The Galaxy S26 FE hasn’t even launched yet, and it’s already throwing curveballs. A fresh FCC filing has surfaced for the upcoming mid-range Samsung, and buried inside the regulatory paperwork is something genuinely interesting: both Samsung Exynos and Qualcomm silicon listed in the same device. Before you get too excited about a Snapdragon variant, though, the reality is a bit more nuanced.
According to Android Authority, the FCC filing shows the Galaxy S26 FE using Samsung’s S.LSI technology for cellular connectivity, while Qualcomm’s FastConnect handles the local wireless networking side — meaning Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. FastConnect is Qualcomm’s suite specifically for local wireless, not its modem or processor lineup. Devices running a full Snapdragon chip typically reference Qualcomm’s “Smart Transmit” technology in FCC filings, and there’s no mention of that here. So it really does look like this phone runs on an Exynos chipset and modem, with a separate Qualcomm chip just for wireless networking.
That’s actually a notable shift from last year’s Galaxy S25 FE, which only referenced Samsung transmission technologies in its FCC paperwork. Why the change? Samsung hasn’t said, but there are a few plausible reasons. The Qualcomm FastConnect chip could be cheaper, more power-efficient, or just better at handling Wi-Fi performance than Samsung’s own solution. It’s a small detail, but it tells you something about how Samsung is building these phones now — mixing and matching silicon from different suppliers rather than going all-in on one vendor.
For anyone hoping for a Snapdragon model in the US, this filing is pretty discouraging news. The evidence points squarely at Exynos across the board for the S26 FE, at least based on what’s visible here.
Beyond the chip drama, the filing also confirms some solid hardware specs. The Galaxy S26 FE is coming with 45W wired charging, which is actually faster than what you get on the base Galaxy S26. That’s been a recurring theme with the FE line — Samsung tends to be more generous with charging speeds on these than on its standard flagships, which is a bit ironic but also genuinely useful. Other confirmed features from the filing include:
- Reverse wireless charging
- NFC
- Wi-Fi 6 support
- Satellite connectivity support, similar to T-Mobile’s direct-to-cell feature
This filing adds to a growing pile of Galaxy S26 FE leaks that have been rolling in over the past few weeks. Camera specs have already been spotted, the phone’s design has been tipped along with first-party cases, and an Exynos 2500 processor has been mentioned as the expected chipset. Samsung just finished launching its latest foldables, so the FE is likely next on the roadmap, probably arriving within weeks.
The Galaxy S26 FE matters because it sits in a price bracket where a lot of real-world buying decisions get made. Not everyone is dropping over a thousand dollars on an Ultra. A well-specced FE model with fast charging, satellite support, and a capable chip can be a genuinely smart buy, and Samsung knows it. The Exynos question will be the sticking point for some buyers, but if Samsung has tuned the Exynos 2500 well, it could be a non-issue in day-to-day use. We’ll find out soon enough.