The Galaxy S25 Ultra is a big, brilliant phone that doesn’t feel special enough to me anymore

You already know that feeling when one thing comes out and you already know that it’s best to like it? Like when your favourite writer drops a new title out of nowhere, even when it’s not their typical style, or your favourite soccer group indicators a promising however injury-prone younger participant? On paper, you already know that there’s a ton of potential there, and your hopes must be sky-high. In actuality, although, the expertise isn’t at all times what it’s made out to be.

For me, that’s what has occurred with the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra after testing it for a couple of weeks. Regardless that I do know I must be impressed by its new slate of Galaxy AI options, overclocked chipset, and versatile cameras, I can’t assist however assume that Samsung’s most costly sweet bar flagship falls a little flat. Right here’s why I feel considerably let down — however why you may feel in a different way.

No person ever mentioned that Samsung’s huge, productivity-minded Galaxy S25 Ultra had to be the sleekest machine round — nor did I count on it to be. I spent enough time with its predecessor, the Galaxy S24 Ultra, to know that there are solely so some ways you’ll be able to mix 4 cameras and an S Pen and nonetheless have room for a huge 5,000mAh battery. And but, I remained hopeful that Samsung would a minimum of discover a means to hold its absolute beast of a flagship considerably comfy to use. Sadly, that’s not a lot the case for me.

Now, I didn’t count on it to match completely within the palm of my hand — I’m a small man, and this is not a small phone. Enormous telephones don’t work for me as a result of I wrestle to attain throughout a 6.7-inch (or bigger) show, and I don’t love when a machine doesn’t match comfortably in my pocket. Nevertheless, I’m blissful to make exceptions when telephones feel well-designed, just like the just-round-enough OnePlus 13 or the Google Pixel 9 Professional XL with a barely softer aluminum body. The drawback, for me, is that the Galaxy S25 Ultra is neither of these issues.

As a substitute, somebody at Samsung determined to merge the design of its largest flagship with that of its smallest. So, off went the rounded body that made the Galaxy S24 Ultra manageable to maintain, and as a substitute sits a flat, industrial slice of titanium that meets the entrance and rear glass at sharp proper angles. It’s virtually an identical to the body on each the Galaxy S25 and the Galaxy S25 Plus, with a further rear digital camera and an S Pen tucked alongside the underside edge. For me and my small palms, although, the end result is a phone that feels too massive and blocky to be held comfortably. I would like to use two palms with the Galaxy S25 Ultra at virtually all occasions, and that’s with out even touching the S Pen.

In fact, I do know why Samsung made the modifications it did. I do know that it’s higher to have a collection of flagships that all match and that the Ultra was at all times going to feel massive to have enough area for its extra digital camera and stylus — that’s simply the best way it is. I do know that adopting harder glass for the back and front panels is a substantial improve, particularly in order for you to dwell that caseless life-style — however please, as a man who has had to restore a phone or two in his day, don’t belief glass or titanium over concrete.

Additionally, for those who’re after a new phone that’s merely attractive to sit and take a look at, I’d advocate you retain shifting. My colleague C. Scott Brown not too long ago put collectively a checklist of the best-looking telephones ever made, and to me, the Galaxy S25 Ultra deserves to be as far-off from that checklist as doable. It’s taken on a generic profile to the purpose the place there’s virtually no persona left. The cameras sit in their very own little islands as soon as once more, and the sharp body makes the back and front panels of glass feel like they’re thus far aside.

Whereas I’ve no actual love for the scale or form of the Galaxy S25 Ultra, I can’t fault Samsung’s supplies. Each the grade-five titanium body and Corning Gorilla Armor 2 on the back and front feel like they may take a beating, whether or not you drop the phone on the sidewalk or let it take a tumble throughout your kitchen ground. I in all probability wouldn’t advocate both one — it’s a $1,300 phone, in any case — however I’m a little extra assured carrying this Ultra with out a case than I often am. In addition to, if I put a case on it, I received’t find a way to admire the satin end that continues to be one in all my favorites lengthy after Samsung has given up on the Phantom branding. This yr, my coloration of alternative is a shade known as Titanium Silverblue, which seems like a foolish mixture of three barely totally different colours, but it’s spot-on in describing the pale blue end.

