The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra isn’t so ‘extremely’ anymore

When you yell “Can you simply Google it?” at your AI assistant, it’s truthful to say that the AI assistant just isn’t doing its job.

I used to be browning some beef on the range and making an attempt to find out when my husband’s flight was touchdown. I didn’t have the flight quantity, however there are solely so many direct flights between Detroit and Seattle in a day. So I long-pressed the ability button on the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra and requested Google’s Gemini assistant to seek out the knowledge for me. It stated it couldn’t. So I insisted — loudly — to only Google it, plus or minus an expletive. It couldn’t even do that, so I went to Google myself and had the reply in seconds. AI, all people.

This wouldn’t matter besides AI smarts are speculated to be the massive deal with this telephone. The Galaxy S25 Ultra is a barely warmed-over model of final yr’s gadget, with some flippantly bumped specs and ever-so-slight design modifications. That’s effective! The S24 Ultra was an amazing piece of {hardware}, and the S23 Ultra was, too. Samsung didn’t have to reinvent the wheel. But it means the corporate is counting on these “Galaxy AI” options — plus some assist from Gemini — to offer the S25 Ultra that new-phone zhuzh. And regardless of all its sparkle, Galaxy AI isn’t as much as the duty.

More than something, Samsung has misplaced the plot on what makes this “Ultra” telephone extremely. The Ultra used to — and sort of nonetheless is — the everything-but-the-kitchen-sink telephone. It has the stylus, the massive display, all of the cameras, and nearly each different souped-up spec you would consider. But over the previous few years, Samsung simply hasn’t discovered a option to make this telephone any extra particular. In reality, it’s gotten just a bit bit much less particular, if something.

The S24 Ultra downgraded the 10x zoom to a 5x, which is simply okay at 10x, regardless of Samsung’s claims it’s simply pretty much as good. The S25 Ultra downgrades the sensible stylus right into a dumb one with out Bluetooth connectivity and air management options. I wouldn’t have an issue with that if these issues had been sacrificed for another compelling characteristic. But I can’t see what’s been added, and at $1,299, this is among the costliest telephones you should buy that doesn’t fold in half. Don’t get me fallacious, it’s a rattling good telephone. But I feel at that worth, it’s truthful to ask for just a bit extra.

Samsung launched us to the idea of Galaxy AI final yr, which incorporates some proprietary options like writing instruments, notice summarization, name translation, and wacky photograph modifying instruments. This yr, it locations a brand new assistant entrance and heart: Google’s Gemini. Bixby remains to be round in a supporting position, however Gemini is the default helper you’ll get whenever you long-press the wake button. With the S25 collection, Gemini can take motion throughout a number of apps for you together with in Gmail and Calendar and a bunch of Samsung’s native apps. This was the perform I used to be most excited to strive on the S25 Ultra, but it surely’s an Android characteristic coming to many different telephones, too.

The outcomes have been combined. I requested it to place an occasion on my calendar primarily based on what was on my telephone display, and it did it. Date, time, location have been all right. It felt sort of magical, which I notice is a really low bar for magic. Other outcomes have been much less spectacular. If I requested it to generate an inventory of 5 movies to look at on a selected matter and add them to a notice, it solely added the headline textual content — even after I prompted it so as to add them as hyperlinks.

The different downside is, AI makes shit up loads. I requested it to discover a particular recipe for an espresso martini on YouTube and add the elements to a notice. It appeared to comply with instructions by pulling up the video I referenced, and the elements appeared like they is perhaps in an espresso martini. But they have been completely completely different from what was featured within the video. I attempted to ask it about particulars of a flight leaving from San Francisco, and though I had it reference my affirmation e-mail, it saved insisting that my flight was leaving from San Jose. It makes you suppose twice about counting on AI for something however the lowest of low-stakes duties!

Samsung has additionally built-in AI options right here and there throughout the OS. A distinguished AI characteristic known as Now Brief presents summaries of your actions all through the day and supposedly surfaces related data primarily based in your calendar and site. It’s on the homescreen by default and pops up on the lockscreen when a brand new one is accessible. I discover it to be principally ineffective. It saved exhibiting political information headlines that I don’t wish to be bombarded with in the midst of the day, so I turned these off.

None of that is distinctive to the Galaxy S25 Ultra and even the S25 collection. These AI options — which occupied most of Samsung’s Unpacked presentation introducing these telephones — will very probably come to earlier Galaxy telephones later this yr. I like to see older telephones get new options. But it additionally makes it very arduous to see what units the S25 Ultra aside from the remainder of the S25 collection and even the opposite Android competitors. There’s additionally a robust risk that Samsung will begin charging for these options on the finish of 2025; Samsung’s effective print solely ensures that they’ll be free by the top of 2025. Don’t be shocked in case your AI telephone all of a sudden comes with an AI subscription price.

