If the Galaxy S24 series marked the grand entrance of Galaxy AI, the S25 and S25 Plus feel more like a small encore. They promise smarter, faster AI, but that’s the main headline this time around. Samsung seems to be banking on you embracing these updates, as there’s little else to distinguish the new models.
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Samsung made minimal changes to the Galaxy S25 and S25 Plus, which were announced alongside the revamped Galaxy S25 Ultra. The most notable upgrade is the inclusion of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy chipset, which powers the phones globally. A welcome improvement is the standardization of 12GB of RAM across all S25 models, including the base version, levelling the playing field for performance.
Otherwise, the hardware remains largely unchanged. The S25 retains its 6.2-inch display, while the S25 Plus sticks with a 6.7-inch panel. Both offer up to 2,600 nits of brightness and a smooth 120Hz refresh rate. The camera setups are identical to last year’s: a 50-megapixel main sensor, an ultrawide lens, and a 3x telephoto camera, accompanied by a 12-megapixel selfie camera. For those upgrading from the Galaxy S24 Plus, the only significant spec change is the chipset. Additionally, the S25 series introduces “Qi2 Ready” wireless charging. While the phones lack embedded magnets for Qi2 certification, they can charge at 15W on Qi2 chargers when paired with Samsung’s official Qi2 Ready cases.
To Samsung’s credit, pricing remains consistent: the S25 starts at $799.99, and the Plus model is priced at $999.99. Preorders are open now, with a full launch set for February 7. Samsung is also sticking to its commitment of seven generations of Android updates and seven years of security support, a significant draw for long-term users.
Both models are slightly lighter and about half a millimetre thinner than their predecessors. However, this slim-down may feel underwhelming to those who were hoping for a release of the teased, ultra-thin Galaxy S25 Edge. Ultimately, this year’s upgrades feel more like a software refresh than a hardware overhaul.
AI is at the core of the S25 lineup, though many features are familiar. Samsung’s AI tools, which remain free this year, include updates to previously launched features like Google’s Circle to Search and generative photo editing. These tools now deliver faster, more accurate results thanks to improved AI models and the Snapdragon 8 Elite, which enables more on-device processing. Tasks like Generative Edit, previously cloud-dependent, can now be performed directly on the phone.
One notable addition is Audio Eraser, a video editing tool that isolates and reduces noise in specific categories such as voices, wind, and music. While effective, this feature is not unique to Samsung — Google’s Pixel phones introduced similar functionality with their Audio Magic Eraser.
Samsung has also rebranded familiar tools under the AI banner. For example, AI Select replaces Smart Select, offering features like cropping screenshots, creating GIFs, and adding events to calendars, albeit with a redesigned interface. The S25 lineup introduces Now Brief, a daily summary of your schedule and commute, and the Now Bar, Samsung’s take on Apple’s Dynamic Island. The Now Bar displays real-time updates like sports scores and navigation instructions, though calling it “AI” may be a stretch.
The phones also feature Samsung’s AI assistant, now powered by Google Gemini by default, with Bixby taking a backseat. Gemini supports natural language commands for tasks like resizing text or locating specific photos and can now integrate multiple apps in one interaction. For instance, you can find a restaurant, share it with a friend, and add a reservation to your calendar in one seamless request.
While these features represent incremental progress, many are hard to evaluate fully without extended hands-on use. At a launch event, with limited apps and accounts, it’s difficult to gauge how well these tools work in practice.
The bigger issue for Samsung is convincing users to upgrade. Many of the new software features are baked into One UI 7 and will roll out to older models, including the S24. With minimal hardware changes and software updates already on the way, the S25 and S25 Plus struggle to offer a compelling reason for existing users to switch.