In fact, Samsung is aware of you’re not about to purchase the Galaxy S25 Ultra for its refreshed design. You won’t even purchase it for the S Pen — particularly now that it comes with out Bluetooth. However, what it’s best to contemplate shopping for the Galaxy S25 Ultra for is its show, which is merely glorious. In fact it is — Samsung had to save one thing for its top-end launch. I’d go as far as to say that I really like the Galaxy S25 Ultra’s show, I simply want it have been in a phone that’s simpler to wrangle, virtually prefer it ought to fold in half for extra comfy carrying… name it a Galaxy Flip or one thing.

Anyway, I’ve but to discover an space the place the 6.9-inch Dynamic 2X AMOLED panel struggles, from serving to me sustain with Chelsea FC’s not-a-title-race to exploring the brand new set of House-Time Showdown playing cards in Pokemon TCG Pocket. The actually variable 1-120Hz refresh fee is buttery clean, whether or not I’m digging by way of a 38-hour Spotify playlist (not a joke) or making an attempt to recap a whole week of Champion’s League soccer at double pace (additionally, not a joke). Samsung’s 2,600 nits of peak brightness won’t fairly match the three,000 nits of the Pixel 9 Professional XL or the 4,500 nits of the OnePlus 13, however let’s be trustworthy — you’re not going to discover a distinction. I definitely didn’t, whether or not I used to be navigating to drop a good friend off at a metro station or doomscrolling earlier than mattress.

My final two factors on the design of the Galaxy S25 Ultra are a little bit disappointing, however neither one is surprising. First, there is no full Qi2 assist on Samsung’s top-end flagship. Technically, the complete collection is Qi2 Prepared, which implies it may work with magnetic equipment, however you’ll want a particular magnetic case to add the performance. These magnets might additionally intervene with the S Pen, which is solely made worse as a result of it may’t be used as a distant digital camera shutter anymore, both. Additionally, the Galaxy S25 Ultra is IP68 rated, which is nonetheless nice, however we’ve began to see rather more reasonably priced gadgets launch with IP69 safety from jets of water and warmth. It might be good to see Samsung do the identical when there aren’t too many different modifications in retailer.

Though Samsung’s present {hardware} design falls extremely flat for me, I can’t argue with something occurring beneath the hood of the Galaxy S25 Ultra. It’s powerful to pack an overclocked Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset with 12GB of RAM and up to 1TB of mounted storage and never carry out like an absolute winner. In fact, you by no means know — I’ve gone into opinions with excessive hopes, solely to uncover that a flagship can’t sustain with its personal thermal calls for.

However the Galaxy S25 Ultra is not a kind of flagships — this is a performer by way of and thru based mostly on our comparative benchmarks. As at all times, I loaded up our traditional slate of CPU and GPU-intensive checks and put Samsung’s numbers up in opposition to one of the best from Apple, Google, and OnePlus, taking over the highest in-house processors and the usual model of Qualcomm’s greatest chip on the identical time.

As anticipated, Samsung’s Galaxy S25 Ultra got here prepared to compete throughout all our checks. It didn’t dominate the competitors outright, falling in need of the iPhone 16 Professional in single-core Geekbench efficiency and touchdown behind the OnePlus 13 throughout 20 runs of 3DMark’s Wild Life check, but it surely checked each different field I requested of it alongside the best way. It put up the very best PCMark rating I’ve ever seen, suggesting a higher steadiness throughout varied day-to-day duties than its closest Android rivals.

I’m additionally barely shocked to see how rapidly the large Galaxy S25 Ultra fell behind the OnePlus 13 by way of GPU efficiency, although it stays comfortably forward of opponents from Apple and Google. There’s a good likelihood that’s exactly the place Samsung needs to be — it appears to deal with the iPhone and Pixel as its foremost threats — however I’m undecided that’s the most secure plan. To me, the OnePlus 13 is one of the best phone I’ve utilized in a very long time, and for Samsung to seemingly rule it out seems like a harmful recreation.

Fortunately for Samsung, although, benchmarking by no means tells the entire story. Outdoors of sometimes being bettered on paper, the Galaxy S25 Ultra is a beast in each day life. As talked about above, it’s guided me comfortably by way of my winter of actions, from dropping pals at grad faculty visits to navigating me to the Apple Retailer after I wanted to restore a machine. It’s been considerably difficult to undertake the Galaxy S25 Ultra as my each day driver, given its huge measurement, but I’ve come again to it with out concern any time streaming has been concerned. It answered my name after I wanted some post-hangover Tremendous Bowl highlights, and it’ll proceed to information me when I’ve to discover my means to the SEPTA station in Wilmington, Delaware, for the victory parade on Valentine’s Day. Samsung’s cooling setup is additionally robust enough to keep away from the type of overheating points we noticed with a number of the earliest Snapdragon 8 Elite handsets.

