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Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra arrives with only modest hardware improvements but a new universe of possibilities within. Its display is bigger and more immersive than ever, and we like its rounded corners and narrower body, which make it easier to handle than previous generations. Powered by Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy processor, the S25 Ultra delivers ultra-smooth performance and the most impressive AI features we've seen in a phone yet, many of which run locally.
Design: A Welcome Refresh
The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra is the largest and most expensive model in the Galaxy S25 line. This year, the Ultra sheds its sharp, squared corners for rounded ones, which makes it look more like the rest of the Galaxy S family than a rebadged Galaxy Note, from which the Ultra has drawn its basic design influences until now.
Coming in at 6.41 by 3.06 by 0.32 inches (HWD) and 7.69 ounces, the S25 Ultra is slightly less bulky and weighty than its predecessor, the Galaxy S24 Ultra (6.40 by 3.11 by 0.34 inches, 8.22 ounces). Still, if the size is too much, consider the Galaxy S25+ (6.24 by 2.98 by 0.29 inches, 6.70 ounces), which offers many of the same features in a slightly smaller package. For comparison, you won't save much room in your pocket with either the $1,199 Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max (6.42 by 3.06 by 0.32 inches, 7.99 ounces)
The Ultra is the only S25 model with a titanium frame and the new Corning Gorilla Armor 2 as its cover glass. Samsung says this panel resists fractures 29% better than the Galaxy S24 Ultra's first-generation Gorilla Armor.
As for colors, the S25 Ultra is available in Titanium Black, Titanium Gray, Titanium Silverblue, or Titanium Whitesilver. Three exclusive colors are available from Samsung's website: Titanium Jadegreen, Titanium Jetblack, and Titanium Pinkgold. The colors are visible only on the rear glass, with a surrounding chrome frame. The Titanium Jetblack model is the sole variant with a black frame.
Display: Bigger Than Ever
Every display in the Samsung S25 lineup features a variable refresh rate of 120Hz and a peak brightness of 2,600 nits. The S25 Ultra gets a 6.9-inch LTPO Dynamic AMOLED 2X screen at a resolution of 3,120 by 1,440 pixels, which is a 0.1-inch increase in size from the S24 Ultra's 6.8-inch display. Other than pixel density, which decreases slightly year over year, the rest of the specs are identical. Samsung reduces the S25 Ultra's bezel thickness by 15%, so the front of the phone is almost entirely screen.
Performance: Absolutely Elite
Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy chip powers all three versions of the Galaxy S25. Older versions of "for Galaxy" processors were simply overclocked versions of Qualcomm's standard chip. This year's model includes a customized application processor that allows the S25 series to perform more AI functions directly on the phone.
Samsung says the chip delivers a 40% increase in Neural Processing Unit (NPU) performance, a 37% increase in CPU performance, and a 30% increase in GPU performance compared with the last-generation processor. Samsung has also increased the size of the vapor chamber by 40% compared with the S24 Ultra, which helps with cooling and performance over time.
All three Galaxy S25 phones come with 12GB of LPDDR5x RAM, which means there is no increase compared with the Galaxy S24 Ultra.
Battery: Not Much Has Changed
The S25 Ultra has a 5,000mAh battery capable of charging at 45W via cable or 15W wirelessly, just like the S24 Ultra. Reverse wireless charging is available at a pokey 4.5W. Samsung doesn't include a charger in the box, so you have to provide your own.
Samsung claims the S25 Ultra battery can run for up to 31 hours, but its test uses a 720p local video file while under default settings over LTE. For our test, we stream a full HD video over Wi-Fi from YouTube with the screen set to full brightness. We found the S25 Ultra lasted 14 hours and 15 minutes, which is only five minutes longer than the S24 Ultra. It beats the Pixel 9 Pro XL's battery life of 12 hours and 25 minutes, but the iPhone 16 Pro Max blows past both with a battery life of 22 hours and 5 minutes.
As I wrote last year, other Android phones have moved well past 45W. The RedMagic 10 Pro supports up to 100W charging and comes with an 80W charger in the box. It took just 36 minutes to achieve a full charge.
Connectivity: Quick and Reliable
For connectivity, the S25 Ultra supports 5G (sub-6GHz, C-band, and mmWave), Wi-Fi 7, NFC, and Bluetooth 5.3. It can use one physical SIM card and one eSIM.
