Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra ‘will be powered by Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 instead of Exynos’
Samsung’s Galaxy S26 Ultra is expected to launch with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chip worldwide instead of the company's in-house Exynos 2600, signalling a clear performance-first approach for its top-tier flagship.
Samsung will reportedly give the Galaxy S26 Ultra the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 instead of the Exynos 2600.
New regulatory filings strongly suggest the Galaxy S26 Ultra will ship globally with Qualcomm’s flagship processor, sidelining Samsung’s in-house Exynos chip for its most premium model.
The detail emerged through U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) listings, which show both the U.S. carrier model and the international unlocked version of the Galaxy S26 Ultra using the same Qualcomm chipset.
Samsung has long split its Galaxy S lineup between Snapdragon and Exynos depending on region, a practice that has drawn criticism over perceived performance gaps.
Snapdragon-powered Galaxy models have typically been viewed as faster and more thermally stable, particularly under heavy gaming and camera workloads.
While Samsung’s latest Exynos silicon has reportedly narrowed that gap on paper, perception still counts at the top end of the market - and Samsung appears unwilling to take risks with its Ultra-branded device.
Additional certification filings in China point to other upgrades, as the Galaxy S26 Ultra is expected to support direct satellite connectivity, building on features introduced with the S25 Ultra for emergency and messaging services.
Documents also suggest faster charging, with 60W wired charging listed - an increase from the current 45W - alongside improved wireless charging speeds.
If accurate, that could significantly reduce charging times for the Ultra’s rumoured 5,000mAh battery.
The reliance on Snapdragon may also reflect the growing importance of on-device AI.
Qualcomm has invested heavily in neural processing hardware optimised for local AI tasks, an area where Samsung is expected to expand Galaxy AI features in 2026.
Performance alone is no longer the headline metric; efficient, secure local processing is becoming just as critical.
Samsung is expected to unveil the Galaxy S26 lineup - including the S26 and S26+ - at a Galaxy Unpacked event in January or February 2026.
While Exynos may still appear in lower-tier models, the Ultra looks set to deliver Samsung’s strongest possible hardware worldwide.
