In an era when hardware innovation is rare, Galaxy S26's privacy display was cooler than expected.
Samsung Electronics on the 26th unveiled its flagship Galaxy S26 series. Major foreign media outlets singled out the privacy display security feature as one of the top innovations and gave positive reviews. U.S. tech outlet The Verge said that while the privacy display is a technology already seen on laptops, it was even more impressive to see it actually working on the Galaxy S26 Ultra.
The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) called the Galaxy S26 Ultra's privacy display technology "a victory for hardware." The WSJ said Apple should follow Samsung's innovation and adopt the secure screen technology as quickly as possible.
There were also positive assessments of the artificial intelligence (AI) features. Android Central said of the Galaxy S26 that it deeply integrates AI, evolving the features to be more proactive and to blend naturally into every experience.
However, some say the new product is not much different from the Galaxy S25.
Japanese tech outlet Gizmodo, in an article titled "Galaxy S26 series has shallow hardware upgrades and excessive AI," said the Galaxy S26 series follows a refresh pattern that tweaks the existing formula slightly, as in previous years. However, Gizmodo also added that it hopes other manufacturers will adopt the privacy screen technology.
French tech outlet Les Numériques said the "privacy display is a welcome breath of fresh air," but added that "the lineup has not been largely reinvented."
U.S. outlet Wired likewise reported that the products announced at Unpacked are not much different from last year's Galaxy S25 models.