With Samsung’s ever-reliable 5,000mAh battery beneath the hood, I’m not too apprehensive about how the Galaxy S25 Ultra will deal with a lengthy day spanning three states. It’s a beefy cell that doesn’t appear to decelerate in a short time, and I’ve commonly been in a position to push it for 2 days away from a charger earlier than I’m apprehensive about turning on power-saving mode. Additionally, this is often the place I’d insert the outcomes of our standardized battery drain check, which places a phone by way of a gauntlet of on a regular basis duties like net looking, video streaming, and digital camera capturing. Sadly, Samsung’s top-level optimization has considerably damaged our check for now, with the Galaxy S25 Ultra preferring to save its juice relatively than shift from one leg of the check to the following.

So, as a substitute, you’ll get my ideas on the battery efficiency on a mean day. Briefly, it’s glorious. Though I’m not pulling the Galaxy S25 Ultra out of my pocket and checking it fairly as usually as different telephones when it’s out, I have a tendency to use it for longer stretches at a time. I’ll begin by checking a sports activities rating or two from the Now Bar, solely to discover myself hopping from a video podcast on Spotify to checking off a few ranges in Royal Match earlier than I am going again to verify on the standing of my pack stamina in Pokemon TCG Pocket. I’ll sometimes spend a bit longer exploring a number of the new Galaxy AI options, too, however we’ll come again to these in a second.

Anyway, while you knock out the Galaxy S25 Ultra’s huge cell, you’ll faucet into a charging expertise that feels all too acquainted. For what feels just like the fifth yr in a row, Samsung is sticking with 45W wired and 15W wi-fi charging for its most costly flagship. Don’t get me flawed, 45W wired speeds are fairly good — so long as you’ve the required USB PD PPS charger — however they now not feel revolutionary or particularly spectacular. Motorola has surpassed Samsung with 68W speeds on its high Edges and Razrs, and OnePlus is even quicker with 80W wired charging on the OnePlus 13.

As seen above, Samsung nonetheless has Apple and Google in a charging chokehold. Though Google up to date its most premium Pixel 9 Professional XL with 37W wired speeds, it nonetheless calls for a further 20 minutes on the block earlier than it’s prepared to get again in motion. The iPhone 16 Professional is even worse, almost doubling the Galaxy S25 Ultra’s charging time regardless of having the smallest battery of the present flagship crop.

In fact, digging into Samsung’s charging setup provides me one other likelihood to bemoan its lack of correct Qi2 assist. It’s been two years for the reason that Wi-fi Energy Consortium launched its Apple-supported tackle MagSafe, and I believed we’d have native assist by now. As a substitute, you’ve to purchase a particular case to be used along with your already costly phone, and including magnets to the Galaxy S25 Ultra in the end strips out one in all its most unusual options, the S Pen. It’s a little bit of a foolish limitation on a particularly costly machine that in any other case delivers on nearly each entrance.

Sticking with one other typical Samsung power, it’s time to focus on the Galaxy S25 Ultra’s cameras. Most years, Samsung launches its new slate of flagships, and so they slot comfortably onto our podium for one of the best Android digital camera telephones that cash should purchase. Typically, Samsung even provides an thrilling new wrinkle or two or a minimum of a few megapixels to one in all its sensors. This yr, we bought the latter.

At a look, the 4 sensors that dot the rear panel of Gorilla Armor 2 look virtually an identical to these that got here earlier than. They nonetheless dwell of their particular person rings, although these rings are barely extra sturdy this time round. And, in three out of 4 instances, they’re an identical to the earlier technology. Samsung carried over the identical main and telephoto {hardware} from the Galaxy S25 Ultra, maintaining a 200MP sensor because the star of the present and backing it with 10MP and 50MP lenses set to 3x and 5x optical zoom, respectively. The one distinction, nonetheless, comes within the ultrawide sensor, which has jumped from 12MP to 50MP and expanded its most aperture from ƒ/2.2 to ƒ/1.9 to seize extra mild and supply a shallower depth of discipline. So, with that fundamental {hardware} rundown full, let’s try some digital camera samples. Additionally, please forgive the final lack of coloration — winter in Baltimore is a troublesome time to escape crimson bricks and grey skies, what can I say?

