When the iPhone 17 series launches next week, Apple’s biggest rivals might mock the iPhone maker for copying some of their designs. Google could say the horizontal camera bar on the back of the iPhone 17 Air and iPhone 17 Pros is a copy of the Pixel’s camera module. Samsung might say it launched an ultra-thin phone before Apple in the form of the Galaxy S25 Edge.
The copycat accusations can go the other way around, of course. Google used the iPhone’s design and features as inspiration for the Pixel for years. Samsung’s Galaxy S25 Edge might not have been such a high priority without rumors swirling about an ultra-thin iPhone 17 Air. Put differently, every company in the industry looks to competitors for inspiration, and the image you’re about to see proves that point.
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
Well-known insider Sonny Dickson posted a photo on X that shows purported dummy units for the Galaxy S26, Galaxy S26 Edge, and Galaxy S26 Ultra. The three phones will likely be unveiled in January, so the dummy units in the picture above are probably based on the final designs for the three phones.
The dummy phone in the middle is the Galaxy S26 Edge, Samsung’s next-generation ultra-thin smartphone that will replace the Galaxy S Plus model in the Galaxy S26 lineup. The large, horizontal camera bar at the top looks almost identical to the camera bar Apple designed for the iPhone 17 Pros. However, the image also shows off two other big changes coming to Galaxy S designs that fans will appreciate.
Three design innovations coming to Galaxy S26
Rumors that preceded Dickson’s leak suggested that the Galaxy S26 Edge would feature a larger battery than its predecessor as well as a thinner body. Separately, Samsung’s current Galaxy S25 Edge model features two camera lenses on the back. The iPhone 17 Air will have just one camera inside a horizontal camera bar, based on the latest rumors. Giving the Galaxy S26 Edge an elongated camera bar on the back may reduce wobbling when the phone is placed on a table.
Insider UniverseIce reacted to the Galaxy S26 dummy units in the image above, speculating that Samsung will use the larger horizontal camera bar to move some internal components upwards so it can maximize battery capacity. If that’s accurate, it would be a great idea from Samsung, even if it has to defend its decision to follow Apple’s lead once again.
The second major design detail in Dickson’s image concerns all three Galaxy S26 models. They all feature circular rings on the back that indicate the Galaxy S26 will be Samsung’s first flagship series to embrace magnetic wireless charging (the Qi2 standard). That’s been a staple of the iPhone design for a few years, as Apple was the first to introduce MagSafe wireless charging. Google’s Pixel 10 phones also feature Qi2 wireless charging, which the company has branded as Pixelsnap.
— Sonny Dickson (@SonnyDickson) September 5, 2025
Finally, the third important design detail concerns the larger Galaxy S26 Ultra. Previous rumors said the Galaxy S26 Ultra would feature rounder corners than its predecessors, and Dickson’s image seems to confirm that. All three phones feature the same corner curvature, which is great news for fans of the Ultra line. The Galaxy S26 Ultra should be even more comfortable to hold than the previous generations.
