Samsung Galaxy Unpacked 2026 live: The Galaxy S26 series, Buds 4, AI and more

Everything Samsung announced today at Galaxy Unpacked

Sam Rutherford for Engadget

A pair of the new Galaxy Buds 4 on a table.

In addition to the S26 series, Samsung also unveiled new Galaxy Buds, software integrations and more. Google's Sameer Samat even took the stage to highlight some features coming to Pixel 10 and S26 devices as part of Android updates. For a full breakdown, check out our recap of the event's biggest announcements.

Thank you as always for joining us, we appreciate you! And till the next event, stay well.

Read more: Everything Samsung announced today at Galaxy Unpacked

Samsung Galaxy S26 hands-on

Mat Smith for Engadget

A trio of Samsung Galaxy S26 devices stacked in a staggered manner on top of each other.

Mat checked out the Galaxy S26 series and came off thinking most of the upgrades felt incremental. Not only do they lack the Privacy Display on the Ultra, but they also cost a bit more than before. We're not sure yet whether Samsung will be releasing a new "Edge" model of the S-series phones this year, but it's certainly becoming less and less worthwhile to get one of the two less-premium models.

Another bummer: Europe/UK models of the S26 phones will get Samsung's own Exynos processors, while those in the US will use Snapdragon chips.

From Mat:

"It's not the most exciting year for Samsung's smaller flagship phones. While the S26 Ultra can boast a new Privacy Display that's the first of its kind, the rest of the S26 family have a little too much in common with their predecessors. The new video features seem useful and intuitive, so there's more to explore there. We'll have more to say in our full reviews soon."

Read more: Samsung Galaxy S26 hands-on: A lot more of the same for a little more money

Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra hands-on

Sam Rutherford for Engadget

A pair of Galaxy S26 Ultra phones leaning against each other on a wooden shelf.

The Galaxy S26 Ultra has it all — the latest and greatest in processors, cameras, power management and thermal dissipation, as well as the S Pen tucked away in an onboard slot. But what really stood out to me (and our Sam Rutherford) was the new Privacy Display. Using a "Black Matrix," Samsung limits the viewing angles not just of the entire screen, but also of specific apps and portions of the panel where notifications may appear. In this case, it's not just the technology but also the implementation that felt thoughtful.

More from Sam:

"My favorite new thing on the S26 Ultra is its Privacy Display. When activated, it functions a lot like HP's Sure View tech, which prevents people from peeking at your screen from acute angles. It works both when viewed from the side or up and down and has a surprising amount of customization. Not only can you set it to turn on automatically when the phone asks you for a password or PIN, it can also be triggered by specific apps or whenever you receive a notification. But perhaps the most impressive thing is that there's almost no impact on image quality. When Privacy Display is active, there is a minor reduction in overall brightness, but aside from that, it's really hard to tell when it's on (at least from the front)."

Read more: Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra hands-on: Meaningful tweaks plus a slick new Privacy Display

Thanks everyone and of course stay tuned for full reviews as soon as we can get our hands on the new S26 line and Galaxy Buds 4.

You can scroll up ever so slightly to see a quick summary of the articles we already have published about today's new Samsung devices, but I'll be dropping previews here in the liveblog for a bit, for those of you who prefer to just let this page update itself.

Thanks for joining us. You'll find all our initial hands-on impressions at Engadget.com

And that's it for the presentation. What did y'all think?

Is this what you wanted from the first big phone launch of 2026?

But I think it is, it's definitely recording using a phone, because I can see the display acting as a viewfinder.

I really hope you chase it around that event space later. For journalism.

I can't tell, it's too speedy and facing the wrong way lol.

Sam: Is it shooting with a Galaxy phone?

I want to take a quick moment to call out this robo camera that keeps rolling past me at the front of the auditorium. It's super cool and kind of cute too?

Sam Rutherford for Engadget

The robo camera at Samsung Unpacked

Ocean Mode will be available via Expert Raw in photos.

On the S26, there's also a new Ocean Mode available as part of Expert Raw, which was originally designed to help researchers monitor the health of coral

Smith says Samsung achieved all of its eco goals for 2025. Now in 2026, the company expanded its use of recycled materials on the S26.

Samsung says it's also working to improve its water use, hoping to return more water to the world than what it uses for manufacturing. That said, I don't think that will offset the amount of water data centers use for AI.

The recycled materials Samsung is using in its products.

The Samsung Buds4 come in two colors.

The Galaxy Buds4 Pro come in three colors.

Samsung's Cassie Smith is now stage to talk about sustainability.

Pairing is almost instant when you open the case.

The Buds 4 Pro will start at $249, while the regular Buds 4 will start at $180.

You can customize the bass and tone you hear on the Galaxy Buds4 Pro.

