Samsung Galaxy S25 series review: Is it worth it?

Why you can trust this review of the Samsung Galaxy S25 series

Back Market is a company made up of tech enthusiasts. Although we have a passion for all things tech, we’re industry experts with a deep understanding of the latest devices and their real-world performance. 

Our team evaluates smartphones like the Samsung Galaxy S25, S25+, and S25 Ultra daily to provide our clients with well-informed insights and an unbiased review of specifications, user experience, and features. Besides doing our own research into a device, we also work closely with top tech professionals to ensure every recommendation is backed by hands-on testing and industry expertise.

Since we’re a Verified Refurbished electronics company, you can also trust that our insights and value assessments of S25 phones are trustworthy. Our reviews are designed to help you make informed and confident decisions about your next device.

Samsung Galaxy S25 specs

• Battery: It comes with a 4,000mAh battery supporting 25W wired charging and 15W wireless charging, keeping you powered throughout the day.

• Memory and storage: To suit your needs, it comes with a notable 12GB of RAM and three storage options of 128GB, 256GB, or 512GB.

• Processor: It features the impressively fast and efficient Qualcomm SM8750-AB Snapdragon 8 Elite (3 nm) chipset.

• Display: It boasts a 6.2-inch Dynamic LTPO AMOLED 2X display with a 120Hz refresh rate and HDR10+ support, offering vibrant visuals.

• Cameras: It has a triple rear setup featuring a 50MP wide lens, a 10MP telephoto 3x optic lens, and a 12MP ultrawide lens, complemented by a 12MP front-facing camera for high-quality selfies.

Samsung Galaxy S25+ specs

• Battery: It has a 4,900mAh battery with 45W wired charging and 15W wireless charging, so you can stay powered up without constantly hunting for an outlet.

• Memory and storage: It packs 12GB of RAM and gives you 256GB or 512GB of storage – plenty of space for all your apps, photos, and downloads.

• Processor: It runs on the Qualcomm SM8750-AB Snapdragon 8 Elite (3 nm) chipset, meaning smooth performance whether you’re gaming, streaming, or just multitasking like a pro.

• Display: It has a 6.7-inch Dynamic LTPO AMOLED 2X display with a 120Hz refresh rate and HDR10+ support – because scrolling should always be buttery smooth.

• Cameras: It contains a 50MP main camera, a 10MP 3x telephoto lens, and a 12MP ultrawide lens, as well as a 12MP front camera for selfies that actually look good.

Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra specs

• Battery: It has a 5,500mAh battery with 45W wired charging and 15W wireless charging, keeping you going longer – because who likes being tethered to a charger?

• Memory and storage: It comes with up to 16GB of RAM and storage options of 256GB, 512GB, or 1TB, so you’ll never have to delete your favorite memes.

• Processor: It’s powered by the Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy chipset, delivering ultra-fast performance, AI smarts, and enough power to handle anything you throw at it.

• Display: It has a 6.9-inch Dynamic LTPO AMOLED 2X display with a 120Hz refresh rate, QHD+ resolution, and S Pen support – basically a pocket-sized productivity beast.

• Cameras: It has a 200MP main sensor, a 50MP 5x periscope telephoto lens, a 10MP 3x telephoto lens, and a 12MP ultrawide lens, along with a 12MP front cam for pro-level shots every time.

Samsung Galaxy S25, S25+ and S25 Ultra pros & cons

Each Samsung phone in the S25 series has its strengths and weaknesses. In the tables below, we break down the pros and cons of each to help you quickly scan through and spot the highlights.

Samsung Galaxy S25, S25+ and S25 Ultra features and benefits

You can enjoy many different features and benefits when choosing a Samsung Galaxy S25, S25+, or S25 Ultra. However, there are also a few considerations because, as with everything, there are drawbacks to keep in mind. 

Below, we share what you need to know in order to decide if these phones are worth buying. Let's dive into our detailed reviews of the S25, S25+, and S25 Ultra and explore the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra S pen Bluetooth compatibility that has many eager to get their hands on this model.

