Samsung fans looking for a fresh revamp of the flagship Galaxy lineup might be underwhelmed by the Samsung Galaxy S25, at least at first glance. Aside from minuscule design and finish updates, the base-model Galaxy S25 looks quite similar to the Galaxy S24 — and previous generations before that one.
In fact, some of the only impactful hardware upgrades to the Galaxy S25 — like the Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy chipset and improved connectivity protocols — might be more a testament to the breakthroughs Qualcomm has achieved rather than Samsung. And yet, despite my disdain for Samsung’s complacency at times, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my time with this phone.
Samsung’s renewed approach to software and its close relationship with Google are big reasons why. One UI used to be a disjointed Android experience, and it felt like Google and Samsung services were sparring underneath the software skin. Now, One UI 7 is a standout operating system that feels fast and refreshing. Galaxy AI, Google AI, and the flurry of Samsung and Google software features on the Galaxy S25 feel like they’re finally working together, not competing for your attention.
That, plus the tiny form factor, makes me want to overlook the Galaxy S25’s shortcomings in other areas. There are some egregious omissions here, like the camera system that hasn’t been upgraded since the Galaxy S22. Slow charging speeds, the lack of UWB support, and 128GB base storage are other notable oversights.
All this adds up to make the Samsung Galaxy S25 my most frustrating recommendation yet. Yes, it’s very good, and you should buy it if you want a small, light, and compact Android flagship. But I’d be lying if I wasn’t worried about Samsung being rewarded for bad behavior if the Galaxy S25 flies off the shelves because it certainly could’ve done more here.
Samsung Galaxy S25: Price and availability
Samsung announced the Galaxy S25 series at an Unpacked event in California on Jan. 22, 2025. The phones became available for preorder on that date and officially released February 7. However, preorders from Samsung were delivered early this year — as early as late January.
There are three storage configurations of the Galaxy S25 available: 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB. With that being said, the 128GB variant isn’t available in Australia, and the 512GB variant isn’t available in North America. Despite rumors of a price hike, the Galaxy S25 matches the pricing tiers of the Galaxy S24.
- Samsung Galaxy S25 (12GB/128GB): US $799.99 / UK £799 / AU N/A
- Samsung Galaxy S25 (12GB/256GB): US $859.99 / UK £859 / AU$1,399
- Samsung Galaxy S25 (12GB/512GB): US N/A / UK £959 / AU$1,599
The Galaxy S25 comes in Icyblue, Navy, Mint, and Silver Shadow colorways. I reviewed the Icyblue model, which photographs closer to white but looks like a mix of light blue and silver in person. There’s also a trio of Samsung exclusive colors: Coralred, Blueblack, and Pinkgold.
You’ll find the Galaxy S25 available for purchase from Samsung’s online store, third-party retailers like Best Buy or Amazon, and from cellular carriers. We have a complete guide to all the best deals for your reference.
Samsung Galaxy S25: Design and display
It’s clear from a look down the spec sheet that the Galaxy S25 has to offer something unique to make buyers look past its shortcomings. For example, the OnePlus 13 is a more complete package while costing only $100 more, which doesn’t bode well for Samsung’s base model. The good news is that Samsung did create something unique with the Galaxy S25. It’s perhaps the last small Android flagship left.
I know, I know — it’s crazy to say that a 6.2-inch smartphone is small. As a fond former iPhone 12 mini user, I feel you. Small phone lovers like myself simply have to acknowledge that with the departure of the Asus Zenfone (as we knew it), the category is on life support. Unless you count clamshell foldables like the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6, the Galaxy S25 is indeed the smallest 2025 flagship you can buy today.
While the iPhone and Pixel keep growing larger, the Galaxy S25 is getting smaller. The display on the Galaxy S25 is still 6.2 inches, but Samsung shrunk the chassis in every way. It’s smaller, thinner, and lighter than the Galaxy S24. If that wasn’t enough, the Galaxy S25 is also more compact than the Google Pixel 9 and iPhone 16 in every dimension.