S25 Ultra reached maximum speeds of 533Mbps down and 59.3Mbps up in testing. For comparison, the Pixel 9 Pro XL reached 597Mbps down and 13.3Mbps up in the same location. The S25 Ultra should work similarly well on AT&T and Verizon.
Audio: Plenty of Volume
The S25 Ultra's call quality is quite good. In a test voicemail recording in a quiet room, my voice sounded clear and understandable. The phone does a good job of removing background noise and music. The speakerphone is also loud and clear, reaching a maximum of 79.6dB. I find volumes at or above 70dB easy to hear, and the Ultra easily surpasses that threshold.
There are two speakers for media playback: the earpiece near the top and the down-firing speaker on the bottom edge. Playing Metallica's "Enter Sandman," the phone reaches a maximum of 96.3dB, which can easily fill a small room.
Cameras: Bright and Detailed Images
The Galaxy S25 Ultra features a 200MP f/1.7 main camera with optical image stabilization (OIS) and an 85-degree field of view; a 50MP f/3.4 telephoto camera with OIS, 5x optical zoom, and a 22-degree field of view; and a 10MP f/2.4 telephoto camera with OIS, 3x optical zoom, and a 36-degree field of view. These are carryovers from the S24 Ultra.
The lone hardware upgrade is the new 50MP f/1.9 ultra-wide camera with a 120-degree field of view, which is a significant improvement over the S24 Ultra’s 12MP ultra-wide camera. Not only do you get higher-resolution shots, but it also includes a high-resolution macro mode for detailed close-ups. Macro mode does a great job capturing textures that aren't visible in normal photos.
the S25 Ultra delivers beautiful images. Colors are vibrant and consistent across all the cameras, with excellent detail visible even in challenging scenarios. Images are slightly brightened in a pleasing way.
The cameras' ability to produce vivid colors and detail is top-notch, although some false colors are noticeable in darker areas if you zoom in extensively. Shots at 3x and 5x optical zoom mostly look fantastic. Samsung’s 100x Space Zoom, which combines optical zoom with digital cropping, is available, though results at this extreme range tend to be soft and overly processed. Despite these minor drawbacks, the S25 Ultra's camera system is simply outstanding.
The phone's cameras may be overkill for most, however. PCMag's camera analyst Jim said, "But really, what the heck are people using phone cameras for [that would require] going beyond 50MP practically? Heck, I’d argue that 12MP is the right setting for the vast majority."
The S25 Ultra's 12MP f/2.2 front-facing camera produces sharp images with good color. Like the rear cameras, selfies appear brighter than reality.
Low-light performance is excellent. In the sample image below, the left side (a screengrab from a video) is how my eyes saw a figure on a shelf. I then used the 5x telephoto lens to take the picture to the right. It's not crystal clear, but the S25 Ultra pulled out accurate colors and a fair amount of detail, considering the lack of light.
Night photography using the main or ultra-wide cameras produces stunning images with bright colors and excellent details. Telephoto shots appear somewhat softer with blurred foreground items.
Video quality depends on the resolution you choose. At its maximum resolution of 8K and frame rate of 30fps, stabilization suffers, and recordings look underexposed. Video clips at lower resolutions, such as 4K at 60fps, appear smoother and brighter with excellent stabilization. For the first time on a Galaxy phone, you can shoot video in Log mode, which is an advanced color setting that allows professionals to apply color grading in post-production. This addition puts the S25 Ultra on more even footing with the iPhone 16 Pro and Pixel 9 Pro when it comes to capturing high-quality video.
Software and Galaxy AI: One UI 7 Makes Life Easier
The Galaxy S25 Ultra ships with Android 15 and Samsung's wholly redesigned One UI 7 atop it, which brings new functionality. Samsung says it will provide seven generations of OS updates and seven years of security patches. This is the longest commitment period for any Android phone other than Google's latest Pixels.
Cross App Actions
Overall AI Thoughts
Samsung's use of Galaxy AI makes the S25 Ultra genuinely easier to use for novices and experts alike. Its Cross App functions make it simpler to get things done without requiring you to jump through several apps. Edits in Gallery let you get the picture you wanted to take instead of a misframed snapshot. Samsung's selective use of Google Gemini over Bixby is a great call, as it allows you to get the best results. One UI 7 isn't perfect.