AI integrations

For the new Samsung S25 series, the brand's most highlighted selling point was the phones’ AI features and integration. They said it set this series apart from its predecessor, the S24. Samsung describes the Galaxy S25 series as:

“setting a new standard as a true AI companion with [our] most natural and context-aware mobile experiences ever created.”

Although it delivered on this, the AI features are not to everyone's liking, nor are they as impressive as potential users were led to believe. 

The AI integration allows users to add AI-generated objects to photos, assists with adjusting the tone of writing and natural language search settings, and has deep integration with Google Gemini. Although these features are nice to have, they aren’t so impressive as to be why someone picks up this phone over others. 

Gemini is now pre-installed and is integrated into some Samsung apps. To access this feature, a long press of the power button is required. You can use Gemini to take notes on Samsung Notes and create events on Samsung Calendar, which is convenient but mundane. 

What is nifty, however, is that you can use Gemini for Cross-App Action to complete actions on your behalf without multiple prompts. For example, you can use Gemini to find a list of nearby attractions, which it can then paste into a draft text message for you to send out. Although this feature isn’t unique to Samsung, it works well. 

Besides Gemini, you can access two other AI features: Now Bar and Now Brief. When active, the Now Bar will make an appearance at the bottom of the S25’s lock screen. It can show things like controls for media, active timers, sports scores for teams you follow, and even the next step in Google Maps navigation. This is the type of information you would want access to at a glance, but some are not convinced this feature is AI-powered. 

Unfortunately, many find the Now Brief pointless. In fact, one Reddit user said:

“I thought this was going to be some AI-powered morning brief that I could tell it to focus on certain news subjects or tailor it to my wants. It just shows my calendar and the weather, and it pulls one random article from the internet to feed me about a cringe celebrity.”

Another Reddit user went so far as to call the feature a copycat of Live Activities on iOS:

“It’s just a copycat feature of Live Activities on iOS, and it’ll be pretty worthless until third-party apps hook into it, which may never happen.”

Essentially, it's meant to show relevant information about your day, like calendar events, weather forecasts, and the like, but most find the feature useless.

Performance

The Samsung S25’s AI integration may leave much to be desired, but it shines with its performance. The S25 features the latest Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset paired with 12GB of RAM – as does the S25+ – which is more than the 8GB offered by the S24. 

This alone was enough to have some people ready to buy it. One Reddit user said:

“I know this may not be the craziest upgrade from S24, but honestly, the fact that it has a snapdragon (in Europe) is good enough for me to upgrade from the a52s.”

With this upgrade, the S25 is as fast and fluid as you might hope. Even demanding users have found it sufficient when scrolling through the internet, playing games, and running work-related applications. However, the S25+ is even better performance-wise due to the fact that it has a larger cooling system than the base model. The Ultra is even better than both. 

Although the S25 Ultra has the same chipset, it features 16GB of RAM rather than 12GB, a larger vapor chamber cooling system for better performance during demanding tasks, and optimized GPU performance for improved gaming. 

 In addition, most users haven’t noticed too many bugs, and there aren’t many performance-related issues with new or refurbished S25s, which leads us and others to believe you should be able to hang onto this phone for a little while.

Camera system

Camera system-wise, there are some differences across models in the S series. Although the camera system in the S25 is good, it's nothing to write home about. In fact, it's a major letdown for many. Much to our dismay, the S25 and S25+ feature the same camera loadout as the S24 series. So, even though it's broadly a good camera system, it's not too impressive.

On the back of the S25 and S25+, you’ll find a 50-megapixel primary camera (which by default takes 12MP photos), a 12MP ultrawide camera, and a 10MP 3x telephoto shooter. On the front, you’ll see a 12MP selfie camera with autofocus. These cameras collectively deliver excellent photo quality, but they are the same workmanlike image quality many have come to expect from Samsung in recent years. 

You know what we’re talking about: the photos are superb in good lighting, with lifelike contrast, vibrant colors, and sharp details, but sharpness takes a hit in dimmer lighting. Not to mention, if you’re trying to take pictures of anything moving in bad lighting, you’re often left with blurry images. To be fair, no camera works as well in the dark as it does in good lighting conditions, but many rivals to the S25 and S25+ have pulled ahead with regard to the camera system. 