One important thing to know is that the regular Buds 4 feature hard plastic tips, while the Buds 4 Pro feature soft silicone tips to better isolate noise and provide a better seal in your ear canal.

The Buds 4 also use AI to provide better noise cancelation that helps reduce distracting ambient noise.

There are two exclusive colors if you order on Samsung.com.

(Does that mean there are Galaxy Buds 4? Without the 'pro'?)

The Galaxy S26 and S26+ will be available March 11.

Sam how did that sonic boom feel in person?

Samsung says this is more than just a design refresh. We're talking about punchier bass and hi-res playback with increased fidelity.

The buds features larger woofers along with new tweeters and a dual-amp architecture.

The new Galaxy Buds4 Pro.

Now we're moving on to new audio gear: the Galaxy Buds 4 and Buds 4 Pro.

Samsung S26 Ultra will come in four colors.

The S26 Ultra comes in four colors starting at $1,299, while the base model will start at $899 or $1,099 for the S26+.

Pre-orders are live now, with official sales slated for March 11.

Here are the Galaxy S26 Ultra specs.

You can also use AI to generate stickers and wallpapers based on prompts and images that you feed it.

Critically, Samsung is a member of C2PA, so AI-generated images will be tagged as such in their metadata.

Now we're diving into improved AI-powered camera features, like Samsung's new document scanning tool that can automatically remove stuff like fingers from scans.

There's also a new Photo Assist tool, which makes it easier to edit and adjust images using natural language text prompts.

Here's a look at the back cameras.

Super Steady with Horizontal Lock keeps bumpy videos at bay.

Page is transitioning to talk about the S26's new super steady video mode, which can lock the horizon while you are filming.

Meanwhile for mobile video fanatics, Samsung is now supporting the APV video codec on the S26.

And here's a small surprise, Samsung is recording the livestream using an S26, probably the Ultra.

Virtual Reflection helps rid your photos of unwanted shadows.

The two most important camera hardware upgrades are wider apertures for the S26's main 200MP camera and its 50MP 5x telephoto cam.

There's also a new algorithm for noise reduction, which should lead to sharper, less grainy shots, especially in low light

The front camera of the Galaxy S26 series.

Mason Page from Samsung's Product Marketing department is now on stage to talk about camera innovations.

Miles Franklin, MilesAboveTech, is demoing the Privacy Display. Believe it or not, the screen is actually turned on here.

Absolutely Mat, Privacy Display really is one of the standout features for this generation.

Here's another look at the Privacy Display.

One thing that's really cool is that you can even specify when the Privacy Display is on. It can be activated automatically when using specific apps or just for things like notifications. You can even set the feature to turn on and off by double tapping the phone's power button.

This Privacy display is incredible in person. I got to briefly play with the S26 Ultra and it might be the biggest technical upgrade Samsung's offered on its devices since it added a stylus with the original Note.

The Privacy Display keeps important notifications hidden.

Of course, the biggest display innovation for this generation is the new Privacy Display, which is exclusive to the Galaxy S26 Ultra.

The way it works is that the display has two different kinds of subpixels. There are narrow pixels that primarily emit light straight out, while wide pixels pushes light out to the side. Normally, all of these pixels are on, but at the touch of a button, you can turn the wide pixels off, which prevents people from peeking at what you're doing, both from the sides or top and bottom angles.

Samsung has the world's first Privacy Display on mobile.

I love that in order to show off the battery's performance. Samsung's demonstration is watching its three-minute ad from the start of this year's Unpacked. There are better things to watch!

The new and largest Galaxy vapor chamber manages heat more efficiently and that extends to the battery.

As for the S26's display, there's new ProScaler tech that Samsung borrowed from its TV division.

Roberts also says Samsung has redesigned the S26's vapor chamber to provide better sustained cooling thanks to improved heat transfer.

Rachel Roberts is back to talk about the S26's new chip: the Snapdragon Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy.

She says its NPU is 39 percent faster than last year, while its CPU and GPU are 19 and 24 percent more powerful.

Gemini will be able to order takeout for your family.

Samat is demoing a new feature called app automations that allows Gemini to do things like read your chats and then use that information to order a pizza with the correct toppings. Alternatively, you can also ask Gemini to order you groceries via Instacart or even call you a car using Uber.

Sameer Samat, President of Android Ecosystem, is discussing moving from an operating system to an intelligent system.

The big buzz word here is agentic AI.

Sameer Samat from Google is now on stage talking about how users will get access to a new preview version of Gemini on the S26 family.

Choi also says that to support AI development, Samsung is working closely with Google to improve Android and the S26's OS as a whole.

KEEP is Samsung's newest security software that protects your personal data on your phone.

Naturally, Choi says privacy regarding the data AI can access is super important. Samsung says that when data is sent to the cloud, it will be deleted after it's no longer in use and there are multiple settings options users can adjust based on their preferences.

