Nothing Phone (4a) vs Samsung Galaxy S25+

Nothing Phone (4a)

Nothing

8.3

The mid-ranger that stands out

Samsung Galaxy S25+

Samsung

The unflashy choice that's right for most

Nothing Phone (4a)

What Reviewers Agree On

Distinctive Glyph design that stands out in a sea of black slabs — widely called one of the best-looking phones at its price
Excellent big screen for the money: a 6.78-inch 120Hz AMOLED, HDR10+, ~1,600 nits outdoor and a 4,500-nit HDR peak
Near-stock Nothing OS ranked among the best Android experiences, highly customisable and clean
A rare 3.5x (80mm) periscope telephoto at this price, adding real flexibility most budget rivals lack
A clear, substantial upgrade over the Phone 3a / Phone 3, fixing earlier design problems
Strong value — cheaper than the $500 Pixel 10a while feeling more premium than the price suggests

Pros & Cons

Nothing Phone (4a)

Pros

Distinctive Glyph design that stands out in a sea of black slabs — widely called one of the best-looking phones at its price
Excellent big screen for the money: a 6.78-inch 120Hz AMOLED, HDR10+, ~1,600 nits outdoor and a 4,500-nit HDR peak
Near-stock Nothing OS ranked among the best Android experiences, highly customisable and clean
A rare 3.5x (80mm) periscope telephoto at this price, adding real flexibility most budget rivals lack
A clear, substantial upgrade over the Phone 3a / Phone 3, fixing earlier design problems

Detailed Comparison

Design & Build

Nothing Phone (4a)

Nothing's signature transparent-inspired look with the Glyph — divisive but genuinely distinctive at a budget price, and a real step forward from the Phone 3a.

It's both a step forward and a throwback to a better era in design, fixing everything that was wrong with the Phone 3 — a big upgrade.
A budget phone that stands out from the crowd.
The Glyph circle has ~137 mini-LEDs, 57% larger and twice as bright as the Phone 3's Glyph interface — and many call it the best-looking Nothing phone ever.
Nothing's design is appreciated for trying to be more unique than a plain black glass slab, even if some find the dot-matrix display almost useless.

TechTalkTown may earn a commission from purchases made through links below. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. This does not influence our reviews. Learn more.

Buy Nothing Phone (4a)

Buy Samsung Galaxy S25+

AmazonCheck price

People Also Compare

Motorola Razr Fold vs Nothing Phone (4a)Motorola Razr Fold vs Samsung Galaxy S25+Nothing Phone (4a) vs Oppo Find X9 Ultra Oppo Find X9 Ultra vs Samsung Galaxy S25+Google Pixel 10a vs Nothing Phone (4a)Google Pixel 10a vs Samsung Galaxy S25+Nothing Phone (4a) vs Vivo X300 Ultra Samsung Galaxy S25+ vs Vivo X300 Ultra Nothing Phone (4a) vs Nothing Phone (4a) Pro Nothing Phone (4a) Pro vs Samsung Galaxy S25+

Browse all reviews

Samsung Galaxy S25+

What Reviewers Agree On

The Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy delivers fast, fluid performance with noticeably better thermals than the S24+ — gaming sessions don't stutter and the phone stays cooler under load.
The 6.7-inch QHD+ Dynamic AMOLED 2X with 120Hz and 2,600-nit peak brightness is one of the best displays on any smartphone, full stop.
Battery life on the unchanged 4,900 mAh cell easily lasts a full day, with most reviewers ending around 25-40% remaining.
Samsung's seven years of OS upgrades and security patches is a best-in-industry commitment that justifies the long-term investment.
One UI 7 is Samsung's most polished software ever — the split Quick Settings/notifications shade, snappy animations and Circle to Search are genuine improvements.
Build quality is excellent and the body is meaningfully slimmer (7.3mm) and lighter (190g) than the S24+ despite identical screen size.
At $999 it's $300 cheaper than the S25 Ultra while sharing the chip, RAM, display tech, AI features and update window — it's the value pick of the S25 lineup if you want a big phone.

