The Galaxy S25 Ultra has given me hope about AI, but only for now

There ’s a lot ride on the latestGalaxy AIfeatures headline the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra , but after spending a short sentence with the phone I ’m far more electropositive about it than I have been about wandering AIat allso far . It ’s a good thing , as the eternal sleep of the Galaxy S25 Ultra is n’t exactly groundbreaking . However , it ’s going to take a while before we sincerely empathise if Galaxy AI on the S25 series is as transformational as Samsung claims .

The more you use it

There ’s something to excuse about the Galaxy AI sport before we go any further . I ’m basing my positivistic interest on what I ’ve beentoldit’ll do , rather than seeing it in reality doing it in soul . Normally this would be a cardinal sin , but as this is a hand - on and not a review , I feel it ’s satisfactory . The grounds is , Galaxy AI ’s personalized insights — the most challenging look — want time to get to know you , and unless you ’ve used the speech sound for a full point of time , it does n’t work .

Samsung ’s Personalized AI powers the Now Brief , a proactive “ AI agent ” delivering informative summaries multiple meter a mean solar day , containing point on the weather , your body process for the day , photos take , your upcoming schedule , the amount of steps taken , and a emcee of other thing based on your interest . This can admit young subject matter from your favorite artists , podcasts , or sports slews and fixtures . The more you use the earpiece , the more it ’ll inform you .

The Daily Brief seem on a consecrated Sir Frederick Handley Page , or on the Now Bar at the bottom of the lock chamber screen . The Now Bar operates like the iPhone ’s Dynamic Island , showing timer , medicine playing , and other live information . It ’s a really neat implementation , and as it ’s software drive and not partly obscure a camera cutout , it ’s exclusively hide if it ’s not in utilization . The Now Brief , when explained to me , sounds genuinely helpful . As it ’s entirely customizable , I wo n’t be bothered by thing I do n’t like about , cutting down on information overburden or unneeded haphazardness , plus all my datum is closing - to - last cypher .

The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra’s lock screen and timer.

Now BarAndy Boxall / Digital Trends

I do n’t think Galaxy AI ’s “ individualise ” access is all that new , but Samsung is really advertise its intelligence and widget , plus the overall design and implementation is top snick . Mobile AI postulate to ply value , look seamless and well - craft , and needs to regularly save me clip and effort . The Daily Brief scheme sounds like it should do most of this , but unfortunately only time will tell if it does . However , Samsung did a really good job at selling the promise to me , and I sense more positive about Samsung ’s personalize AI feature than I have about any other mobile AI feature yet .

Using the hardware

Will you require to use the Galaxy S25 Ultra for the length of time required so Galaxy AI gets to know you ? There are some big computer hardware change compared to theGalaxy S24 Ultra , and I ’m not totally trusted how I experience about them yet . Samsung has round the skeletal frame which it says meliorate grip , but throughout my time holding and sample the speech sound out , it did n’t finger peculiarly comfortable . The 2-dimensional incline have a sharper wick than the S25 or S25 Plus , and it ’s less comfortable to hold than theApple iPhone 16 Pro Max .

Samsung has reduced the weight down to 215 gramme and the larger 6.9 - inch screen has 15 % smaller bezels , so the phone is pleasingly light andall screenon the front . The physical structure is also a distich of millimeters less wide , which you really do discover , especially as the S Pen stylus ’ holder is correct at the edge of the phone ’s base now . Just like the petite differences in dimensions between theGalaxy Z Fold 5andGalaxy Z Fold 6 , Samsung has work to make its non - foldable flagship less of a fistful , even after increasing the concealment size of it . It works , but the earphone leave behind less of an impression than before , as it does n’t look or feel quite such a behemoth any longer .

On the back it ’s clientele as common as it has not change the camera layout , but the overall shape of the earpiece is “ Modern ” enough that I do n’t think you ’ll mistake the S25 Ultra for the S24 Ultra . However , after take for all three S25 earpiece , I came off thinking the S25 and S25 Plus had the more pleasing in - hand feel . The Ti frame continues on from the S24 Ultra with a few improvements , while the Gorilla Armor 2 glass ’s anti - reflection surface treatment is even more in effect , and more resistant to fracture and damage than before .

The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra’s Now Brief page.

Now BriefAndy Boxall / Digital Trends

New specification

An overclocked , better optimized Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy processor superpower the S25 Ultra ( and all other S25 models ) , and there ’s a heavy vaporisation bedchamber for cooling , plus 12 GB of RAM and up to 1 TB of storage place . The camera retains the 200 - megapixel chief unit and 50MP telephoto from the S24 Ultra , but there ’s a new 50MP panoptic - slant tv camera . I was impressed by the new smooth zoom feature , and seeing the inst color chastening style in natural process when shooting video in Log mode . A demonstration of the Audio Eraser feature article — where undesirable noise can be off from a video — showed how effective it can be in noisy environments .

I get the mental picture there are a lot of flyspeck alteration in the camera ’s software package and characteristic list , such as 10 - routine HDR , a virtual aperture mode when using the Expert RAW app , raw productive edit feature , and updated noise reduction algorithms . It was the same story with the rest of Galaxy AI , such as Circle to Search now work with sound from video to name songs , and being able to verbally call for modification in the configurations menu . Some of these you ’ll notice and utilisation , others figure out in the screen background , and others you may never utilise at all .

As with old years , the understanding to choose the S25 Ultra over the other two good example consist mostly in the massive CRT screen , the top - specification camera , and the S Pen stylus . All three new S25 phones use the same mainframe . The cover is huge , but when I in short used the Galaxy S25 Plus , it did n’t find little or cramp , and if you ’re not a genuine camera oddball and do n’t ever plan to use the S Pen , then it ’s probably a in force buy . The S25 and S25 Plus are more shapely too , and when compare to the iPhone 16 Pro Max , the Galaxy S25 Ultra ’s squared - off street corner are emphasized even more .

The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra’s Now Brief options.

Now BriefAndy Boxall / Digital Trends

An exciting future

If the Daily Brief and more personalized aspect of Galaxy AI piece of work as Samsung described , it may become the first major peregrine AI feature set to mean something to a lot of the great unwashed . The S25 Ultra ’s hardware is more palatable too , with its rounded turning point , weak weight , and slight case . Combined , it take a leak the Galaxy S24 Ultra less for the hardcore drug user , and more interesting to demanding buyers who want the best Samsung offers .

However , there are two very big “ ifs ” in all this . IfGalaxy AI ’s personalised features do n’t give birth economic value , andifthe S25 Ultra ’s new blueprint establish to be uncomfortable or fatiguing to hold for long period of metre , then your attention should turn towards the Galaxy S25 or S25 Plus , or out of doors towards theGoogle Pixel 9series . We ’ll have intercourse for certain when we brush up the S25 Ultra , but for now , I ’m very excited about its potential drop as the first smartphone with true , mass appeal AI inside it .

The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra will be released on February 7 and begin tub $ 1,299 or 1,249 British pound .

The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra’s Now Brief screen.