The Now bar and briefing has so far been Samsung's best steps into AI. It's good to see the company expanding it further — especially when Apple hasn't quite got its act together with AI assistants.

Choi says your phone is your most personal device and it has the power to help you in ways no other gadget can.

Now on stage is Won-joon Choi to talk more about other facets of AI on the S26.

Next up is another new feature called Now Nudge, which uses the Samsung Keyboard to read your messages and provide contextual suggestions so you can easily find and send things like related photos to friends based on your conversations.

Next is an update to Google's Circle to Search.

On the S26 series, Circle to Search is getting the ability to circle multiple objects at once, so you can do things like identify various elements of an outfit (and I imagine, purchase them later)

The Samsung Browser is partnering with Perplexity.

Roberts is now detailing a new call screening feature similar to what's available on Pixel phones, which allows the phone to take info from incoming callers so you don't have to.

Also, Bixby is back, but it's getting a new role as a digital assistant that can change and adjust settings based on natural language voice input.

Sure there's Gemini AI, and even Perplexity. But Bixby is still clinging onto Samsung phones.

Now Brief with Galaxy AI.

Rachel Roberts is now on stage to talk about more about AI.

Samsung's goal is to make AI easy to use and helpful, so that it can do things like understand notifications on your screen to better inform the company's Now Brief feature.

This gathers useful info like the weather, calendar events and more into a single helpful update that appears periodically through your day.

The Galaxy S26 Ultra.

We'll get a look at Samsung's built-in privacy display today.

An "Agentic AI phone" — what does that even mean?

I just wanted to get one close up of Samsung's CEO since I'm up close.

Roh is now talking about how Samsung has worked closely with partners to create a custom AP (aka a processor) and the world's first privacy display.

TM Roh, CEO and Head of Mobile eXperience for Samsung, is discussing the three priorities: reach, openness and confidence.

Sam Rutherford for Engadget

Samsung CEO TM Roh

Roh is kicking things off by talking about the power of AI and how it can unlock new ways to work, play and more.

The Samsung Galaxy Unpacked has officially kicked off.

TM Roh takes the stage.

Oh of course, through the power of technology (and AI I suppose), we can all stay connected no matter how far apart we are.

Samsung is kicking things off with a little clip of some kids being sad that one of them is moving away. Not entirely sure how this connects to phones, but I'm sure it will all make sense in a second.

Aaaaaand we're off.

Meanwhile, in London, a very youthful front row of attendees has been bussed in. There are DJI Osmo Pockets, excitement and... iPhones.

Any predictions on celebrity appearances? I'm going to guess EJAE of Kpop Demon Hunters shows up at some point?

I don't know if people watching the livestream are getting the same soundtrack I am, but Samsung has put the K-pop Demon Hunters soundtrack in heavy rotation here and without fail it's getting people to bounce around more than normal.

Now that we're 10 minutes out from the start of the presentation, we should probably do a quick refresher on what we're expecting to see.

The main devices on deck would be the Galaxy S26 family, which includes the base S26, S26+ and S26 Ultra. But no Edge model this time around. Additionally, we're also predicting two new versions of Samsung's Galaxy Buds: the regular Buds 4 and the Buds 4 Pro.

Sam Rutherford for Engadget

As you can see, the venue is basically full already.

Not much different from your usual writing Mat ;)

I feel bad because there are announcements asking people to turn off their hotspots so that the main WiFi here has a better chance of being stable. But I've been kicked off three times already, so the hotspot is going back on.

I wrote Samsung three times in a single sentence. Can you tell it's a liveblog?

The cynic in me says that Samsung is happy for die-hard early adopters to pay for a Samsung-branded case to add magnets... Samsung is welcome to prove me wrong!

"Dear Mat,

I have braved the tundra. It is now wet here. This paper may be soggy. I pray you can read my message. If only Galaxy AI could shovel snow."

It's me, Cher. I knew you were sick of me. But praying for magnets here. If Google could bring it to the Pixel 10, why can't Samsung?

Hey Sam! Congratulations on beating that blizzard.

I've positioned myself at the top of one of Samsung's bleachers in its King Cross event space. It's a pretty low-key event at the moment. Last time there were cute Korean food concession stalls and plenty of Korean to put Gemini AI translation to the test.

Hey Mat!

I managed to get a seat in the second row and I'm connected to the wifi. Sadly, the connection is getting shakier as the place fills up.

As far as magnets inside the phone for charging and accessories, I'm pretty skeptical. I would love to see it, but if we look back to the S25 Edge, that thing also lacked magnets in favor of a thinner device.

Sam Rutherford for Engadget

The Samsung Unpacked 2026 stage

What are you most looking forward to, Sam? And also... Will Samsung finally be bringing MAGNETS to these phones? Inquiring Qi2/MagSafe fans' minds want to know.

