Samsung‘s been sitting fairly as king of the Android smartphone heap and Apple‘s major cellular competitors for years, with the Galaxy S collection being the corporate’s top-tier line, and the S25 Extremely being pretty much as good because it will get in Samsung land in 2025.
Regardless of an unwavering place on the high alongside Apple, Samsung’s confronted some stiff competitors over the past 12 months, particularly from Chinese language powerhouse smartphone makers. The Honor Magic 7 Professional has simply dropped with its 180MP periscope zoom digicam, and Vivo’s Zeiss co-engineered X200 Professional is hands-down the most effective smartphones for telephoto images we’ve ever used. Xiaomi’s Leica partnership, in the meantime, has produced the indomitable Xiaomi 14 Extremely, with its 1-inch sensor, variable aperture and classical tuning designed to scratch images fanatics’ digicam itch like no different, and let’s not overlook Oppo and OnePlus. The Oppo Discover X8 Professional and OnePlus 13 are battery powerhouses with Hasselblad co-development, nuanced picture processing and distinctive portrait efficiency.
It isn’t simply Chinese language telephone makers which can be giving Samsung a run for its cash, although. Google’s Pixel 9 Professional and 9 Professional XL symbolize a successful stability of favor and digicam efficiency. And on the extra reasonably priced finish, London-based telephone maker Nothing, combines clear design with refreshingly gimmick-free digicam programs within the Cellphone (2) and Cellphone (2a).
As with each new telephone launch, the S25 Extremely can be competing with its predecessor, the Galaxy S24 Extremely, with comparatively modest adjustments year-on-year. From a digicam standpoint, the one {hardware} distinction is a better decision ultra-wide digicam, up from 12MP to 50MP, whereas the remainder of the telephone will get a barely revamped design, extra {powerful} internals and an much more beneficiant lathering of AI-labelled options than final 12 months.
As ever, Samsung’s 2025 Extremely can be one of the crucial costly non-folding telephones on the scene, costing greater than even Apple’s 16 Professional Max. So do the brand new AI options and upgraded internals make it a worthy successor and a successful alternative over the competitors, or do its excessive value and heavy dose of deja vu restrict its enchantment?
Samsung Galaxy S25 Extremely design assessment
There are a number of headline design adjustments for the S25 Extremely when in comparison with final 12 months’s S24 Extremely. It’s thinner – 8.2mm in comparison with 8.6mm – it’s lighter – 218g in comparison with 232g, and the flat corners and rounded sides have been swapped out for rounded corners and flat sides. Apparently, this transfer from rounded to flat really makes the brand new S25 Extremely really feel a bit chunkier than its predecessor, regardless of the numbers.
The telephone’s 6.9-inch display screen can be a bit bigger than the 6.8-inch S24 Extremely display screen, making the S25 Extremely one of many largest-screened flagships round, and a perfect-sized gaming and watching possibility. On the backside of the telephone is an S Pen that pops out, a USB-C port, a SIM slot, and a loudspeaker. The buttons are all on the correct facet, and across the again is the quad-camera system.
There’s no getting across the reality the S25 collection is extra constant, with the Extremely stepping consistent with the usual and Plus variations – flat glass on the back and front, flat sides, and barely rounded corners – and this consistency might be a very good factor, however it does make this 12 months’s S25 Extremely really feel a bit extra generic than the extra distinctive Ultras that got here earlier than it.
Fortunately, from a sturdiness standpoint, the S25 Extremely is up there with a Gorilla Armour 2 glass back and front and a grade 5 titanium body. It’s additionally IP68 mud and water resistant, and the display screen has an upgraded anti-reflective coating, so every thing seems to be very matte, very glass and metallic, and really premium, even when a bit secure.
There are some prospers to the S25 Extremely’s design: the digicam encompass for the first, ultra-wide and 5x zoom cameras are extra pronounced, showing to hover atop the glass again because of a stepped design which seems to be cool. We’re huge followers of Samsung’s muted, frosted, metallic again panel colours, with choices together with Silverblue, Gray, Black, and Whitesilver. Should you purchase the S25 Extremely on-line, you’ll be able to decide it up in Jadegreen, Pinkgold, and Jetblack. The model pictured on this assessment is Silverblue, and whereas it is principally silver, a sublime mauve tint shines by means of when gentle hits it at a sure angle.
In abstract, the S25 Extremely’s design seems to be secure, feels strong, and is undeniably premium. A strong 8/10 for match and end, even when it received’t be successful any awards for originality.
