Samsung’s glitzy Unpacked 2025 event gave a clear sign that moving forward, phones are entering their agentic era. AI is in the driving seat of mobile experiences, enhancing everything from camera capture to how we get app-based work done.
The headline of the event was, of course, the Galaxy S25 series smartphones. At the summit is the Galaxy S25 Ultra, the true showcase of Samsung’s imaging capabilities and hardware refinements. The entry-point Galaxy S25 also gets a crucial hardware upgrade to speed up generative AI tasks, while the SmartThings ecosystem is eyeing its biggest sensing overhaul yet.
Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra
Let’s set the ball rolling with the cream of the Galaxy crop. The Galaxy S25 Ultra embraced rounded corners this time around, and a fresh coat of paint as well. There is also a notable jump in the camera capabilities.
Samsung has upgraded the ultrawide sensor to a 50-megapixel unit, over four times as powerful as its predecessor. You also get a fairly capable 200-megapixel sensor, alongside a 10-megapixel telephoto camera with 3x optical zoom range, and a periscope style long-range snapper with a 50-megapixel resolution and 5x optical zoom range.
The company is also talking a leaf out of Apple’s camera playback for iPhones. The Galaxy S25 Ultra enables support for shooting videos in what Samsung calls Galaxy Log, similar to Apple’s own Log video capture system on the “Pro” iPhones.
The idea is to give users the freedom of recording a flat footage, which they can subsequently grade and color-correct to get the desired tonal effect.
Apple went all-in with a filter-like toning system with the arrival of the iPhone 16 series. Samsung is now pouring its own version into the Galaxy S25 series by adding “analog-style filters” to help users get a film-like aesthetic in their photos and videos.
There is a new Night Video with Audio Eraser that not only allows users to record detailed videos in low-light surroundings but also lets them to minimize noise elements.
Samsung says you can isolate human speech, crowd noise, nature, and wind using the onboard AI algorithms. Notably, this feature is already available on the Google Pixel 9 series smartphones under the Audio Magic Eraser label.
Another cool feature is the ProScaler system, which upscales images for viewing on larger pixel-dense screens with a minimum resolution of QHD+.
Of particular interest to me was the new Virtual Aperture system, which has been integrated into the Expert RAW system where you can get access to pro-grade photo and video capture tools with loads of manual controls.
Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra in Titanium WhiteSamsung
Over at the front, you will find a 6.9-inch 120Hz OLED panel with Corning Gorilla Glass Armor 2 protection, alongside Corning’s glass-ceramic material with an anti-reflective coat on top.
Notably, despite its size, the Galaxy S25 Ultra is the thinnest, sturdiest, and lightest Galaxy S phone Samsung has made so far. Just like the latest crop of Apple flagships, Samsung is also using Titanium for its top-of-the-line smartphone.
Underneath the glass and metal shell is a 5,000mAh battery that supports 45W wired charging, and allows top-up in wireless mode, as well. Unfortunately, Samsung hasn’t quite embraced the Qi 2 wireless charging standard yet, so that’s a bummer.
Samsung Galaxy S25
Samsung is still loyal to the cause of small-ish phones that don’t stretch out one’s palm. To that end, the entry-point Galaxy S25 still retains a 6.2-inch display, but without skipping on any of the niceties that set its Ultra flagship apart.
It serves a bright SuperAMOLED panel that can vary the refresh rate values dynamically between 1Hz and 120Hz, striking the right balance between viewing fluidity and power efficiency.
The battery capacity remains stagnant at 4,000 mAh, which is really a shame, considering how labels like OnePlus and Honor have embraced the silicon-carbide battery innovation to fit larger batteries in a small package inside their phones.
The most notable change is that Samsung has finally ditched 8GB RAM as a standard, and equipped all Galaxy S25 series phones with 12GB memory. Unfortunately, the storage capacity still starts at a paltry 128GB, so there’s that.
Samsung Galaxy S25 in Silver Shadow.Samsung
The camera hardware has also been carried forward from its predecessor for another year. Headlining the imaging kit is a 50-megapixel primary camera, sitting alongside a 12-megapixel ultrawide snapper, and a 10-megapixel sensor for zoom capture.
All three phones draw power from the custom Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy SoC, which is claimed to offer some extra processing grunt and AI processing chops.
Samsung has also embedded its own mobile Digital Natural Image engine (mDNIe) on the processor stack to manage the power draw from the display assembly. Moreover, for more efficient heat dissipation, Samsung has equipped the Galaxy S25 series with a larger vapor chamber cooling system.
Galaxy S25 Plus
The mid-tier model, once again, plays it safe. The only key areas where it stands apart from the Galaxy S25 are the larger 6.7-inch QHD+ display, a bigger 4,900mah, and support for 45W wired charging, instead of 25W on the smaller trim.
The camera hardware is identical, but the storage options start at 256GB on this one. Do keep in mind that Samsung doesn’t bundle the charger in the box, so you will have to fork out extra cash for the 45W charger to juice up your Galaxy S25 series phones.
