Samsung Powering the future with longer-lasting, faster-charging batteries
To be honest, everyone’s biggest complaint about Samsung smartphones—including ardent supporters—is that their batteries are mediocre.
For example, you wouldn’t want to see a 5,000 mAh battery on a handset that starts at $1,300, like the recently announced Galaxy S26 Ultra.
However, given that Samsung is testing silicon-carbon batteries with capacities of 12,000 mAh and 18,000 mAh, a recent report indicates that better times may soon be ahead for Samsung enthusiasts as well.
Samsung phones’ large batteries seem like a dream come true. Allow me to explain why Samsung ships its phones with an average battery capacity before I go into the specifics of the most recent study.
You see, the lithium-ion batteries used in Samsung devices are incredibly dependable and safe.
One major problem with them, though, is that trying to expand their capacity will inevitably make them fatter.
I suppose it would be the last thing the firm would consider doing, given how crucial a slim design has become in contemporary smartphones.
Chinese smartphones presently use silicon-carbon batteries, which have the same form factor as standard lithium-ion batteries but can hold more mAh.
But since it’s still new technology, Samsung doesn’t seem to want to fully commit to it until it has undergone extensive testing.
After the Galaxy Note 7 debacle with exploding phones, the South Korean behemoth must have established extremely stringent guidelines for implementing new technologies, particularly when choosing a new battery technology.
Nevertheless, it appears that Samsung is finally considering the use of silicon-carbon batteries.
According to a recently leaked internal test report on X, batteries with capacities of 12,000 mAh, 18,000 mAh, and 20,000 mAh based on this new technology are apparently undergoing testing.
The 12,000 mAh battery is made up of two stacked cells, one measuring 6,800 mAh (4.7 mm) and the other 5,200 mAh (3.2 mm).
According to the source, the tech giant wants this battery’s total thickness to be less than 9.3 mm. Two of the seven samples tested, however, went over this limit.
Three cells—6,699 mAh (4.2 mm), 6,000 mAh (3.9 mm), and 5,257 mAh (3.28 mm)—are stacked together in the 18,000 mAh battery.
The target thickness for this battery capacity is roughly 12.3 mm. The test samples, however, went over the limit and measured 12.8 mm.
The thermal interface layers between all three cells are said to be the reason for this.
The report also mentions that in order to get the desired thickness, the three cells are being rearranged.
The 20,000 mAh battery has two cells, 12,000 mAh (6.3 mm) and 8,000 mAh (4 mm), although the most recent leak does not specify the battery’s precise cell capacity.
The fact that it allegedly failed after 960 charge cycles is what the latest leak does highlight. For comparison, any contemporary lithium-ion battery can withstand 500–1,000 cycles with ease.
Nevertheless, Samsung anticipates that the remaining two batteries will provide at least 1,500 cycles of charging before reaching an 80% capacity.
No matter how much I appreciate the current Galaxy Ultra model’s improvements, the battery is still subpar for its pricing. In contrast, the OnePlus 15 has a 7300 mAh battery and is about half as expensive as the S26 Ultra.
Additionally, it enables 120W wired charging, which is twice as fast as the new Ultra. According to DCS, a potential super-premium flagship may be under development.
What if I told you that a phone with a Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 Pro chip, a whopping 1TB of UFS 5.0 storage, and 16GB of LPDDR6 RAM is being tested right now? Digital Chat Station claims that such a unicorn is real and may even be in the process of being developed.
Although the well-known leaker doesn’t give any details on what this ambitious gadget might be, some commenters have suggested that the Xiaomi 18 Ultra is a plausible option.
It is definitely a little concerning, according to DCS, because the price of this specific RAM combination would be much higher than that of the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 Pro (SM8975).
The “mega-flagship’s” math: A potential pricing for this upgraded Snapdragon chipset has already been determined by some initial projections.
According to rumors, a single unit produced using TSMC’s 2nm technology might cost $300, or an enormous $30,000 per wafer.
As of this writing, no specific manufacturing cost estimates for LPDDR6 and UFS 5.0 solutions have been made.
However, according to some reports, LPDDR6 RAM may cost 20% more than LPDDR5X, which is thought to cost roughly $18 per gigabyte.
You’re still looking at incredible pricing for the LPDDR6 if LPDDR5X costs don’t increase more, which is a huge “if,” considering that they’re rising even faster than PC DDR5.
A 16GB LPDDR6 RAM option may cost up to $345.
Before you even account for the UFS 5.0 storage, you’re looking at about $650 when you add the purported $300 cost of the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 Pro to the $345 RAM charge.
By the way, it will most likely be the most costly flash memory ever created for a smartphone.
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