It’s no secret that Samsung didn’t give the Galaxy S26 or Galaxy S26 Plus the camera upgrade that these models desperately needed. Buyers of the base or mid-sized Galaxy S26 model are probably a little jealous of the Galaxy S26 Ultra, which was already miles ahead and still received main and telephoto camera upgrades. Still, if you have any of the three Galaxy S26 variants, you get the benefit of exclusive camera software features you won’t get anywhere else.
Since these tools are hidden out of the way, you may miss their functionality if you don’t specifically look for them. One requires the extra step of downloading the Camera Assistant app to unlock, and the other is enabled by pressing an easily-missed button in the camera app. To get the most from your Galaxy S26 phone, you’ll need to make use of these three new camera features – and they’ll work on every model.
Use the new 24MP camera mode
Samsung phones feature high-resolution camera sensors – the Galaxy S26 and Galaxy S26 Plus have a 50MP main camera, while the Galaxy S26 Ultra has a 200MP primary shooter. However, none of these cameras capture photos in their highest possible resolution by default. It is so called because a technique is used Pixel binning can improve image quality at lower resolutions such as 12MP. Thus, you can get 12MP photos with better detail and smaller file size than full-resolution 50MP or 200MP captures.
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For years, the options were 12MP, 50MP, or 200MP (on supported models). Starting with the Galaxy S26 series, there is a new option. You can choose to take photos in 24MP resolution to get the best of both worlds. It’s closer to 50MP in terms of raw resolution, and also retains some of the aspects of 12MP shooting that make it attractive, like fast shutter times and manageable file sizes.
It also maximizes Samsung’s computational photography and image processing workflow. The new 24MP capture mode uses the AI ​​Fusion process that “delivers 12MP usability and 50MP quality through an AI-based convergence solution,” as the company explains in a press release. Forum post.
One problem is that it’s not easy to enable, but it’s worth anything to take 24MP photos. To do this, download the Camera Assistant app from the Galaxy Store. This will add an additional settings page to the regular camera app settings that you can find in the Settings app. open settingsnavigate to camera app settingstap more camera assistant. Then, search Advanced resolution options and flip the toggle next to 24MP resolution.
Now, you’ll be able to toggle between 12MP, 24MP, and 50MP/200MP in the viewfinder of the main camera app. This is the best way to strike a balance between resolution, detail, speed and efficiency when shooting with the Galaxy S26 series.
Try Horizontal Lock Video Mode
Perhaps the best camera feature of the Galaxy S26 Horizontal lock, and it’s available on every model. It stabilizes the video during recording to allow 360-degree rotation. Essentially, you can enable Horizon Lock in video mode on your Galaxy S26 and start shooting. Then, you can turn your phone in any direction – even upside down – and your video recording will still appear right side up, with the horizon locked.
In the real world, horizontal lock is ideal for action videos. If you want to record your daily jog or bike ride, use horizontal lock to keep a steady and steady shot throughout the activity. It is an evolution of the original Samsung camera stabilization feature Super Steady.
To use it, open camera app and switch to video mode. Then, tap super stable The icon, which resembles a small person running and is located near the top-right corner of the screen. Then, tap Super stable with horizontal lock In the new menu that appears. This icon appears as a small person running inside a box. After enabling it, you can start recording and rotate your phone in any direction or angle while taking still shots.
After taking a photo, you can edit it in the Samsung Gallery app using Photo Assist. This is a great way to overcome lighting or framing challenges that you can’t solve with the camera app in real time. This is how Photo Assist works To help me edit photos in Google Photos and ask. You can use natural-language prompts to describe how you want to edit an image, and Samsung’s Generative AI will make the changes you want using the appropriate tools.
To use it, open a photo in samsung gallery app tap more photo support icon. It’s the button with three AI sparkles in the center of the toolbar. Then, tap the text box titled tell me what needs to change. Type a prompt telling Photo Assist the things you want to change and then hit Yield. Wait for the image to process, and you’ll have a completely fresh photo.
Photo Assist also works with multimodal guidance. In addition to text, you can add pictures or sketches over the original image to help illustrate the changes you want to make. Finally, you can tap save copy Or keep editing Continue editing the photo until you are satisfied with the results.
I still wish Samsung would pay more attention to the base and Plus models this year, especially where the cameras are concerned. However, the Galaxy S26 series offers notable camera improvements that make up for the lack of an upgrade a bit.
The 24MP shooting mode is a favorable middle ground in quality between the classic 12MP and 50MP/200MP modes, while Horizontal Lock is a video trick that sounds too good to be true. Use Photo Assist for convenient editing after taking a photo, and the Galaxy S26 series has a surprisingly impressive camera software suite.
Superior Software
Despite the lack of Samsung Galaxy S26 hardware upgrades, the software experience has been significantly improved. On the camera side, you get a 24MP shooting mode, a horizontal lock feature, and a Photo Assist photo editing tool. This is in addition to all the other One UI 8.5, Galaxy AI, and Gemini features.
