Samsung Galaxy S26 Series Said to Feature External Modem on Models With Exynos 2600 SoC

The Samsung Galaxy S26 series of smartphones is expected to be launched by the South Korean tech giant next February, during its next Galaxy Unpacked 2026 event. The lineup is expected to include three models, which could be marketed as the Samsung Galaxy S26, Galaxy S26+, and Galaxy S26 Ultra. Samsung recently released its flagship Exynos 2600 chipset, which is claimed to be the world's first SoC built on a 2nm process. Now, a tipster claims that the latest SoC, which is expected to power the Galaxy S26 series, will feature an external modem.

Samsung Galaxy S26 Series Might Ship With Reduced Power Efficiency

Tipster Erencan Yılmaz (@erenylmaz075) has spotted in an unspecified firmware version that Samsung's flagship Exynos 2600 chipset will feature an external modem, dubbed Shannon 5410. This is unlike the SoC's predecessors, the Exynos 2500 and Exynos 2400, which feature integrated Shannon 5163 and Shannon 5153 modems, respectively.

To support his claims, the leaker pointed out that the two modems, on the Exynos 2500 and Exynos 2400, appeared in the source code with “AP” written next to them, which stands for Application Processor. However, the same was not mentioned next to the Shannon 5410 modem.

Citing an official from the semiconductor design industry, TheElec reports that “generally,” if an OEM places a modem separately, it results in a greater loss of power efficiency in comparison to chips with integrated modems. The publication states that this is due to the increased communication distance between different interfaces. The executive said that Samsung likely decided to equip its phones with an external modem because of the chip size, and not because it has made a “groundbreaking change in interface technology”.

While an external move might reduce the power efficiency on the handsets, previous reports suggest that the South Korean tech giant is planning to equip the Galaxy S26 with a slightly larger battery. The standard model is said to pack a 4,300mAh cell, going up from 4,000mAh on the Galaxy S25. However, the Galaxy S26+ and Galaxy S26 Ultra are expected to be backed by 4,900mAh and 5,000mAh cells, which is the same as their predecessors.

The latest development comes soon after Samsung launched the Exynos 2600 chipset, which it claims is the world's first to be built on a 2nm process. Its current competitors, like Qualcomm and MediaTek, currently offer the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 and Dimensity 9500 chips, both of which use 3nm nodes. The new Samsung chip ships with advanced Gate-All-Around (GAA) technology, integrating the CPU, GPU, and NPU into a single platform. The company claims that this will offer enhanced artificial intelligence (AI) execution and gaming performance.