All three phones maintain an IP68 class dust and water resistance, just like their respective predecessors. Samsung says it will offer seven years of yearly Android OS upgrades and a matching spell for security update coverage.
Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus in Pink GoldSamsung
Among the notable AI-first features is a Now Brief system, which keeps users updated and offers suggestions based on information pulled from the local data. Now Brief will also do its job via the dedicated Now Bar, right on the lock screen.
The Circle to Search system is also getting an upgrade, and it can now extract phone numbers, email addresses, and website URLs appearing on the screen.
Samsung says the Galaxy S25 series also opens the doors for “actionable searches with context-aware suggestions.” Essentially, when you look up information using the universal search tool, you will also see action suggestions, an approach Apple and OnePlus have also implemented on their phones.
SmartThings is truly getting smart
Samsung’s SmartThings ecosystem for connected home devices has been out there for a while now. At this year’s Unpacked, Samsung is leveling up the game with HomeAI, a rather ambitious idea that collects a wide range of data from ambient sensors, tracks activity, and turns them into actionable insights and suggestions.
To that end, Samsung aims to use mmWave sensors (among other types of low-power home sensors as well as those embedded in devices) to understand activity patterns. For example, it can detect when users are engaged in workouts, sleeping, and working.
Based on the activity patterns, it can tell users if there is any scope for improvement and how they can better manage their scheduling to get the best out of their at-home lifestyle. For example, it will tell if the posture of your push-ups could use some adjustments and how to plan the best set.
The next avatar of SmartThings will also deploy a real-time monitoring and feedback channel. So, let’s say that you’ve been sitting in the same posture on a chair for a while now. When the system detects it, users will be nudged to take a break and straighten their back.
Using the sensors embedded in its Frame TV set, Smart Things will detect if you just blow-dried your hair. To handle the mess, it will automatically push the robotic vacuum cleaner into clean-up action.
Likewise, when you reach home at the end of the day, the smart home stack will initiate tasks like dimming the lights, turning on the air purifier, and adjusting the room temperature, among others. Generative AI will also lend a hand in creating more immersive in-home map views and natural interactions.
The Galaxy S24 and Galaxy S24 Plus were incremental improvements over previous generations, but those small improvements resulted in a bigger overall improvement than it first seemed. Fast-forward a year, and Samsung has followed the same mold again, but with fewer changes than I can remember in recent history.
The Galaxy S25 and Galaxy S25 Plus look and feel just like the Galaxy S24 series did. Still, while the Galaxy S25 Ultra has a welcome upgrade in the camera department, its smaller siblings feature nearly identical specs to the previous generation.
Is a sprinkling of new AI features and two hardware changes enough? At first glance, it may not seem so, but look beneath the surface and you’ll find something more polished than ever before. In turn, they aren’t worth the upgrade from the Galaxy S24 series but if you’re coming to the end of a contract with a Galaxy S23 or older, these are probably the upgrade you’re looking for.
Galaxy S25 / S25 Plus specs, price and availability
The Galaxy S25 series is available to order today in the U.S. and launches on Feb 7. The Galaxy S25 starts at $800, while the Galaxy S25 Plus starts at $1,000. The base Galaxy S25 comes with 12GB of RAM like the rest of the range, but otherwise, the specs are very similar to last year.
Both are available in the same set of colors; Navy, Icy Blue, Mint, and Silver Shadow available through all channels and three colors exclusive to Samsung.com.
The three Samsung online exclusive colors are Blueblack, Pinkgold, and Coralred, and while the names suggest one thing, these are much more like the latter part of each name. Having spent time with all the colors, my favorites are navy, coralred, and mint in that order.
Put the Galaxy S25 and Galaxy S25 Plus next to last year’s phones and there’s a strong chance you won’t be able to tell the difference. For many people, this is a problem but it epitomizes Samsung’s current mobile strategy; small improvements that offer just enough for those upgrading their phones every two to three years. If you have a Galaxy S24, there’s no reason to upgrade to the Galaxy S25, but if you have a Galaxy S23 or older — like my mother and my sister — these phones will be very familiar, yet offer enough improvements to be considered worthwhile.
As the adage goes, never judge a book by its cover, and nowhere is this more apparent than the design and hardware.
There are two key hardware changes and they make a bigger difference than I expected. First, Samsung has made both phones more ergonomically friendly, by rounding the corners but retaining a square-ish design. As a result, the phones no longer dig into the palm of your hand as they did in previous years, but instead feel more premium and friendly.
This is further enhanced by the lighter feel. The Galaxy S25 weighs six grams less than the Galaxy S24, while the Galaxy S25 Plus weighs seven grams less. This may seem like a small number, but it makes a difference, especially considering that many people will also use a case.
It’s worth noting that the difference is less marked than the Galaxy S25 Ultra — which is a whopping 18 grams lighter than its predecessor — but it makes a difference in the hands nonetheless. Both phones also measure 0.4mm thinner, which is arguably the more important improvement and they feel markedly more premium as a result.
