A solid large Galaxy S experience at a discount, but the price rise and camera weaknesses make it hard to recommend clearly. Strong battery, gaming and design.
Premium design in new colors
Display still flagship-worthy for the price
Surprisingly good gaming performance
Strong battery life
Seven years of OS and security updates
Price increased over the Galaxy S25 FE
Telephoto and ultrawide cameras lag behind
Lower resolution and brightness display than S26 models
Thicker bezels than other Galaxy S phones
Gorilla Glass Victus Plus, a generation behind S26
A lower-cost Galaxy S26 alternative with good battery, camera and AI features, but weak performance and little differentiation from the Galaxy A57 and S25 FE.
Low starting price of $699 compared with the standard S26
Good battery life in streaming test
Solid camera quality for the price
Premium AI features included
Premium-feeling design with metal frame and glass camera bump
Weak performance
No matte glass back, glossy look resembles Galaxy A57
Very similar to the cheaper Galaxy A57
Few meaningful upgrades over last year's model
Battery life trails the standard Galaxy S26 in its test
Verdicts, pros and cons are short summaries in our words of each publisher's review; scores are as the publisher gave them. Specs are taken from the reviews' spec boxes — where they differ, we show the value most of them give; price is the US launch price of the base model. Read the originals for the full picture.