Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra review

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Introduction

The best remote shooter in the world is gone, but the best Galaxy in the world is back! Headlining the new series, the Galaxy S25 Ultra brings numerous design, performance, camera, and, of course, AI updates, but takes away arguably the most loved S-Pen feature - the Bluetooth connectivity.

Samsung has finally struck gold with the Galaxy S25 Ultra design - now there is a flat frame with rounded corners, which should improve both looks and handling experience. The phone's front is even tougher this time with second-generation Gorilla Glass Armor and grade 5 titanium frame.

The S25 Ultra has gotten thinner, narrower, and lighter than the S24 Ultra, but thanks to the shrunken bezels, there is now a larger 6.9-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X screen with 1440p resolution.

Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Elite powers all S25 models, Ultra included, which is the most welcome generational upgrade this year. The most powerful Android chip to date is "for Galaxy" version, which means it features a boosted CPU, because that is what Samsung and Qualcomm do.

All cameras across all Galaxy S25 models stay the same as on their S24 counterparts except for the ultrawide unit in the S25 Ultra, which now has a 50MP sensor with an f/1.9 aperture (and autofocus, still). The 200MP primary, the 10MP 3x and 50MP 5x telephoto cameras, as well as the 12MP selfie shooter, are all without hardware upgrades. Samsung is relying on the power of the new Snapdragon chipset's ISP to improve the photo and video quality across the board.

The Galaxy S25 Ultra is powered by a 5,000mAh battery capable of 45W fast wired charging. Qi2 wireless charging is also on the menu.

The S-Pen is still part of the Ultra, but it no longer supports Bluetooth. This means no more air actions and no more remote camera shutter. Why?!

Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra specs at a glance:

• Body: 162.8x77.6x8.2mm, 218g; Glass front (Corning Gorilla Armor 2), glass back (Corning Gorilla Victus 2), titanium frame (grade 5); IP68 dust/water resistant (up to 1.5m for 30 min), Stylus.
• Display: 6.90" Dynamic LTPO AMOLED 2X, 120Hz, HDR10+, 2600 nits (peak), 1440x3120px resolution, 19.5:9 aspect ratio, 498ppi; Always-on display.
• Chipset: Qualcomm SM8750-AB Snapdragon 8 Elite (3 nm): Octa-core (2x4.47 GHz Oryon V2 Phoenix L + 6x3.53 GHz Oryon V2 Phoenix M); Adreno 830.
• Memory: 256GB 12GB RAM, 512GB 12GB RAM, 1TB 12GB RAM, 1TB 16GB RAM; UFS 4.0.
• OS/Software: Android 15, up to 7 major Android upgrades, One UI 7.
• Rear camera: Wide (main): 200 MP, f/1.7, 24mm, 1/1.3", 0.6µm, multi-directional PDAF, OIS; Telephoto: 10 MP, f/2.4, 67mm, 1/3.52", 1.12µm, PDAF, OIS, 3x optical zoom; Telephoto: 50 MP, f/3.4, 111mm, 1/2.52", 0.7µm, PDAF, OIS, 5x optical zoom; Ultra wide angle: 50 MP, f/1.9, 120˚, 0.7µm, dual pixel PDAF, Super Steady video.
• Front camera: 12 MP, f/2.2, 26mm (wide), 1/3.2", 1.12µm, dual pixel PDAF.
• Video capture: Rear camera: 8K@24/30fps, 4K@30/60/120fps, 1080p@30/60/240fps, 10-bit HDR, HDR10+, stereo sound rec., gyro-EIS; Front camera: 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30fps.
• Battery: 5000mAh; 45W wired, PD3.0, 65% in 30 min, 25W wireless (Qi2), 4.5W reverse wireless.
• Connectivity: 5G; eSIM; Wi-Fi 7; BT 5.4; NFC.
• Misc: Fingerprint reader (under display, ultrasonic); stereo speakers; Samsung DeX, Samsung Wireless DeX (desktop experience support), Ultra Wideband (UWB) support, Circle to Search.

The Galaxy S25 Ultra brings a lot of incremental updates, but none of them can be considered big compared to the Galaxy S24 Ultra. It appears that Samsung is relying more on the software and AI functions to sell the new models, as opposed to hardware and camera updates.

Unboxing the Galaxy S25 Ultra

The Galaxy S25 Ultra arrives inside a thin black box, which contains the phone, a USB-C cable, and a SIM ejection tool.

The bundled cable is the DN980 model - a black 1m cable with a 3A rating, which, as of this year, can still get you more or less the maximum charging speed. Formerly, if you wanted to achieve the full 45W rated power (or thereabouts), you would have needed a 5A-rated cable. You can read more about this development in the charging section.