SEOUL, March 11, 2026, 17:55 KST
Samsung Electronics announced Wednesday that its Galaxy S26 Ultra, the flagship in its latest smartphone series, has hit shelves worldwide. According to the company, more than 70% of global pre-order customers picked the Ultra. The device is up for grabs through carriers, retailers, and Samsung.com.
That’s crucial right now—Samsung is leaning on the Ultra as the centerpiece of its high-end lineup, after ceding the global smartphone crown to Apple last year. With memory-chip prices climbing, the new launch also puts a spotlight on consumer appetite: Samsung raised prices for the base and Plus versions in major markets, but kept the Ultra steady.
Samsung is seeing a sharp bump in U.S. pre-orders for the S26 series—up almost 25% on the S25, the company said. Orders for the Ultra accounted for a hefty 80%. Early action is clustered at the high end.
Samsung has priced the Ultra at $1,299.99 in the U.S., offering storage options of 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB. The company’s product page details a 6.9-inch screen, a 200-megapixel main camera, and a 5,000 mAh battery.
Samsung’s Ultra puts its Privacy Display front and center, blurring the screen from side angles and making shoulder surfing a tough task. PP Foresight’s Paolo Pescatore called it “the sleeper hit, a standout feature in a sea of AI noise.” At launch, TM Roh, who heads up device experience, emphasized that AI needs to be “part of our infrastructure.” AP News
Samsung is pushing what it dubs agentic AI—software agents designed to handle multi-step operations across different apps. According to Pescatore, the company is positioning Galaxy AI as “an orchestrator, not a single-assistant bet,” blending Google’s Gemini, Perplexity, and an updated Bixby. That approach, however, could complicate things, increasing fragmentation and bringing up thornier privacy issues. Mobile World Live
This is a play for the high end. Phones over $600 now make up 29% of worldwide shipments, yet they command 67% of the market’s value, according to Omdia. It’s a space Apple dominates with a 65% share, while Samsung trails far behind at 17%.
Still, early sales can overstate the picture. IDC projects global smartphone shipments dropping 12.9% this year, with memory costs pushing device prices higher. Reuters has average selling prices up 14% to an all-time high of $523. So even if the Galaxy S26 Ultra gets off to a hot start, an easy run through the year isn’t guaranteed.