Regardless of the general sameness of the colours throughout most of my samples — thanks, default Samsung profile — I feel just like the number of zoom lengths and capturing modes affords a respectable feel for the Galaxy S25 Ultra’s potential. Whereas I believe a few of Samsung’s punchier colours, just like the orange of the glass bottles and the inexperienced of the Pitango Bakery signal, may thrive higher within the spring and summer time months, the sharpness in each pictures is nonetheless glorious. I used to be particularly impressed with the element of the glass bottles as I used to be utilizing Samsung’s digital macro mode, which depends on the upgraded ultrawide sensor. It pulled stable element out of the bottles themselves and the cement base by which they’re encased with out falling into the fuzzy macro lure some ultrawide cameras undergo from.

Additionally, whereas I’m largely unimpressed with Samsung’s digital camera filters (as I’ll focus on in a minute), I fairly just like the outcomes of my customized filter when utilized to the holly bush. It provides the berries a a lot hotter punch than actuality, and the hotter colours are virtually enough to make up for the snow I had to trudge by way of to discover colourful flora. I can’t give Samsung an excessive amount of credit score for that filter, although, because it’s based mostly on a picture I took with my Fujifilm X100V after which ran by way of Samsung’s digital camera app.

By the best way, for those who’ve learn a latest Samsung Galaxy assessment, you in all probability bear in mind us declaring points with movement blur, particularly when snapping pictures of pets. Properly, I’m blissful to say that these points have been largely cleaned up, a minimum of in well-lit scenes. I’ve been impressed with a few of the photographs I’ve captured of my pals’ canine working round my neighborhood park and had respectable luck catching shifting gamers on the Eagles’ Tremendous Bowl parade, each in shiny daylight. Sadly, low-light scenes nonetheless throw a little little bit of a wrench into the movement blur, because the slower shutter pace makes my tuxedo cats seem like much more of a black-and-white blur than they already are.

Nevertheless, the spot the place Samsung shocked me most was after I put it by way of its zoom paces. In any case, Samsung has been bragging about hitting 100x on its Ultra-tier flagships for years, so that you’d count on the outcomes to be fairly good. Properly, I believe they are often respectable, however there’s a restrict to what Samsung’s sensors can resolve with assist from Galaxy AI. I reached out to shoot throughout Baltimore’s harbor to seize the cranes that work day and evening on the sugar manufacturing unit and located myself decently happy till I hit 30x zoom. Up to that level, the main points seemed fantastic, and the general colours have been good — if a bit darkish in opposition to the very shiny sky — after which I punched in to 100x zoom and bought… one thing that seems to be prefer it was rendered within the Nintendo 64 traditional Goldeneye. Positive, you may make out the strains and shapes of the crane, however they appear extra like a low-poly render than a picture taken with a $1,300 smartphone.

Flipping the digital camera round, Samsung’s method to selfies must be a good reminder that extra isn’t at all times higher. I’ve been much more impressed with the front-facing digital camera on the Galaxy S Ultra fashions ever because it ditched the 40MP sensor in favor of a 12MP model, selecting up greater pixels and ditching the necessity to bin alongside the best way. I belief each Samsung’s coloration science and edge detection in portrait mode, although I’d like a barely wider discipline of view for the extensive selfies because it solely actually provides enough area if somebody is standing proper over my shoulder.

Whereas I’d say that, on the entire, the Galaxy S25 Ultra’s cameras are fairly good (a minimum of up to 30x zoom), I believe that Samsung is counting on software program upgrades greater than ever. As a result of the sensors themselves aren’t drastically totally different, I discovered myself digging into smaller options to discover one thing value getting enthusiastic about. In doing so, I spent a respectable period of time with Samsung’s new set of digital camera filters, that are particularly designed to problem Apple’s Photographic Kinds, and I additionally gave Samsung’s Audio Eraser a shot, which is a Galaxy-flavored model of Google’s Audio Magic Eraser.

Sadly for Samsung, each options nonetheless want a little bit of fine-tuning and polish earlier than they’re prepared to tackle their authentic inspirations. I couldn’t discover enough differentiation in any of the digital camera filters to need to decide one over the default profile, although I do like that you’ll be able to create your individual based mostly on an present picture. I additionally struggled to management the Audio Eraser successfully, with its Auto setting taking out an excessive amount of noise and the extra particular sliders usually failing to separate one audio supply from one other. That mentioned, Samsung will in all probability push updates to each options over time, so I’ll be curious to come again to them sooner or later.

