Galaxy S26 Ultra and S Pen
David Phelan
Taking a look back at this week’s news and headlines across the Android world, including all the Galaxy Unpacked news, including the Galaxy S26 Ultra, S26+ and S26, hiding Galaxy AI, the power of Now Nudge and the stunning privacy display, Honor’s new Robot, Nothing Phone (4a)’s colorful change, OnePlus 15T confirmed, and Android Developer Verification controversey.
Android Circuit is here to remind you of a few of the many discussions around Android in the last seven days. You can also read my weekly digest of Apple news here on Forbes.
Honor Brings Humanoid Robot To Barcelona
Next week is the annual Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, a chance for the majority of the smartphone ecosystem to gather in one place to share news, new products, strategy and more. Cutting through the noise to be noticed and reach consumers is a big part of the process. Honour has several updates to their portfolio coming up, and a different style of android may be the company’s trump card.
“The robot, aimed at consumer services such as shopping assistance, will make its debut at the MWC Barcelona tech conference this weekend, the Shenzhen-based smartphone maker said on Monday. Honor… says it will be first among its peers to enter the humanoid segment, though Huawei is also developing AI models for such tasks. Honor will also show off its latest artificial intelligence advancements, under the banner of what it calls the Honor Robot Phone.”
Galaxy Unpacked And The Galaxy S26 Family
Staying with this week’s news, Samsung’s Galaxy Unpacked saw the debut of the Galaxy S26 Ultra, S26+ and S26 smartphones (although you can expect to see these on display at MWC). According to Samsung’s Annika Bizon…
“…The Galaxy S26 Series featuring our most intuitive Galaxy AI ever is designed to reduce the mental load people carry daily, with hardware and AI working together so tasks are handled in the background while privacy stays protected at every level. When technology removes friction, you start experiencing what it enables: more time, less effort and the confidence that your life stays yours.”
Galaxy S26 Ultra’s AI Mission
Galaxy AI also added new features, including the Agentic AI software from Now Nudge. Yet for all the AI prowess, Samsung is looking to hide as much of the AI furniture as possible, as I found out, speaking to Samsung’s Richard Chang ahead of the launch:
“Chang laid out Samsung’s overall goal with Galaxy AI: “The moment AI will truly succeed is when it becomes so functional that it becomes invisible. It will be like the electricity that powers your home — something you depend on without even thinking about it. You just expect it.”
Samsung’s Privacy Display
One of the key hardware features – and one that is easy to explain and demonstrate to the public – i the Galaxy 26 Ultra’s privacy display. This uses display technology to isolate pixels as ‘wide’ at a regular viewing angle or ‘narrow’, restricting what can be seen from the sides or from over-the-shoulder views. Forbes contributor David Phelan takes a closer look:
“You can have it turned on all the time, like a stick-on protector, but by simply going to the quick controls, you can toggle it on or off instantly. More than that, you can set it up so it only comes into play for particular apps. All the apps your phone has are listed, and by adding them to the list, the privacy swings into action automatically when they are launched. That’s handy for reading your account balance in a banking app, for instance.”
Disappointment At US Galaxy S26 Offers
Pre-orders for the Galaxy S26 Ultra opened at the end of the Galaxy Unpacked event. While they are not as generous as previous years – presumably due to the rising cost of components, especially memory and storage – there are still some tempting choices in Samsung’s store. But for US customers, the beloved “double your storage” free upgrade to the higher-tier models will not be available:
“In the U.S., that has now been dropped for the pre-order period. American Samsung Galaxy S26 customers who buy the 256GB model won’t get a free bump up to the 512GB storage option. To compensate, Samsung has boosted trade-in values and offered an additional $50 off if the code PAYPAL50 is used at checkout. There is also a $150 store credit offer (note: not $150 off the final price) if no phone is traded in.”
Nothing Phone (4a)’s New Look
The Nothing Phone (4a) will be one of many phones launched next week during the MWC window, and Nothing Tech has confirmed that it will be bringing a new colorway to its mid-range smartphone. Here comes the pink:
“To Nothing, pink is not just another colourway. It is a nod to tech that’s expressive and optimistic, rather than neutral. It’s a recognition of the role that art, music, fashion and pop culture play in inspiring our design language.”
The OnePlus 15T Will Be Going Small
Also arriving soon in the competitive mid-range segment is the OnePlus 15T. The company’s Community Manager Shuai Lan confirmed details on Weibo that a Chinese launch is coming soon, and it’s going to be a compact form factor:
“We’re not sure exactly what that means, but as per recent rumors, the upcoming OnePlus phone will be powered by the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 SoC. It is said to pack the largest battery ever in a device of its size and will support wireless charging.”
And Finally…
Google’s upcoming changes to app distribution and Android Developer Verification will create an administrative layer between developers and smartphone users, including those using the Android Open Source Project. Open Source repository F-Droid has highlighted the dangers in an open letter from itself, the EFF, ORG, the Free Software Foundation, Digital Rights Foundation, and more:
“Android has historically been characterized as an open platform where users and developers can operate independently of Google’s services. The proposed developer registration policy fundamentally alters that relationship by requiring developers who wish to distribute apps through alternative channels — their own websites, third-party app stores, enterprise distribution systems, or direct transfers — to first seek permission from Google through a mandatory verification process, which involves the agreement to Google’s terms and conditions, the payment of a fee, and the uploading of government-issued identification.”
Android Circuit rounds up the news from the Android world every weekend here on Forbes. Don’t forget to follow me so you don’t miss any coverage in the future, and of course, read the sister column in Apple Loop! Last week’s Android Circuit can be found here, and if you have any news and links you’d like to see featured in Android Circuit, get in touch!