To get specific, the Galaxy S25 measures 146.9 x 70.5 x 7.2 mm and weighs just 162 grams. Those numbers don’t quite convey how much thinner and lighter this phone feels compared to the competition. The base Pixel 9, for instance, weighs a whopping 198 grams. I already enjoyed the form factor of the Galaxy S24, and the Galaxy S25 feels better in every way. Although the Galaxy S25 Edge may be thinner when it releases, its rumored 6.8-inch screen will help the Galaxy S25 keep the title of best small phone through the year.
Overall, the design of the Galaxy S25 feels like a mix of the design trends we saw on Galaxy foldables and the Galaxy S24. There are still the same flat aluminum side rails with rounded corners and chamfered edges, and Gorilla Glass Victus 2 on the front and back. Meanwhile, the rear camera lenses now have DSLR-style covers, matching the Galaxy foldables. While familiar, I have no complaints about the Galaxy S25’s build — although Gorilla Armor and its anti-reflective properties would’ve been a big addition.
Though some are quick to point out that the sharper edges of the Galaxy S25’s design can be uncomfortable to hold, I don’t think this is much of an issue on the base model. It’s small enough that you should be able to hold it with one hand without needing to shove the corner into your palm. For the Plus or Ultra models, it may be something to consider.
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When I reviewed the Galaxy S24 last year, I said that the display’s bezels appeared smaller than any other phone I’ve tested. That’s still visually apparent with the Galaxy S25, regardless of whether it’s actually true. Especially with a light-colored phone, the contrast of the matte aluminum rails and the black display edges make bezels look half the size — and more than other flagships.
Compared to the Galaxy S24, the screen-to-body ratio has only increased by 0.2% on the Galaxy S25, so both devices will feel similar. The similarities probably have something to do with the fact that both phones appear to have the exact same display panel. It’s an AMOLED 2X display that goes up to 120Hz with a variable refresh rate, HDR10+, and 2,600 nits of maximum brightness. The resolution is 1080 x 2340 pixels, meaning it’s only FHD+. As a result, the Galaxy S25 doesn’t have the ProScaler for QHD+ that’s now available on the Plus and Ultra models.
The lack of upgrades doesn’t change the fact that the Galaxy S25 looks stunning in most conditions. If I had to nitpick, the brightness could be improved. Other handsets can do much better, and out-of-the-box brightness outdoors should be higher. Samsung’s adaptive brightness tends to be too conservative, so I’d recommend disabling this and flipping on the “extra brightness” option if you’re like me and love a bright screen. Of course, this comes at the expense of battery life.
Around the edges, you’ll find a volume rocker and a side button used for power and voice assistant control. The side button can be mapped to Gemini for quick access to agentic assistance. On the bottom, there’s a speaker grill, a USB 3.2 Type-C port that supports DisplayPort Alt Mode, and a physical SIM card tray. The right side merely offers a mmWave cutout for enhanced 5G connectivity.
To sum up, don’t overlook the Galaxy S25’s form factor. Its thinness and lightness, paired with the power we’ll get to next, makes it a compelling option in a sea of large flagships.
Samsung Galaxy S25: Hardware and specs
The hardware on the inside of the Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus is both the best and worst thing about this device. Let’s start with the good. It’s powered by the Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy chipset, which was co-designed by Samsung and Qualcomm. This mobile platform is based on the Snapdragon X lineup, the laptop and desktop-class processors made using Qualcomm’s custom Oryon cores. In essence, it means that the Galaxy S25 is the most powerful Android phone on the market.
This is reflected in benchmark tests, where the Galaxy S25 came out on top in Geekbench 6 runs. It decisively beat the Google Pixel 9, a phone that uses the underpowered Tensor G4 processor. Previously, Google had the edge in AI, with 45 tokens per second supported for AI operations on the Pixel 9.
