Some Galaxy S26 Ultra screens are slowly turning red, and Samsung doesn’t know why (yet)

One of the biggest changes Samsung brought along with the Galaxy S26 Ultra was its new Privacy-oriented display. With pixel-level modifications, the new display prevents shoulder surfers from ogling at your phone’s screen unless you want them to. While the feature works flawlessly, it has led to some qualitative setbacks for the display, according to some users. One that was widely echoed was the eye strain and visibility issues caused by the display changes at the microscopic level, which forced early adopters to return their units. And now, Galaxy S26 Ultra users are encountering another unpleasant display issue.

Many of the affected users claim the phone has “developed” this trait over the last few months of use rather than immediately. That’s why some folks also conclude it’s a form of burn-in, visible more prominently on in-store demo units apart from those owned by individuals.

For most people, this appears like a subtle shade of pink rather than an actual solid red garishly spread across the screen. That’s also why some users may fail to identify it or pass it off without investigating it too deeply.

However, even if pictures of the screens may not entirely justify the agony or frustration users may be going through, Samsung has confirmed that the issue is, in fact, real and not something people are imagining. It reportedly told Korean publication Newsway that it was “examining the matter internally to confirm the cause.”

We’re unsure whether the issue appears because of a persistent hardware defect (or simply a change from previous generations) or something after a software update, such as in the case of the infamous red or green lines that emerge on AMOLED displays, including Samsung’s.

One wise Redditor dismisses it, claiming that the red part is actually the glue at the point of contact between the display assembly and the rest of the internal components, and that the glue becomes visible under UV (ultraviolet) light. We don’t, however, back their claims.

The issue piles on previous controversies surrounding Samsung’s new display technology. Around the launch in February, Samsung had claimed the display offers 10-bit color depth, but later backtracked, saying it simulates the sensation of a more vibrant display while still offering an 8-bit color depth at the hardware level.

We’re reaching out to Samsung to ask about their internal analysis and will share an update once we have a response.