As we head into 2026, the next big announcement on the smartphone calendar is the arrival of the Samsung Galaxy S26 series. Unfortunately, the Galaxy S26 is shaping up to be rather uninspired, if the early rumors are to be believed. However, one of the most significant upgrades on the way appears to be 60W wired charging for the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra.
I’m certainly not complaining; that’s obviously a nice upgrade that will make the phone a little bit snappier to charge. Combined with 25W wireless charging via Qi2, cordless lovers are in for a small bump as well. However, I’m not convinced that these changes alone will elevate the Ultra experience, and S26 and S26 Plus are set to receive less generous treatment. What about your mainstream consumers, Samsung?
While there are plenty of critiques we can level at the rumored Galaxy S26 specs, I think the series’ battery and charging upgrades, or lack thereof, are the most egregious and could seriously hold the phones back.
Do you think that the Galaxy S26 and S26 Plus will underperform their competitors in 2026? 2847 votes Yes, for sure. 43 % Probably. 20 % I'm not sure yet. 14 % Probably not. 12 % No, definitely not! 11 %
Faster charging is just half the picture
Robert Triggs / Android Authority
While the Ultra is finally receiving an overdue charging upgrade, I expect that what most fans are really clamouring for is a larger battery that rivals the multi-day 7,000mAh behemoths quickly emerging from China. For example, the new OnePlus 15 comes with a massive 7,300mAh silicon-carbon battery that can reach a third day, along with 80W SuperVOOC charging that still charges the huge cell from empty to full in 40 minutes.
Instead, rumors suggest that the Galaxy S26 Ultra will feature the same 5,000mAh battery as this year’s model. So Samsung’s 60W Ultra will finally take less than an hour to charge fully, but it’s not going to coincide with a game-changing improvement to screen-on-time.
Without a bigger battery, is there much point to a 60W S26 Ultra?
This leaves me wondering exactly what the point is. Why make this change now and not years ago, especially if the battery capacity isn’t changing. Perhaps Samsung is preparing for a bigger battery upgrade with the S27 Ultra?
... continue reading