Leak: Samsung Galaxy S26 batteries include a surprising downgrade
As the mobile world awaits the big upcoming announcement from Samsung about its new line of smartphones, a new leak has provided some disappointing news.
Mobile news outlet Ytechb have just acquired the EU labels for the still-unannounced, brand new Samsung Galaxy S26 series of mobile devices. Unfortunately, it seems these new Samsung devices have received a downgrade in battery health.
According to the ratings on the labels, the Samsung Galaxy S26, Galaxy S26+, and Galaxy S26 Ultra each have 1,200 charge cycles. This means that the battery will fall to 80 percent health after 1,200 charge cycles.
The Galaxy S26 line's predecessor, the Samsung Galaxy S25, had 2,000 charge cycles, meaning the battery maintained as close to full health for significantly longer.
On the bright side, however, the Galaxy S26 line of batteries does appear to be much more energy efficient than the Galaxy S25 line, according to the EU labels.
In an EU-standarized battery test, the Samsung Galaxy S26 battery lasted 51 hours. That's 14 hours longer than the Galaxy S25's 37 hours.
The Samsung Galaxy S26+ and S26 Ultra each lasted 55 hours, whereas their predecessors lasted 43.5 hours and nearly 45 hours, respectively.
So, maybe the downgrade in the battery charge cycles is more like a near-even trade off? We will find out a lot more about the new Samsung Galaxy S26 line at Samsung Galaxy Unpacked.