Early Verdict
The Galaxy S25 FE does a great job of trickling down the best of the flagship S25 and S25 Plus smartphones, from the premium glass and metal design, a relatively slim profile, Galaxy AI tools across language and imaging, and a triple camera system. While it represents impressive value in the Samsung ecosystem, though, it's still a pricey phone when compared to midrange alternatives from Vivo, OnePlus, and Oppo.
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Samsung's latest premium (but not quite flagship) smartphone, the Galaxy S25 FE, was announced at IFA 2025 alongside the Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra, and after 48 hours with it, there's plenty for Samsung fans to get excited about.
It's called the S25 FE, but a more accurate name would be S25 Plus FE, as its screen size matches the middle child Galaxy, missing out on that small phone charm of the vanilla Samsung Galaxy S25. With a lower price than both flagships, the S25 FE could be a great entry point to Samsung's AI tools across language and imaging. This is all part of Samsung's strategy to "double the number of devices using Galaxy AI to 400 million by the end of this year", set out by Annika Bizon, Mobile Experience VP of Product and Marketing, UK & Ireland, at the phone's launch in Berlin.
Looking over the specs, the S25 FE's main compromises when compared to the flagships seem to be camera and performance, with smaller sensors and a less powerful chipset. And while in the Samsung camp, the Galaxy S25 FE represents the value flagship option – similar to the Pixel 10 and iPhone 17 – alternatives like the OnePlus Nord 5, Poco F7 Ultra, and Vivo V60 all undercut it.
So is the Samsung experience really worth a premium, or would you be better off stumping up for a flagship Galaxy or spending less elsewhere?
Samsung Galaxy S25 FE price
While it costs less than the S25 series, the Samsung Galaxy S25 FE isn't cheap at $649 / £649 / AU$1,099 for the starting 128GB version of the phone with 8GB RAM. Storage capacities and memory configurations will vary depending on where you are, with 256GB and 512GB options also available in the UK.
However, while the S25 FE's price is significantly lower than the launch prices of the Galaxy S25 and S25 Plus, those phones were launched at the beginning of the year, and even Samsung is offering some attractive discounts on them.
Outside the Samsung camp, the Nothing Phone (3) costs a similar amount for the 256GB options, the Poco F7 Ultra undercuts it by around £100 in the UK, as does the Xiaomi 14T Pro, which launched at the end of 2024 but stacks up very well on paper.
Samsung Galaxy S25 FE design and screen
The S25 FE isn't reinventing the wheel when it comes to design, with a very Galaxy-by-numbers look and feel. The corners are rounded, the sides and frame are flat, as is the back panel and display, and there are three cameras, each raised with a metal rim.
On first impression, the S25 FE is a relatively big phone with its large screen size, and the fact that the screen or back doesn't curve in to meet the frame stops it from feeling particularly skinny. The Armor Aluminum band surrounding the display and IP68 water and dust resistance should help with durability, while the front panel is protected by Gorilla Glass Victus Plus.
The Galaxy S25 FE is available in four colors: Navy, Icyblue, Jetblack, and White, with all flavors sporting glass backs with matte finishes, adding a sense of premium to the in-hand feel.
Power up the screen, unlock the S25 FE with the under-display fingerprint scanner, and the large 6.7-inch front panel does a great job of showing off movies and games and giving you plenty of room to navigate. With a peak brightness of 1,900 nits when playing back HDR content, a 120Hz refresh rate, and a Full HD+ resolution.
Galaxy S25 FE cameras
The Samsung Galaxy S25 FE has a 50MP primary camera with OIS, an f/1.8 aperture, and a 23mm wide-angle. The 12MP ultra-wide camera has an f/2.2 aperture, a fixed-focus lens, and a 13mm field of view, while the 8MP telephoto camera, with its 3X 76mm equivalent focal length, is helped along by OIS. The main upgrade, as far as the cameras go, comes in the form of a 12MP front camera, which combines a higher resolution with a larger sensor size for better selfies.
If you've used an S23 FE, you may have a serious case of deja vu, with the rear camera mix being identical, resulting in some disappointing numbers when it comes to sensor sizes: a 1/4.5-inch tele sensor and a 1/3-inch ultra-wide. But Samsung's product experts emphasised that with the latest generation of AI-powered photo processing, the S25 FE delivers significantly better results across all three rear cameras in all environments, and based on our early testing, the main camera at least delivers on that promise.
Where prosumer photo and video enthusiasts might struggle with the Galaxy S25 FE is the lack of RAW capture or Log video, two features all the flagship S25 series devices support. Nevertheless, the S25 FE can capture 4K video at up to 60fps, or 8K video at up to 30fps.
Galaxy S25 FE performance and battery
Running Android 16 with Samsung's One UI 8, one of the biggest draws of the S25 FE for Samsung fans will be the fact that it ships with the full-fat suite of Galaxy AI tools. That means generative rotating and object removal, as well as a suite of language tools ranging from meeting transcription and summarization through to call translation and writing support.
The S25 FE also comes with Samsung's flagship-grade future-proofing promise, offering seven years of OS support and security updates, matching the best from Google. Powered by a Samsung Exynos 9400, while the phone misses out on flagship power, it's good enough for a bout of 3D gaming or 4K video editing, and in the last couple of days with it, the experience has been smooth and responsive.
Just like the Galaxy S25 and S25 Plus, the S25 FE has a 4900mAh battery which has been comfortably getting us through a full day with regular WhatsApps and picture taking. It also charges at up to 45W, charging up to 65 percent in 30 minutes with a compatible Quick Charge standard charger.
Galaxy S25 FE early verdict
Our main concern with the Galaxy S25 FE, based on our initial impression, is the camera setup. While it excels at upgrading photography compared to the S23 FE, thanks to Samsung's latest AI processing, early video tests have been more hit or miss, particularly when using the telephoto and ultra-wide cameras in low-light conditions. That limitation, plus the lack of RAW capture or Log video, could turn off enthusiasts and video fans, though the selfie camera is a clear improvement.
Just like with Apple iPhones and Google Pixels, Samsung charges a premium for its Galaxys, and the Galaxy S25 FE definitely costs more than some similarly specced alternatives. Considering it could easily be mistaken for an S25 Plus, though, and delivers all of Samsung's AI upgrades plus seven years of future-proofing, its long-term value could sway Samsung fans looking to spend a bit less.
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