If you're not afraid to pay the big bucks, however, Samsung has evened the playing field with the S25 Ultra camera system. This model features a whopping 200MP wide angle lens for its main camera with a 50MP ultrawide lens, a 10MP telephoto lens featuring 3x zoom capability, and a 50MP periscope telephoto lens with five times optical zoom. The front camera also offers crystal clear 12MP selfie camera quality. 

With cameras like this, it should come as no surprise that the Ultra takes high-resolution pictures to write home about.

Battery life

The Galaxy S25 has a 4,000mAh battery with wireless charging that taps out at 15 watts and wired charging up to 25 watts. Unfortunately, although this battery life is good, it's the same as last year's S24, so nothing has been improved. 

However, since it's a smaller phone, it can get away with it. Most users will get an average of five to six hours of active screen time daily out of it. Unfortunately, other phones like Google’s Pixel 9, which is similarly priced, can offer up to eight hours of screen time on a full charge. But in all fairness, the Pixel 9 does have a larger battery than the S25. 

This doesn’t mean you can’t experience better battery life with the other series models, though. With the S25+, you’ll have a 4,900mAh battery with wired charging capabilities of up to 45 watts, which charges faster than the base model. This battery offers six to seven hours of screen time, which is slightly better than the S25. 

On the other hand, with the S25 Ultra, you’ll get a 5,500 mAh battery, which is the longest-lasting battery in the new S series lineup. This phone will deliver seven to eight hours of active screen time at a full charge, which rivals competitors. However, it charges as fast as the S25+, which is admittedly still better than the base model.

Design and build

From a hardware and software perspective, the Samsung S25 series is similar to the S24 series aside from its new powerful chipset and AI integrations. Still, there have been a few updates from a design and build perspective. 

For example, Samsung decided a thinner phone would be better this time, so the S25 and S25+ have been slimmed down. On the other hand, the S25 Ultra is noticeably bulkier in design.

You should also know that the S25 and S25+ feature rounded corners, and both models feature Gorilla Glass Victus 2 on their front and rear panels for durability. In contrast, the S25 Ultra has been upgraded to a titanium body featuring rounded corners, and Gorilla Glass Armor 2 provides reduced glare. So, if you’re after the classic Samsung look but want maximum durability and a device that's easy on the eyes – pun intended – the Ultra may be your best choice. 

Additionally, and perhaps controversially, the Samsung S25 features a 6.2-inch screen, which is smaller than many other phones in this price range. However, it's more than big enough for most tasks, if not extensive watching of YouTube or Netflix. If you’re still concerned, you can explore the S25+ and S25 Ultra, both of which feature bigger screens. 

What’s also notable is that the S25, S25+, and S25 Ultra all feature variable refresh rates up to 120Hz and AMOLED screens with peak brightness hitting 2,600 nits, making them vibrant and easy to view even in direct sunlight. The S25+ offers a larger 6.7-inch display, while the S25 Ultra takes it even further with a 6.9-inch QHD+ panel and S Pen support, perfect for productivity and creativity.

These models also come in various colors, including the sleek Silver Shadow for the S25 and S25+, which features a frosted finish that many love — you might, too! If silver isn’t your thing, navy blue is another option, and the S25 Ultra also comes in Titanium Silver Blue and Titanium Gray and Black. But let’s be honest; most of us will throw a case on anyway, so color may not be a dealbreaker.

Shopping tips for the Samsung Galaxy S25, S25+, and S25 Ultra

At the moment, the S25, S25+, and S25 Ultra are some of the hottest smartphones on the market, and now you know why, considering their AI features and flagship-level specs. 

Their prices can be a little steep for some shoppers, but there’s no need to stress. If you’re looking for an S25 series phone but are concerned about how to afford one, we’ll share a few options you can explore to get your hands on one of these nifty smartphones. 

