Samsung’s Fan Edition has had a pretty good reputation so far. The idea is to celebrate fans (us, the customers) with specifications and features found in Samsung’s top-tier flagships, but at a more affordable price point so more people can experience them.
The S25 FE was a decent iteration in the lineup. It struck the perfect balance between accessibility and a flagship-like look and feel, which is the entire point of the Fan Edition. However, in my frank opinion, the new Galaxy S26 FE doesn’t really belong in that special zone, and yet again, it’s the unforgiving memory crisis at play.
The Fan Edition used to get this balance right
This year, the S26 FE starts at $699, $50 higher than the S25 FE’s launch price, and that’s for the baseline variant with 128GB of storage. Personally, I don’t appreciate what’s happening here, and for two good reasons, no less. First, it comes with 128GB as base storage in 2026. You could argue it’s not a flagship, but I’d counter that it’s not a cheap phone either, and that’s my second point as well.
At $699, the Galaxy S26 FE is only $100 or $200 away from entry-level flagship phones. Someone could also offer a rather innocent response: just upgrade to the 256GB variant. Well, guess what? The Galaxy S26 FE’s 256GB costs $799. At that price, the phone isn’t far from flagship territory; it’s already there, and it’s there with a weaker case for itself, both in hardware and software.
At $799, the S26 FE isn’t competing against Fan Editions but flagships
Let me give you a few examples. For the first one, I’d like to consider Samsung’s Galaxy S26, the baseline flagship with a pocketable and lightweight form factor. It’s one of the only true compact flagships in 2026, and the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy alone justifies choosing it over the S26 FE.
Whether it’s multitasking, gaming on higher graphics settings, editing videos on the go, heat management, or simply using the Galaxy AI features, the Snapdragon chip on the Galaxy S26 is the better and more reliable choice than the Exynos 2500 on the S26 FE, especially if you plan on using your phone for a good three to four years.
What else? The flagship offers a better telephoto camera (both in megapixels and sensor size), a brighter display for better legibility in direct sunlight, and more RAM in the base variant to hold more apps in the background. All of that, and you can get the baseline Galaxy S26 at $799 right now, which is basically the same price as the S26 FE’s 256GB variant.
The Galaxy S26 and iPhone 17 make the FE harder to justify
Even Apple’s baseline iPhone 17 is also available at $799. The compact flagship also offers a brighter display, faster chipset, a higher-resolution ultrawide camera, an entirely unique selfie experience not available on any other smartphone for now (natively), and unmatched battery efficiency. Of course, it runs on iOS 26 and lives in an entirely different ecosystem, but it’s important to know what all options you have for the same price.
The only immediate compromise you’ll make, if at all, when you consider the Galaxy S26 or the iPhone 17, is screen size. However, having used the iPhone 17 for almost a year now, I can say with confidence that it isn’t difficult to consume content or even binge it on the device. If you’re willing to settle for a smaller screen, you’ll get much more value for your money in the form of a flagship that will treat you better and last longer.