I turned my old Samsung Galaxy into a $200 smart home hub, and it replaced three separate devices
It does more than I expected it to do
In October 2026, Samsung announced price increases of $100 or more on its latest-generation flagship smartphones, the Galaxy S26 line. This follows a trend where gadgets with memory, such as laptops, smartphones, and gaming consoles, have seen price hikes. The increase is due to a shortage of memory components caused by a multi-trillion-dollar AI infrastructure spending spree.
The S26 and S26 Plus were already pricier at launch compared to their S25 counterparts. The new prices for the Galaxy S26 are: 256GB model at $999.99, the 256GB Galaxy S26 Plus at $1,199.99, and the 256GB Galaxy S26 Ultra at $1,399.99. The 1TB version of the S26 Ultra saw a $200 increase. However, the Samsung Galaxy S26 FE, announced on September 3, remains unaffected by these price hikes and will be released on October 5, starting at $699.
Amazon offers deals such as a $100 discount on the Galaxy S26 Ultra in white and a base model S26 at its original price in certain colors. Mobile carriers like Verizon and T-Mobile often provide up to $1,000 off new phones with specific plans or trade-ins.
Written by urgent.news from Mashable's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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