Recently released, the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra is a phone that makes you think. Important questions like “Do I need to buy another high-end phone, when the previous release is just six months old?”
It’s also a phone that makes Android fans reply with an enthusiastic “Yes!” to this question.
That’s because the latest Samsung Galaxy S Series is always at the tip of the technological spear Sometimes the changes are small increments over the previous release, sometimes it feels like a jump.
The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra feels like both. The Samsung AI integrations are solid and a good evolution over the previous version, but the camera specs aren’t jumping in front of you.
The design is a bit more square than before, closer to the Samsung Galaxy S Series than previously. The titanium wrap around the body makes it feel solid and nice to touch.
The giant screen, 6.9 inch AMOLED with 120 Hz is great for note taking with the accompanying S Pen, and brilliant for those who like to watch something during your commute or travel. With a max 3120 x 1440 pixels resolution (Quad HD+) the details are incredible. But you will have to turn this on. The default 2340 x 1080 (FHD+) exists to save a bit of the battery life.
Running in adaptive mode, the display will vary refresh rates from 1 Hz to 120 Hz. You can fix this at 60 Hz, but the smooth video is noticeable, so I recommend using the adaptive option.
The fingerprint reader here is under the screen, something that I feel is awkward, requiring you to position your hand in funny ways, in case you enrol more than your thumbnail, something I do, just in case.
Despite the screen size and prolonged use during the time I had it here, its 5,000 mAh battery makes it a full-day phone. Support for both 45 W wired and 15 W wireless charging makes it easier and faster to extend that into the night if you have time to recharge before going out again.
With 12 GB RAM and running the new Samsung One UI 7, based on Android 15 software, the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra didn’t skip a bit. Moving between apps is quick and small things like multitasking with more than one app on the screen works great. You just need to get the hang of moving the apps around.
The camera now includes an ultra-wide 50 MP sensor, plus the 200 MP main camera, a 50 MP 5x telephoto, 3 MP 10x optical zoom—and the 12 MP front camera.
Your photos will look good, and the performance in dark situations is excellent. But I always feel like there’s too much going on when you zoom in and sometimes the colours get a little bleeding.
But if you are an expert photographer, then I suggest you work with the RAW format, which will give you pure images to work on.
The AI software is quickly evolving, and it uses parts of Google and parts of Samsung tech.
You can quickly engage in conversation with Google Gemini, with a press-and-hold action on the power button. You can use the Circle to Search option, using anything on your screen as input. You can use either your finger or the S Pen to circle anything on the screen – including text and have it search the web for you.
But Samsung brought new stuff too/ The new Now Brief widgets are smart and learn a bit about you, your day and how you use your phone, providing news, weather forecasts and suggesting settings that will help you get more from your phone, throughout the day. Like a real smart assistant.
This part of the AI process is done on your phone, using capabilities provided by the new Personal Data Engine, an AI learning piece of software that runs on a dedicated part of the CPU.
Some of the AI features, like the Sketch to Image, are present in other Samsung phones. It’s just more polished now.
At the end of the day, I’d say this is a phone for those who skipped one generation and are now ready to start taking advantage of more advanced AI support. If that’s you, then “Yes”, it’s time for a new phone.