Video shooters can even be blissful to know that capturing clips on the Galaxy S25 Ultra stays glorious. You may shoot in up to 8K decision at 30fps or 4K at up to 120fps from the rear cameras, and 4K at up to 60fps from the selfie shooter, and Samsung’s stabilization stays rock-solid. There are additionally a few new pro-grade wrinkles to dig into, like the power to shoot in Log format for later color-grading or the Audio Eraser device I discussed above. I’ll in all probability skip recording in Log myself, however I’m glad to see Samsung taking over Apple’s ProRes Log assist.

It’s also possible to try full-size variations of those digital camera samples and plenty of extra at this Google Drive hyperlink.

Whereas the digital camera wrinkles won’t have landed completely for me, they have been removed from enough to spoil the remainder of my Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra expertise. A lot of the new modifications to One UI 7 and updates to Galaxy AI stored me utilizing the monster of a phone even after complaining about its general footprint. I’d even go as far as to forgive Samsung for making us wait so lengthy to get full entry to Android 15 as soon as the Galaxy S25 collection got here out — particularly contemplating Google beat it to the punch by a number of months on the Pixel 9 collection.

Anyway, my first trace that Samsung had spent a good very long time revamping its Galaxy AI expertise was after I went to check out the up to date model of its Portrait Studio. See, I used to be lower than impressed when the characteristic launched final yr and solely actually preserved one human face from a photograph at a time, so this yr, when it bought added into the Drawing Help expertise and paired with a Galaxy AI picture generator, it gave me a lot extra hope. The new outcomes are considerably higher than earlier than, and so they maintain onto different issues about your topic, like their authentic garments and virtually — I imply virtually — a semblance of the unique background. Drawing Help struggles when it may’t discover a human face, although, sometimes turning my pals into bridges or sundown scenes.

Samsung additionally determined to calmly copy Apple’s Dynamic Island however, like most Android builders, needed to do Apple one higher. Thus, the Now Transient and Now Bar have been born. In Samsung’s case, the Now Bar is nearer to a Dynamic Island-like expertise, popping up in your notification bar with rating updates, climate forecasts, and extra bits of data all through the day, whereas the Now Transient is extra of a one-stop store. It seems in your lock display screen and residential display screen a number of occasions all through the day, supplying you with a straightforward breakdown of the climate and your upcoming appointments. It’s largely felt spectacular to me, although I can’t say I really like the politically charged information articles, particularly when most different briefings tune their suggestions to your pursuits.

Oh, and I assume I can formally bid farewell to my good friend and yours, Bixby. After mechanically mapping the facility button on the earlier Galaxy S24 collection to open the in-house assistant, that button now launches a Gemini interface, which you should use to full duties throughout apps. Sadly for Bixby, I couldn’t be happier. Gemini is quicker and extra responsive after I ask it for particular context, and I’m already extra aware of the interface after spending most of my time with a Pixel in my pocket. It turned my go-to plumbing accomplice after I wanted to repair my kitchen sink, and I’ve been relying on it to assist me make plans to attain Broad Road in Philadelphia for another Tremendous Bowl celebration.

In fact, the remainder of Samsung’s well-established Galaxy AI options are additionally again. Circle to Search stays actually, actually good, and Samsung’s Object Eraser within the Gallery app is extra correct than ever — particularly compared to the state of Apple’s Clear Up characteristic. I nonetheless haven’t discovered a love for the Writing Help instruments, however I write for a residing, so that’s one piece of my job that I’ll defend till the tip.

Outdoors of Galaxy AI, although, the remainder of Samsung’s One UI 7 expertise is simply nearly as good, if not higher. The Galaxy S25 Ultra is in line for seven years of general updates and already feels glorious, with redesigned widgets, higher color-matching for app icons to your wallpapers, and redesigned default icons that look and feel a little extra energetic than they used to. I’m not as in love with the cut up of notifications into one pulldown menu and fast settings into one other, however I’m slowly getting used to it after a few weeks with the phone — and I can’t discover the proper setting to restore it to the earlier One UI 6 structure. Additionally, the side-scrolling app drawer is no extra; you’ll be able to lastly set your Galaxy S25 up with a vertical, alphabetized drawer, and it’s made my life a lot simpler.

