Rumors suggest the Galaxy S26 Ultra might use an older camera sensor again.
We will continue seeing Samsung using the same cameras year after year.
Samsung will reportedly focus on improving the optics of its cameras. The Galaxy S26 Ultra's primary camera will likely feature a wider aperture than prior models, and a leak indicated the camera bump could be twice as thick as the S25 Ultra's.
Apple recently presented its iPhone 17 series, with the iPhone 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max receiving considerable camera enhancements. All cameras include 48MP sensors, but the maximum optical zoom is 4x, while the advertised optical-like 8x zoom is accomplished via sensor cropping.
Reusing the same sensor might seem disappointing, particularly with competitors improving rapidly. However, the sensor isn't the only important part of a smartphone camera. If Samsung considerably improves the optics of the Galaxy S26 Ultra cameras, its photo quality could be much better than its predecessor. The S25 Ultra already has one of the best smartphone cameras, so this would be positive news.
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