Samsung's cheapest Galaxy S26 got One UI 9 before its priciest one; it's deliberate

Credit: Lucas Gouveia / Android Police By Haroun Adamu Published Sep 15, 2026, 6:00 AM EDT Haroun authors features for Android Police, covering Samsung, Google, and the wider Android ecosystem. He first joined in 2021, cutting his teeth on over 300 news stories before moving on to features and how-tos. A one-time OnePlus die-hard who genuinely couldn't stand Samsung, he's since done a full about-face — he now daily-drives a Galaxy S24 Ultra and keeps an S23+, S22+, and his old S20 within arm's reach, which gives him a lot of hardware to put through its paces. He's a medical doctor with a decade-plus obsession for consumer tech, and his coverage has also appeared on How-To Geek and Android Authority . When he's not buried in Google's apps or a Samsung settings menu, he's trying to get his chess rating past 1500 or playing table tennis/football.