Even though the Galaxy S25 Ultra is barely out of the oven, rumors about its eventual sequel, the Galaxy S26 Ultra, have already emerged. It feels premature, to say the least, but that's how the industry moves, and Samsung never stops developing new phones.
It goes without saying that rumors should be taken with a pinch of salt. That is particularly true for rumors that surface prematurely in the alleged early development of an upcoming device — and truer still when said rumor is about an early prototype. By definition, prototypes are subject to change.
But for what it's worth, many people believe Samsung is already prototyping the upcoming Galaxy S26 Ultra. And an infinitesimal number of those people sometimes claim to know what type of concepts and ideas Samsung is entertaining behind closed doors.
So, what's the latest wild rumor about the Galaxy S26 Ultra? Well, according to one tipster on X, Samsung is testing a Galaxy S26 Ultra prototype that has an invisible selfie camera.
Samsung is supposedly experimenting with UDC again
The rumor suggests that Samsung's next Ultra phone for 2026 will be equipped with an Under Display Camera at the front, which would essentially make the selfie sensor nearly invisible.
You could argue that UDC (Under Display Camera) technology has been underutilized by Samsung. The tech debuted on the Galaxy Z Fold 3 in 2021 and never reached another Samsung phone series.
Samsung continues to use UDC for the Fold lineup — except for the Galaxy Z Fold Special Edition — but the technology hasn't changed much since 2021. Over time, Samsung improved the UDC experience through clever AI-based rendering for image restoration, but the hardware is essentially the same as ever.
It's a clever technology but has a few drawbacks, which may be why it hasn't been used extensively. For one, Samsung's UDC camera has a low 4MP resolution because it has to work in low light. And due to the fact that it's positioned behind the screen, it captures lower-quality photos and videos that have to be addressed through clever software and AI techniques.
However, the tipster behind this latest Galaxy S26 Ultra rumor also suggests that Samsung is testing a new UDC camera. How is it any different than the existing UDC solution? That's a mystery.
So, what are the chances that Samsung is working on a new UDC sensor for the Galaxy S26 Ultra? We'd say slim at best, and even if the prototype exists, there's no guarantee the final product will have the same features.
Take this rumor for what it is and don't put much faith in it, but if you want to dive deeper into a few other early Galaxy S26 predictions, here are a some that stand out:
- Galaxy S26 might be the last Snapdragon-only phone before Samsung re-adopts Exynos.
- Galaxy S26 Ultra may boast a new OLED technology.
- New advancements might improve Galaxy S26 batteries.
- Samsung might apply a 200MP telephoto camera to the Galaxy S26 Ultra.