Hopes were high among Samsung enthusiasts recently regarding the potential return of the Exynos chips to the top-tier flagship lineup. Rumors suggested Samsung might equip the highly anticipated Exynos 2600 in all Galaxy S26 models, including the premium Ultra variant, in certain regions. However, the latest wave of leaks suggests those expectations were significantly overstated.
This week, Qualcomm confidently projected its silicon would power a massive 75% of the upcoming S26 devices. Corroborating this forecast, a separate report now claims the top-tier Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra will exclusively feature the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chip in every unit sold globally. This could happen even in the brand’s home market.
Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 wins: Galaxy S26 Ultra might skip Exynos 2600 chip globally
It’s noteworthy that this leak comes from a source without a long journey yet. That means you can take their claims with a grain of salt. That said, their report aligns with the overall sentiment of a discreet, rather than dominant, deployment of the Exynos 2600. So, the possibility of the Exynos hardware returning to a “Galaxy S Ultra” flagship phone fades away, again.
The excitement around the Exynos 2600 was not unfounded. Recent benchmark results suggested Samsung had achieved performance nearly equivalent to that of the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5. Furthermore, the competitive battle between the two chips has a key secondary front: thermals.
Despite Exynos 2600’s benchmark gains
Recent tests suggest the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 runs pretty hot. So, it could require advanced cooling solutions to maintain sustained performance. Otherwise, the SoC could lose up to 40% of its power due to thermal throttling. Meanwhile, leaks surrounding the Exynos 2600 suggested Samsung was also focusing on power efficiency and thermal management as key design aspects.
It seems the battle between the Exynos 2600 and the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 will be the closest in years. However, for one reason or another, Samsung still hasn’t dared to equip all of its flagship phones with Exynos hardware. This development could have further explanations beyond a potential lack of confidence in the chip. For example, does Samsung really have the capacity to produce enough 2nm Exynos chips to equip the 35 million units they project selling? If the leak is true, this could have been a decisive factor in the company’s alleged decision.
In any case, we’ll have to wait for the commercial launch to see how the two chips perform in real-world use. A recent leak revealed that Samsung will hold its first Unpacked event of 2026 on February 25th.
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