The flagship feature of Samsung’s new Galaxy S26 Ultra is the Privacy Display and, so far, it’s been a great addition to the device. But closer inspection of the Galaxy S26 Ultra Privacy Display shows how it is a bit different compared to a traditional display.
Samsung touts the Privacy Display on Galaxy S26 Ultra is a major new feature and, in our first impressions, we’d agree. While the feature struggles in some situations and has impacts on the display experience while it’s active, it is very useful, and a pretty big game-changer for display tech.
Now, we’re getting a closer look at the physical hardware.
The folks over at GSMArena recently published a breakdown of the Privacy Display, including a side-by-side comparison of the Galaxy S26 Ultra, both with its Privacy Display turned on and turned off, alongside a Galaxy S25 Ultra that lacked the feature entirely.
When Privacy Display is active, a view of the display under a digital microscope clearly shows the massive difference, with effectively half of the pixels shutting down when Privacy Display is active. But, even with the Galaxy S26 Ultra’s display having its privacy features turned off, there’s still a physical difference in the pixel layout compared to the Galaxy S25 Ultra. Specifically, the new display setup isn’t nearly as dense as the one on the Galaxy S25 Ultra.
Despite this, GSMArena‘s testing found that “color reproduction, brightness, and viewing angles are all virtually identical to the previous generation’s screen.” In our own anecdotal use, there do seem to be some very minor impacts to viewing angles, and many early users claim to have noticed quality impacts – some, including Creative Strategies analyst (and occasional 9to5Google contributor) Max Weinbach, have noticed increased eye strain too.
The Galaxy S26 series is available for pre-order now, with Samsung’s usual pre-order perks in full swing. You’ll find boosted trade-in values and more available now through March 11, when these phones are available on store shelves.
More on Galaxy S26:
- Galaxy S26 series is already a hit, 70% of pre-orders are for Ultra
- Samsung confirms Galaxy S26 series has an 8-bit display following 10-bit confusion
- How to stack Galaxy S26 Ultra discounts and get an extra $50 off
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