Samsung Galaxy A26 5G verdict: Reliable daily driver

Samsung offers the Galaxy A26 5G with both 128 and 256 GB of UFS 3.1 storage. Each model also comes with 6 GB of LPDDR4x RAM. The smaller 128 GB variant of the 6.7-inch smartphone, which we recently reviewed, is available for an official price of $299, but can be found online elsewhere for less than $250. Samsung guarantees six years of updates for its smartphone until 2031.

The Exynos 1380 is capable of gaming

With the Exynos 1380, the Galaxy A26 5G contains a mid-range SoC that was reserved for the Galaxy A35 5G in last year's Galaxy A lineup. Combined with the 120 Hz screen, the SoC ensures a mostly smooth display and also makes the smartphone suitable for gaming. However, particularly demanding apps or updates can occasionally stutter, although this rarely occurred in our tests.

Compared to its predecessor, the Galaxy A25 5G, the Galaxy A26 5G has grown in size, with the display diagonal increasing by 0.2 inches to 6.7 inches. The Super AMOLED screen offers the same resolution of 2340 x 1080, but still manages sharp images with a pixel density of 385 PPI. With an average brightness of 731 cd/m² for SDR content and up to 1112 cd/m² for HDR, the display roughly matches its predecessor's brightness.

IP67 certification and lightweight despite the 6.7-inch diagonal

Despite its larger dimensions, the Galaxy A26 5G weighs just 3 grams more than the Galaxy A25 5G and, at 200 grams, also feels quite light. It offers more in terms of materials than its predecessor, as the front and back are now protected by Gorilla Glass Victus+. It also has an IP67 certification for protection against dust and water.

With Wi-Fi 5, Bluetooth 5.3, NFC, hybrid dual SIM, Widevine L1 DRM for playback of copy-protected HD web streams, and USB-C 2.0, the Galaxy A26 5G offers solid mid-range features. It also supports Samsung's Knox Vault mobile security solution for encrypted storage of passwords and other sensitive information, as well as some of OneUI 7's AI features. There's also a decent 50MP main camera and slightly longer battery life than the predecessor.

Compared to the Galaxy A25 5G, two features have been dropped: Instead of stereo speakers, there's now only a single speaker, and the 3.5mm audio jack has been omitted.

Read the full review of the Samsung Galaxy A26 5G here.