Samsung Galaxy S25: Small on size, big on potential?

Compact flagships have a loyal consumer base. Despite bigger screens being the norm, many consumers still prefer something lightweight and compact as their daily driver. The Samsung Galaxy S25 is one of the top contenders are far as compact Android flagships go. I’ve been using it for a couple of weeks now and here’s whether this flagship is worth the investment.

Design

Design-wise not much has changed since last year’s Galaxy S24. The Galaxy S25 remains compact at 6.2 inches with the three-lens camera module at the rear. This year, there are a bunch of interesting colours though — Coralred, Pinkgold and Mint.

As is usually the case, the AMOLED display is bright and vibrant. Visuals really pop on-screen. The turquoise sea, colourful rooftops and bright, floral costumes from Hometown Cha Cha Cha were a pleasure to watch on this. The adaptive 120 Hz refresh rate makes browsing and watching videos look seamless and snappy. The smartphone remains reasonably bright under direct sunlight too, with its peak brightness being rated at 2,600 nits. It also has HDR support for content on YouTube, Netflix and similar platforms.

Camera

The camera hardware doesn’t seem to have any upgrades this year. The primary setup includes a 50 MP main sensor, a 12 MP ultrawide sensor and a 10 MP telephoto lens. Daylight snaps are vibrant, well-saturated and a bit favourable to warm tones in general that amplify the effect of a photo without overdoing it.

The front camera has a 12 MP sensor, which delivers some pleasing selfies with fairly accurate skin tones and texture. In-camera adjustments have been tweaked. Now, there’s a slider to zoom in and out while composing a frame or shooting a video.

New features

These include a new ‘Now’ briefing bar that shows my events, weather, battery levels, music streaming and more. There is also AI Summary, the ability to transcribe recorded calls, look through your gallery for specific photos based on a search command and improved ‘Circle to Search’ features. I’ve mentioned the AI features in my review of the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra, in more detail. The notification system has also been revamped to mimic the iOS-style split view. I can pull and swipe down from the top left half of the display to check notifications and from the top right half to access quick settings. You can also check my detailed review of the Samsung Galaxy S25+ and the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra for more features that have been upgraded or added.

Tech Specs

The Samsung Galaxy S25 runs on a top-end Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset, customised for this series. Multitasking, gaming and any other function on this smartphone felt snappy and seamless. The unit I reviewed has 12 GB RAM and 256 GB storage. There’s a 512 GB option too.

It runs on the new One UI 7, and Android 15. The Samsung Galaxy S25 also retains the same 4,000mAh battery with 25W wired charging support as its predecessor. This is also a bit of a letdown especially if you use your smartphone for a lot of media consumption, gaming and editing short-form media on the go. If your usage is moderate as far as media or graphics-intensive tasks are concerned, you’ll still get a working day’s worth of juice from the battery.

The brand has also promised an impressive seven years of software and security upgrades in the future.

Verdict

The Samsung Galaxy S25 sticks to its strengths, maybe a little too much! Yes, it has a compact form factor, a sharp display and a reliable camera setup, and introduces some useful AI-driven enhancements. Performance is still flagship-grade and the promise of seven years of updates adds long-term value. However, the lack of any significant camera upgrades, battery improvements or even new design touches might leave some wanting for more. Having said that, if you’re scouring the market for a stylish, pocketable flagship with premium features, the Galaxy S25 still makes a solid case for itself.