Now back to the task at hand, because the big news of the day is the Galaxy S26 family, which Samsung is expected to officially reveal here in just over half an hour.

Shout out to my kids back at home. I borrowed two of their plushies and I've been taking pictures of them while I've been out here.

Sam Rutherford for Engadget

Two visitors at the Palace of Fine Arts

Sam are they feeding you there? (I ask because I am hungry.)

Sam I was going to say, I could have sworn I've been to exactly this location for a previous Samsung Unpacked event!

Sam Rutherford for Engadget

The entrance to Samsung Unpacked 2026

Regardless, it's cool to be here again because the grounds are beautiful, even when it's wet out.

That said, if we want to dive into a little Samsung lore, the company has actually hosted an Unpacked here before way back in 2020, which saw the release of the Galaxy S20 and the original Galaxy Z Flip.

Sam Rutherford for Engadget

The entrance to the Palace of Fine Arts for Samsung Unpacked.

Now in case it wasn't already obvious, this place isn't like the normal sort of venue that usually hosts smartphone launches.

Good morning everyone, as Cherlynn mentioned, I'm reporting in from the Palace of Fine Arts on this wonderfully drizzly morning

Sam Rutherford for Engadget

The stage at Galaxy Unpacked 2026 with rows of seats in front of it.

Looks like Sam's made it into the event space and let's hope he's dry!

Sam Rutherford for Engadget

The view from the line at Galaxy Unpacked 2026, with the Palace of Fine Arts in the distance shrouded in mist.

Sam's already in line at Unpacked in SF, and sends this picture from the event. As we can sort of see and as Sam reports, it's currently raining. The scenery looks pretty, but also pretty dreary, and I can't blame anyone there if they want to hurry inside.

Alright, I've heard from Mat and Sam that they're heading off to their respective venues and we'll be getting their live feedback on what it's like at Unpacked soon. I know, I know, I'm getting pretty tired of me too. Sam is our resident Samsung and Android expert, and I'm certain his thoughts will be much more valuable for this liveblog. Mat is just fun!

Of course, it's not all about AI. The highlight of today's presentation should be the new Galaxy S26 series, which we're expecting will include the S26, S26+ and S26 Ultra. Thanks to the flood of rumors and leaks, we pretty much know what might be coming in a couple of hours. But in case you haven't caught up and you're the sort of person that wants spoilers ahead of tech launches... Here's a primer on what Samsung is expected to unveil at Unpacked today.

Not completely related to Unpacked, but Samsung did announce last week that it's updating Bixby to be more conversational. The timing of the news does make me wonder if we'll see some sort of Bixby-first device today, like a revival of the smart speaker from years ago. But it's been so long I can't even remember the name... (OK, I did my job and looked it up — the Galaxy Home speaker.)

Yea I don't know about you all, but "Hey Plex" would make me think I'm talking to the streaming/media server app. But I guess it's not like it was incredibly palatable for the company to go with "Hey Perp," am I right? What about "Hey Lexity" or "Hey Lexi"? Or maybe just less AI?

Did anyone ask for more AI? I know I didn't, but someone must have, because Samsung has been pushing out more AI. In more news announced ahead of Unpacked, the company shared that the S26 series will offer third-party AI agent support within Galaxy AI. This would include some sort of offering from Perplexity, and in its announcement Samsung said the system would be able to respond to the wake phrase "Hey Plex."

As it has done in recent years, Samsung has been drip-feeding us with teasers laying a breadcrumb trail of news announcements in the lead up to Unpacked. In the last week or so, it's talked up some mobile AI photography and editing tools coming to the Galaxy S26 series, dropping some videos demonstrating the new abilities. Here's a sample:

I hope I got all those timezone calculations right. Anyway, we'll be seeing what Samsung has up its sleeve in just a few hours, and thanks to Sam and Mat we'll get plenty of photos and observations from their respective scenes, so stick around and you'll feel like you're right there with them! In Samsung's generous bosom of invited guests!

Sam, like many other members of the media from the Northeast, has braved the woes of blizzard-impeded travel to the west coast, and we're all just glad he made it there safely. We're also lucky to have UK bureau chief Mat Smith support us from London, where Samsung is hosting a satellite event at the same time. Mat will report on the English vibes, cocktail tastiness and general debauchery, I'm sure. It will be 5PM or 6PM there, after all.

It's Galaxy Unpacked day, and we're ready for Samsung to unveil the Galaxy S26 series on February 25, 2026. There's a bit more alignment the company could have done to make the numbers much more pleasing but I'll just tell myself it's February 26 in Asia and assume the 26s have all lined up. The event kicks off at 10AM PT (or 1PM ET) in San Francisco, where we have our senior reviewer Sam Rutherford ready to bring us all the onsite impressions.