The Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge is a big phone with small phone energy

Oh shit. Did I go away my telephone at residence?

I skilled that second repeatedly whereas testing the Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge. I’d look into my bag, or observe the shortage 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 my purse, or by reaching into my pocket, I’d discover it. These moments don’t normally occur after I’m carrying an enormous telephone — however the Galaxy S25 Edge isn’t your common massive 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 fully slim-phone-pilled by the S25 Edge, both. However after dwelling with it for a few weeks, I’ve come round to the concept as a pleasing different 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 ok.

It looks like a cop-out to say that you just actually have to carry the S25 Edge to know it, however I’ll say it anyway. Possibly after a decade holding telephones which can be roughly the identical dimension and weight we’ve change into hyperaware of even slight weight variations — at the least that’s the speculation one in every of my colleagues put forth after I handed the telephone to him. I feel he’s proper.

There are just a few situations 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 facet pocket of my yoga pants. I spend a variety of time in yoga pants (and if I’m being sincere, zero time really doing yoga) so I admire this. And the S25 Edge really suits 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 struggle.

I’d be much less prepared to endorse the S25 Edge if it value much more or the battery life was markedly worse than the standard S25-series phones. Nice information: it solely prices a bit extra, and battery life is just a bit worse. It’s $1,099 in comparison with the $999 Galaxy S25 Plus. An additional $100 is nothing to sneeze at, however in the event you’re spreading that value 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. However 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 hearth: a full day covering Google I/O in individual. With about three hours of screen-on time and an hour-ish utilizing it as a cellular hotspot to publish pictures to our live blog, it managed to get by the day with 20 p.c left by that evening. Did it really feel nice? No. Underneath regular circumstances I’d have charged it partway by the day, as a result of I undergo from battery anxiousness. However it was fantastic.

I’ll give it a stamp of approval, however with the caveat that in the event you watch a variety of streaming video or do a variety of graphics-intensive gaming, that is in all probability not the telephone for you. I’m additionally involved about what the battery efficiency will seem like just a few years from now as its capability naturally degrades. Should you’re the form of one who desires to hold on to your telephone for as a few years as potential it wouldn’t be a foul concept to plan on getting a contemporary battery swapped in after just a few 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 massive telephone, however I nonetheless wrestle to get my thumb to the far nook of its 6.7-inch display. Most individuals will wish to put a case on this telephone anyway, which takes it from “slim” to “simply kinda common” slightly than “wow that is tremendous chunky.” This can be a very vibes-based evaluation, however I don’t need any of my fellow small-phone followers to make the error of considering this could possibly be a small telephone in disguise.

Battery life is perhaps the largest 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 important just like the S25 Ultra’s and a 12-megapixel ultrawide. On the usual S25 and S25 Plus you get a 3x telephoto, too. Clearly the scale constraints had been an element on the Edge, and Samsung included a top-shelf important digital camera to make up for the telephoto. I feel that was the appropriate name.

I really like a devoted telephoto digital camera as a lot as the following man, particularly with Samsung’s wonderful portrait mode, however the 2x crop zoom works fantastic for somewhat additional attain. As all the time, you’ll both love Samsung’s punchy, vivid colours or they gained’t be your cup of tea. I’ve realized to dwell with them.

Exterior of battery life and digital camera choices, the S25 Edge offers 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 ok. In on a regular basis duties I not often 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 considerations with this new kind 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 form of sense for somebody who likes a big display however not the majority and weight of an enormous telephone. However this individual ought to additionally be somebody who’s straightforward on a battery, and isn’t the form of one who simply desires to purchase a telephone and never have to consider changing it (or extra probably its battery) for so long as potential. These are some fairly critical caveats.

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

Images by Allison Johnson / The Verge