Samsung Galaxy S25 review

If you are in the market for a compact phone that does almost everything that large flagships do, your options are limited.  

On the Android side, compact phones are hard to find, and only a few brands put an effort to manufacture them. Samsung is one such brand that has been consistently making compact phones, and this year’s Galaxy S25 is one such device.  

Amidst all the large flagship phones, we got a chance to take the Samsung Galaxy S25 for a spin, and we have to say, it’s one of the best compact flagships for Android users. Read our detailed Samsung Galaxy S25 review to know why.  

Samsung Galaxy S25 design and display

The Galaxy S25 doesn’t bring a new design to the table but instead refines it with bolder camera rings on the back. The device in the new Icy Blue shade looks adorable, and the form factor is just perfect for one-handed usage. The flat sides of the phone help with the grip, but due to its matte back, it might slip from your hand. So, you’d be better off using it with a case.  

The screen stays the same as last year – a 6.2-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X panel with up to 120Hz fast refresh rate. The panel is just as bright as its predecessor – with 2,600 nits peak brightness, which is enough for good visibility even under bright sunlight. 

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The Armor Aluminium framing, with Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2, makes the phone durable, and the IP68 rating adds to its survivable capabilities. We took an unconventional route to test the phone’s durability when it accidentally slipped out of our pocket. But we are happy to report that there wasn’t a dent or scratch on the device.   

Samsung Galaxy S25 cameras

The Galaxy S25 is a great camera phone, courtesy of its 50MP main sensor, a 12MP ultra-wide sensor, and a 10MP telephoto sensor. All sensors are great at daylight shooting, giving out impressive images.  

The ultra-wide and telephoto sensors also help you get good photos, but there’s not enough details when zoomed in. Nighttime photos also turn out well, and the skin tones processed by the sensor look as close to natural. The selfie camera is also pretty good.  

What’s great is that the device can shoot up to 8K videos, which turn out crisp, and 4K videos with OIS are smooth and stable enough to help you film movies. If you have never used a flagship-grade Samsung phone before, you’ll like how the sensor processes images and videos, making them appealing to the eye. 

Samsung Galaxy S25 performance, software, battery

What makes the Galaxy S25 truly better, and a worthy upgrade, is the processor under the hood. Samsung has ditched the Exynos 2400 for Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset, which runs cooler and is more efficient. In our usage, there were no instances where we felt that the device was too hot to hold.  

Whether it be a gaming session, which involved 30 minutes of exploring Teyvat in Genshin Impact or a movie watching session, the device never got irresistibly hot. This is probably due to the efficient Snapdragon chipset inside.  

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Apart from gaming, the device also fared well in benchmarks, with multi-core scores reaching close to 9,000 in Geekbench 6. In day-to-day usage, we faced no lags or stutters, making the overall experience feel premium – just as it should.  

As far as the software is concerned, One UI 7 is a great skin atop Android 15, and it brings in some cool new features, including Now Bar and Now Brief. Now Bar is a small pill that sits at the bottom, between the camera and flashlight. It lets you seamlessly control the music and shows you the estimated time for a full charge.  

The Now Brief feature, particularly, is very useful for those who are on the move and don’t have enough time to go through different apps. The feature presents you with a platter, displaying the weather, your fitness activity, news, and more, all in a single tab.  

Apart from this, AI features like AI Select are helpful for those who want to get things done quickly. Just a circle or tap, and you can know more about what’s on screen. It also displays helpful options, like writing assist and drawing assist, boosting your productivity.  

One area where we feel the Galaxy S25 fell short was in the battery department. It packs a 4,000mAh cell, which isn’t enough for heavy users. However, those with a moderate usage can still manage to get a full day of usage.  

Samsung has missed out on the opportunity to add a Carbon-silicon battery here, which phones at the similar price range, like the OnePlus 13, have. A Carbon-silicon battery would have helped Samsung add a bigger cell, giving the device the much-needed battery upgrade. But guess that’s for next year.  

Unboxed Take: Who should buy the Samsung Galaxy S25?

Despite being not vastly different from its predecessor, the Galaxy S25 is a great compact smartphone. It has a good form factor, sharp screen, good cameras, and speedy performance with improved thermals.  

The device does almost everything that large flagships do, but all within the small form factor that many adore. It isn’t a stretch to call the Samsung Galaxy S25 the best compact flagship phone for Android users so far, putting a benchmark for others to follow.  

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For all the above reasons, we rate the Samsung Galaxy S25 4/5. Stay tuned to Unboxed by Croma for more in-depth reviews just like this, and all things tech.