Samsung Galaxy S25 Extremely display screen assessment
Samsung screens are all the time a spotlight, and the S25 Extremely’s massive, 6.9-inch panel combines tiny bezels with a crisp decision and a zingy image. The Dynamic LTPO AMOLED show has a clean 120Hz refresh fee that may scale up and down based mostly on what’s being displayed. In contrast to a lot of the competitors, you’ll be able to’t lock the display screen to 120Hz, with two choices – Adaptive and Normal – accessible. This would possibly irk geeks who need to eke out each body from swipes, however it also needs to assist get the most effective battery life from the comparatively modest-sized cell.
Samsung presents a handful of show choices – Eye consolation defend, Adaptive coloration tone, and Display mode – which give customers management over display screen colours and eye care, and these are complete with out being class-leading.
The telephone can be set to Full HD+ decision by default, regardless of the precise display screen being a sky-high QHD+ with nearly 500 pixels in each inch of display screen. Meaning the interface renders at a decrease decision to avoid wasting battery, and whilst you can override this, with our imperfect eyesight, every thing regarded high quality at FHD+.
In reality, when open air, every thing seems to be higher than high quality. The anti-glare show, matched with the S25 Extremely’s peak brightness of 2600 nits, ensures it’s straightforward to see what’s on-screen even in direct daylight.
The display screen’s massive, however Samsung’s one-handed mode is intuitive sufficient for simple left or right-handed use with none stretching – simply activate it within the settings – and if you’re a fan of pen enter, the additional display screen measurement matched with the pop-out pen make for a splendidly exact means of modifying pictures. This works nice in Lightroom, and when navigating textual content and jotting down mindmaps or notes, and in case you’re coming from an older curved Samsung Extremely, the flat display screen and further measurement create a extra comfy, edge-to-edge canvas.
Samsung Galaxy S25 Extremely digicam specs
The Galaxy S25 Extremely has three cameras across the again, and one on the entrance, with the one distinction in comparison with final 12 months’s mannequin being the ultra-wide digicam, which is larger decision this 12 months.
13mm ultra-wide digicam: 50MP decision sensor with an f/1.9, 120º FOV lens
24mm major digicam: 200MP decision, 1/1.3-inch sensor with an f/1.7 aperture lens and OIS.
67mm (3x equal) telephoto digicam: 10MP decision, 1/3.52-inch sensor with an f/2.4 aperture lens and OIS
111mm (5x equal) periscope digicam: 50MP decision, 1/2.52-inch sensor with an f/3.4 aperture lens and OIS
26mm entrance digicam: 12MP decision, 1/3.2-inch sensor with an f/2.2 aperture lens and PDAF
Capturing modes: Portrait, Picture, Video, Knowledgeable RAW, Professional, Professional Video, Night time, Meals, Panorama, Gradual Movement, Hyperlapse, Portrait Viudeo, Twin Rec, and Single Take.
New for this 12 months, Samsung’s including LOG seize to the S25 Extremely’s professional video recording, and for video editors, this provides loads of scope for customized seems to be and contrast-correction within the edit. This comes full with publicity monitoring and focus-peaking, taking the S25 Extremely’s video up a degree for creators.
Samsung Galaxy S25 Extremely digicam assessment
Should you’re coming from a Samsung S23 or S24 Extremely, you’ll know roughly what to anticipate from the S25 Extremely’s digicam. Its pictures look reliably good all through the zoom vary from 13mm by means of to round 150mm, which is undeniably spectacular for a smartphone. The caveat is that the ceiling for picture high quality isn’t fairly as excessive as some alternate options just like the Xiaomi 14 Extremely and Vivo X200 Professional, particularly once you pinch in.
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Background blur, for instance, showcases an unnatural mottling, which is an indication of heavy processing, particularly from the telephoto cameras, whereas gadgets with bigger tele sensors and/or extra pared-back processing don’t have a tendency to supply this impact.
Image readability is powerful for pictures taken in vibrant environments, even as much as 10x zoom, although going past pulls up some fringing and ghosting, and past 30x generates seen AI-style clean-up work, smoothing traces and blocking colours.
Highlights and shadows protect plenty of element in auto mode, however we’d be okay with shedding a little bit of shadow element, and pictures showcasing a bit extra distinction and depth in blacks to provide them a bit extra of a classical look. Against this, the S25 Extremely’s footage have a little bit of that HDR-style, shot-on-a-smartphone look.
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In low gentle, Samsung’s pictures do a very good job of brightening up scenes and grabbing usable pictures, however nonetheless try to pull an excessive amount of coloration out, so could make evening skies look too navy blue, gentle leaking into the body look too yellow, and sure elements of the scene look a bit muddy. What’s noticeably higher is element all through the zoom vary, suggesting the S25 Extremely could be an amazing shout for any gig-lovers and eager zoomers.
