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.— The Verge
• Both S25 and S25+ are 0.4mm thinner than their predecessors — the slimmest Galaxy phones in nearly a decade barring foldables.— Engadget
• 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.— Trusted Reviews
• 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.— Digital Trends
• Within two days of using the Navy color, the glass back gathered scratches — durability of the glass is questionable.— Digital Trends
• 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.— 9to5Google
• Build quality is impeccable — the smartphone is nice and light in your hands and has a very high-quality feel to it.— Notebookcheck
• 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.— MKBHD
• 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.— SuperSaf
• 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.— Snazzy Labs

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.— The Verge
• 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.— Engadget
• It's bright, it's vibrant and it makes all your content look great — Samsung's reputation for displays remains intact.— Trusted Reviews
• 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.— Digital Trends
• The bright LTPO display is a clear pro, but PWM dimming is only at 480 Hz, which can bother sensitive eyes.— Notebookcheck
• 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.— SuperSaf
• 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.— Trusted Reviews
• Slimmer bezels with 1440p resolution and a 120Hz adaptive refresh rate — the LTPO AMOLED panel hits 2,600 nits peak.— GSMArena

The Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy is the single substantial upgrade over the S24+ — Samsung claims 37% faster CPU, 30% faster GPU, 40% faster NPU. Reviewers consistently report fluid performance with much better thermal management thanks to a 15% larger vapor chamber. Geekbench multi-core sits around 9,800; gaming sessions of Genshin Impact and Call of Duty Mobile run without stutters where the S24+ would heat up. Galaxy AI is the more divisive story — One UI 7 itself earns broad praise, Gemini cross-app actions are useful when they work, Now Brief is widely considered filler.

• The biggest upgrade this year is the chip — Samsung claims the S25's CPU is 37 percent faster than its predecessor, with 40 percent improvements on the NPU and a 30 percent more powerful GPU.— Engadget
• After nearly an hour of Genshin Impact at maxed-out graphics at 60Hz there were no stutters and no hot spots on the S25 series — the improved cooling solutions seem to work.— Wired
• Performance is faultless — feels slightly faster than rival phones running the same Snapdragon 8 Elite, and the Galaxy S25 Plus stays surprisingly cool under heavy loads even in 40°C Dubai sun.— Digital Trends
• Geekbench 6 multi-core hits 9,807 — among the highest scores on any Android phone in 2025.— Trusted Reviews
• The Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy allows for over 30% performance increase across the board, plus Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4 — the chip is the single substantial upgrade since the S24+.— GSMArena
• Unlike the Galaxy S25 Ultra's 40% larger vapor chamber, the S25 Plus only sees a 15% increase in cooling performance — the phone gets a little warm under long Call of Duty Mobile sessions but not uncomfortably so.— Trusted Reviews
• Having access to One UI 7 with the best processor available for Android means the Galaxy S25+ runs the OS at its best — there are no hitches in performance.— 9to5Google
• Galaxy AI features will be free only through the end of 2025 — don't be surprised if the AI phone comes with an AI subscription fee.— The Verge
• After two weeks of testing, haven't found much use for these new AI features — having two assistants (Gemini and Bixby) is confusing and Now Brief has yet to produce anything insightful.— Wired
• Galaxy AI is positioned as a productivity assistant more than a chatbot — it does its job well, whether translating a call or dropping info from the screen into a different app.— 9to5Google
• The new Circle to Search is Shazam on steroids — recognizes phone numbers, addresses and locations in images, supports humming or singing a song to find it, and works in foreign languages.— Digital Trends
• The short-lived novelty of AI doesn't define the day-to-day experience — the S25 Plus is good despite the AI, not because of it.— Trusted Reviews

The camera hardware is entirely carried over: 50MP f/1.8 OIS main, 12MP f/2.2 ultrawide, 10MP 3x telephoto, 12MP selfie. Same setup as the S24+ and S23+. The only changes are in image processing via the new ISP and Galaxy AI editing tools. Reviewers split: GSMArena, Trusted Reviews and 9to5Google call results 'good'; Wired and Digital Trends call the camera 'inferior to its main competitors' at this price. The 3x telephoto and 12MP ultrawide are the consensus weak points versus the OnePlus 13, Pixel 9 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro — all of which now ship 5x telephotos and ~48-50MP ultrawides.

• It's the same camera system as the one in the S24 series, minus some software tweaks — doesn't have the upgraded ultrawide in the S25 Ultra, but that's not a huge loss.— The Verge
• Why is the $1,000 S25+ still stuck with a 3X optical zoom telephoto when the $1,000 iPhone 16 Pro was upgraded to a 5X optical camera?— Wired
• The unchanged 12-MP ultrawide on the non-Ultra phones is lackluster and the cameras feel static — the $800 Pixel 9 and $1,000 iPhone 16 Pro both have 48-MP ultrawides.— Wired
• The Galaxy S25 Plus camera is inferior to each of its main competitors — significantly outperformed by the OnePlus 13 in head-to-head testing.— Digital Trends
• Samsung's penchant for slightly overboard sharpening is still visible in the main camera — Samsung is staying true to its oversaturated colors but the portrait mode remains strong.— The Verge
• Samsung is sticking to a 3x optical lens when rivals are offering 5x optical — the Pixel 9 Pro XL is noticeably better at longer zooms with substantial difference in quality throughout the zoom range.— Trusted Reviews
• All four cameras are a match to the Galaxy S24+'s — Samsung is relying on the new ISP rather than new hardware to improve quality.— GSMArena
• Samsung has heard cries for better image production — photos come out clear and detailed without that grainy textured look, with nice true-to-real-world colors and snappy capture.— 9to5Google
• If you're hoping for a major camera upgrade, you'll be disappointed — Samsung stuck with the same camera setup as last year and the only real changes are software and processing.— SuperSaf
• Samsung's front camera is good with great edge detection for portrait blurring — don't write off the S25 Plus because of the 12-megapixel front sensor.— Trusted Reviews