The S25 collection ships with One UI 7.0, a major replace to Samsung’s Android pores and skin. It’s additionally a very iOS-y replace, most notably with break up fast settings and notification shades and a Dynamic Island-like Now Bar with time-sensitive data. I don’t suppose it’s a very dangerous affect, and you’ll undo or tweak many of those modifications. I recognize the flexibility to place all my apps on one web page within the app tray so I don’t must scroll between a number of pages, like on different Android telephones. There’s a time to do your individual factor and there’s a time to only comply with the gang.

Samsung took one other good cue from Apple with the S25 Ultra’s new form. The last few Ultra telephones had a boxy form that paid tribute to the Note collection. But these pointed corners have been sharp and made the telephone uncomfortable to carry. This yr, Samsung ditched what was left of the Note styling and adopted curved corners like the remainder of the S collection.

The Ultra additionally loses what was left of its curved edges in favor of straight sides that make it simpler to choose up. They’re delicate modifications, however they do make the S25 Ultra extra comfy to carry and use, on the expense of wanting like each different trendy smartphone from the entrance. I feel it’s a internet optimistic. I’d slightly have a cushty telephone than a unique-looking one which digs into my palm.

The Ultra makes use of an up to date Gorilla Armor 2 protecting layer on its display. It’s supposed to face up to drops onto concrete higher than the earlier model, which I didn’t check in my time with the telephone. But I can say its scratch-resistance has held up nicely to per week of abuse, and the display’s antireflective coating makes it one of many best telephones to make use of in direct daylight. But that was additionally true of the S24 Ultra.

The S25 Ultra, just like the S25 and S25 Plus, makes use of a model of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset that’s specifically tuned for Galaxy telephones. I used the 8 Elite within the OnePlus 13 and couldn’t let you know any notable distinction in efficiency between the 2. Everyday duties ran easily on the 8 Elite. The telephone crashed and restarted itself in a single occasion, which was just a little uncommon, however I haven’t seen the rest like that within the week I’ve been utilizing it.

Battery life is about par for a flagship smartphone in 2025. I often obtained by a mean day with 60 p.c or so left over. Good, however not superb. The S25 collection is Qi2 Ready, which suggests it helps the newest wi-fi charging customary however solely with a particular magnetic case — it doesn’t have magnets constructed into the telephone. It’s a good compromise since most individuals will put their telephone in a case and by no means take it off, but it surely’s a bummer for the case-averse like me.

The S25 Ultra nonetheless has an S Pen, however Samsung eliminated Bluetooth options that allowed you to make use of the stylus like a magic wand. Samsung says few folks used these options, and on steadiness, it’s no nice loss. But it’s the precept greater than something that stings.

The cameras on the S25 Ultra are unchanged with one exception: a brand new 50-megapixel ultrawide. Samsung’s declare that it performs higher in low gentle appears to carry up — I can see extra effective element in pictures from the brand new digicam in comparison with the ultrawide on the S24 Ultra. Likewise, the brand new ultrawide — most likely helped by a wider f/1.9 aperture — permits the system to make use of decrease ISOs to get the identical degree of brightness in a shot, which helps preserve noise down, too. It’s undoubtedly an improve; is it one which Ultra homeowners have been clamoring for? I’m much less certain about that.

Samsung’s different notable declare is that its low-light video processing has been improved to raised distinguish between shifting and static topics, in idea permitting for smarter utility of noise discount. I can’t say that is something I’ve had a selected grievance about on previous Galaxy telephones, however low-light video remains to be a problem for any cell digicam.

And it seems to be working: in side-by-side video clips with the S24 Ultra, I can clearly see extra effective element from the S25 Ultra, significantly in dim indoor lighting. It isn’t a paradigm shift, however progress is progress. Otherwise, the S25 Ultra’s photographs look very very similar to what I’ve come to count on from Samsung. This digicam loves its vibrant reds and blues, and portrait mode segmentation remains to be a number of the greatest within the recreation.

The Galaxy S25 Ultra stays among the finest telephones you should buy. The display is superb, the cameras are a number of the greatest within the recreation, and also you’ll have a tough time discovering any workload robust sufficient to problem it. That’s all been true of the previous couple of Ultra telephones, and it’s true of this one. But I feel there’s one thing intangible that the Ultra has been shedding over the previous couple of generations.

You can purchase the Galaxy S25 Plus or the Pixel 9 Pro if you happen to simply desire a good Android telephone. The purpose to purchase a Galaxy S-series Ultra is since you don’t need one thing that’s simply good; you need one thing that’s particular. This telephone feels rather less particular than the S24 Ultra did, which felt rather less particular than the S23 Ultra. Complaining in regards to the “specialness” of a telephone can be foolish for some other telephone. But that is the Ultra! Doesn’t that imply one thing?

It used to return with a 10x telephoto digicam and a stylus that labored like a magic wand. It used to look strikingly completely different from the remainder of the S collection, or some other telephone, for that matter. Some of those modifications have been for the higher, however Samsung hasn’t made up for what it’s chopping. For now, the S25 Ultra nonetheless seems like one thing particular. But if the pattern continues, then the Ultra might change into simply one other massive telephone.

Photography by Allison Johnson / The Verge