When you outcry “Can you conscionable Google it?” astatine your AI assistant, it’s adjacent to opportunity that the AI adjunct is not doing its job.
I was browning immoderate beef connected the stove and trying to find erstwhile my husband’s formation was landing. I didn’t person the formation number, but location are only truthful galore nonstop flights betwixt Detroit and Seattle successful a day. So I long-pressed the powerfulness fastener connected the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra and asked Google’s Gemini adjunct to find the accusation for me. It said it couldn’t. So I insisted — loudly — to conscionable Google it, positive aliases minus an expletive. It couldn’t moreover do that, truthful I went to Google myself and had the reply successful seconds. AI, everybody.
$1299
The Good
- Excellent screen
- Improved ultrawide camera
- Rounded corners are comfier
The Bad
- Expensive
- Bulky
- AI is (still) deed aliases miss
This wouldn’t matter isolated from AI smarts are expected to beryllium the big woody with this phone. The Galaxy S25 Ultra is simply a hardly warmed-over type of past year’s device, pinch immoderate lightly bumped specs and ever-so-slight creation changes. That’s fine! The S24 Ultra was a awesome portion of hardware, and the S23 Ultra was, too. Samsung didn’t request to reinvent the wheel. But it intends the institution is relying connected these “Galaxy AI” features — positive immoderate thief from Gemini — to springiness the S25 Ultra that new-phone zhuzh. And contempt each its sparkle, Galaxy AI isn’t up to the task.
More than anything, Samsung has mislaid the crippled connected what makes this “Ultra” telephone ultra. The Ultra utilized to — and kind of still is — the everything-but-the-kitchen-sink phone. It has the stylus, the large screen, each the cameras, and conscionable astir each different souped-up spec you could deliberation of. But complete the past fewer years, Samsung conscionable hasn’t recovered a measurement to make this telephone immoderate much special. In fact, it’s gotten conscionable a small spot less special, if anything.
The S24 Ultra downgraded the 10x zoom to a 5x, which is just okay astatine 10x, contempt Samsung’s claims it’s conscionable arsenic good. The S25 Ultra downgrades the smart stylus into a dumb 1 without Bluetooth connectivity and aerial power features. I wouldn’t person a problem pinch that if those things had been sacrificed for immoderate different compelling feature. But I can’t spot what’s been added, and astatine $1,299, this is 1 of the astir costly phones you tin bargain that doesn’t fold successful half. Don’t get maine wrong, it’s a damn bully phone. But I deliberation astatine that price, it’s adjacent to inquire for conscionable a small more.
Samsung introduced america to the conception of Galaxy AI past year, which includes some proprietary features for illustration penning tools, statement summarization, telephone translation, and wacky photograph editing tools. This year, it places a caller adjunct beforehand and center: Google’s Gemini. Bixby is still astir successful a supporting role, but Gemini is the default helper you’ll get erstwhile you long-press the aftermath button. With the S25 series, Gemini tin return action crossed aggregate apps for you including successful Gmail and Calendar and a bunch of Samsung’s autochthonal apps. This was the usability I was astir excited to effort connected the S25 Ultra, but it’s an Android characteristic coming to galore different phones, too.
RIP, Bixby.
The results were mixed. I asked it to put an arena connected my almanac based connected what was connected my telephone screen, and it did it. Date, time, location were each correct. It felt benignant of magical, which I recognize is simply a very debased barroom for magic. Other results were little impressive. If I asked it to make a database of 5 videos to watch connected a peculiar taxable and adhd them to a note, it only added the header matter — moreover erstwhile I prompted it to adhd them arsenic hyperlinks.
The different problem is, AI makes crap up a lot. I asked it to find a circumstantial look for an espresso martini connected YouTube and adhd the ingredients to a note. It appeared to travel directions by pulling up the video I referenced, and the ingredients seemed for illustration they mightiness beryllium successful an espresso martini. But they were wholly different from what was featured successful the video. I tried to inquire it astir specifications of a formation leaving from San Francisco, and moreover though I had it reference my confirmation email, it kept insisting that my formation was leaving from San Jose. It makes you deliberation doubly astir relying connected AI for thing but the lowest of low-stakes tasks!
