Samsung Galaxy S26 / Google Pixel 8a

Samsung varies the processor by market: the US, China and Japan versions use the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy. This entry covers the Exynos 2600 SM-S942B version.

The viewable area is smaller than the rectangular measurement because of the corners and camera hole.

The always-on display shows the time, notifications and the song playing nearby (Now Playing) at low power while the phone is locked.

The panel lowers its rate to match the content, slowing down on static images to save power and rising to 120 Hz for scrolling and games.

The upper limit, 90 Hz on earlier A-series phones, rises to 120 Hz on this model; Google notes it is not available in every app.

This is Samsung's peak figure, not a brightness held across the full screen.

It is the same chip as the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro.

Samsung says this GPU supports hardware ray tracing and is up to 50% faster at it than its predecessor.

Samsung states up to 29% better heat dissipation for the S26; this is a figure from the maker's own testing.

Usable space is lower than the total because of preloaded software. Options vary by country and carrier.

Super Res Zoom up to 8x is software magnification; there is no telephoto camera.

The 2x optical-quality zoom uses the centre of the main camera's Adaptive Pixel sensor; it is not a separate lens.

Samsung quotes up to 30 hours of video playback; the typical figure was measured by a third-party lab to IEC 61960.

According to Google, average battery life in testing was at least 31 hours; figures are based on a median user profile.

The figure was measured from 0% with a 25 W Samsung adapter and 3 A USB-C cable, screen off. The adapter and cable are sold separately.

PowerShare works only with certain Qi-compatible phones and wearables and may not work below 30% battery.

Wi-Fi 7 speeds need a Wi-Fi 7 router; 6 GHz use varies by country.

USB 3.2 Gen 1 carries up to 5 Gbit/s of data, which speeds up wired transfers of large video files to a computer.

Band support varies by market.

Weight may vary by country and configuration.

Water and dust resistance can decline over time with normal wear.

IP67 means full dust protection and resistance to brief immersion; it is one step below IP68. Protection can diminish over time.

HDR brightness is measured with the whole screen lit and peak brightness with only 5% lit.

The aluminium in the housing and camera bar is 100% recycled; the back cover uses 76% recycled plastic.

There is no card slot; the 256 GB option is not offered in every country.

No charger is included; the box contains a USB-C cable and a Quick Switch adapter for transferring data from an old phone.

The seven years count from the first sale date on the US Google Store; this was the first A-series phone with the promise.