Samsung Galaxy S25 series launch introduces three new Android gaming monsters

We’ve just tuned into the Samsung Galaxy S25 series launch, with the Korean tech giant revealing not one but three new flagship Android phones. We’ve got the S25, S25+, and S25 Ultra, with all three variations boasting a few improvements that take performance, cooling, and, yes, you guessed it, mobile AI, to the next level. If you missed the big reveal, we’ve got all the highlights below.

As a gaming-first site, we’re most interested in the upgrades that improve the experience of playing the best Android games. Well, the new Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy chipset should do just that, with the customized overclocked chipset reportedly offering five times stronger performance, plus 40% and 18% improvements to ray tracing and in-game frame rates, respectively. Not only that, but all models now have 12GB of RAM, which should make for faster load times. Simply put, all three of the new S25 devices are more than ready to compete with the picks from our guide to the best gaming phones.

With more power comes the need for more robust heat management, but Samsung also has that covered. The S25 series’ vapor chamber is 40% larger than last year, which the brand promises helps to keep the Androids cool during even the most intense gaming sessions. This is big news for fans of demanding games like Genshin Impact and Honkai Star Rail, which we often use to test the thermal dissipation of new devices. Another big win for mobile gaming enthusiasts is the promise of improved battery life, though we didn’t get quite as much detail in this area as we did with the performance gains.

As anticipated, much of the rest of the presentation concentrated on new AI features and the AI capabilities of One UI 7, Samsung’s latest operating system. It seems that Google and Samsung are continuing to develop their relationship, with Google Gemini integration coming to the S25 series alongside fresh upgrades to Circle to Search. There’s also the new Audio Eraser tool, which eradicates background noise in videos, and Now Brief, which sums up all the day’s key information in one place. If this year’s AI features are anything like those revealed in 2024, we should see these tools also roll out to the rest of the best Samsung phones before long.

It also wouldn’t be a Samsung launch without some camera-related updates. It’s more in the realm of software this year, with the new ProVisual Engine giving you a bunch of new ways to shoot and edit pictures. In terms of hardware, only the S25 Ultra has a new camera, upgrading to a 50MP ultrawide, which should offer more detailed shots compared to last year’s 12MP equivalent.

So, let’s get into the most important part of any launch, the price reveal. The Samsung Galaxy S25 starts at $799, and the S25+ begins at $999. For the premier flagship, the S25 Ultra, it’s $1,299 and up. Pre-orders are now open, with the big release date coming in just a couple of weeks on February 7.

In terms of colorways, the S25 and S25 Plus are available in Navy, Silver Shadow, Icy Blue, and Mint, with three online exclusives in the form of Pink Gold, Coral Red, and Blue Black. The S25 Ultra has its own finishes, with Titanium Grey, Titanium Black, Titanium Silverblue, and Titanium and White Silver to choose from, plus Titanium Pinkgold, Titanium Jetblack, and Titanium Jadegreen as the Samsung.com exclusives.

Of course, Samsung loves a last-minute reveal, so after detailing the S25 series’ prices and release date, we also got a fleeting introduction to the Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge. We didn’t get any details, just a quick glimpse at the phone, but it’s likely that this fourth entry in the S25 series could be what leakers have been referring to as the Samsung Galaxy S25 Slim, an ultra-thin variant of the flagship Android. That could be entirely wrong, though, so we’ll have to wait and see what exactly this mystery fourth model has to offer when Samsung shares more information at a later date.

There you have it, all the highlights from the Samsung Galaxy S25 series launch. If you want to check out the competition before picking up a new Samsung, take a look at our guides to the best Android phones and the best gaming iPhones before making the plunge. Or, if the S25 is a little out of your price range, see our list of the best budget gaming phones.