The {hardware} improve this 12 months – the 50MP ultra-wide – is welcome, and does guarantee a degree of high quality in vibrant environments even when pulled proper again. The ultra-wide options autofocus, locks on super-close to a topic with roughly 4cm macro seize, and crams loads of element into pictures, even when lighting isn’t excellent. Being a wider focal size than competing ultra-wides, there’s extra distortion too, however the added vary it provides is nice to have.
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The telephoto cameras each focus good and close to to topics, with the 3x locking on as shut as 16cm, and the 5x locking on as shut as 22cm in our checks. When in comparison with the iPhone 15 Professional and Pixel 9 Professional, which might’t focus nearer than 1m or extra, the S25 Extremely quick turns into a implausible alternative for meals and product images.
Loads of our grumbling about Samsung’s zingy, processed footage, which received’t enchantment to traditionalists, will be corrected for in Knowledgeable RAW, which is like Professional Mode on dynamic vary steroids. This composites RAW information to provide you higher dynamic vary in a lossless format, and is especially {powerful} when matched with a gentle hand or steadied telephone, in a position to seize supremely editable pictures throughout cameras. It’s a faff in comparison with point-and-shoot auto mode, however in case you’re ready to place within the effort, the outcomes might properly be value it.
One other spotlight is Samsung’s Professional Video mode. The brand new LOG characteristic is an outstanding addition which we obtained loads of use out of in our two weeks with the telephone, although it’s value noting, Professional Mode doesn’t mean you can swap between cameras when you’ve began recording, one in all our few bugbears with it. The footage itself was spectacular, and whereas it received’t topple Apple’s ProRes, contemplating its comparably minute file measurement, it’s a successful middle-ground for folk like us who can’t justify an exterior drive for a couple of minutes of Apple’s best footage.
The Galaxy S25 Extremely’s selfie digicam is usually a success. With autofocus, you will get inventive together with your selfie pictures and movies getting up shut and private or far and broad for group selfies, and so they look nice till the lights drop, after which they’re simply aggressive. We nonetheless favor selfies from the Pixel 9 Professional, which handles pores and skin tones with extra nuance, balancing flattering with pure a bit higher, however it’s nice to see the S25 Extremely has no dud cameras across the entrance or again.
Samsung Galaxy S25 Extremely efficiency and battery assessment
The Galaxy S25 Extremely runs Android 15 with OneUI 7.0, and the entire interface has had a lick of paint to deliver it consistent with different Androids on the scene. The pull-down notification display screen will be swiped down from the left, the fast toggles from the correct, and there’s a brand new Now Transient widget in your homescreen by default.
Now Transient, a headline characteristic of the S25 collection, makes use of AI to drag collectively information out of your Samsung Galaxy Watch, Spotify listening habits, calendar, location, and even YouTube profile to feed helpful data to you, up to date morning, midday, and evening. It’s unclear how a lot better the characteristic will recover from time, however it’s honest to say that proper now, it’s very gentle contact stuff, and positively isn’t a purpose to leap ship to Samsung in case you’re on the fence.
Happily, the meat on the UI bone is ample, with Samsung’s interface jam-packed with options for productiveness, gaming, and a ton of helpful software program, The Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy can be super-powerful, and warmth is managed properly, even when tearing by means of top-tier titles like Wuthering Waves and Genshin Affect.
The S25 Extremely’s audio system sound markedly higher than these of previous Samsung telephones – much less tinny and extra full-bodied – and even when masking the bottom-firing speaker when gaming, sound wasn’t too badly muffled.
The telephone’s S Pen can be a pleasant contact, working properly with the AI Sketch to Picture characteristic and Samsung Notes for a neat perk when in comparison with the competitors. There’s additionally a set of picture modifying instruments baked into OneUI that take away objects and reflections, allow generative fill when increasing or rotating a picture, and extra – all launched with the Galaxy S24 collection – and all of the helpful Galaxy AI instruments we coated when reviewing the S24 Extremely are again for spherical two.
These AI instruments embrace name help for real-time translation throughout calls, writing help for assist proofing or translating your written content material, a reside interpreter, in addition to transcription and summarising of recordings. Samsung additionally provides customers the choice to disable cloud AI, so all data will be processed on-device, which ought to assist persuade AI skeptics fascinated with selecting up an S25, Plus, or Extremely to make the leap.
