Like past January Unpacked events, Samsung released three new Galaxy S models, with the base models getting some subtle but meaningful upgrades, including a thinner and lighter design.
Other changes include the introduction of new colors, including Icyblue, Navy, Mint, Silver Shadow, as well as online-only exclusive colors like Blueblack, Coralred, and Pinkgold. The vibrance of the Coralred colorway stands out amongst the rest of the lineup’s more muted finishes, and made a splash among reporters at Unpacked.
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At the heart of the devices is the newly launched Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy. According to Samsung, the chipset will be dramatically different than the variants found on competing Android phones.
For example, Samsung claims it delivers a performance boost of 40% in NPU, 37% in CPU, and 30% in GPU compared to the Galaxy S24 Ultra. Beyond AI, the chipset will help provide a smoother experience when gaming, equipped with Vulkan Engine, a high-performing graphics platform, and improved Ray Tracing.
Other specs remain the same as last year’s model, such as its 6.2-inch and 6.7-inch display, 4,000mAh and 4,900mAh batteries,120Hz Adaptive Refresh Rate, 50 MP main lens, a 12MP ultrawide, a 10 MP telephoto, and a 12MP selfie camera.
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Despite the camera hardware remaining the same, the software upgrades should significantly improve the experience. For example, 10-bit HDR recording is now applied by default, allowing users to capture better detail, and a new Galaxy Virtual Aperture, integrated into the Expert RAW app, gives users better depth-of-field control, similar to when using a DSLR.
Galaxy S25+ and S25 Ultra also feature advanced AI image processing with ProScaler, which, like Samsung TVs, uses AI to digitally enhance the resolution of videos. Just know that the phones need to be set to QHD+ resolution to take advantage of the feature.
Pricing for the Galaxy S25 and S25 Plus starts at $799 and $999, respectively. That’s the same as past years’ retail price, which is good to see, provided you’re getting improvements — some in hardware and more in software.