Samsung Unpacked 2026 live blog: Updates on Galaxy S26 Ultra, preorder deals, and pricing

By Kerry Wan, Editor in Chief / Feb. 25 at 12:00 p.m. ET

Remember Bixby? It’s still a thing, and Samsung appears to be making it a bigger deal than ever. Ahead of Unpacked, the company announced that with OneUI 8.5, Bixby will be able to adjust your device settings and source the web for answers to your queries. 

Most importantly, the in-house AI assistant will respond to natural language, so you can communicate with it just like how you would with Gemini. That begs the question of how seamless all of these rumored AI integrations, including a partnership with Perplexity, will be. We’ll have to see for ourselves when the phones arrive for testing.

By Kerry Wan, Editor in Chief / Feb. 25 at 11:35 a.m. ET

We’re a little more than an hour away from Unpacked, and industry analyst Ice Universe is starting to drip-feed possible information regarding the new S26 models. Their latest post hints at faster charging, with the S26 (likely the Ultra) being able to go from 1% to 80% in just 30 minutes. 

That’s a step faster than the S25 Ultra’s 45W rating, and compares well with the OnePlus 15, which currently leads the US market in charging speed. Notably, Ice Universe’s post starts at 1% charge rather than 0%, so expect the phone to take longer to top up if the battery is completely dead.

By Nina Raemont, Wearables and Health Editor / Feb. 25 at 10:42 a.m. ET

Will Samsung’s new phones be as pretty and pink as Nothing’s Phone 4a? Ahead of Nothing’s March 5 phone launch, it unveiled a pastel pink colorway that I can’t help but be absolutely obsessed with.

It doesn’t look like Samsung’s S26 lineup will include such a color, but rumors suggest we can expect Black, White, Cobalt Violet, and Sky Blue for the S26, and Silver Shadow and Pink Gold as S26 Ultra online exclusive colors.

By Nina Raemont, Wearables and Health Editor / Feb. 25 at 9:45 a.m. ET

Thinking of purchasing a Galaxy S26 today? Here are some tips and reminders to save the most money when you do.

1. Register on Samsung’s reservation page to receive a $30 accessory credit used at checkout. It also automatically enters you into Samsung’s $5,000 sweepstakes.
2. Check multiple retailers, since preorder credits vary by retailer. For the first time, Best Buy and AT&T are joining in on the preorder fun. Right now, through 1 p.m. ET, Best Buy is offering an even better trade-in deal than Samsung’s. Its value is up to $1,100 ($200 more than Samsung’s), and it comes with a free upgrade to larger internal storage.
3. Make a Samsung account with your work or school email, as the company offers discounts to students and some office workers.
4. Use sites like Rakuten for discounts or cashback during the event.

By Kerry Wan, Editor in Chief / Feb. 25 at 9:30 a.m. ET

While I’m deeply invested in the new Privacy Display feature on the Galaxy S26, part of me wishes Samsung would go the extra mile and finally integrate magnets into the backs of its phones for enhanced charging and accessory support. Apple’s been a champion of that with MagSafe over the years, and Google just recently followed suit with the Pixel 10 series.

Here’s to hoping Samsung offers something similar. It’s never too late.

By Kerry Wan, Editor in Chief / Feb. 25 at 8:20 a.m. ET

It’s not crazy Galaxy AI features, or a tri-foldable phone, but South Korean boy band member, Suga of BTS, who is expected to make a guest appearance at Unpacked later today — and potentially perform a song or two.

This is both fitting for Samsung as BTS as been a brand ambassador for years now, and goes hand-in-hand with the rumored release of new wireless earbuds.

By Kerry Wan, Editor in Chief / Feb. 24 at 8:40 p.m. ET

I’m probably spending an unhealthy amount of time thinking about this question, just to be let down when the time comes, but it makes so much sense for Samsung to just replace the Galaxy S Plus model with the Edge instead. They’re both relatively the same size, and it would make the middle child of the most popular Galaxy phone series more than just a “cheaper Ultra.”

And if the price increase this year is true, due in part to rising memory costs, then the Plus model may be almost too expensive to consider now. Users will likely choose between the cheapest S26 and the S26 Ultra.

By Nina Raemont, Wearables and Health Editor / Feb. 24 at 5:43 p.m. ET

While the S26 lineup will capture the most attention on Wednesday (and is the most anticipated product to be unveiled), I’m keeping an eye on potential announcements for Samsung’s smart glasses, a second-gen Galaxy Ring, and any other wildcard products Samsung has kept under wraps.

By Nina Raemont, Wearables and Health Editor / Feb. 24 at 4:17 p.m. ET

Leaked images of what may be the Samsung Buds Pro 4 reveal a completely new design, unlike the third-generation Pro that we tested two years ago. 

Like Apple’s AirPods Pro 3, the new Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro 4 will support head gestures, such as shaking to decline calls or messages and nodding to accept. As someone who uses the AirPods Pro 3’s head-shaking gesture constantly, this is a welcome, hands-free addition for Samsung users.

By Kerry Wan, Editor in Chief / Feb. 24 at 4:02 p.m. ET

While my initial plan was to fly to San Francisco for the big event this week, the northeastern snowstorm has cancelled and delayed so many flights that I’m not even sure if I’ll be able to take off for Mobile World Congress in a few more days. I’m talking snow as high as two Galaxy S25 Ultras.

That said, several ZDNET contributors, including Prakhar Khanna and Adam Doud, will be in attendance at Samsung Unpacked, while the rest of us will be covering the event remotely.

By Nina Raemont, Wearables and Health Editor / Feb. 24 at 3:50 p.m. ET

Leaked benchmark scores suggest the Galaxy S26 is beating its iOS rival for the first time. If Geekbench’s leaked results are true, the Galaxy S26 Ultra is 17% more powerful than the iPhone 17 Pro series, with a single-core score of 3,852 and a multicore score of 11,738. 

We’ll have to wait and get our hands on the Ultra phone to find out if the performance gap really is true.

By Kerry Wan, Editor in Chief / Feb. 24 at 3:40 p.m. ET

It’s become an Unpacked tradition now for Samsung to offer a “reservation to preorder” discount to interested customers. This year, you effectively get a $30 off coupon by pledging your interest in preordering one of the devices announced at Unpacked, with no obligation to actually make the purchase.

Also: Samsung unveils Galaxy S26 Ultra deal for $900 off ahead of Unpacked 2026 – how it works

That’s less than the $50 offer that Samsung gave last year, but still a freebie for anyone who ends up investing in the latest Galaxy devices. Samsung says it’ll also offer up to $900 in trade-in credits this year, depending on what phone model you turn in. The highest value typically goes to more recent Samsung phones, like the S25 Ultra.