Jakarta – Samsung Electronics Indonesia has affirmed that the performance of its newly released Galaxy S26 and S26+ smartphones will rival that of the flagship Galaxy S26 Ultra, despite utilizing different processors. While the S26 Ultra is powered by the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, the standard S26 and S26+ models employ Samsung’s in-house Exynos 2600 chip.
According to Ilham Indrawan, Senior Manager of Product Marketing at Samsung Electronics Indonesia, the Exynos 2600 is built on a 2nm architecture, a more refined process than the 3nm architecture used in the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5. “This chipset can even match the performance of the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, both in single-core and multi-core aspects,” Indrawan stated in Jakarta on Monday.
Indrawan further noted that in certain scenarios, the Exynos 2600 may even outperform its Snapdragon counterpart, particularly in AI processing. “Generating AI – its capability in that area is also very competent,” he added. The smaller chip size, resulting from a denser arrangement of transistors, is expected to contribute to both performance gains and improved power efficiency.
Recent online discussions, including a post by X user @GadgetsBoy, have highlighted the subtle performance differences between the two chips. Benchmark tests present the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy achieving a single-core score of 3,670 and a multi-core score of 10,981. The Exynos 2600-equipped Galaxy S26+, meanwhile, recorded scores of 3,105 for single-core and 10,444 for multi-core.
These results indicate that devices with the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 offer approximately a 10 percent performance advantage over those using the Exynos 2600. In everyday use, this difference may manifest as slightly faster application loading times or responsiveness during light navigation.
However, based on broader benchmark testing, Indrawan maintains that the Galaxy S26 and S26+ deliver competitive performance compared to the top-tier model in the S series. “So, it’s not a different class. This represents a class that is truly on par with the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5,” he asserted.
Samsung began accepting pre-orders for the Galaxy S26 Ultra 1TB model on Tuesday, according to its Indonesian website. Pre-orders for the Galaxy S26 and S26+ 512 GB models also began recently, with promotional offers available. The Galaxy S26 Ultra, featuring the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, was showcased in an unboxing event in Jakarta, with a reported price of Rp 24 juta (approximately $1,560 USD).