Samsung and Qualcomm completely flipped the script with the Galaxy S25. It can process up to 70 tokens per second for AI tasks, dethroning the Pixel 9. With performance, AI processing, and Galaxy optimization, it looks like the Galaxy S25 is the top-performing base model of any flagship offering in 2025.
| Phone | Processor | Geekbench 6 (single/multi-core) |
|---|---|---|
| Samsung Galaxy S25 | Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy | 3,025/9,640 |
| Google Pixel 9 | Google Tensor G4 | 1,572/3,792 |
| iPhone 16 | Apple A18 | 3,417/8,336 |
| OnePlus 13 | Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite | 2,893/9,058 |
| Samsung Galaxy S24 | Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for Galaxy | 2,228/6,656 |
What does that mean for daily use? It’s twofold. First, it is unlikely that you’ll notice the speed difference between the Galaxy S25 and another capable flagship while holding them side-by-side. Smartphones have been really fast for a while now, and we don’t need Geekbench 6 scores to know it.
Second, it is likely that the massive performance increase of the Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy chipset will aid the Galaxy S25’s longevity. Samsung is promising seven years of software support, and I suspect the Galaxy S25 will have an easier time achieving that than the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3-powered Galaxy S24.
This is not the kind of year-over-year performance improvement we usually see in smartphone SoCs. It’s a once-in-a-decade type of upgrade, and that’s why I can see the argument for upgrading now to the Galaxy S25 if you’ve been waiting a while.
To test how the Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy pushes the battery and cooling system in the Galaxy S25 to its limits, I ran the 3DMark Wild Life Extreme stress test, which is a graphics-heavy test lasting 20 minutes in a continuous loop. I surprisingly found that the Galaxy S25 didn’t get scolding hot to the touch. It got warm but didn’t overheat like other flagships have in recent years.
However, the loop score during the stress test continually decreased over the course of the 20-minute stress test. The Galaxy S25 hit a peak of 15,336 in the second loop and dipped under 11,000 by the 13th loop. It finished with a final loop of 10,991. What does this all mean? Essentially, the Galaxy S25 will slow down the Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy processor to keep the phone cool. As a result, its internal temperature only increased by 5 degrees Celsius during the test and used just 11% battery.
To be clear, this is a good result. You want a phone to know its limits and slow down before burning itself up and losing a ton of battery for the sake of a few extra frames while gaming.
I said that the hardware was also the worst thing about the Samsung Galaxy S25, and here’s why. There are some omissions that are extremely hard to justify. For starters, you don’t get an ultra-wideband (UWB) chip on the base model Galaxy S25 — you have to upgrade to the Galaxy S25 Plus or Ultra for that. It creates a situation where if you plan to use Samsung’s own SmartTag trackers or the Google Find My Device network over the life of your smartphone, you shouldn’t buy the Galaxy S25.
Additionally, the Galaxy S25 still charges painfully slow. It only charges at 25W over a cable, which is unacceptable for a flagship in 2025. Wireless charging isn’t that much better. It supports the Qi2.1 standard, offering 15W wireless charging and 4.5W reverse wireless charging. It doesn’t have internal magnets, so you can’t use MagSafe accessories without a case. I may be in the minority here, but I think slapping a thick MagSafe case on the Galaxy S25 defeats the purpose of it being a compact phone.
Those are just a few small missed opportunities that might not matter much today but could limit you down the road if you plan to keep this phone for five or more years. There’s still plenty of good, like the processor, Wi-Fi 7 support, and Bluetooth 5.4 support.
