Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra review

Design, build quality, handling

The Galaxy S25 Ultra, unlike the previous generation, has a matching shape to the S25 and S25+. And that's great! Samsung has decided to go for a flat frame and rounded corners, which not only makes for a nicer looking phone, a more refined one if you will, but also improves the grip and handling experience.

Galaxy S25 Ultra next to the Galaxy S24 Ultra

The Galaxy S25 Ultra features a slightly larger screen, but it hasn't grown in physical size. On the contrary - it's less wide than the S24 Ultra, a hair thinner, and it's even 14 grams lighter!

Galaxy S25 Ultra next to the Galaxy S24 Ultra

The front panels is made from the new Gorilla Armor 2 - "the industry's first anti-reflective glass ceramic". The new material (the second generation Armor, also missing the word 'glass' from the name) has been shown to survive drops onto concrete from as high as 2.2m, though you'd still be best advised not to throw your Galaxy around just to check.

The screen glass surface is also extra anti-reflective courtesy of the second-gen DX anti-reflective treatment the glass has gotten. We're not sure we can spot a difference between the S25 Ultra and the S24 Ultra in this respect, but we won't argue there's a dramatic decrease in reflections when compared to any other display glass material on the market.

Update, 18 Feb: The back of the phone is made out of Gorilla Glass Victus 2, a fact we missed at the time this review was published.

The frame is still made of titanium, only this time it's grade 5 for what that's worth. It is flat, which we think is for the better, and has the same shimmery surface as before.

Galaxy S25 Ultra on top of the S24 Ultra

The Galaxy S25 Ultra is IP68-rated for bog standard dust and water resistance. While we do appreciate having it, we are hoping Samsung makes strides to improve the ingress protection like Apple (6m deep) or OnePlus (IP69, high-temperature water jets).

There are four widely available color options - Titanium Black, Titanium Gray, Titanium White Silver and Titanium Silver Blue (ours). Exclusive to the official Samsung stores are the Titanium Jet Black, Titanium Jade Green, and Titanium Pink Gold.

Let's take a closer look at the Galaxy S25 Ultra now.

The new 6.9-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X screen has impressively thin bezels, among the thinnest we have encountered. It has a small perforation for the 12MP selfie camera - that's more in the ordinary observations category.

The earpiece above the screen is close to invisible, but it is still there. And it doubles as a speaker to form the stereo pair, as usual.

The S25 Ultra features an ultrasonic fingerprint scanner, just like the S24 Ultra and many other older generations of Galaxy flagships. It does not need a flash like the optical ones, and it is fast and reliable, but may not play well with glass screen protectors if you fancy them.

The minimalistic camera housing is here to stay, and this is among the traits we love in the recent Galaxy series. There are five standalone rings on the back - one for each camera and one for the laser emitter and receiver system. Compared to the S24 Ultra, these islands stick out a bit more, probably because of the thinner S25 Ultra body.

The S Pen holder is at the same spot as before - bottom left corner. Its design hasn't changed one bit - it is thin and lightweight, with a single button and a clicker. Unfortunately, it no longer supports Bluetooth connectivity, there is no capacitor inside it, and it cannot be used for camera shutter or air actions.

We do not know why Samsung decided on downgrading the S Pen this way. Budget cuts is the obvious answer, and maybe it was a niche feature, too. But we can imagine quite a few people being furious that their favorite features have gone missing.

The S25 Ultra can take two physical nano-SIM cards, but there is support for eSIM, too.

The Galaxy S25 Ultra has one of the most premium builds on the market, undeniably. It also offers an impressively secure grip and is comfortable to hold and operate, no matter the task or phone's orientation. Everything that has been changed design-wise is for the better and we would not change one bit.