Introduction:
The Samsung Galaxy S25+ stands as an interesting choice for those looking for a flagship model that offers a balance between performance, design, and features, without necessarily opting for the Ultra variant. While it retains many similarities to its predecessor, the Galaxy S24+, the real draw this year is the inclusion of the Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset. This chip, designed specifically for Galaxy devices, offers significant performance improvements and new features like Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4 support, making the Galaxy S25+ a compelling option in the flagship segment.
Design and Build Quality:
In terms of design, the Samsung Galaxy S25+ stays largely unchanged compared to the Galaxy S24+. The phone features a sleek, flat Gorilla Glass Victus 2 design with an aluminum chassis, offering premium durability with an IP68 rating for dust and water resistance. At 0.4mm thinner and 7 grams lighter than its predecessor, the Galaxy S25+ manages to feel more compact while retaining a 6.7-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X screen, which is ideal for those who want a large display without going for the massive Ultra version.
The back of the phone boasts a minimalist matte finish with three standalone camera rings for the 50MP primary, 10MP telephoto, and 12MP ultrawide cameras. This aesthetic is consistent with Samsung’s classic no-nonsense approach, making it attractive yet simple. The flat design of the back and the absence of an oversized camera housing contribute to the phone’s overall clean and modern appearance.
Display:
The Galaxy S25+ continues to feature a 6.7-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X display with a 1440p resolution, offering crisp, vibrant colors and smooth visuals with a 120Hz dynamic refresh rate. HDR10+ support ensures that the phone’s display delivers a great viewing experience, especially for multimedia content. The peak brightness reaches up to 2,600 nits, ensuring good visibility even under direct sunlight.
The screen’s adaptive refresh rate can switch between 1Hz for static content and 120Hz for compatible content like games and videos, offering both power efficiency and smoothness. The inclusion of HDR10 and HDR10+ ensures vibrant colors and enhanced contrast, especially when consuming HDR content on platforms like YouTube and Netflix.
Performance:
The highlight of the Galaxy S25+ is the Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset, which brings over 30% better performance compared to the previous generation. This overclocked “for Galaxy” version delivers outstanding power, whether you’re gaming, multitasking, or using intensive apps. The added support for Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4 further ensures that the S25+ is future-proof when it comes to connectivity.
Coupled with 8GB or 12GB of RAM, the Galaxy S25+ handles day-to-day tasks and heavy apps with ease, providing a smooth and fast experience. The performance bump from the previous model, the S24+, makes this phone a serious contender in the flagship space, offering balanced power and efficiency.
Camera Performance:
The camera setup of the Galaxy S25+ remains largely unchanged from the S24+. It includes a 50MP primary camera, a 10MP telephoto lens with 3x zoom, and a 12MP ultrawide sensor. The front camera is a 12MP sensor, ideal for crisp selfies and video calls.
The camera performance overall remains strong, especially in well-lit conditions. The 50MP primary camera captures vibrant and detailed shots, while the telephoto lens performs well for zoomed-in shots. The ultrawide lens offers good coverage, but it would have been nice to see improvements in this area with a higher resolution or better low-light capabilities. Nevertheless, the camera setup performs reliably in various lighting conditions.
Battery Life and Charging:
The Samsung Galaxy S25+ retains the same 4,900mAh battery as the S24+, but with a slight improvement in battery life, likely thanks to the efficient Snapdragon 8 Elite chip. During our testing, we observed a decent performance in web browsing, call testing, and video streaming. The phone offered a solid Active Use score of 14:26 hours, which is impressive considering the large screen and powerful chipset.
Charging speed on the Galaxy S25+ is supported at 45W for wired charging, which is fast enough to charge the phone to 100% in about an hour. Samsung has also improved wireless charging, now supporting Qi 2.1 for magnetic wireless charging accessories. Wireless charging is capped at 15W, which is reasonable but slower compared to wired charging speeds.
Software and Features:
The Samsung Galaxy S25+ comes with One UI 7 and Android 15, offering a range of AI-based features for a more personalized experience. While some software features, such as enhanced multitasking and better integration with Samsung’s ecosystem, are exclusive to this device, many features will likely make their way to the Galaxy S24 series as well.
One of the standout software features is the inclusion of Samsung’s AI-driven enhancements for the camera, display, and battery management, which help optimize the phone’s performance based on usage patterns. Additionally, the phone supports Dolby Atmos for an immersive audio experience, especially when playing games or watching media.
Conclusion:
The Samsung Galaxy S25+ is a well-rounded flagship phone that strikes a perfect balance between performance, design, and features. While it may not have the standout features of the Ultra variant, its Snapdragon 8 Elite chip, excellent display, and reliable camera setup make it a great choice for those looking for premium features without the bulk of the larger Ultra. However, some users may feel the lack of significant changes from the previous model is a missed opportunity, especially in terms of camera upgrades.
If you’re in the market for a flagship device that offers powerful performance, solid battery life, and a stunning display, the Samsung Galaxy S25+ is definitely worth considering.
