Galaxy S26 Ultra proves specs aren't everything as testing reveals cool thermals and 12% longer battery vs Galaxy S25 Ultra
Fans and media have criticized Samsung a lot for not packing more hardware improvements in the Galaxy S26 Ultra. From the design to the cameras, the Galaxy S26 Ultra brings only a few new hardware features, the chief being the fantastic Privacy Display. However, specs never tell the full story, and it is nowhere more evident than in the battery life and thermal performance of the Galaxy S26 Ultra.
While the 5,000 mAh battery of the Galaxy S26 Ultra can’t hold a candle to the 7,000+ mAh cells of the OnePlus 15 and the Oppo Find X9 Pro, Samsung appears to have optimized the battery performance and thermals of the Galaxy S26 Ultra quite well. The Galaxy flagship lasted 12 hours in Mrwhosetheboss’ testing, coming in at third place. The Oppo Find X9 Pro and the OnePlus 15 occupy the top two spots with runtimes of 14 hours 16 minutes and 12 hours 55 minutes, respectively.
The iPhone 17 Pro Max trailed the Galaxy S26 Ultra by 28 minutes. The Xiaomi 17 Ultra also put up a disappointing fight at 11 hours 27 minutes despite packing a 6,000 mAh battery. The Galaxy S25 Ultra and the Pixel 10 Pro XL sit at the bottom of the ladder, clocking only 10 hours 43 minutes and 9 hours 53 minutes, respectively.
What’s more impressive, however, is that the Galaxy S26 Ultra and the iPhone 17 Pro Max were the coolest phones during the testing, as they hovered around 27 C during the battery life test. Other devices, including the Google Pixel 10 Pro XL, heated up to 32 C.
Mrwhosetheboss reported the same thermal pattern under an extreme load. The Galaxy S26 Ultra and the iPhone 17 Pro Max were the coolest phones of the lot after gaming and three rounds of Geekbench. The Oppo Find X9 Pro was the worst performer, as it got up to 42 C.
So, Samsung seems to have done a good job with battery and thermal optimizations of the Galaxy S26 Ultra. Despite packing a 32% smaller battery than the OnePlus 15, the Galaxy S26 Ultra is only at a 7% battery life disadvantage. All while running much cooler.
If you are someone who was disappointed in the Galaxy S26 Ultra due to weaker hardware specs, maybe you should now reanalyze the Galaxy S26 Ultra through a different lens.
Source(s)
Mrwhosetheboss on YouTube, Teaser image source: Samsung, Pixabay (1,2), edited
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