Samaung Galaxy S25 vs plus vs ultra - which one?

kasdashd · February 8

What are the differences between the new S25, plus, and ultra Samsung phones?

I would expect it to primarily be the camera, size, and battery size following that of course.

But they all have the new Snapdragon 8 Elite chip, so no performance difference or?

Just considering buying the regular S25, to get this new chip, upgrading from my Oneplus 8T, but also, how do these 3 phones compare to the Oneplus 13?

MiszS · February 8

I would just get oneplus 13. It has a better screen, better battery and charging, better water resistance, and a camera on around the same level. The only thing that it has worse is the software updates (4 vs 7 years) and bluetooth quality. My friend recently got one, and it's great

EJMB · February 9

15 hours ago, MiszS said:

I would just get oneplus 13. It has a better screen, better battery and charging, better water resistance, and a camera on around the same level. The only thing that it has worse is the software updates (4 vs 7 years) and bluetooth quality. My friend recently got one, and it's great

Given that the Oneplus 13 is cheaper (the price would be more comparable if you have a more recent phone to trade in at Samsung) and has a larger battery....I think it makes more sense for him to go with this option

Elarion · February 11

OnePlus has better specs on paper, but given their history, I doubt it'll provide anywhere near as cohesive an experience as any of the Samsung phones.

For deciding between those, I generally recommend people start with the base S24. If they want a larger screen, go with the S24 Ultra. The S24 Plus is in a weird spot where the price approaches the Ultra, but is missing a surprising amount of functionality and features. Samsung really loves their baby, which was the Note series, and it turned into the Ultra series, so it has the greatest support both hardware and software wise. I was surprised to notice that the base and plus models still don't have macro mode on their cameras because the Ultrawide does not have variable focus. And there are a lot more things like that that make the plus model such a weird middle ground. Gigantic, but missing lots of function.

Commodus · February 12

I have a OnePlus 13, and it’s an absolute beast. Fast, lasts ages on battery, great screen… I’d still give the nod to Apple or Google in the camera space, but it’s dependably good and surprisingly adept at digital zoom (the AI upscaling is phenomenal in most cases).

The main catch is simply support: four years of OS updates instead of seven, and getting it fixed won’t be as simple as dropping by a local store. But if you’re the sort who upgrades regularly and takes good care of your device, it’s slick.

I’ve also had hands-on time with the S25 Ultra, and I enjoy it — it’s also a better pick if the support or ecosystem matters a great deal. It’s just not as exciting.