Galaxy S26 Ultra to not have titanium? New leak hints at material change

Samsung could follow Apple's footsteps in letting go of titanium. Here are the details.

After Apple, Samsung could indeed be another brand to change the core materials used in its flagship phones. As per the latest leaks, tipster Ice Universe on X, formerly known as Twitter, hints that the Galaxy S26 Ultra could move away from titanium and go back to aluminium or another metal, similar to what Apple did with the iPhone 17 Pro models.

Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra likely to come with major design changes. (Aishwarya Panda-HT)

By Shaurya Sharma

Shaurya Sharma is the Technology Editor at Hindustan Times Digital Streams, where he oversees technology coverage across digital and social platforms. With over eight years of experience across editorial, video production, and digital media, his work focuses on smartphones, AI, consumer gadgets, and shaping audience-first content strategies for modern tech consumers.

He began his career in 2018 as a fashion cinematographer before turning his lifelong passion for technology into a profession. From spending his childhood immersed in tech magazines, video games, and the latest gadgets to covering the global consumer tech industry today, technology has remained a constant throughout his journey.

Over the years, Shaurya has worked with some of India’s leading media organisations, including CNN-News18, Sportskeeda, and Guiding Tech, where he led video initiatives that combined strong editorial storytelling with engaging visual and social-first execution.

A graduate in Journalism and Mass Communication from Manipal University, Shaurya has reviewed hundreds of products across categories including smartphones, laptops, gaming consoles, cameras, and wearables. Beyond work, he is passionate about animal welfare, environmental causes, and automobiles, particularly turbo-petrol cars

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Ice Universe has mentioned that the S26 Ultra could be offered in colourways including Black Shadow, White Shadow, Galatial Blue, and Ultraviolet. He also points out that these names are no longer labelled as “Titanium”, which clearly implies that titanium could be phased out in favour of another material.

Now, if you think about it in terms of rigidity and how premium the material feels, titanium is certainly more premium and durable than aluminium. However, it is currently unclear, and reports do not definitively suggest that aluminium is indeed coming to the S26 Ultra. This remains up in the air for now. That said, we can still talk about the advantages aluminium has over titanium, at least based on what brands have communicated in the recent past.

Advantages of aluminum

Firstly, according to Apple, switching to aluminium for the iPhone 17 Pro models has significantly improved thermal performance, something we have experienced first-hand as well. The iPhone 17 Pro barely gets hot, whereas titanium models like the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro before it did tend to heat up. So, improved thermals could be one clear benefit if Samsung decides to move back to aluminium.

Another important point is cost. Manufacturing phones with aluminium is considerably cheaper compared to titanium, which is a far more expensive material. Recently, we have also heard rumours about Samsung pricing the Galaxy S26 series aggressively, especially considering that Apple did not increase prices for the iPhone 17 lineup. Switching to aluminium could be Samsung’s way of keeping costs under control, which could ultimately be easier on consumers’ pockets in the long run.

That said, these are still rumours at this stage, and we are merely exploring possibilities. All of this should be taken with a pinch of salt.

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