Samsung has unveiled its new S26 – the first phone that other people can’t see.
The new device includes a host of internal improvements, many focused on artificial intelligence. At its introductory event, Samsung pointed to changes including new chips that make it quicker to generate and edit images with AI, for instance, as well as improved cameras that produce better images and videos in the dark.
But the most notable new change is a built in “Privacy Display” that means other people cannot see what is happening on the phone. It uses precisely pointed pixels to mean that, when the mode is switched on, the display is only readable to people in front of the phone.
That mode can be switched on manually in situations such as busy cafés or buses that might allow people to “shoulder surf” and look at a device. But it can also be used in more specific scenarios: just notifications can be hidden, for instance, or it can switch on when a banking app is opened.
Most of the time, the display works like any other. But when the feature is switched on, the pixels are pointed to a specific viewing angle
The company stressed a host of other privacy features, including a special hidden photo album and hardware tools that encrypt personal data, including that used by the built-in artificial intelligence tools.
Other AI-focused upgrades include the better processors as well as AI included in the camera. Users of the new device will also be able to choose from Samsung’s own Bixby assistant as well as Gemini and Perplexity.
The AI features also mean that the phone can take information from a notification, for instance, and show that to a user. In its introduction, Samsung showed someone being asked about a particular meeting, and having the phone check the calendar for potential conflicts.
The phones are available to order now and will go on sale from 11 March. The S26 starts at £879, while the Plus model starts at £1,099 and the Ultra starts at £1,279.