| Category | Samsung Galaxy S25 |
|---|---|
| Processor | Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy |
| Display | 6.2-inch, Dynamic LTPO AMOLED 2X, 120Hz, Corning Gorilla Glass |
| OS | One UI 7 (Android 15) |
| Storage | 128GB, 256GB |
| RAM | 12GB |
| Security | Ultrasonic fingerprint sensor |
| Connectivity | 5G (sub-6, mmWave), Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4, NFC |
| Battery | 4,000mAh |
| Charging | 25W wired, 15W wireless, 4.5W reverse wireless |
| Dimensions | 146.9 x 70.5 x 7.2 mm |
| Weight | 162g |
The phone’s battery capacity is 4,000mAh, just like last year. A bigger battery would be nice, but I can live with this capacity in this form factor. For most people, the Galaxy S25 should offer all-day battery life. I consistently got 6+ hours of screen-on time with a mix of phone calls, video streaming, camera usage, and social media doom-scrolling. That was paired with about 10+ hours of screen-off time between charges.
Most of the time, the Galaxy S25 lasts all day. If you’re able to briefly top off the battery at various times throughout the day, you’ll be golden. I find this easy to do, simply keeping a cable or wireless charging pad at my desk and in the car.
Samsung Galaxy S25: Cameras
Samsung reused the rear camera system in the Galaxy 25 for the fourth straight smartphone generation. That’s right — the Galaxy S25 and the Galaxy S22 share camera sensors. You get a 50MP, f/1.8 main sensor, a 12MP, f/2.2 ultrawide with a 120-degree field of view, and a 12MP, f/2.2 telephoto lens with 3x optical zoom. The hardware is decent enough, but it’s old and performs like you’d expect of four-year-old lenses.
The one entirely positive thing I can say about the Galaxy S25’s cameras is that they include a telephoto sensor, which is crucial and isn’t a given on flagships of this size. Some phones, like the iPhone 16 and Pixel 9, try to fake optical zoom using a technique called sensor crop. Nothing beats the real thing, and I love that the Galaxy S25 gives you 3x optical zoom in a 6.2-inch device.
Paired with the ultrawide lens, the camera system makes for varying zoom levels, as shown in the gallery below.
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Samsung tries to make the most of the same camera hardware with computational photography improvements, like usual. There’s some evidence to suggest that the Galaxy S25 is improved in a few areas, such as shutter lag and motion blur. However, keep expectations tame. The Samsung Galaxy S25’s camera is still no match for a moving car on a nighttime street.
I’ve also found the Galaxy S25 camera to produce colors that look slightly dull compared to cameras in other flagships. I’m glad that Samsung doesn’t take the Pixel approach, which includes over-saturating colors and adding faux vibrancy. I do think iPhone shots have a better natural pop of color, though.
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The front-facing camera is only 12MP, but it gets the job done. Put simply, you’re not buying the Galaxy S25 for its camera system. If that’s something you really care about, you have no choice but to look to the OnePlus 13 or Galaxy S25 Ultra for that.
Samsung Galaxy S25: Software and AI
I’ve been a consistent critic of Samsung’s software approach, specifically One UI, in recent years. It got to the point that I refused to consider Samsung phones as my daily driver. That’s why it should say a lot that I love One UI 7. I’m not sure if it’s leaped the Pixel Launcher yet, but it’s ahead of OxygenOS, Hello UI, and iOS in my book. That’s something I couldn’t even fathom saying before trying One UI 7 on the Galaxy S25.
What makes One UI 7 so great? It’s hard to pinpoint one feature or two — it’s more about how fresh and new the operating system feels. I prefer the split control panel/notification shade from iOS, and I genuinely like the bubbly and rounded look of One UI now. The app drawer is better, too. You can finally switch between One UI and other Android skins without the learning curve. Everything just makes sense.
Another big reason for my newfound One UI 7 love affair is the integration between Google and Samsung apps and services. The two companies are finally figuring out how to work together and deliver a cohesive software experience. It comes down to the little things, like how Google Messages is the default and only messaging app installed on the Galaxy S25. Or how the supercharged Gemini assistant is accessible with the press of a side button and can take multi-app actions on your behalf.