Samsung has besides integrated AI features present and location crossed the OS. A salient AI characteristic called Now Brief offers summaries of your activities passim the time and supposedly surfaces applicable accusation based connected your almanac and location. It’s connected the homescreen by default and pops up connected the lockscreen erstwhile a caller 1 is available. I find it to beryllium mostly useless. It kept showing governmental news headlines that I don’t want to beryllium bombarded pinch successful the mediate of the day, truthful I turned those off.
Gemini kept insisting that my formation was leaving from San Jose
None of this is unsocial to the Galaxy S25 Ultra aliases moreover the S25 series. These AI features — which occupied astir of Samsung’s Unpacked position introducing these phones — will very apt travel to erstwhile Galaxy phones later this year. I emotion to spot older phones get caller features. But it besides makes it very difficult to spot what sets the S25 Ultra isolated from the remainder of the S25 bid aliases moreover the different Android competition. There’s besides a beardown anticipation that Samsung will commencement charging for these features astatine the extremity of 2025; Samsung’s good print only guarantees that they’ll beryllium free done the extremity of 2025. Don’t beryllium amazed if your AI telephone abruptly comes pinch an AI subscription fee.
The S25 bid ships pinch One UI 7.0, a important update to Samsung’s Android skin. It’s besides a peculiarly iOS-y update, astir notably pinch divided speedy settings and notification shades and a Dynamic Island-like Now Bar pinch time-sensitive information. I don’t deliberation it’s a peculiarly bad influence, and you tin undo aliases tweak galore of these changes. I admit the expertise to put each my apps connected 1 page successful the app tray truthful I don’t person to scroll betwixt aggregate pages, for illustration connected different Android phones. There’s a clip to do your ain point and there’s a clip to conscionable travel the crowd.
Samsung took different bully cue from Apple pinch the S25 Ultra’s caller shape. The erstwhile mates of Ultra phones had a boxy style that paid tribute to the Note series. But those pointed corners were crisp and made the telephone uncomfortable to hold. This year, Samsung ditched what was near of the Note styling and adopted curved corners for illustration the remainder of the S series.
The S25 Ultra is little Note-like, but it’s besides little achy to hold.
The Ultra besides loses what was near of its curved edges successful favour of consecutive sides that make it easier to prime up. They’re subtle changes, but they do make the S25 Ultra much comfortable to clasp and use, astatine the disbursal of looking for illustration each different modern smartphone from the front. I deliberation it’s a nett positive. I’d alternatively person a comfortable telephone than a unique-looking 1 that digs into my palm.
The Ultra uses an updated Gorilla Armor 2 protective furniture connected its screen. It’s expected to withstand drops onto actual amended than the erstwhile version, which I didn’t trial successful my clip pinch the phone. But I can opportunity its scratch-resistance has held up good to a week of abuse, and the screen’s antireflective coating makes it 1 of the easiest phones to usage successful nonstop sunlight. But that was besides existent of the S24 Ultra.
The S25 Ultra, for illustration the S25 and S25 Plus, uses a type of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset that’s specially tuned for Galaxy phones. I utilized the 8 Elite successful the OnePlus 13 and couldn’t show you immoderate notable quality successful capacity betwixt the two. Everyday tasks ran smoothly connected the 8 Elite. The telephone collapsed and restarted itself successful 1 instance, which was a small unusual, but I haven’t seen thing other for illustration that successful the week I’ve been utilizing it.
This year’s S Pen loses its Bluetooth functionality.
Battery life is astir par for a flagship smartphone successful 2025. I usually sewage done an mean time pinch 60 percent aliases truthful near over. Good, but not amazing. The S25 bid is Qi2 Ready, which intends it supports the latest wireless charging modular but only pinch a typical magnetic lawsuit — it doesn’t person magnets built into the phone. It’s a adjacent discuss since astir group will put their telephone successful a lawsuit and ne'er return it off, but it’s a bummer for the case-averse for illustration me.
The S25 Ultra still has an S Pen, but Samsung removed Bluetooth features that allowed you to usage the stylus for illustration a magic wand. Samsung says fewer group utilized those features, and connected balance, it’s nary awesome loss. But it’s the rule much than thing that stings.
Samsung’s image mode is still 1 of the champion retired there.