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.— The Verge
• 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.— Digital Trends
• 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.— Digital Trends
• 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.— Digital Trends
• 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.— Wired
• Galaxy S25+ carries slightly better battery life than the S24+ — a full day with around 25% left over by the evening, versus the S24+ ending around 20%.— 9to5Google
• Connecting to a 65W charger, after 15 minutes nearly 45%, after 30 minutes 72% — Samsung's slower 45W cap is a deliberate trade for long-term battery health.— Trusted Reviews
• An r/Android upgrader said it best: 'I just wish it was using the new silicon lithium batteries that OnePlus has' — Samsung's choice to stick with the same 4,900 mAh cell is the most-criticized hardware decision in the lineup.— Reddit r/Android

One UI 7 on Android 15 is the consensus high point of the phone — a split notification/quick-settings shade, vertical app drawer, Now Bar live-activity pill on the lock screen, and a snappier feel overall. Gemini replaces Bixby as the long-press default but Bixby still lurks for Samsung-app features. Seven years of OS upgrades and security patches (through January 2032) match Google and beat virtually everyone else. The Galaxy AI free-tier expires end of 2025 with paid pricing still undisclosed.

• Samsung's One UI 7.0 is a significant update introducing a Dynamic Island-like Now Bar, a split notification and quick settings shade and subtle design updates throughout — a welcome refresh.— The Verge
• One UI 7 is one of the fastest user experiences Samsung has ever made — the Galaxy S25 Plus remains as fast as it was on the first day with no signs of the sluggishness on past Samsung phones.— Digital Trends
• Of all the Android skins, One UI 7 is the most refined, the most consistent and the easiest to get along with — Samsung is matched only by Google for software longevity.— Trusted Reviews
• Samsung committed to 7 years of updates lasting until January 31, 2032 — Android security patches rolled out monthly.— Notebookcheck
• One UI 7 feels more snappy and cleaner — can find everything in a matter of seconds thanks to Galaxy AI's models at work almost everywhere.— 9to5Google
• Bixby is still lurking in the background even with Gemini as the new long-press default — Galaxy AI's most-promoted features run off Samsung's own apps, not Google's.— Trusted Reviews
• On r/Android, S23 owners on One UI 7 say it 'feels just as snappy as the S25' — Samsung's commitment to bringing One UI 7 back to older phones erodes the upgrade case further.— Reddit r/Android
• Samsung's AI sales pitch revolves around software — much of which will almost certainly be ported to previous S-series phones in short order, making the upgrade case weaker.— The Verge

At $999 the S25+ is unchanged in price from the S24+ and shares chip, AI, display tech, build and updates with the $1,299 Ultra. But the competitive landscape at this price has hardened: the OnePlus 13 starts at $900 with silicon-carbon battery, faster charging and IP69; the Pixel 9 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro start at $1,000 with better cameras. Reviewers consensus: if you want a big Samsung flagship for $300 less than Ultra and you're upgrading from an older Plus or non-Samsung phone, the S25+ is a sensible choice. If you have an S23+ or S24+, there's no reason to upgrade.

• The list of reasons to upgrade to an S25+ aside from 'my current phone stopped working and I need a new one' is awfully thin — if you're happy with your current S-series phone, there's no compelling reason to upgrade.— The Verge
• The S25, S25+ and S25 Ultra are powerful, reliable and well-equipped — they're excellent upgrades from a three or four-year-old device, just not otherwise interesting or exciting.— Wired
• For the same $1,000, you can buy the OnePlus 13, Pixel 9 Pro or iPhone 16 Pro — all three offer a better overall experience.— Digital Trends
• The Galaxy S25+ is a good phone that will suit many buyers — great display, great design, good camera and powerful — but it's hard to recommend as an upgrade if you have a recent device.— Trusted Reviews
• The most powerful chip on the market gives the Galaxy S25+ a bigger fighting chance than ever — a balanced flagship with premium screen, great cameras, not as large as Ultra and more feature-rich than the small S25.— GSMArena
• Currently one of the best smartphones on the market when it comes to features and performance — but improvements compared to its predecessor are very modest.— Notebookcheck
• If you're on an older phone like the S22 or S23, you'll likely feel a huge difference — at $999 (same as last year), this isn't a bad deal but definitely isn't advice to upgrade from an S24 right away.— 9to5Google
• The S25 Plus might just be the phone to recommend to most people looking at Samsung's lineup — nearly all the features of the S25 Ultra, same chipset and software, for $300 less.— SuperSaf
• Traded into the S25+ over the Ultra this year specifically for the Coral Red color and the smaller form factor — the Ultra is excellent but too big and heavy for many buyers.— Snazzy Labs
• r/Android upgraders who handled both in-store consistently picked the Plus over the Ultra: 'spent like 20 minutes in the store going back and forth, but it was just too big and heavy, the Plus feels way better especially with smaller hands.'— Reddit r/Android
• On r/Android, the most-upvoted critique is that the camera held buyers back from picking the Plus: 'wanted to get the S25+ but man, why does the camera have to be trash' — but the Ultra is too big and heavy for most.— Reddit r/Android