Samsung has been moving too slowly with camera hardware upgrades. It stuck to upgrading only one camera each year. However, if it wants to keep up with the iPhone 17 Pro, Samsung needs to bring serious upgrades to Galaxy S26 Ultra's camera.
iPhone 17 Pro could feature 48MP telephoto camera to rival Galaxy S26 Ultra
According to a report from Apple leakster Majin Bu, the iPhone 17 Pro will feature a 48MP telephoto camera with 3.5x optical zoom. In comparison, the iPhone 16 Pro Max has a 12MP telephoto camera with 5x optical zoom. The Galaxy S25 Ultra has a 10MP telephoto camera with 3x optical zoom and a 50MP telephoto camera with 5x optical zoom.
samsung galaxy s25 ultra versus apple iphone 16 pro max bezel size (01)
While on paper the Galaxy S25 Ultra already beats the iPhone 17 Pro's camera, real-life comparisons have shown that Apple eeks out a lot even from dated camera hardware. So, to compete with the upcoming iPhone, the Galaxy S26 Ultra needs to bring an upgraded telephoto camera to replace the Galaxy S25 Ultra's 10MP telephoto camera.
Some early rumors claim that the Galaxy S26 Ultra will feature a 200MP primary camera, a 50MP ultrawide camera, a 50MP telephoto camera with 3.5x optical zoom, and a 50MP telephoto camera with 8x optical zoom. If this information is accurate, Samsung's next flagship phone might compete well with the iPhone 17 Pro. However, the source of this information doesn't have a proven track record, and it somehow feels that we might not get an 8x optical zoom lens.
Samsung needs to improve 8K video recording on its phones
galaxy s25 ultra cameras
Another report claims that the iPhone 17 Pro will feature 8K video recording. While Samsung has offered 8K video since six years, Apple has done exceptionally well in terms of video recording quality. So, Samsung needs to improve the quality of 8K video next year to stay competitve with Apple.
Samsung has yet to bring some camera technologies that Apple uses in iPhones. They include a sensor-shift image stabilization system, dual-pixel autofocus, a quad-LED flash, and a LiDAR sensor on the rear. There were rumors about Samsung testing the sensor-shift stabilization system, but the feature never arrives in any of its flagship phones.
Hopefully, Samsung brings enough camera hardware upgrades next year with the Galaxy S26 Ultra to stay competitive with Apple and other smartphone brands.