The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra Isn’t So ‘ultra’ Anymore

When you outcry “Can you conscionable Google it?” astatine your AI assistant, it’s adjacent to opportunity that nan AI adjunct is not doing its job.

I was browning immoderate beef connected nan stove and trying to find erstwhile my husband’s statement was landing. I didn’t personification nan statement number, but location are only truthful galore nonstop flights betwixt Detroit and Seattle successful a day. So I long-pressed nan powerfulness fastener connected nan Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra and asked Google’s Gemini adjunct to find nan accusation for me. It said it couldn’t. So I insisted — loudly — to conscionable Google it, affirmative aliases minus an expletive. It couldn’t moreover do that, truthful I went to Google myself and had nan reply successful seconds. AI, everybody.

This wouldn’t matter isolated from AI smarts are expected to beryllium nan large woody pinch 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 information of hardware, and nan S23 Ultra was, too. Samsung didn’t petition to reinvent nan wheel. But it intends nan institution is relying connected these “Galaxy AI” features — affirmative immoderate thief from Gemini — to springiness nan S25 Ultra that new-phone zhuzh. And contempt each its sparkle, Galaxy AI isn’t up to nan task.

More than anything, Samsung has mislaid nan crippled connected what makes this “Ultra” telephone ultra. The Ultra utilized to — and benignant of still is — nan everything-but-the-kitchen-sink phone. It has nan stylus, nan ample screen, each nan cameras, and conscionable astir each different souped-up spec you could deliberation of. But complete nan past less years, Samsung conscionable hasn’t recovered a measurement to make this telephone immoderate overmuch special. In fact, it’s gotten conscionable a mini spot little special, if anything.

The S24 Ultra downgraded nan 10x zoom to a 5x, which is conscionable okay astatine 10x, contempt Samsung’s claims it’s conscionable arsenic good. The S25 Ultra downgrades nan smart stylus into a dumb 1 without Bluetooth connectivity and aerial powerfulness features. I wouldn’t personification 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 nan 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 mini more.

Samsung introduced america to nan conception of Galaxy AI past year, which includes immoderate proprietary features for illustration penning tools, connection 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 nan default helper you’ll get erstwhile you long-press nan aftermath button. With nan 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 nan usability I was astir excited to effort connected nan S25 Ultra, but it’s an Android characteristic coming to galore different phones, too.

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 admit is simply a very debased barroom for magic. Other results were small 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 nan 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 nan ingredients to a note. It appeared to recreation directions by pulling up nan video I referenced, and nan ingredients seemed for illustration they mightiness beryllium successful an espresso martini. But they were wholly different from what was featured successful nan video. I tried to inquire it astir specifications of a statement leaving from San Francisco, and moreover though I had it reference my confirmation email, it kept insisting that my statement was leaving from San Jose. It makes you deliberation doubly astir relying connected AI for point but nan lowest of low-stakes tasks!

Samsung has too integrated AI features coming and location crossed nan OS. A salient AI characteristic called Now Brief offers summaries of your activities passim nan clip and supposedly surfaces applicable accusation based connected your almanac and location. It’s connected nan homescreen by default and pops up connected nan 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 nan mediate of nan day, truthful I turned those off.

None of this is unsocial to nan Galaxy S25 Ultra aliases moreover nan S25 series. These AI features — which occupied astir of Samsung’s Unpacked position introducing these phones — will very apt recreation to erstwhile Galaxy phones later this year. I emotion to spot older phones get caller features. But it too makes it very difficult to spot what sets nan S25 Ultra isolated from nan remainder of nan S25 bid aliases moreover nan different Android competition. There’s too a beardown anticipation that Samsung will commencement charging for these features astatine nan extremity of 2025; Samsung’s bully people only guarantees that they’ll beryllium free done nan 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 too 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 nan expertise to put each my apps connected 1 page successful nan app tray truthful I don’t personification to scroll betwixt aggregate pages, for illustration connected different Android phones. There’s a clip to do your ain constituent and there’s a clip to conscionable recreation nan crowd.

Samsung took different bully cue from Apple pinch nan S25 Ultra’s caller shape. The erstwhile mates of Ultra phones had a boxy style that paid tribute to nan Note series. But those pointed corners were crisp and made nan telephone uncomfortable to hold. This year, Samsung ditched what was adjacent of nan Note styling and adopted curved corners for illustration nan remainder of nan S series.

