Samsung Galaxy S27 Ultra camera details leak and could be like switching from Nikon to Canon

Details about the camera for the forthcoming Samsung Galaxy S27 Ultra have leaked, giving us some interesting details – not just about the composition of the camera, but how the photos will look.

We've already heard that Samsung is planning to reduce the number of cameras on the phone, dropping the 3x telephoto in favour of a single zoom lens instead. That's now been confirmed by UniverseIce, saying that the 5x telephoto will stick to the existing sensor and lens with f/2.9 aperture.

The main camera sensor is said to be the ISOCELL HP6 – a version of the HPC sensor – with a 1/1.3in size, so that's also going to bring in a change compared to the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra which used the ISOCELL HP2.

But this is where things get more interesting – and where that Nikon and Canon reference comes in. According to UniverseIce, Samsung is going to change the tone of the camera, moving from the cooler (bluer) images of previous model, to a warmer tone.

The Canon/Nikon comparison

That reflects the default images that come from those major camera brands, with Canon typically being a little warmer than Nikon. When using the Galaxy S26 Ultra and Galaxy S27 Ultra side-by-side, the warmer tone should be noticeable straight out of the camera.

It's also said that handling of distant bright objects is much better controlled. That will mean that things like points of light in the distance will be will be less likely to over-expose, preserving detail. It's said that this is evident on both the main and telephoto cameras, so it's likely a computational (processing) tweak.

That leads us to the next improvement, which is that noise is allegedly better handled, with lower noise in dark areas and a smoother image. That should improve fidelity in low light and give better overall results in shadows.

This points to a fairly hefty upgrade in the image processing that's taking place in the camera. Where Samsung may find itself falling short is that it's likely to persevere with the f/1.4 aperture on the main camera, while rivals at Apple now offer f/4.0.

The result of Apple changing the aperture properties of its main camera lens on the iPhone 18 Pro is that it's possible to get greater depth of field so more of the image is in focus. Samsung's problem – and it's one that has been around for much of the last decade – is that the wider aperture means a very shallow depth of field.

The result is that when things get close to the lens, only a fraction of the subject is in focus, with most of the rest of the image being blurred. While that doesn't affect things like landscape photography, as soon as you take a picture of your dinner or anything close, you lose focal depth.

With the Galaxy S27 Ultra so far into development, it's unlikely that Samsung could do anything to address Apple's current advantage on the iPhone 18 Pro. However, it looks like there's going to be a host of improvements for the Samsung camera when it launches in 2027.