Samsung Galaxy S26 FE arrives with minimal upgrades over Galaxy S25 FE

Samsung has officially unveiled the Galaxy S26 FE, confirming minimal upgrades over its predecessor. All you really get is a newer SoC, and not a particularly great one at that. Samsung's newest Fan Edition smartphone will go on sale in selected markets from September 4.

The Galaxy S26 FE features a 6.7-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X display with an adaptive refresh rate ranging from 1 Hz to 120 Hz. It measures 161.6 x 76.9 x 7.4 mm and weighs around 193g. The smartphone features a triple-camera system at the back with a 50 MP main camera with OIS and an f/1.8 aperture, a 12 MP f/2.2 ultrawide lens and an 8 MP f/2.4 telephoto sensor with OIS and 3x optical zoom. A 12 MP f/2.2 camera handles selfies and video calls.

Samsung has equipped the Galaxy S26 FE with its Exynos 2500 chipset, the same one that powered last year's Galaxy Z Flip 7. It comes with 8 GB of RAM and a choice of 128 GB, 256 GB, or 512 GB of storage. Unfortunately, RAM upgrades are not an option, so you're stuck with that amount no matter which SKU you buy. Lastly, the phone ships with Android 17 and One UI 9.

Battery capacity stays the same at 4,900 mAh, while wired charging tops out at 45 W. Samsung claims the phone can reach up to 69% charge in around 30 minutes when paired with a compatible 45 W adapter. 15 W wireless charging and Wireless PowerShare are also supported.

Other specifications include Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4, 5G, LTE and IP68 water and dust resistance. Samsung will offer the Galaxy S26 FE in Blueberry, Graphite and Pistachio colourways. However, availability will also depend on markets, as is the case with Samsung smartphone releases. 

Price and availability

In Germany, the Galaxy S26 FE starts at €799 ($930), with the 256 GB version costing €899 ($1,046) and the 512 GB configuration at €1,099 ($1,279). That's proper Galaxy S26+ territory for a phone with measurably worse hardware. 

Sales begin on September 4, and reservations open through Samsung from August 27. Samsung is also bundling a six-month Google AI Pro trial with the Galaxy S26 FE, complete with 5 TB of cloud storage and enhanced access to advanced Google AI models.