One Samsung S26 model "missing" from Galaxy Unpacked – but I’m not surprised

Samsung has just wrapped its Galaxy Unpacked event in San Francisco, but there was arguably one handset 'missing' from the Galaxy S26 line-up.

We've seen the Galaxy S26, S26 Plus and S26 Ultra revealed in full – as was expected – but the omission of any Galaxy S25 Edge update confirms, at the very least, that the ultra-thin model remains on a different product cycle.

I can't say I'm surprised: the Edge 25 only went to market at the very end of May. That it was teased as the 'one more thing' at the first Unpacked session of last year, however, is what makes its absence more questionable.

There had been some rumour that the Edge variant would slot in and replace the S26 Plus model in Samsung's range. I think this would make for a better line-up, especially in light of the Plus' price increase being more significant than any other S26 model.

But there's also been a lot of debate around the future longevity of these ultra-thin handsets. Samsung set the ball rolling, Apple followed with the iPhone Air, but it's reported that overall sales have been poor for both.

I wrote previously – in 'Thin is in: Phones are slimmer than ever' – that not only are more phones pushing boundaries and cutting millimetres, but queried the 'why' part of the equation. Is it something companies are more interested in pushing than it is a genuine customer appeal?

There's certainly a research and development aspect to it: Apple's "iPhone Fold" is expected to take learnings from the iPhone Air, for one. Samsung's Edge product was an exploration in durability, much as it was design – which will potentially benefit future Galaxy handsets.

But as early as October, less than six months after its on-sale date, other rumours began that an S26 Edge product could be shelved entirely. Perhaps its absence at Unpacked is a further sign to this being the case.