You’re sitting on a crowded bus, and you can feel the person next to you reading your private texts. It’s annoying, right? Samsung thinks so too. At its Unpacked 2026 event today, the company showed off the new Galaxy S26 Ultra, and its weirdest new feature might be its best one yet.
The screen only you can see
It’s called the Privacy Display. Samsung has built a layer into the screen that limits the viewing angle. If you’re looking at it head-on, everything looks bright and sharp. But if someone tries to peek from the side, they see nothing but a dark, blank screen. It’s like those plastic screen protectors people buy, but built directly into the glass.
And it isn’t just about privacy. The tech helps reduce glare when you’re outside under the sun. It’s a smart move for a phone that’s meant to go everywhere with you. You won’t have to crank your brightness to the max just to read an email at the park.
Lighter, faster, and more titanium
The Galaxy S26 Ultra doesn’t look radically different from last year, but you’ll feel the change the moment you pick it up. Samsung is using something they call Titanium 2.0. It’s lighter than before but feels just as solid. The edges are slightly more rounded now, so it won’t dig into your palm during a long scrolling session.
Under the hood, it’s running a new chip that handles AI tasks without making the phone run hot. Here is what stands out from the spec sheet:
- A smarter 200MP camera: It captures better detail in low light without that fake, over-processed look.
- Better battery life: Samsung says you’ll get an extra two hours of screen time compared to the previous model.
- Thinner bezels: The screen stretches even closer to the edge of the frame, making the display feel massive.
Quiet time with the Buds 4 Pro
Samsung didn’t stop at phones. They also introduced the Galaxy Buds 4 Pro. The big story here is the noise cancellation. Most earbuds struggle with high-pitched sounds like a crying baby or a screeching subway car. These new buds use AI to identify those specific frequencies and cancel them out in real-time.
They’ve also squeezed more battery life into the case. You can get through a full cross-country flight without needing to plug in. They look a bit sleeker, too, with a matte finish that doesn’t pick up fingerprints every time you touch them.
Samsung is clearly betting that we care more about how our tech fits into our messy, public lives than just having the biggest numbers on a page. If you’ve ever felt like your phone was an open book for the world to read, the S26 Ultra is a very tempting upgrade.