The Ultra too loses what was adjacent of its curved edges successful favour of consecutive sides that make it easier to premier up. They’re subtle changes, but they do make nan S25 Ultra overmuch comfortable to clasp and use, astatine nan disbursal of looking for illustration each different modern smartphone from nan front. I deliberation it’s a nett positive. I’d alternatively personification a comfortable telephone than a unique-looking 1 that digs into my palm.

The Ultra uses an updated Gorilla Armor 2 protective furnishings connected its screen. It’s expected to withstand drops onto existent amended than nan erstwhile version, which I didn’t proceedings successful my clip pinch nan phone. But I tin opportunity its scratch-resistance has held up bully to a week of abuse, and nan screen’s antireflective coating makes it 1 of nan easiest phones to usage successful nonstop sunlight. But that was too existent of nan S24 Ultra.

The S25 Ultra, for illustration nan S25 and S25 Plus, uses a type of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset that’s specially tuned for Galaxy phones. I utilized nan 8 Elite successful nan OnePlus 13 and couldn’t show you immoderate notable value successful capacity betwixt nan two. Everyday tasks ran smoothly connected nan 8 Elite. The telephone collapsed and restarted itself successful 1 instance, which was a mini unusual, but I haven’t seen point different for illustration that successful nan week I’ve been utilizing it.

Battery life is astir par for a flagship smartphone successful 2025. I usually sewage done an mean clip pinch 60 percent aliases truthful adjacent over. Good, but not amazing. The S25 bid is Qi2 Ready, which intends it supports nan latest wireless charging modular but only pinch a emblematic magnetic suit — it doesn’t personification magnets built into nan phone. It’s a adjacent talk since astir group will put their telephone successful a suit and ne'er return it off, but it’s a bummer for nan case-averse for illustration me.

The S25 Ultra still has an S Pen, but Samsung removed Bluetooth features that allowed you to usage nan stylus for illustration a magic wand. Samsung says less group utilized those features, and connected balance, it’s nary awesome loss. But it’s nan norm overmuch than point that stings.

The cameras connected nan S25 Ultra are unchanged pinch 1 exception: a caller 50-megapixel ultrawide. Samsung’s state that it performs amended successful debased ray seems to clasp up — I tin spot overmuch bully point successful shots from nan caller camera compared to nan ultrawide connected nan S24 Ultra. Likewise, nan caller ultrawide — astir apt helped by a wider f/1.9 aperture — allows nan strategy to usage small ISOs to get nan 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 small judge astir that.

Samsung’s different notable state is that its low-light video processing has been improved to amended abstracted betwixt moving and fixed subjects, successful mentation allowing for smarter exertion of sound reduction. I can’t opportunity this is point I’ve had a peculiar title astir connected past Galaxy phones, but low-light video is still a business for immoderate mobile camera.

And it appears to beryllium working: successful side-by-side video clips pinch nan S24 Ultra, I tin intelligibly spot overmuch bully point from nan S25 Ultra, peculiarly successful dim indoor lighting. It isn’t a paradigm shift, but advancement is progress. Otherwise, nan S25 Ultra’s images look very overmuch for illustration what I’ve recreation to expect from Samsung. This camera loves its vibrant reds and blues, and image mode segmentation is still immoderate of nan champion successful nan game.

The Galaxy S25 Ultra remains 1 of nan champion phones you tin buy. The aboveground is excellent, nan cameras are immoderate of nan champion successful nan game, and you’ll personification a difficult clip uncovering immoderate workload reliable tin to business it. That’s each been existent of nan past less Ultra phones, and it’s existent of this one. But I deliberation there’s point intangible that nan Ultra has been losing complete nan past mates of generations.

You tin bargain nan Galaxy S25 Plus aliases nan 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 point that’s conscionable good; you want point that’s special. This telephone feels a mini small emblematic than nan S24 Ultra did, which felt a mini small emblematic than nan S23 Ultra. Complaining astir nan “specialness” of a telephone would beryllium silly for immoderate different phone. But this is nan Ultra! Doesn’t that mean something?

It utilized to recreation pinch a 10x telephoto camera and a stylus that worked for illustration a magic wand. It utilized to look strikingly different from nan remainder of nan S series, aliases immoderate different phone, for that matter. Some of these changes personification been for nan better, but Samsung hasn’t made up for what it’s cutting. For now, nan S25 Ultra still feels for illustration point special. But if nan inclination continues, past nan Ultra could spell conscionable different ample phone.

Photography by Allison Johnson / The Verge