The year 2026 is approaching, but for smartphone enthusiasts it is ending on a bittersweet note. Apple delivered one of its strongest entry-level phones of the year with the iPhone 17, while the iPhone 17 Pro represented the biggest upgrade we’ve seen on a flagship from the brand in years.
Google’s Pixel 10 did even better, while the Pixel 10 Pro turned out to be the most sophisticated AI-first phone on the market. Samsung hit the jackpot with the Galaxy Z Fold 7 and even supersized the foldable formula with the Galaxy Z TriFold. AI was a clear sign that the way we interact with smartphones will radically change.
Not every smartphone user is happy with the change as some of the AI injections are really sloppy. And let’s not forget how it plunged the hardware industry into a memory crisis (read: price crisis). A lot has changed, but next year is going to be wild. Based on the industry’s trajectory so far, here are some of my smartphone predictions, some of which I hope don’t come true.
Here comes the hike
Thanks to the relentless hunger for more computing power and data centers, the AI industry has choked the storage supply chain. Micron has announced that it will no longer sell RAM and SSDs to consumers under the Crucial brand to meet the needs of AI gamers. Companies like Samsung and SK Hynix are also changing course while making record profits.
The PC industry has spiraled due to the rapid rise in the price of memory modules, but smartphones are also gaining momentum. Chinese smartphone giants are curbing their RAM purchases due to a sharp 50% price hike in the market. Xiaomi is reportedly planning to reduce the RAM capacity of its phones.
To be fair, it’s a no-win situation. On the one hand, you need more RAM for AI processes, especially those running on the device. And with AI seen as a key advantage, most smartphone brands will want to move forward. But if they do, they have no choice but to increase the asking price.
It is known that Chinese brands can absorb rising component prices to some extent, but global brands such as Samsung and Apple may not. These two have better supply chain leverage and will weather the storm for a while, but otherwise there is little viable alternative other than a price increase. It has already started in markets like India, and the impact will soon be felt elsewhere.
Big, bigger and crazy battery
2025 was the year that massive batteries finally went from novelty to mainstream. OnePlus has raised the bar with a 7,300mAh battery in its latest flagship, while its sister brand went a step further and equipped the Oppo Find X9 Pro flagship with a massive 7,500mAh device. That’s a massive 50% jump compared to the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra.
A OnePlus phone with a massive 9,000mAh battery has just leaked, while Honor has already started selling a Win series smartphone with an incredible 10,000mAh battery. Realme, on the other hand, has already introduced a working phone with an even larger 15,000 mAh battery.
Of course, battery technology had advanced dramatically, allowing engineers to develop denser, higher-performance batteries without making the phone look like a brick. Will international brands like Samsung or Apple adopt it? Very likely, and not just because they want to outdo the competition.
Samsung is already at the forefront of foldable phones and it’s imperative for the brand to finally experiment with an advanced technology stack like a silicon-carbon battery. Folding phones require a larger battery to power two displays. The race has already started.
Honor has created a foldable phone that’s just 8.8mm wide but still packs a 5,820mAh battery with fast charging thanks to silicon-carbon battery technology. I expect the big players to finally adopt this technology in their slab and foldable phones next year.
AI goes deeper and further
AI has dramatically changed the software experience on smartphones, and there’s no other device that does it better than the Pixel 10 series. No, I’m not talking about gimmicks like creating AI videos. I’m talking about the meaningful benefits.
The pixels can listen to your calls and read messages in real time, detect signs of fraud and alert users. Magic Cue, Live Transcription, Gemini’s World Awareness and Pro Res Zoom offer a glimpse into a future where AI proactively works for you.
The AI-powered smart storage called Mind Space on OnePlus phones is another extremely useful trick. Nothing, on the other hand, now offers a text-to-app system that allows users to create mini-apps by simply describing them. These apps can be shared and remixed openly, just like you build web apps with Google Opal.
The overarching idea is to give users the power to build the apps they’ve always wanted and own as much of the smartphone experience as possible. At the same time, AI will go deeper into apps, allowing users to do their work in apps using voice commands without ever having to open those apps.
Gemini already handles Google’s own apps and even third-party tools like WhatsApp. The Google AI Edge SDK allows developers to leverage on-device Gemini Nano functionality in their apps, allowing users to drive AI interactions even without an internet connection.
Apple’s Foundation Model Framework also offers something similar for developers. And let’s not forget: Siri’s AI brain transplant is likely to happen this year, finally putting her in the same league as Gemini and ChatGPT. The bigger theme is that more AI interactions will take place on the device to ensure your data never leaves the device.
Speaking of ChatGPT, there’s now a dedicated app store where you can link OpenAI’s chatbot to dozens of apps and complete tasks without ever having to open those apps. I recently experimented with a number of these and was quite impressed by the sheer convenience.
End notes
In 2025, super-slim phones returned. Samsung started the race with the Galaxy S25 Edge, followed by the iPhone Air and eventually smaller labels like Motorola followed in its footsteps. However, it appears that this trend was short-lived.
Samsung is said to have canceled the Galaxy S26 Edge, while Apple has reportedly pushed a sequel further into the future due to the iPhone Air’s lukewarm reception. Interestingly, no major brand from China has tried to copy the ultra-thin phone formula, and supply chain analysts also believe that this won’t change anytime soon.
At the end of the spectrum, foldable phones will peak next year. The foldable iPhone is reportedly set to launch next year, while Samsung is also reportedly planning a larger format foldable phone. The Galaxy Z TriFold has also made its way onto the market, offering a taste of hybrid phones that really enter the tablet category.
I’m more fascinated by the camera innovations. Apple is reportedly planning variable aperture technology for the iPhone 18 Pro. Xiaomi’s 17 Ultra brought the idea of huge 200-megapixel zoom cameras into the mainstream, but sticks with a huge 1-inch main sensor.
The upcoming Oppo Find is reportedly developing Samsung’s own ISOCELL camera sensors with a 1-inch format and a whopping 440-megapixel resolution.
It seems the megapixel race is back in vogue, as is the battle for zoom supremacy. You can expect fireworks in smartphone imaging capabilities, while Google will most likely raise the bar with more AI-powered solutions. Let’s just hope that the almost inevitable price increase due to AI doesn’t lead to a heavy tax on other smartphone innovations.