So, at this level, there’s little doubt left as to how I feel in regards to the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra: It’s a wonderful Android super-phone that packs the entire options, software program assist, and premium supplies you would ask for, but it surely’s simply not the phone for me. Has it impressed me at virtually each flip? Sure, and it definitely deserves reward for that. It’s an objectively glorious phone that largely reminds me why Samsung isn’t all that afraid of what Google, OnePlus, or Motorola comes up with as a result of it simply has to rinse and repeat with the issues that work and make them simply a tiny bit higher. In my eyes, although, it’s simply too massive for me to need to carry it every single day, and after one other yr of minor iteration, it’s not doing enough new to persuade me to look previous that.

And sure, I do know that’s a powerful cause to knock a phone so severely that I put my SIM in one thing else, but it surely’s true. If they are saying that one of the best digital camera is the one you’ve with you, then one of the best phone is in all probability additionally the one that you need to carry. Sadly, that means carrying one thing smaller, even when I’ve to quit on a little little bit of battery life or attain for cameras that don’t fairly scratch 100x zoom. On the intense facet, although, that additionally means that Samsung has a minimum of one different phone that would match my wants a lot better — and one other one fairly quickly that we’ve already been teased with.

The base Galaxy S25 ($799.99 at Amazon) and the Galaxy S25 Plus ($999.99 at Amazon) ship the majority of the identical expertise, providing the identical variety of software program updates, the identical secure of Galaxy AI options, and comparable general supplies whereas not placing almost as a lot pressure in your pockets. As somebody who doesn’t use the S Pen rarely and got here away not too impressed with Samsung’s 100x zoom, I might be simply as proud of a phone that matches comfortably in my hand and tops out at a usable 30x zoom. That mentioned, when you have a semi-recent Galaxy S phone, you’re virtually definitely higher off hanging onto it because the upgrades on supply from Samsung throughout the complete collection are fairly meager this yr — or a minimum of wait till we now have extra information on the still-mysterious Galaxy S25 Edge.

Maybe the easiest way to describe Samsung’s Galaxy S25 Ultra is this — it’s a massive, highly effective phone that doesn’t feel special enough anymore. And whereas Samsung could not need to admit it, its closest rivals are extra aggressive than ever.

Google’s Pixel 9 collection may nonetheless lose in a uncooked energy foot race, but it surely has been working Android 15 for months and appears decided to advance its general design and construct high quality a lot quicker than Samsung. Google additionally did one thing I’d been begging for for years and launched a smaller Pixel 9 Professional ($999 at Amazon) that I discover rather more comfy to use than the Pixel 9 Professional XL ($1099 at Amazon). I additionally assume that Google nonetheless has an edge by way of digital camera processing, with its AI-powered enhancing options proving simply a little bit extra dependable than Samsung’, plus you save a bit of money, which is at all times a massive issue.

There’s additionally Samsung’s main market competitors, the iPhone 16 Professional ($999 at Amazon) and Professional Max ($1199 at Amazon). As at all times, Apple’s most costly flagships feel like they’ve been tailored to problem Samsung, lastly leaping into the AI race and selecting up new {hardware} buttons alongside the best way. Thus far, Apple has launched its personal tackle nearly the entire AI options that Google and Samsung have tried, debuting Clear Up to tackle the Object Eraser, Picture Playground to tackle the Portrait Studio, and a slate of writing instruments to assist clear up your messages. Nevertheless, the largest hurdle to selecting up an iPhone will nonetheless be that you’ve to quit lots of the Android comforts that introduced you to Samsung within the first place and can seemingly have to purchase a new suite of equipment — albeit with much more selection to select from.

To me, although, the actual darkish horse that Samsung must be apprehensive about snatching away Android energy customers is the OnePlus 13 ($899.99 at OnePlus) — a phone that blew me away whereas reviewing it. Though the shortage of official provider availability will harm OnePlus’s general reputation, all the things else about its newest flagship ought to make Samsung sweat. It bumped to an IP69 score as well as to its IP68 safety, upgraded to even higher Hasselblad-tuned cameras that are fairly spectacular previous 100x zoom, and picked up a barely rounded physique that’s nonetheless extraordinarily comfy to maintain regardless of the large 6.82-inch show. And once more, similar to Google, you’ll save your self some money with it thanks to the comparatively huge $400 value hole.

OnePlus may nonetheless be behind one of the best Android telephones by way of its software program replace dedication, however I’ve to say, switching to the S25 Ultra — one of the vital competent, but most secure performs we’ve seen from Samsung to date — made me lengthy to return to a flagship that was genuinely pushing the envelope and didn’t remotely feel prefer it was settling.