A few weeks ago, a report from Korea claimed Samsung revived the Galaxy S26 Plus model for next year’s Galaxy S26 series, as the Galaxy S25 Edge sales were disappointing. Samsung feared the Galaxy S26 Edge would not be able to match Galaxy S25 Plus sales. Samsung had originally planned to discontinue the Plus model next year. That report said Samsung’s Galaxy S26 lineup might feature four handsets: the Galaxy S26, Galaxy S26 Edge, Galaxy S26 Plus, and Galaxy S26 Ultra. A couple of weeks later, Korean-language Newspim claims that Samsung has canceled the Galaxy S26 Edge, even though development is complete.
The Galaxy S25 Edge sold 190,000 units in the first month after launch, the new report claims, citing data from Hana Investment & Securities. During the same period, the Galaxy S25 sold 1.17 million units, the Galaxy S25 Plus sold 840,000 units, and the Galaxy S25 Ultra sold 2.55 million units. By August, Samsung sold only 1.31 million Galaxy S25 Edge units, compared to 8.28 million, 5.05 million, and 12.18 million units for the other three phones.
The report says that Samsung notified employees only recently about its decision to discontinue the Galaxy S26 Edge, catching some by surprise. The report noted that since the Galaxy S26 Edge development is complete, a separate release is theoretically possible.
Galaxy S26 Unpacked launch event set for January
Following the Galaxy S26 Edge cancellation, Newspim notes that Samsung will unveil three phones during its Unpacked event next January, including the Galaxy S26 (Pro), the Galaxy S26 Plus, and Galaxy S26 Ultra. The schedule for the Unpacked 2026 event is consistent with previous years. Samsung usually launches new Galaxy S flagship phones in January or February.
An unnamed Samsung employee told Newspim that the company is embarrassed internally by the sudden Galaxy S26 lineup change with a few months to go until Unpacked. Interestingly, a leaker shared images of a Galaxy S26 Edge dummy unit (see below) recently that suggested development was well underway. An unnamed mobile industry insider told Newspim that Samsung didn’t need an ultra-slim phone but made one because Apple was making one.
Here’s your first look at the Samsung Galaxy S26 dummies, Launching in February, and it looks like Samsung is going with a design very similar to the iPhone 17. pic.twitter.com/z581xHUxph
— Sonny Dickson (@SonnyDickson) September 4, 2025
The Galaxy S26 lineup change is also expected to impact Samsung’s chip orders for the new line. The Galaxy S26 Plus model may come in Exynos 2600 and Snapdragon versions, like the Galaxy S26 model. Initially, the phone was supposed to feature only Qualcomm’s next-generation flagship chip.