Beyond these changes, you get the same extremely familiar design that we’ve come to expect from Samsung. The triple camera setup is identical to last year; even though the Galaxy S25 Ultra received an upgraded ultrawide camera, there are no changes to the Galaxy S25 and Galaxy S25 Plus cameras.
The back features a matt glass finish which is very similar to the iPhone 16 series, and the cameras feature a bevelled design that is nearly identical to the one featured on the Galaxy Z Fold 6 last year.
On the front, the displays are identical to last year as well, and while the Galaxy S25 Ultra has a narrower bezel, there are no visual differences between the Galaxy S25 and S25 Plus and the Galaxy S24 series.
Under the hood is where you’ll find the only other notable difference. Unlike previous years where different regions used different processors, this year’s models all feature a Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy chipset which Samsung claims features customizations designed specifically for the Galaxy S25 series. This chipset is also paired with 12GB of RAM across all devices in the Galaxy S25 range, with the base Galaxy S25 getting a bump from 8GB of RAM in the base Galaxy S24 last year.
The battery is identical to last year, which isn’t overly surprising given the slimmer and lighter build. The Galaxy S25 has a 4,000 mAh battery, while the Galaxy S25 Plus has a 4,900 mAh battery.
While the Galaxy S24 had questionable all-day battery life, the Galaxy S24 Plus certainly delivered, and I’d expect that the improvements in the Snapdragon 8 Elite will deliver better all-around battery life for all three models this year.
Unfortunately, there is also no improvement in the charging speeds with the Galaxy S25 featuring the same 25W charging as the Galaxy S24 series (and many generations before it). It’s paired with 15W wireless charging, but if you were hoping for rapid charging like the 80W wired and 50W wireless charging from the OnePlus 13, you’ll be disappointed.
As mentioned, the Galaxy S25 cameras haven’t changed from the previous generation (or several before that). This means you get the same triple camera setup featuring a 50MP wide camera, a 12MP ultra-wide camera, and a 10MP telephoto camera that offers 3x optical zoom.
The Galaxy S24 cameras proved to be perfectly capable and I expect the Galaxy S25 to continue in this vein, with some improvements delivered from the new ISP in the upgraded 3nm chipset.
A sprinkling of AI
Near identical hardware may have you wondering why you should buy the Galaxy S25 series, and the answer depends on whether you want a whole lot of AI, or not. The name of the game is Galaxy AI, and the Galaxy S25 series is loaded with a bunch of new AI features as part of One UI 7, although many of these will be available on other devices as well.
Like the Galaxy S24 series last year, the Galaxy S25 comes equipped with circle-to-search, although this has been improved with additional multimodal features like being able to search via audio. This means if you can’t get a tune out of your head or you are watching something on social and want to know what song that is, Circle to Search can help you find it.
Circle to Search also recognizes phone numbers, emails and URLs on your screen, making it even easier to call, message, or email with just a single tap.
All three Galaxy S25 models come with a new personalized on-device LLM, which is designed to learn from your usage and improve the results you get from Galaxy AI. Crucially, while this is stored in the Knox Vault on your phone, you can transfer this LLM to your next Galaxy device using Smart Switch, but you can’t transfer this to non-Galaxy smartphones.
One of the best new Galaxy AI features allows you to perform multiple actions with one command. Dubbed Cross App Actions, this allows you to perform multiple tasks with one command, which saves you considerable time over the current method.
One example that Samsung gave is finding multiple videos on YouTube and summarizing them in Samsung Notes.
Much of Galaxy AI involves integrating with the rest of your Samsung devices, and one particularly interesting feature is the ability for Galaxy AI to use your Galaxy Ring or Galaxy Watch to understand when you’ve fallen asleep, and then turn off your SmartThings-enabled TV. If you’re like me and use a TV to help you fall asleep, this should help ensure that it not only helps you fall asleep but also get a good night’s sleep.
The last notable Galaxy AI feature is Now Brief, which proactively offers suggestions via the Now Bar on the lock screen. This helps surface any information that Galaxy AI considers pertinent and will change throughout the day. Like the Pixel Watch 3 series, you can also get a Morning Brief, as well as a briefing summarizing your day at the end of the day.
There’s no denying that the Galaxy S25 series is nearly identical to the Galaxy S24 series, but with a few key tweaks.
Crucially, the thinner and lighter build makes for a much better in-hand experience, which is a welcome improvement, especially if you’re upgrading from a Galaxy S23 or older. If you have the Galaxy S24 series, none of these changes would be worth upgrading from, especially as they ultimately offer the same experience and many of the AI features will be available as part of the future One UI 7 upgrade.
The Galaxy S25 series is nicer than I expected, thanks to the thinner and lighter hardware. It’s hard to appreciate how improved this makes the phone feel until you use them, but having spent 90 minutes with Samsung’s new phones, I’m far more excited and interested than I first was. Whether this is a lasting feeling is yet to be determined, but stay tuned for our full reviews of each of the Galaxy S25 series to find out.
