This week, Samsung launched its long-awaited Galaxy S25 series. The prices in the UK are the same as last year and, as usual, there are pre-order perks for early adopters.
The Samsung Galaxy S25 trio comes with a free storage upgrade, meaning that you will be getting a 256GB Galaxy S25 and 512GB Galaxy S25+ or S25 Ultra for the same price as their base models. In the case of the vanilla and Ultra phones, there is an extra storage tier (512GB for the S25 and 1TB for the S25 Ultra), which costs what the medium tier normally does.
Amazon is offering £100 credit, but if you click the link, you will see it’s for the Galaxy Ring. The Ring has an MSRP of £400 and there is an extra £75 discount at checkout – this all adds up to a solid discount, but it’s still not cheap.
Did you check out our hands-on review and our two-part camera shootout between the Galaxy S25 Ultra and S24 Ultra? If not, have a look. Okay then – before making a yes/no decision on the S25 series, you should consider the alternatives.
The Google Pixel 9 Pro XL will be one of the main rivals of the S25 Ultra. It currently costs less for a unit with 512GB storage – even with the free storage upgrade on the Galaxy! The Tensor G4 can’t match the performance of the Snapdragon 8 Elite, but the phone has a 48MP ultra-wide camera (countering the one camera upgrade Samsung brought this year), along with a 48MP 113mm periscope and a 50MP main.
On the flip side, the small Google Pixel 9 Pro is actually more expensive than the small Galaxy S25 when looking at 256GB models. The Pixel is a bit larger and what we said about the Tensor chip remains true. However, this phone has the same cameras as the Pro XL and the 48MP 113mm module wipes the floor with the 10MP 67mm module on the Galaxy, the same goes for the 48MP ultra-wide vs. 12MP. Even the selfie camera is better at 42MP 17mm ultra-wide vs. 12MP 26mm on the Galaxy.
We have to mention Apple, of course. The iPhone 16 Pro Max 512GB is a bit pricier than the Galaxy S25 Ultra – Apple charges two arms and two legs for storage upgrades. The Apple A18 Pro is actually behind in performance on synthetic benchmarks but is far from slow. The phone’s 12MP 120mm telephoto camera lacks the resolution of Samsung’s 50MP 111mm tele, but the 48MP ultra-wide is in place to tackle Samsung’s one camera upgrade this generation.
Like with the Pixels, the small iPhone 16 Pro is priced closer to its larger sibling than it is to the small Galaxy S25. Still, the iPhone has the better telephoto (12MP 120mm vs. 10MP 67mm) and ultra-wide cameras (48MP 13mm vs. 12MP 13mm). Apple added the Camera Control and Action Button this generation. Gimmicks or actually useful? Either way, at least it’s a new feature, unlike the S25, which hasn’t changed significantly since the S22.
The OnePlus 13 uses the Snapdragon 8 Elite chip (with slightly lower clocks) and boasts triple 50MP Hasselblad cameras: 50MP main, 50MP 73mm periscope and 50MP ultra-wide. And it breaks the mold with a large 6,000mAh battery that supports 80W wired and 50W wireless fast charging. None of that 45W charging here!
There’s also Samsung’s own Galaxy S24 FE. It’s quite cheap – costing just £625 for a 256GB phone – but it’s large too with a 6.7” display. It’s not a direct competitor to either the S25 or S25+, but offers maybe 80% of the same experience. The display is a 1080p+ non-LTPO panel and the Exynos 2400e is faster than the Tensor, though not nearly as fast as the Snapdragon. But the rest is similar to identical and without paying a “new flagship” price.
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