Deal Breakers

The camera hardware is entirely carried over from the S24+ (and S23+) — same 50MP main, 12MP ultrawide, 10MP 3x telephoto — and now lags rivals like the OnePlus 13 and Pixel 9 Pro that ship 50MP ultrawides and 5x periscope tele lenses at the same price.
Qi2 wireless charging is 'Qi2 Ready' only — the phone has no built-in magnets, so MagSafe-style accessories require buying a separate magnetic case, and third-party cases are hit-or-miss.
Galaxy AI features are guaranteed free only through the end of 2025, with Samsung hinting at a future paid tier and refusing to commit to pricing.
Virtually nothing has changed externally from the S24+ — same shape, same camera island layout, even the same colors-of-the-year feel. Reviewers from The Verge, Wired, Trusted Reviews and 9to5Google all note this directly.
The 3x optical telephoto is a clear weak spot at $1,000 — rivals at the same price now offer 5x periscope cameras that capture noticeably more detail at longer zoom ranges.

Samsung Galaxy S25+

Pros

The Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy delivers fast, fluid performance with noticeably better thermals than the S24+ — gaming sessions don't stutter and the phone stays cooler under load.
The 6.7-inch QHD+ Dynamic AMOLED 2X with 120Hz and 2,600-nit peak brightness is one of the best displays on any smartphone, full stop.
Battery life on the unchanged 4,900 mAh cell easily lasts a full day, with most reviewers ending around 25-40% remaining.
Samsung's seven years of OS upgrades and security patches is a best-in-industry commitment that justifies the long-term investment.
One UI 7 is Samsung's most polished software ever — the split Quick Settings/notifications shade, snappy animations and Circle to Search are genuine improvements.
Build quality is excellent and the body is meaningfully slimmer (7.3mm) and lighter (190g) than the S24+ despite identical screen size.
At $999 it's $300 cheaper than the S25 Ultra while sharing the chip, RAM, display tech, AI features and update window — it's the value pick of the S25 lineup if you want a big phone.

Cons

The camera hardware is entirely carried over from the S24+ (and S23+) — same 50MP main, 12MP ultrawide, 10MP 3x telephoto — and now lags rivals like the OnePlus 13 and Pixel 9 Pro that ship 50MP ultrawides and 5x periscope tele lenses at the same price.
Qi2 wireless charging is 'Qi2 Ready' only — the phone has no built-in magnets, so MagSafe-style accessories require buying a separate magnetic case, and third-party cases are hit-or-miss.
Galaxy AI features are guaranteed free only through the end of 2025, with Samsung hinting at a future paid tier and refusing to commit to pricing.
Virtually nothing has changed externally from the S24+ — same shape, same camera island layout, even the same colors-of-the-year feel. Reviewers from The Verge, Wired, Trusted Reviews and 9to5Google all note this directly.
The 3x optical telephoto is a clear weak spot at $1,000 — rivals at the same price now offer 5x periscope cameras that capture noticeably more detail at longer zoom ranges.

Samsung Galaxy S25+

Samsung slimmed the S25+ to 7.3mm and dropped 6-7g in weight versus the S24+, but otherwise the design is unchanged — same flat aluminum frame, same Gorilla Glass Victus 2 front and back, same IP68 rating, same camera island. Reviewers split between 'this is fine, the design didn't need fixing' and 'this is the S24s.' Notably, the S25+ does not get the Ultra's titanium frame or Gorilla Armor 2 anti-reflective glass.

The design is basically the same as last go-around — flat edges, curved corners and Samsung's signature stoplight rear camera arrangement, with the flat edges making the phone feel more secure in hand.
Both S25 and S25+ are 0.4mm thinner than their predecessors — the slimmest Galaxy phones in nearly a decade barring foldables.
Comparing to the OnePlus 13 and Pixel 9 Pro XL, the Galaxy S25 Plus definitely feels like the slimmest device — slim 7.3mm chassis with weight dropping to 190g.
The Galaxy S25 Plus looks like the Galaxy S24 Plus and the other Plus phones that came before — Samsung is hoping sleek new colors help it stand out.
Within two days of using the Navy color, the glass back gathered scratches — durability of the glass is questionable.
Samsung has reached the design that's the least offensive to anyone and looks the most modern — the design is sound and looks good even if it isn't exciting.
Build quality is impeccable — the smartphone is nice and light in your hands and has a very high-quality feel to it.
From the outside these phones are almost indistinguishable from the last ones — this is a Galaxy S 24s, a spec bump with the same design.
The S25 Plus doesn't get the Ultra's Gorilla Armor 2 glass — it's not as tough and doesn't have the same anti-reflective properties, but overall still feels premium.
The Coral Red online-exclusive color is the standout this year — back is a bright matte red with darker blood-red edges, a contrast you don't get on the standard colors.

