Not too long ago, rumours of a new Privacy Display functionality for the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra emerged. Aside from detailing what the tech will be able to do, the leaks revealed an animation showing it in action. Now, the company has confirmed the feature’s existence.
Touted as a “new front line for privacy”, it serves to keep others from snooping on you while you’re using your phone in public spaces. For those who have been keeping up with the leaks, much of this sounds familiar. Still, it’s nice to see the leaks validated.
What does it do?
Basically, the feature is like a built-in privacy screen protector. Users can look at the display head-on and see its contents as usual, while onlookers viewing at an angle will see a black screen. The brand’s announcement is short on details, but it does mention some of the applications, such as keeping PINs and passwords hidden. Aside from that, users will be able to control the visibility of notification pop-ups. In this case, only the notification is blacked out, as demonstrated by leakster @UniverseIce on X.
Naturally, Samsung has designed the feature to be flexible, with customisable settings to suit each individual’s needs. According to the brand, users will be able to set it to guard specific apps, or when keying in access details for private areas. Beyond that, the feature promises multiple settings to adjust visibility, allowing the user control over what others may see.
It may debut with the Galaxy S26 Ultra
As for how it works, Samsung did not offer much in the way of an explanation. Rather, the company only described it as a “fusion of hardware and software”, which was developed and tested over more than five years. This description does line up with the Flex Magic Pixel technology showcased at MWC 2024.
The hardware aspect suggests that it is unlikely for Samsung to introduce this feature to its older phones. And of course, Galaxy AI is reserved for the brand’s flagship devices. While the announcement does not specify which smartphone will be getting the feature, past leaks have claimed that it will be exclusive to the Galaxy S26 Ultra. It is uncertain whether the other members of the lineup will gain this functionality.
On one hand, keeping the Privacy Display just for the top-of-the-line Ultra variant would further highlight its premium status. And in the modern era, such functionality is more than welcome, given the privacy concerns. However, how it stacks up in practical day-to-day use still remains to be seen.
As it stands, this seems to be the one of the more exciting details for the upcoming device, as the other leaks have not been encouraging. In any case, we will have to wait until the phone (and the feature) makes its debut.
(Source: Samsung [Newsroom], @UniverseIce via X)
