Back in college at MMUST, my roommate Ryan had bought a Samsung S, and everyone in class really admired his phone.
Owning a Samsung S-series phone back then was the “who’s who” — sijui aliiba pesa wapi, but that is a story for another day!
I spent the whole semester saving to buy something similar. Unfortunately, my pockets had other plans. What I could afford was a Samsung Duos.
After saving KSh11,000 to buy my dream phone, which was going for about KSh10,000 at the time, we decided to first pass by our local Franka — the joint behind our classes at Kotecha. Those who understand Kakamega town well can relate.
We took two good ones, then headed to Sudi Road to buy my dream phone Samsung Duos
After some serious bargaining, the seller told us the phones were on offer. Instead of KSh10,000, we could get one for only KSh6,000.
Tulioshwa!
We paid, took the phone and headed straight to our shanty to sample my brand-new Samsung Duos.
Then came the unboxing.
It was Samsing… but not Samsung.
For those who once used Samsing, mikono juu!
That experience came rushing back to me when I looked at what Samsung has packed into its latest Galaxy S26 FE.
The difference is not just the name.
The Galaxy S26 FE comes with a 6.7-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X display and a 120Hz refresh rate, making scrolling and viewing content noticeably smoother. It also packs a 4,900mAh battery with 45W fast charging.
The camera story has changed dramatically too.
The phone features a 50MP main camera alongside a 12MP ultra-wide and 8MP telephoto camera with 3x optical zoom. But Samsung is going beyond simply adding more megapixels.
Features such as My FanCam can automatically keep subjects centred while recording, while Super Steady with Horizontal Lock is designed to make videos more stable, particularly when shooting while moving.
Then there is Galaxy AI.
With tools such as Photo Assist, Gemini Omni, Now Brief and Now Nudge, Samsung is pushing the smartphone from being just a device you operate to one that can increasingly understand context and assist with everyday tasks.
And perhaps the biggest change is happening behind the scenes.
The Galaxy S26 FE is the first device in the Galaxy S26 family to launch with One UI 9, while Samsung is promising seven generations of OS upgrades and seven years of security updates.
Think about that for a moment.
Back in college, I was celebrating because I had finally managed to buy a Samsung Duos for KSh6,000.
Today, a smartphone can edit photos using natural-language instructions, intelligently organise content, stabilise videos, understand what is happening around you and remain supported for years.
That is how far smartphone technology has travelled.
Samsung has evolved from competing primarily on hardware to bringing hardware, software and artificial intelligence together into one experience.
And while the Galaxy S26 FE is clearly a different class of phone from my old Duos, the excitement of owning a new Samsung somehow remains the same.
The only difference?
These days, I probably wouldn’t need to ask my roommate where he got the money.
#withGalaxy #GalaxyS26FE #GalaxyAI
