The major upgrade from the S24 to the Samsung Galaxy S25 is primarily the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Elite, which significantly boosts performance, especially when compared to the S24 and even rivals the iPhone 16. Display features and protection remain largely unchanged, but the internal hardware improvements including 12GB LPDDR5X RAM and 250GB UFS 4.0 storage enhance overall speed and efficiency.
S25 Camera
The camera hardware remains largely unchanged, featuring a 50 MP main camera, 12 MP ultra-wide, and a 10 MP 3x telephoto lens. However, Samsung has improved skin tone rendering and noise control, resulting in lower noise levels and sharper images on the S25 compared to the S24, especially noticeable in low-light photos and videos.
The indoor low-light photo quality between the Samsung S25 and iPhone 16 highlights visible noise level differences and skin tone accuracy. Samsung processes backgrounds and subjects separately, resulting in more accurate skin tones, while the iPhone tends to add a yellow tint to Indian skin tones. And the Snapdragon 8 Elite chip in the S25 improves the preview screen by reducing grain and ensuring colours match the final photo more closely. The S25’s viewfinder shows the blur effect before taking portrait photos, unlike the S24, demonstrating meaningful enhancements in camera preview and processing.
S25 Design and Display Updates
Compared to S23 and S24, S25 is even slimmer and lighter, which is actually impressive. The S25 is about 4mm thinner and 5 to 6 grams lighter than previous model. The front features remain the same, with a 6.2-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X display, identical display protection, and IP68 water resistance.
S25 Performance
The base variant of the S25 features 12GB LPDDR5x RAM and 250GB UFS 4.0 storage, powered by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Elite for Galaxy. Performance improvements over the S24 are significant, with the S25 even outperforming the iPhone 16 in benchmarks. Testing included a 3D Mark stress test to simulate gaming conditions and a CPU throttling test, showing decent performance and a 15% improvement in the vapour cooling chamber.
OneUI 7 AI Features and Assistant
Gemini, integrated with One UI 7 on the S Series phones, efficiently manages calendar events using voice commands. For example, Gemini adds remaining India vs England T20 matches to the calendar and sends timely notifications when matches start. The phone’s navigation bar also displays directions during map navigation, enhancing driving convenience.
The AI features on the smartphone are improving rapidly, with capabilities like converting photos into AI avatars. However, the system applies content restrictions, such as denying avatar creation for images with weapons. The AI is evolving fast, becoming more reliable though occasional glitches occur. The S25 Plus model offers similar internals to the S25 but features a larger 6.7-inch QHD Plus AMOLED display.
S25 Battery life
The S25 features a resolution similar to the S25 Ultra and includes a pro scaler that sharpens images and text on the display. It has a large 4900 mAh battery with 45W fast charging, compared to the S25’s smaller 4000 mAh battery and 25W charging. Battery tests on mixed Wi-Fi and 5G with always-display yielded about 3.5 hours of screen-on time, which can increase to around 4.5 hours if the always-on display is turned off. Heavy outdoor 5G use may require charging the device twice a day.
Price
Official launch price in India: ₹ 79,999 for the base variant (12 GB RAM + 256 GB) according to the Samsung site. In Amazon the price is ₹80,999. The Samsung S25 Plus, starting at 99999. The Samsung S25 Ultra, starting at ₹1,29,999.
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