Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra will feature a smarter privacy display than expected

Leaks have already detailed one of Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra’s standout features: Privacy Display. It will mask the display’s content when viewed from off-angles to protect your privacy. Samsung itself has teased the display upgrade as part of the S26 Ultra’s first official preview, confirming its arrival. And as it turns out, the company’s implementation of Privacy Display will be much better than initially assumed.

So far, based on leaks, it appears that with Privacy display enabled, the Galaxy S26 Ultra’s OLED panel will be less visible when viewed from side angles. This will help keep your sensitive information safe from prying eyes, especially in public. The feature can reportedly be enabled on a per-app basis, automatically activating when you open sensitive apps like banking services or your password manager.

Until now, it seemed like the S26 Ultra would mask the entire display’s content with Privacy display enabled. However, Samsung’s teaser video and announcement confirm this will not be the case. The company will allow applying privacy protection to specific notifications or part of the screen, while the rest of the screen remains fully visible.

Samsung’s third teaser video further reinforces this approach by showing a notification being selectively masked, rather than the entire display. The company also highlights this in its announcement, noting: “You can also choose to protect specific parts of your experience, such as notification pop-ups. It’s a tailored approach that you can fine-tune or switch off entirely, rather than a blanket one.”

So, it’s clear that Privacy display on the Galaxy S26 Ultra will provide far more granular controls than initially expected. However, it’s unclear if Samsung will limit the selective masking to notifications or extend it to other on-screen elements, such as widgets and parts of system UI.

The Galaxy S26 Ultra will set a new display benchmark

Whatever the case might be, Privacy display is shaping up to be one of Galaxy S26 Ultra’s compelling features. It will help Samsung further extend its lead in the display department over the iPhone and other Android rivals.

Previous Galaxy Ultra flagships already stand out for their anti-reflective coating, which Apple only got around to copying with the iPhone 17 last year. And so far, no other Android phone comes with an anti-reflective coating — let alone a privacy-focused feature that can mask the display’s content.