Written by 
Even though Samsung’s S series tends to take the spotlight as its primary flagship lineup, the South Korean OEM’s A series sells the most units each year and it’s no surprise why. The series covers more budget price tiers, making it more accessible, without necessarily compromising on specs.
The Samsung Galaxy A25 launched late last year, so we’re getting due for its successor. That will be the Galaxy A26, and if it might be your next device, you’ll be glad to know that renders of the device have just leaked. Unfortunately, this early look at the smartphone shows an unfortunate downgrade.
The Samsung Galaxy A26 Will Have A Mostly Familiar Design; Teardrop Notch Remains
Thanks to the people over at Android Headlines, we have our very first look at the Samsung Galaxy A26. The design of its predecessor was mostly limited by its price—just $300—so as the successor to such a budget device, you shouldn’t expect too much from it.
The Samsung Galaxy A26 has acceptable bezels around the top, left, and right sides, but the bottom bezel looks to be about three times as thick, giving the device a pretty noticeable chin. The selfie camera is housed in a teardrop notch that descends from the top bezel, so if you were expecting an upgrade to a punch-hole this year, it’s not coming. However, that is one thing that would admittedly improve how premium the phone looks.
The device retains its flat sides, with the key island design language remaining intact where the power button and volume rocker are. On the backside is the most noticeable change. The camera setup remains vertical but is now all contained within a single elongated rounded rectangle, instead of individual camera lenses. It’s not too major a change, but I like it more.
Samsung Will Kill Off The Headphone Jack By The Looks Of Things
If you take a good look at the bottom of the Samsung Galaxy A25, you’ll find four notable openings: a speaker opening, the USB-C port, a little microphone inlet, and the 3.5mm headphone jack. It’s a pretty standard setup for the average budget device, as they seem to be the only devices that you can reliably find a headphone jack.
Well, if you take a very good look at the renders for the Samsung Galaxy A26, you’ll see that something is very different at the bottom. The headphone jack just isn’t there. Yep, Samsung will be killing off the headphone jack on this budget device, and that’s sure to be a decision that’s going to come with a lot of heat attached.
Manufacturers have been cooking up excuses as to why they first started getting rid of the 3.5mm port, but I’m wondering what excuse Samsung is going to give in this case. The phone likely won’t have a bigger battery and probably won’t be substantially slimmer. There’s nothing I can think of beyond Samsung trying to crank up its profit margins in every conceivable manner.
If you were considering buying the Galaxy A26, does the loss of the 3.5mm jack change anything for you? Let us know in the comments.