The Galaxy S26 could get smarter noise reduction for cleaner photos

The Galaxy S26 series might not be bringing sweeping camera hardware changes, but a new leak suggests Samsung is boosting the image processing side to improve your photos. According to the latest rumor, the company has adopted a new noise reduction algorithm for the S26 lineup.

The information comes from reliable tipster Ice Universe on X, who says the Galaxy S26 series uses updated processing that eliminates “fault lines in the sky,” resulting in a smoother, more uniform blue. If accurate, that points to fewer visible artifacts or uneven patches in scenes with large areas of flat color, like bright skies.

The leaker also references the rumored 24MP shooting mode, claiming it delivers very high resolution and maintains excellent clarity even when you zoom in after taking the shot. Various prior leaks indicate that Samsung is expected to introduce a 24MP option as a middle ground between standard 12MP photos and full-resolution captures. If this new noise reduction system is part of the same update, it could help the 24MP mode produce cleaner, more natural-looking results than the shooting mode alone would facilitate.

As always, we’ll need to see how this holds up in real-world testing once Samsung makes the Galaxy S26 series official next week. But if you were disappointed by the lack of supposed camera hardware upgrades this year, smarter processing could offer a certain degree of comfort.