Samsung’s storage choices for the S25 Extremely begin at 256GB with 12GB RAM. That is respectable however isn’t class-leading, particularly contemplating the telephone’s excessive asking value. With Android being extra {powerful} and demanding than ever, particularly with the AI baked in at a tool degree, we are able to’t assist however really feel extra RAM would future-proof the S25 collection and maintain it consistent with the competitors, which options as much as 24GB RAM within the equally priced Honor Magic 7 Professional RSR version. However, the promise of seven years of software program updates is a formidable dedication to future-proofing and we are able to’t argue with the sleek expertise with the telephone on launch.
On paper, the Galaxy S25 Extremely’s 5000mAh battery is wanting extra outdated than ever. The identical capability because the 2022 Galaxy S22 Extremely. Whereas opponents like Oppo, OnePlus, Vivo, and Honor are pioneering new battery tech to make two-day battery life attainable, the S25 Extremely is comfortably capped at a bit over a day. Due to the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite’s environment friendly efficiency, we comfortably hit 9 PM with 10-30 % within the tank with out fail day-after-day in our two-week assessment interval. Nonetheless, we positively wouldn’t belief the S25 Extremely on a weekend away like we would the OnePlus 13.
It’s additionally value noting that the S25 Extremely’s charging instances fall behind the flagship competitors too (outdoors Apple and Google camps). It fees at 45W wired, absolutely powering up in round an hour, whereas the wi-fi charging time is hours, particularly when you have got a case on it, decreasing effectivity. This additional relegates the S25 Extremely to the realms of nightly fees, whereas different telephones solely name for infrequent top-ups each few days by comparability.
Samsung Galaxy S25 Extremely verdict
If you wish to get the most effective from the S25 Extremely, it helps to be a Samsung loyalist. The telephone talks to your Samsung watch to drag data into your Now Briefing about your sleep and exercise. It’s going to handle your Samsung residence home equipment higher than the competitors out of the field, and also you received’t have the ability to movement between your S25 Extremely and non-Samsung pill with handwritten notes and information fairly as simply as you’ll be able to a Tab S collection slate.
This movement between Samsung tech even helps the S25 Extremely really feel like a greater digicam telephone. Enhancing RAW pictures in your Samsung Pill taken on the S25 Extremely, shortly pinging over massive video information for modifying on Capcut or Lumafusion, there’s actual worth to this cohesion.
Should you’re not certain to Samsung’s ecosystem and are searching for the best possible digicam telephone, the Galaxy S25 Extremely isn’t it, in our opinion. In auto mode, its picture processing swings too huge with sharpness and saturation, whereas the {hardware} laying the muse isn’t best-in-class. We have been sometimes left wishing we shot in RAW or a minimum of in Professional mode, even when most informal pictures look nice.
We additionally respect the telephoto cameras besting the iPhone 16 Professional and Pixel 9 Professional collection relating to close-up images. They aren’t marketed as telemacro cameras, however each the 3x and 5x focus comparatively shut, so product pictures look extra premium, and so they’re additionally strong portrait choices too. One actual win this 12 months is the LOG video, which needs to be a boon for creators.
All the pieces else concerning the telephone is predictably good; efficiency and OneUI all make for a clean expertise, it is nice for gaming, the display screen seems to be beautiful, and the S Pen is a novel characteristic that may enchantment to some.
Whereas the S25 Extremely’s battery life will not greatest the 6000mAh competitors, it obtained us by means of a day regardless of the bigger display screen, making the S25 Extremely an costly, however distinctive telephone, excellent for Samsung followers, and excellent for everybody else.
Samsung Galaxy S25 Extremely alternate options
For anybody searching for the most effective worth and battery life, the OnePlus 13 edges forward of the S25 Extremely, packing comparable internals and a a lot higher-capacity cell for a fraction of the value, although it misses out on the digicam versatility of Samsung’s top-tier flagship with a much less versatile telephoto.
For extra attain, the Oppo Discover X8 Professional’s an amazing alternative, and its portraits additionally edge forward of Samsung’s for us. The Vivo X200 Professional’s zoom is in the end extra nuanced and best-in-class for telemacro seize, and in case you are inclined to shoot on the 70mm vary greater than 120mm, it’s possible you’ll favor the Honor Magic 7 Professional. All these telephones ship greater batteries, sooner charging, however none help pen enter.
In fact, for anybody not bought into the Samsung ecosystem, you would select the spectacular Pixel 9 Professional or 9 Professional XL. Whereas the digicam combine is extra restricted than the S25 Extremely, with three cameras as an alternative of 4, its picture processing wins out for us.