Aamir Siddiqui / Android Authority
TL;DR
- Leaked EU labels indicate the Galaxy S26 series is more energy-efficient and lasts longer per charge than the S25.
- All models seem to have earned an A rating for free-fall reliability, but they still have a disappointing C rating for repairability.
- The battery health rating has seemingly dropped to 1,200 charge cycles, down from the Galaxy S25’s 2,000-cycle standard.
The Samsung Galaxy S26 series is just a day away, and as expected, more information keeps trickling out for the phones. A YouTuber already got their hands on a retail unit, giving us a look at the Galaxy S26 Ultra’s Privacy Display feature and confirming some bad news for the S Pen. Now, EU labels for the Galaxy S26 series have leaked, giving us an idea of how these phones compare to their predecessors on several key metrics.
Ytechb has gotten their hands on the EU labels for the Galaxy S26 series, revealing key metrics such as energy efficiency, battery endurance per cycle, repairability class, and more.
According to the report, all three Galaxy S26 phones feature A-class energy efficiency, making them among the most energy-efficient smartphones. They are also all rated A for repeated free-fall reliability, though their repairability class is a disappointing C — so while dropping your phone won’t always result in critical damage, you’d still need to be careful, as repairing it will be a bit of a chore.
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All three phones also have an IP68 rating for dust and water resistance, meaning they are fully dust-tight and can survive being submerged in up to 3m of fresh water for at least 30 minutes (phone manufacturers can go above and beyond this limit, but this is what the certification means). The Galaxy S26 series is also rated for 1200 charge cycles, meaning its battery will drop to 80% health only after 1200 charge cycles.
The final piece of information here is the battery endurance per cycle. The Galaxy S26 lasted 51 hours in the EU-standardized battery test, and the EU product information sheet states that the phone has a 4,175mAh battery. Meanwhile, the Galaxy S26 Plus and Galaxy S26 Ultra lasted 55 hours on their 4,755mAh and 4,855mAh batteries, respectively.
How does the Galaxy S26 series compare to the Galaxy S25 series?
If the leaked EU energy labels are correct, the Galaxy S26 series appears to be much more battery-efficient than the Galaxy S25 series. This is most evident in the battery endurance per cycle, as the Galaxy S26 series is said to last much longer on a single charge.
However, there is one sign of concern. The battery health rating seems like a big downgrade, as the Galaxy S25 series (and other Samsung phones) were best-in-class, with their battery health dropping to 80% only after 2,000 charge cycles. I am a bit skeptical because the EU energy labels are not yet live, so the information in these pre-release labels may potentially be incorrect.
The rest of the ratings are the same year-on-year.
We’ll have to wait until tomorrow for the air to clear around these energy labels. It’s not a long wait, but do watch out for this information if you plan to buy and use the Galaxy S26 series for a long time.
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