Display

Nothing Phone (4a)

A genuine highlight for the price — a big 6.78-inch 120Hz AMOLED that's bright, sharp and HDR-capable, beating similarly priced rivals.

6.78-inch AMOLED, 120Hz, 2160Hz PWM, HDR10+, 800 nits typical / 1,600 nits HBM / 4,500 nits peak at 1224x2720 (440ppi).
The 6.78-inch display is 23% brighter than the 3a, reaching 1,600 nits outdoors with a 4,500-nit HDR peak.
Brightness goes up to 4,500 nits peak, remaining easily readable outdoors — the display is very strong for this price range and one of the standout features.
In the real world it hits around 700 nits peak SDR and ~1,550–1,600 nits in HDR, with 460ppi and dynamic 120Hz.

Samsung Galaxy S25+

Near-universal praise for the 6.7-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X — 1-120Hz LTPO, 1440p resolution, 2,600-nit peak brightness, HDR10+. Two important caveats: this panel does NOT get the Gorilla Armor 2 anti-reflective coating that defines the Ultra's display, and PWM dimming is conservative at 480Hz, which Notebookcheck flags as potentially bothersome to sensitive eyes.

The 6.7-inch panel has a bump up to 1440p resolution from the 1080p on the S25 — the extra resolution is necessary with such a big display.
Samsung's displays are vivid, bright and gorgeous with refresh rates up to 120Hz — the bigger S25+ has a higher-res QHD+ 6.7-inch display.
It's bright, it's vibrant and it makes all your content look great — Samsung's reputation for displays remains intact.
The display lacks the anti-reflective coating from the Galaxy S25 Ultra — it still features the same 120Hz dynamic refresh rate and 1440 x 3120 resolution as last year.
The bright LTPO display is a clear pro, but PWM dimming is only at 480 Hz, which can bother sensitive eyes.
Still incredibly bright at 2,600 nits like the Ultra, still supports HDR10+, and still has the impressive color accuracy Samsung is known for — one of the best displays on a smartphone today.
ProScaler tech upscales lower-quality photo and video content to look better at the panel's highest resolution — but it's hard to see whether anything is going on without an old device side-by-side.
Slimmer bezels with 1440p resolution and a 120Hz adaptive refresh rate — the LTPO AMOLED panel hits 2,600 nits peak.

Battery & Charging

Nothing Phone (4a)

A ~5,080mAh cell with 50W wired charging — reviewers call endurance strong, but a notable group of owners report disappointing screen-on time.

The Nothing Phone (4a) features a ~5,080mAh cell which delivers very strong endurance in everyday use.
The battery grew slightly — about 80mAh in most markets but a more meaningful 400mAh in India — with a 50W PD unit recommended on the box.
Several owners report only 4–6.5 hours of screen-on time with moderate use — worse than other phones with similar ~5,000mAh batteries.
Battery life on this phone is excellent in everyday use.

Samsung Galaxy S25+

Same 4,900 mAh cell as the S24+, same 45W wired and 15W wireless charging caps. The more efficient Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy pushes real-world endurance comfortably to a full day with 25-40% remaining. Real charge time is ~75 minutes wall-to-100% on a 65W charger. The Qi2 Ready implementation without built-in magnets is the consistent frustration, and reviewers note that OnePlus 13's silicon-carbon battery and ~40-minute full charge time make Samsung look complacent here.

The 4,900mAh battery goes all day even with more pixels to light up — frequently ended a day with around 40 to 30 percent battery left and roughly five to six hours of screen-on time.
On several occasions the S25 Plus lasted over 24 hours on a single charge with at least six hours of screen-on time and 10-20% remaining — battery life can satisfy even demanding users.
A quick ten-minute top-up nets around 25%, 50% in 25 minutes, 75% in 40 minutes, and a full charge averages about 1 hour 10 minutes — fastest test was 64 minutes.
Pales in comparison to rivals like the OnePlus 13 which achieves a full charge in under 40 minutes — OnePlus 13's 50W magnetic charger is effectively faster than the S25 Plus on a 45W charger.
Qi2 is one of the most exciting features coming to Android in 2025, but the S25 Plus is Qi2 Ready only — no built-in magnets, so you need a separate magnetic case and third-party options are hit-or-miss.