact flagship in its class. There are no built-in magnets; magnetic accessories need a separately sold case.

The Galaxy S26 runs Android 16 with One UI, and Samsung promises 7 major Android upgrades, matched only by Google among Android brands. One UI is polished, easy to use and well designed for one-handed use on a compact screen.

Galaxy AI features are all included, such as Call Assist, Now Brief and Now Nudge, and photo editing where you type a change you want. The only notable feature missing compared with the S26 Ultra is the privacy display, plus some Ultra-only AI extras.