According to a source, the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra will introduce new facial recognition technology when it is launched by the company. Currently, even Samsung’s flagship smartphones don’t have a dedicated sensor, compared to Apple’s Face ID, which works with a TrueDepth camera and additional sensors. Face ID has remained the gold standard for facial recognition technology on mobile devices for nearly eight years, but that could soon change as a report now claims that Samsung is working on a Face ID competitor that could appear on the Galaxy S26 Ultra.
Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra or Galaxy S26 Ultra may have PolarID
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), whistleblower Haizaki Ryohei suggested that Samsung may be developing a new facial recognition technology called PolarID. According to the claims, the technology has reached the pre-market stage, meaning it could be ready to ship alongside smartphones.
According to the advisor, PolarID does not require special sensors for facial recognition. Instead, it relies on a Snapdragon chipset along with the capabilities of Samsung LSI, the division that develops core semiconductors. Additionally, it would allow Samsung to keep the same punch design without having to add additional sensors.
It is not possible to use this technology in S25U. It will be in S26U. The reason is that Samsung is slowly innovating to follow Apple, and to prove it they were able to do 50mp 3x in the S24U instead of the S25U, all to save money it seems. https://t.co/lyGID3kDqA
— Sawyer Galox (@Sawyergalox) June 8, 2024
It is also speculated that the ISOCELL Vizion 931, a global shutter image sensor that provides accurate motion tracking, could be ready for production and used on the Galaxy S25 Ultra. Ryouhei also stated that PolarID will be “even more secure” than Face ID, stressing that it will be better than other facial recognition technologies.
However, another whistleblower named Sawyer Galoks disputed these claims, suggesting that the technology is not ready yet and could only be used in the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra, which is believed to be launched in early 2026.
“The reason is that Samsung is slowly innovating to follow Apple and to prove it they were able to put 50MP 3x in the S24U instead of the S25U and it looks like it’s all to save money,” the tipster claimed in the post X.
