Samsung’s Galaxy S-series is in its software era. Maybe the whole smartphone industry is, too, save for a few phones with hinges (Samsung’s included). But overall, we have exited the hardware-driven innovation cycle and are firmly in the midst of a software-based one. If you want proof, the Galaxy S25 and S25 Plus are a good place to start.

These are great phones, which is no surprise. They look, feel, and operate like devices worthy of their $799 and $999 price tags. They’re slated to get seven years of OS upgrades, which amounts to a damn good return on that investment. I used both to take nice photos, play my little games, and generally go about my day without a hitch.

This was all true of the S24 and S24 Plus and the S23 and S23 Plus. I couldn’t give you a good reason why the S25 stands out compared to Samsung’s last three generations of S-series phones. I don’t think Samsung can, either, because its entire sales pitch for the S25 revolves around software and AI capabilities — much of which will almost certainly be ported to previous S-series phones in short order.

Here’s the kicker: the software improvements aren’t all that great, either. AI can do a few handy things, like turning a chaotic page of notes into something readable. But much of it is still too unpredictable to rely on. One UI 7.0 includes nice interface updates, but lots of Samsung phones will get that upgrade soon. The list of reasons to upgrade to an S25 aside from “my current phone stopped working and I need a new one” is awfully thin.

Maybe this says more about what passes for a “small” phone in 2025, but the Galaxy S25 is secretly the best small Android phone you can buy in the US. That’s probably not intentional — more like a victory in a war of attrition. Google’s phones since the Pixel 5 only come in big and bigger, and niche small phone options like the Asus Zenfone have dropped out of the race. By merely continuing to exist with a 6.2-inch screen, the smaller S-series model has become the default option if you don’t want a huge Android phone.

The effect is almost comical after a week using the gargantuan S25 Ultra. If you like a smaller device — and I sure do — it’s a relief to fit the S25 into a coat pocket comfortably and to reach my thumb across the screen to tap something while using the phone one-handed. A smaller battery is a concern with a tinier device, but the S25’s 4,000mAh got me through a full day of moderate use.

Of course, there’s a bigger option. The S25 Plus has all the screen real estate to satisfy the big phone fans. It comes with a 6.7-inch panel and a bump up to 1440p resolution from the 1080p on the S25, which is a good thing; the extra resolution is necessary with such a big display. Likewise, the 4,900mAh battery goes all day, even with more pixels to light up.

The design is basically the same as the last go-around: flat edges, curved corners, and Samsung’s signature stoplight rear camera arrangement. I still appreciate Samsung’s move to flat edges here, since it makes the phone feel more secure in my hand — especially when I pick it up off a table.

Samsung is still using Galaxy AI as a key selling point. This collection of starter kit AI features includes new additions, like natural language search in the settings menu, background noise cancellation in video clips, and Pixel Best Take-like face swapping. There’s also a new voice assistant at the wheel: Gemini. Google’s AI-imbued assistant is now the default rather than Samsung’s Bixby, and it gains the ability to work across apps.

This capability was the one I was most excited to try on the S25, and it’s not even a Galaxy AI feature — it’s available anywhere you can use Gemini, including on iOS and the web. I went into much more detail about using Gemini in my Galaxy S25 Ultra review, but the tl;dr is that it’s promising but not consistent enough to rely on yet.

But credit where it’s due: Samsung’s artificial intelligence tools — which it refers to broadly as Galaxy AI — do a good job of adding structure to a bunch of chaotic notes. I typed out a list of my kid’s symptoms before a trip to the pediatrician, and AI organized it with sensible subheadings. It even accurately titled it “Child’s illness progression,” even though I hadn’t expressly written that.

Samsung’s One UI 7.0 software is a significant update that introduces a Dynamic Island-like Now Bar, a split notification and quick settings shade, and some subtle design updates throughout. As with any Galaxy phone, it still takes me a minute to de-Samsung the software to my liking, but overall, it’s a welcome refresh.

Ever seen a photo with a sky so blue, it practically jumps off the screen? Then you’ve seen a picture taken with a Samsung phone. Samsung is staying true to its oversaturated colors in the S25 series and continues another tradition: a damn good portrait mode. It doesn’t always nail subject isolation, but when it’s good, it’s good.

It’s the same camera system as the one in the S24 series, minus some software tweaks. It doesn’t have the upgraded ultrawide in the S25 Ultra, but that’s not a huge loss. I noticed instances where the S25’s camera insisted on focusing in the foreground rather than in the distance where I wanted. The depth of field is shallow enough that this makes a difference, so I wound up with two unusably soft photos. It wasn’t a persistent issue, but it came up enough that I’d keep an eye on it in the future.

Maybe it’s the hardware cycle slowing down. Maybe it’s software season. Maybe we’ve just reached peak phone. A combination led us to the iterative S25 series. But does that matter if you’re ready to trade in your S21 and you just want something familiar that works?

If you fit that description, the S25 or S25 Plus will do the job. The Galaxy S25 is the last full-featured, sensibly sized Android phone you can buy in the US. And the S25 Plus has the big screen that people apparently want. The cameras are good, battery life is fine, and the software updates will flow for seven years. If this is peak phone, it’s not a bad place to be.

The Galaxy S25 presents an attractive image of what useful AI could look like on our phones. Telling your AI assistant to add the dates from an email to your calendar? Screenshotting a recipe and adding the ingredients to a shopping list? That sounds great. The trouble is that it doesn’t work consistently right now, and it’s unclear when that might change. Galaxy phones from the past few years will get these updates, too. If you’re happy with your current S-series phone, I don’t see any compelling reason to upgrade to the S25. And that’s just fine — it’s a software era, after all.

Photography by Allison Johnson / The Verge