Samsung will hold its next Galaxy Unpacked event in London on July 22, 2026, with the show scheduled to start at 2 p.m. BST (9 a.m. ET), according to Samsung’s official event page and reporting from Android Central ghacks. It is the first time since the Galaxy S3 launch nearly 14 years ago that Samsung has staged an Unpacked in the British capital, and the company is expected to use the spotlight to reshape its foldable lineup rather than simply refresh it Android Central.
The headline act is a split Z Fold range. Android Central reports the successor to last year’s book-style foldable will arrive as the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra, while the standard Galaxy Z Fold 8 name is expected to shift to a new “passport-style” device that is shorter and wider than the current Fold — a form factor reportedly positioned to compete with Apple’s long-rumored foldable iPhone Android Central. Leaked renders obtained by Android Authority independently point to the Ultra model’s larger cover screen and a revised hinge Android Authority. Samsung has not explained the naming change, and Android Central says it plans to press for clarity at the event. The Galaxy Z Flip 8 is also expected as the follow-on to the Z Flip 7, though it is unclear whether the cheaper FE variant returns this year ghacks.
Wearables are part of the package. Samsung is expected to announce the Galaxy Watch 9 and, per leaks cited by Android Central, a Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 — the first update to the Ultra line since its debut, with hardware changes said to go beyond the incremental tweaks of recent watches Android Central. On the software side, One UI 9, built on Android 17, is considered very likely to appear on the new foldables and watches ghacks.
The most intriguing question mark is Galaxy Glasses. Android Central lists Samsung’s AI glasses as a possible reveal rather than a confirmed launch, and Samsung has published no specifications, pricing, or availability ahead of the event ghacks. That positions them in the same race as Meta’s Ray-Ban line and the wave of AI wearables that have emerged through 2025 and 2026 — a category where demos have repeatedly outpaced shipped product, and where Samsung’s late entry is as much about narrative as shipment.
The London venue is itself a signal. Samsung has spent 2026 leaning into flagship spectacle, and returning to a city it last used for a global Unpacked with the Galaxy S3 underscores how much it wants this cycle to read as a reset, not a routine refresh. A broader Fold family directly challenges both the premium tablet-folding crowd and, via the passport-style model, the not-yet-released Apple foldable. It is a pre-emptive land grab for the next wave of smartphone design.
For buyers, the practical takeaways are straightforward. Expect three or four new foldables across price tiers, a refreshed watch pair, and a taste of One UI 9’s Android 17 foundation. Galaxy Glasses, if they appear at all, will most likely be a teaser rather than a same-day purchase. The real test comes after the lights go down: whether the passport-style Fold justifies its new name with a genuinely different handfeel, and whether the Ultra line finally earns its “Pro” ambitions.
Pricing will be the wildcard. If past Unpacked events are a guide, Samsung will open pre-orders shortly after the keynote and begin shipping within a couple of weeks — though the passport-style Fold’s new construction and the Ultra watch’s hardware bump could lift flagship pricing above the outgoing generation, at a moment when buyers are already sensitive to device cost.
Bottom line: Samsung’s July 22 London Unpacked is expected to debut a two-track Z Fold 8 family, the Z Flip 8, new Galaxy Watches, and possibly a first look at Galaxy Glasses — a broad reset of the foldable lineup aimed squarely at the next generation of premium phones.