• Consider buying refurbished with Back Market anytime. If you shop with Back Market, you can save 30% to 50% on average compared to the retail price when buying a Samsung S25 series phone. Our devices are professionally tested and certified with a 1-year warranty. You can also buy from us at any time of year. In addition, buying refurbished is by far the most eco-friendly choice. 

• Explore Samsung’s trade-in offers. Sometimes, Samsung offers trade-in discounts, just like we do at Back Market. These discounts could provide credits for up to $500 or more when you swap in an older Galaxy device in good condition. 

• Check for carrier deals. Carriers like T-Mobile, AT&T, and Verizon often offer discounts when you trade in a phone or sign up for a new plan. However, you should note that carrier discounts usually involve long-term contracted commitments that could make you pay more over time. 

• Wait for major sales. If you don’t need a new phone immediately, you can wait for major sales events before buying a Samsung S25, S25+, or S25 Ultra. The best discounts happen during Samsung’s Spring Unpacked event, Amazon Prime Day, Black Friday, and Cyber Monday, when retailers offer temporary price drops on Galaxy devices. However, there is no guarantee. 

Don’t forget to compare pricing: Whether purchasing new or refurbished, check prices across Amazon, Best Buy, and Back Market. In most cases, Back Market offers the lowest price with better warranty coverage and no contract restrictions.

Why choose refurbished 

When you buy refurbished, it’s not only about saving money — although this is undeniably a big advantage. In our opinion, buying refurbished is about getting top-tier phone tech at a fraction of the price without sacrificing quality. 

A refurbished S25, S25+, or S25 Ultra is a good choice because these phones are tested to ensure everything works as it should, and its software and hardware are professionally cleaned to avoid malware and other hazards. After our tech experts have refurbished them, these phones function like new. 

Additionally, unlike buying used from an individual seller, refurbished phones from trusted platforms like Back Market come with certifications, warranties, and a performance guarantee. Each Samsung Galaxy S25 series model on Back Market is tested by experts, restored to peak condition, and graded based on aesthetics, so you know exactly what you’re getting.

Buying refurbished phones is also a more sustainable choice for the planet. When you choose a refurbished Samsung Galaxy S25 model phone, you’re helping reduce e-waste, lower carbon emissions, and extend the life of high-quality electronics, meaning fewer end up in landfills. 

In addition, Back Market ensures every purchase is backed by a 1-year warranty and a convenient 30-day money-back guarantee, giving you unshakeable confidence in your purchase. Ultimately, there’s no reason to overpay for a brand new phone when you can get a certified, high-performing Galaxy S25, S25+, or S25 Ultra for much less.

Trade in old tech and choose a Samsung Galaxy S25

Back Market’s trade-in program makes upgrading to a refurbished Samsung Galaxy S25, S25+, or S25 Ultra effortless and rewarding. Instead of allowing your old phone to collect dust unnecessarily, trade it in for instant cash or credit toward your next buy, which will help you save even more on an already discounted device. 

Our process is fast, transparent, and hassle-free, with real-time quotes and free shipping for your trade-in. So, whether you’re upgrading from an older Galaxy or switching from another brand, Back Market gives you the best value for your old device while ensuring your next phone is certified, high-quality, and backed by a 1-year warranty. It’s the smartest way to upgrade.

Final thoughts on the Samsung Galaxy S25, S25+, and S25 Ultra

While the Samsung S25 could have done better with its camera, battery, and AI offerings, it is still a solid choice for anyone interested in switching to or continuing with the S series. The S25 models are reliable, impressive performance-wise, and visually appealing. 

However, with its high price point, it might not be what some users are looking for, with competitors offering similar and better choices. Ultimately, you would need to decide if this phone is worth trying, but keep in mind that it has everything needed to keep it in your hands for years to come. 

If you want to give it the old college try, we recommend looking into refurbished devices. Get the Samsung S25 Ultra - and soon more options available from the S25 family - from Back Market. With more affordable choices, there is less risk and more reward. Buying refurbished also means you’re doing your part to save the planet. So, what’s not to love? Check out our trade-in program and see if you can earn an even bigger discount on your new S25 series phone.