The Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge is a giant telephone with small telephone power

Oh shit. Did I depart my telephone at house?

I skilled that second repeatedly whereas testing the Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge. I’d look into my bag, or be aware the dearth of weight in my jacket pocket, and my abdomen would drop. The telephone isn’t there. However lo and behold, after one other second of digging by way of my purse, or by reaching into my pocket, I’d discover it. These moments don’t normally occur after I’m carrying a giant telephone — however the Galaxy S25 Edge isn’t your common large telephone.

On paper it may not sound so spectacular. The Edge is 1.5 millimeters thinner than the Galaxy S25 Plus and about an oz lighter. That’s what all this fuss is about? I used to be skeptical, too. And I haven’t been utterly slim-phone-pilled by the S25 Edge, both. However after residing with it for a few weeks, I’ve come round to the concept as a nice various to chunky telephones I can barely wedge into a night bag. Particularly since I’ve been ready to attract one vital conclusion: the battery life is okay.

It seems like a cop-out to say that you simply actually have to carry the S25 Edge to grasp it, however I’ll say it anyway. Possibly after a decade holding telephones which are roughly the identical measurement and weight we’ve turn into hyperaware of even slight weight variations — at the very least that’s the speculation certainly one of my colleagues put forth after I handed the telephone to him. I feel he’s proper.

There are a number of eventualities the place the marginally slimmer dimensions and lighter weight make a distinction. It doesn’t look or really feel as cumbersome as different telephones normally do within the aspect pocket of my yoga pants. I spend quite a lot of time in yoga pants (and if I’m being sincere, zero time really doing yoga) so I recognize this. And the S25 Edge really matches right into a slender clutch that’s solely designed to carry a few bank cards and a chapstick. No different fashionable telephone — save the iPhone 13 Mini — has gone in and not using a combat.

I’d be much less prepared to endorse the S25 Edge if it price much more or the battery life was markedly worse than the usual S25-series telephones. Nice information: it solely prices a bit extra, and battery life is barely a bit worse. It’s $1,099 in comparison with the $999 Galaxy S25 Plus. An additional $100 is nothing to sneeze at, however if you happen to’re spreading that price out over three years the distinction is a couple of bucks a month.

My largest concern after I began testing this telephone was the battery life. The Edge’s 3,900mAh capability is way decrease than the 4,900mAh cell within the S25 Plus. And no shock, the S25 Edge’s battery doesn’t stretch so far as what you’ll get within the S25 Plus or Extremely. Nevertheless it’s fantastic.

As a rule, I activate each battery-draining function I can after I check a telephone, together with the always-on show and the best display decision and refresh price settings. With all this enabled I launched into a trial by fireplace: a full day overlaying Google I/O in individual. With about three hours of screen-on time and an hour-ish utilizing it as a cell hotspot to put up photographs to our stay weblog, it managed to get by way of the day with 20 % left by that evening. Did it really feel nice? No. Beneath regular circumstances I might have charged it partway by way of the day, as a result of I endure from battery nervousness. Nevertheless it was fantastic.

I’ll give it a stamp of approval, however with the caveat that if you happen to watch quite a lot of streaming video or do quite a lot of graphics-intensive gaming, that is in all probability not the telephone for you. I’m additionally involved about what the battery efficiency will appear like a number of years from now as its capability naturally degrades. When you’re the type of one that needs to hold on to your telephone for as a few years as attainable it wouldn’t be a foul concept to plan on getting a recent battery swapped in after a number of years — take it from an iPhone 13 Mini proprietor.

With regards to small telephones: the S25 Edge isn’t one. It’s a lighter, extra approachable large telephone, however I nonetheless wrestle to get my thumb to the far nook of its 6.7-inch display. Most individuals will need to put a case on this telephone anyway, which takes it from “slim” to “simply kinda common” fairly than “wow that is tremendous chunky.” It is a very vibes-based evaluation, however I don’t need any of my fellow small-phone followers to make the error of considering this might be a small telephone in disguise.

Battery life is perhaps the most important tradeoff you’ll need to make for this telephone, but it surely’s not the one one. The Galaxy S25 Edge comes with solely two rear cameras — a 200 megapixel foremost much like the S25 Extremely’s and a 12-megapixel ultrawide. On the usual S25 and S25 Plus you get a 3x telephoto, too. Clearly the dimensions constraints had been an element on the Edge, and Samsung included a top-shelf foremost digicam to make up for the telephoto. I feel that was the best name.

I really like a devoted telephoto digicam as a lot as the subsequent man, particularly with Samsung’s glorious portrait mode, however the 2x crop zoom works fantastic for somewhat further attain. As all the time, you’ll both love Samsung’s punchy, shiny colours or they received’t be your cup of tea. I’ve discovered to stay with them.

Exterior of battery life and digicam choices, the S25 Edge provides up remarkably little. You continue to get a Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset, full IP68 mud and water resistance, and a 6.7-inch display with 1440p decision. Even with the slimmer profile warmth dissipation is okay. In on a regular basis duties I hardly ever seen the telephone heating up, and it managed a 20-minute Diablo Immortal session with each show setting I may entry cranked up. It was toasty by the tip, however I didn’t see any drop in efficiency.

Utilizing the Galaxy S25 Edge for the previous couple of weeks has cleared up a few of my issues with this new type issue — one we’re more likely to see from Apple within the close to future, too. Battery life is alright. Utilizing a skinny telephone actually does really feel totally different. Subtracting 1.5 millimeters in thickness really does make it appreciably simpler to hold.

The S25 Edge makes a type of sense for somebody who likes a big display however not the majority and weight of a giant telephone. However this individual ought to additionally be somebody who’s simple on a battery, and isn’t the type of one that simply needs to purchase a telephone and never have to consider changing it (or extra probably its battery) for so long as attainable. These are some fairly critical caveats.

On the very least, I encourage you to go discover this telephone at your wi-fi service or Greatest Purchase or no matter and simply decide it up. It doesn’t appear that impressively slim or gentle on paper, however you may simply be amazed at the way it feels in your hand.

Pictures by Allison Johnson / The Verge