Of course, there’s more to improve. Samsung should work on cutting down on the bloat further and eliminating unnecessary third-party apps from stock One UI. I don’t know why my Galaxy S25 ships with LinkedIn and other Microsoft apps, but I hate it.
It wasn’t too long ago when I recommended that Android buyers pick a Pixel due to Google’s exclusive perks. Now, the situation feels reversed. The Galaxy S25 gets many of Google’s best AI features, from Gemini to Circle to Search, and it gets Samsung’s full Galaxy AI suite. It’s like the best of both worlds.
Not every AI feature will be worth using. The Now Bar, a pill-shaped center for information, is overhyped by Samsung. If you’re deep in the Samsung ecosystem or use select supported services like Spotify, it’ll be neat. But I usually don’t wear a Galaxy wearable and use Apple Music, so my Now Bar just told me the weather and inspirational quotes all day. Which, hey, is nice. Just not all that useful.
One thing worth calling out is how good Samsung’s image editing features have gotten over the years. Object removal and generative editing with Galaxy AI is hands-down better than anything Apple or Google offer, as you can see above.
To sum up, if you haven’t used One UI in a while or have been disappointed by it in the past, it’s time to give it a second chance.
Samsung Galaxy S25: Competition
At the moment, the $799 Samsung Galaxy S25’s biggest competitors are the Google Pixel 9 and the iPhone 16. You could argue that prospective Galaxy S25 buyers probably aren’t considering an iPhone 16 and vice versa, so that leaves the Pixel 9 — also priced at $799.
There are some who will prefer Google’s software or camera profile to that of the Galaxy S25, but I have a hard time swallowing how much bigger and heavier the Pixel is without providing enough benefits. The Samsung phone is thinner, lighter, and more compact but also faster and more capable.
With the Pixel 9 and iPhone 16 out of the way, there isn’t a phone that directly competes with the Galaxy S25 in terms of size. However, if you’re looking for an Android flagship for around $800 and can live with a bigger screen, consider the OnePlus 13 for $100 more. It’s only a smidge slower than the Galaxy S25 while offering a better display, better camera, faster charging, and more base storage. This is the phone I’d buy if I were looking for a Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra-esque phone at near-base Galaxy S25 prices.
Samsung Galaxy S25: Should you buy it?
You should buy this if…
- You want a small phone with the latest Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy processor
- You have an older Galaxy phone, or aren’t worried about camera quality
- You want the best of both worlds with Google AI and Galaxy AI, and like One UI 7
You shouldn’t buy this if…
- You want a MagSafe-compatible phone without using a case
- You need newer camera tech inside your smartphone
- You’re willing to use a bigger and more expensive competitor, like the OnePlus 13
After spending time with the Samsung Galaxy S25, two things are simultaneously true. This is a standout compact flagship, and Samsung also could’ve given it more upgrades. It feels like it’s the same story every time a Galaxy device is released. There’s just enough to make the Galaxy S25 a really compelling device and just as many recycled ideas and components to make buyers hesitate.
As I mentioned before, I’m concerned that buying the Galaxy S25 signals to Samsung that releasing four generations of phones with the same camera system is acceptable. It’s simply not, and it feels like a sales hit may be the only thing that pushes Samsung to innovate more. The phone’s cameras, charging speeds, durability ratings, and connectivity capabilities are just the quick hits of things Samsung could’ve easily improved with the Galaxy S25 — but chose not to.
I’m also aware that most smartphone buyers aren’t trying to make a statement with their phone purchases. Most people just want a good, powerful, and reliable device, and the Samsung Galaxy S25 checks all those boxes. It’s also perhaps the only compact Android flagship left on the market today. That’s how I’m able to recommend it despite my frustration with how much Samsung reused from prior Galaxy generations.
Small but mighty
Samsung’s Galaxy S25 might not feel the most exciting, but it’s definitively the best small flagship phone in 2025. If you can look past some deficiencies compared to the Plus or Ultra models, the Galaxy S25 is a solid buy at around $800.