Seoul, April 17, 2026, 03:37 KST
Samsung’s upcoming Galaxy S27 Ultra might see its biggest speed jump thanks to storage, not the processor. Several reports in the last day point to the device leading the pack with UFS 5.0 storage. Meanwhile, a Geekbench entry for the Exynos 2700 has surfaced, hinting at some early specs for Samsung’s 2027 mobile platform.
Timing is key here: Samsung is moving to pack more of its own chips into Galaxy phones just as it faces rising component costs. The Galaxy S26 and S26+ models get Exynos 2600 chips in select regions, while the S26 Ultra sticks with Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy. Mobile margins are already feeling the squeeze from pricier memory, Reuters noted.
Universal Flash Storage, or UFS, sets the speed at which phones read and write data from flash memory. Back in February, JEDEC rolled out UFS 5.0, pushing speeds up to roughly 10.8 GB/s. “A foundational technology for next-generation devices,” is how JEDEC Chairman Mian Quddus put it. From Samsung, NAND executive Jay Hyun noted that “storage performance and efficiency have become increasingly important,” especially as AI workloads shift to devices instead of relying on the cloud. Business Wire
A new report, quoting tipster yeux1122, suggests Samsung might bring UFS 5.0 storage to select Galaxy S27 variants—starting with the Ultra, which looks like the front-runner. Wccftech pointed out that the chatter focused on speed: launching apps, moving files, and running heavier AI functions, rather than simply boosting storage capacity.
The benchmark wasn’t much to write home about. Geekbench listed 2,603 single-core and 10,350 multi-core scores, with Android 17 on board and a 10-core setup powering it. Igor’sLab described those results as “validation rather than a final performance picture”—so, not what you’d expect from a finished, retail-ready chip. Geekbench
Earlier this month, DigiTimes highlighted that the leak marked one of the earliest indications of what Samsung’s upcoming 2nm process could deliver before hitting mass production. According to Samsung, the present Exynos 2600 uses 2nm GAA—gate-all-around—technology, bringing a CPU performance boost of as much as 39% and more than twice the generative AI capability compared to the prior generation.
That’s consistent with what Samsung has been saying. According to SamMobile, which referenced DealSite coverage of a March press event in San Jose, Moon Sung-hoon—vice president of hardware at Samsung’s MX business—said, “We hope to equip all Galaxy lineups with our own application processor, the Exynos chip.” SamMobile
The competitive dynamics are easy to spot. Qualcomm still supplies chips for the S26 Ultra, so any move by Samsung to expand Exynos would be significant for them—and for TSMC. Analysts told Reuters that TSMC keeps its lead, with Samsung’s contract chipmaking arm still running losses, despite growing buzz around 2nm. Back in January, Reuters said Qualcomm was already in discussions with Samsung about 2nm contract production.
Samsung isn’t the only one making moves on storage. Back in February, Kioxia announced it began shipping UFS 5.0 evaluation samples, targeting customers building compatible host systems. That points to a supply chain for the new standard already coming together.
Still, a few variables remain. Initial benchmark numbers tend to swing as manufacturers tweak clock speeds, thermal controls, and power settings. Samsung’s phone margins are also under strain, with Reuters noting rising memory costs. And that bigger storage option? It might roll out on just one model or in select markets before hitting the entire lineup.
So far, it’s not that Samsung has finalized the Galaxy S27, but rather the company is dropping hints about what’s coming. Storage rumors, a benchmark appearance, and Samsung’s renewed push for broader Exynos adoption are combining to point toward a 2027 Galaxy lineup where speed and AI load times could matter as much as — or maybe more than — raw CPU specs. That’s the suggestion, though there’s no official product plan yet.
