The next Galaxy flagship almost shipped with a very familiar camera trick. According to multiple reports, Samsung seriously explored adding a dedicated camera button to the Galaxy S26 family, closely mirroring the hardware control that arrived with recent iPhone models. The feature did not survive to the final design, but the work behind it reveals how aggressively Samsung is weighing photography hardware against design risk.
The abandoned control would have echoed the iPhone’s controversial camera key, promising faster access to shooting and more precise framing for serious photographers. Instead, Samsung appears to be doubling down on image processing and resolution tweaks, positioning the Galaxy S26 as a rival that leans on software and sensor tuning rather than a bold new physical control.
Samsung’s near-miss with an iPhone-style camera key
Samsung is preparing the next Galaxy S series for launch, and behind the scenes the company went further than expected in testing a dedicated camera control. A former employee at a Samsung supplier has said they worked on a new camera button tied directly to the Galaxy S26 hardware, suggesting this was more than a casual experiment and that Samsung, at least for a time, was ready to follow Apple’s lead on physical camera controls. That account describes a feature that was scoped for production before being cut late in development, which fits with how closely the Galaxy S line usually tracks Apple’s biggest hardware swings.
The same source described a button with swipe gesture functionality, designed to handle zoom and other camera controls without forcing users back to the touchscreen, which would have made the Galaxy S26 feel closer to a compact camera than a typical phone. Reporting on how Samsung almost copied Apple’s camera button indicates that this control was conceived as a direct response to the iPhone’s hardware key, not just a generic shutter shortcut. In other words, the Galaxy team appears to have seriously considered putting a dedicated camera trigger on the frame, then pulled back only after the design was mature enough to leak.
What the Camera Control button would have meant for Galaxy shooters
The iPhone’s camera key has divided users, but it has also changed how quickly people can get from pocket to shot, and Samsung’s version was reportedly meant to deliver the same kind of immediacy. The Samsung Galaxy S26 was said to be in line for a Camera Control button that would launch the camera, lock focus, and fire the shutter with a half-press and full-press style interaction, echoing the behavior of dedicated cameras and recent iPhone models. For photographers who treat their phone as their primary body, that kind of tactile control can be the difference between catching a fleeting expression and missing it while hunting for an on-screen icon.
Reports suggest the Camera Control idea did not stop at a simple click, but also included gesture-based actions along the button’s surface, which would have allowed users to adjust zoom or switch modes with a thumb swipe while keeping the phone steady. That concept aligns with descriptions of a Galaxy S26 camera key that was meant to rival the iPhone 16 series and the latest iPhone 17 hardware, and even nods to the two-stage shutter buttons that have long appeared on many of Sony’s Xperia flagships. The suggestion that The Samsung Galaxy S26 might adopt a similar control shows how seriously Samsung weighed the needs of enthusiasts who want a phone that behaves more like a dedicated camera in hand.
Why Samsung backed away from the hardware copy
Despite the advanced work on the camera key, Samsung ultimately appears to have decided that the trade-offs were not worth it. A dedicated button takes up valuable space along the frame, complicates water resistance, and can force compromises in antenna layout or battery packaging, all of which are critical in a tightly packed flagship. One report notes that Samsung is gearing up to launch the new Galaxy S series with a focus on design, performance, and AI features, and that the company chose to spend its engineering resources elsewhere rather than lock in a controversial hardware change that might not appeal to every buyer.
The decision also reflects a broader pattern in which Apple and Samsung borrow from each other selectively rather than reflexively mirroring every move. Coverage of how Apple and Samsung have traded ideas over the years notes that both companies have copied features and then quietly walked some of them back when they did not land. In this case, Samsung seems to have concluded that the iPhone-style camera key was too divisive, especially when Other Chinese brands have already experimented with similar buttons and discovered that they can confuse casual users who accidentally trigger the camera while simply holding the phone.
How the Galaxy S26 still chases iPhone-level camera results
Even without a dedicated shutter key, the Galaxy S26 line is still shaping up as a direct response to Apple’s recent camera gains. Early information suggests that the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra will prioritize a balance between resolution and file size, rather than simply chasing the largest possible pixel count. Unlike recent iPhones that default to 24 megapixel photos, the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra will apparently give users more control over how much detail they capture and how much storage they consume, with a focus on practical image size over theoretical maximums.
That approach is consistent with leaks that describe the Galaxy S26 camera as targeting a sweet spot where 24 megapixel output is clearly better than 12 megapixel shots without ballooning file sizes. One report on how the Samsung Galaxy S26 looks set to copy one of the iPhone’s best camera ideas suggests that Samsung is adopting Apple’s resolution strategy in spirit, even if the default behavior differs. Another breakdown of the same leak explains that, unlike recent iPhones, the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra will not simply lock users into 24 megapixel output by default, and instead will apparently let them choose how to balance detail and storage, which could appeal to photographers who manage large archives across multiple devices.
Copying Apple, competing with Chinese rivals, and what comes next
The near-miss camera key also has to be understood in the context of Samsung’s competition with both Apple and aggressive Chinese manufacturers. Reports on Samsung’s internal debate point out that Other Chinese smartphone brands have already copied the iPhone’s camera button, which may have made the idea feel less distinctive by the time it reached the Galaxy S26 design phase. One analysis notes that Samsung would rather spend those resources somewhere else than arrive late with a feature that rivals have already normalized, especially when the company is also working on AI-powered photography tools and more advanced image processing pipelines.
At the same time, Samsung is clearly not ignoring the broader trend toward camera-centric hardware. A detailed account of how Samsung is gearing up for the next Galaxy launch describes the company exploring a full suite of camera controls, complete with swipe gestures, before deciding to keep the frame cleaner. Another report on how Samsung seemingly considered a camera button on Galaxy S26, based on a former employee’s LinkedIn post, asks bluntly whether users would actually want such a control, highlighting how polarizing the idea remains. Coverage that the Galaxy S26 almost shipped with the feature, and that the device almost included a controversial iPhone-style element, underlines how close Samsung came to committing before stepping back.