The cameras connected the S25 Ultra are unchanged pinch 1 exception: a caller 50-megapixel ultrawide. Samsung’s declare that it performs amended successful debased ray seems to clasp up — I tin spot much good item successful shots from the caller camera compared to the ultrawide connected the S24 Ultra. Likewise, the caller ultrawide — astir apt helped by a wider f/1.9 aperture — allows the strategy to usage little ISOs to get the aforesaid level of brightness successful a shot, which helps support sound down, too. It’s decidedly an upgrade; is it 1 that Ultra owners were clamoring for? I’m little judge astir that.
A video still from the S24 Ultra shows little good detail.
This still from the S25 Ultra shows overmuch amended item successful the subject’s sweatshirt and face.
Samsung’s different notable declare is that its low-light video processing has been improved to amended separate betwixt moving and fixed subjects, successful mentation allowing for smarter exertion of sound reduction. I can’t opportunity this is thing I’ve had a peculiar title astir connected past Galaxy phones, but low-light video is still a situation for immoderate mobile camera.
And it appears to beryllium working: successful side-by-side video clips pinch the S24 Ultra, I tin intelligibly spot much good item from the S25 Ultra, peculiarly successful dim indoor lighting. It isn’t a paradigm shift, but advancement is progress. Otherwise, the S25 Ultra’s images look very overmuch for illustration what I’ve travel to expect from Samsung. This camera loves its vibrant reds and blues, and image mode segmentation is still immoderate of the champion successful the game.
Still thing typical — for now.
The Galaxy S25 Ultra remains 1 of the champion phones you tin buy. The surface is excellent, the cameras are immoderate of the champion successful the game, and you’ll person a difficult clip uncovering immoderate workload reliable capable to situation it. That’s each been existent of the past fewer Ultra phones, and it’s existent of this one. But I deliberation there’s thing intangible that the Ultra has been losing complete the past mates of generations.
You tin bargain the Galaxy S25 Plus aliases the Pixel 9 Pro if you conscionable want a bully Android phone. The logic to bargain a Galaxy S-series Ultra is because you don’t want thing that’s conscionable good; you want thing that’s special. This telephone feels a small little typical than the S24 Ultra did, which felt a small little typical than the S23 Ultra. Complaining astir the “specialness” of a telephone would beryllium silly for immoderate different phone. But this is the Ultra! Doesn’t that mean something?
It utilized to travel pinch a 10x telephoto camera and a stylus that worked for illustration a magic wand. It utilized to look strikingly different from the remainder of the S series, aliases immoderate different phone, for that matter. Some of these changes person been for the better, but Samsung hasn’t made up for what it’s cutting. For now, the S25 Ultra still feels for illustration thing special. But if the inclination continues, past the Ultra could go conscionable different large phone.
Photography by Allison Johnson / The Verge
Agree to Continue: Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra
Every smart instrumentality now requires you to work together to a bid of position and conditions earlier you tin usage it — contracts that nary 1 really reads. It’s intolerable for america to publication and analyse each azygous 1 of these agreements. But we started counting precisely really galore times you person to deed “agree” to usage devices erstwhile we reappraisal them since these are agreements astir group don’t publication and decidedly can’t negotiate.
To usage the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra, you must work together to:
- Samsung’s Terms and Conditions
- Samsung’s Privacy Policy
- Google’s Terms of Service (including Privacy Policy)
- Google Play’s Terms of Service
- Automatic installs (including from Google, Samsung, and your carrier)
There are galore optional agreements. If you usage a carrier-specific version, location will beryllium much of them. Here are conscionable a few:
- Sending diagnostic information to Samsung
- Samsung services, including car blocker, customization service, continuity service, adjacent instrumentality scanning, individual information intelligence, and smart suggestions
- Google Drive backup, location services, Wi-Fi scanning, diagnostic data
- Bixby privateness argumentation (required to usage Bixby), positive optional for Bixby options for illustration personalized content, information access, and audio signaling review
There whitethorn beryllium more. For example, Samsung’s Weather app besides has its ain privateness argumentation that whitethorn see sharing accusation pinch Weather.com.
Final tally: location are 5 mandatory agreements and astatine slightest 10 optional ones.