Android Circuit Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra Leaks, Powerful OnePlus 15 Arrives, Xiaomi’s New Flagship Killer

Taking a look back at this week’s news and headlines across the Android world, including Galaxy S26 Ultra leaks, Samsung’s privacy pixels, Snapdragon Summit summary, OnePlus 15 launch, the Magic8’s AI magic, Xiaomi’s flagship killer, and Android on your next PC.

Android Circuit is here to remind you of a few of the many discussions around Android in the last seven days. You can also read my weekly digest of Apple news here on Forbes.

Galaxy S26 Ultra’s Bright New Display

New information from the supply chain points to the latest upgrade Samsung will use for its Galaxy S displays. Yet the Galaxy S26 family will not be the first of Samsung’s premium handsets to use the new OLED material for increased brightness and color reproduction:

“The Galaxy S26 Ultra will reportedly be the first non-foldable phone to adopt the COE technology, which builds the anti-reflective capabilities within the OLED encapsulation layer and eliminates the need for a separate polarizer.”

(SamMobile).

And You Can Hide The Display As Well

That might not be the biggest headline for the Galaxy S26 Ultra, though. Demoed at Mobile World Congress 2024, Samsung may be set to introduce a new privacy mode on its flagship handset. Tucked away in the code for OneUI 8.5 are the hooks to switch the pixels on and activate privacy mode:

“As the feature description notes, the Privacy Display/Private Display feature will limit screen visibility from side angles to protect user privacy in public… we learn from the strings that when the setting is enabled, the Private Display feature will automatically kick in when users use sensitive apps in crowded places.

(Android Authority).

Here Be Faster And More Powerful Dragons

Almost all the news this week comes from Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Summit, featuring a range of new silicon, handsets, and software. Mike Robuck picks up the details on Qualcomm’s latest chipsets, you’ll no doubt be hearing about over the next year of releases, including the top of the tree 8 Elite:

“At the summit, Qualcomm unveiled the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset which is its latest flagship SoC. The Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 follows on last year’s Snapdragon 8 Elite SoC but under a new branding scheme. It comes equipped with a third-generation Oryon CPU with boosted single- and multi-core performance.”

(Mobile World Live).

OnePlus 15 Launched And Heading Stateside

OnePlus has confirmed the upcoming release of the OnePlus 15, which will be one of the first smartphones to utilise Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5. The global version of the OnePlus 15 is expected to be released in late October in China. Crucially, this will include a US release in the first wave, expected in November:

“In the US, the OnePlus 15 will be the first model after OnePlus and Hasselblad ended their 5-year partnership. There are still lots we don’t know about the OnePlus 15, including how the company might take advantage of the new Snapdragon chip features. But this marks a new chapter for the company.:

(CNet).

The Magic Inside The Magic8

While we wait for the global launch of the Magic8 series, Honor took to the stage at the Snapdragon Summit to talk about its approach to AI for 2026. This includes a new mix of semantic- and keyword-search on the phone, and a new compressed large AI module. Between them and their practical demos, Honor is signalling where it wants mobile AI to go:

“With the launch of the Magic8 series, Honor is making a statement that it is working on more than adding AI features. Through the partnership with Qualcomm, it is reworking the core engineering of its smartphones. The efficiency of AI onboard the Magic smartphones and tablets is focused on bringing near-instantaneous personalized results to consumers while maintaining their privacy.”

(Forbes).

Xiaomi Prepares New Flagships By Launching Flagship Killers

Next week, Xiaomi is expected to launch the flagship Xiaomi 17 family of smartphones, with Qualcomm’s latest chipset. This week, Xiaomi has launched a pair of “flagship killer” smartphones, with specs that are close enough to the top tier while still delivering value for money. But do you want the 15T or the 15T Pro?

That the Xiaomi 15T is so similar to the 15T Pro is a win for Xiaomi; no matter which phone you choose, you’ll be getting a large high-end screen, strong battery life, a triple rear camera, and Xiaomi’s latest software. That said, small benefits – such as the Pro’s slimmer bezels, faster 165Hz refresh rate, improved zoom lens, faster charging, and flagship processing power – do still make the Pro stand out.”

(Trusted Reviews).

And Finally…

What happens when you merge Android and ChromeOS? Google is looking to do just that and create a new class of PC. Teasing the device at Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Summit (where the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset, a likely target of the OS, was revealed), Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon talked about the partnership between the two companies:

“In the past, we’ve always had very different systems between what we’re building on PCs and what we’re building on smartphones, and we’ve embarked on a project to combine that,” Osterloh said. “ We are building together a common technical foundation for our products on PCs and desktop computing systems.”

(The Verge).

Android Circuit rounds up the news from the Android world every weekend here on Forbes. Don’t forget to follow me so you don’t miss any coverage in the future, and of course, read the sister column in Apple Loop! Last week’s Android Circuit can be found here, and if you have any news and links you’d like to see featured in Android Circuit, get in touch!

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