Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge hands-on: Far better than I expected
After months of leaks and teasers, Samsung unveiled the ultra-thin Galaxy S25 Edge at an event this evening. We’ve been waiting for the latest addition to the Galaxy S25 family for months, especially as we didn’t have much information about the key feature: its thickness.
The Galaxy S25 lineup was already slimmer than its predecessors, but the Galaxy S25 Edge takes this to a whole new level. It measures just 5.8mm thick, making it one of the thinnest phones ever made and by far, the thinnest phone you can buy right now (at least until Apple launches the rumored iPhone 17 Air later this year).
However, beyond the extremely thin profile, the Galaxy S25 Edge combines key parts of the Galaxy S25, Galaxy S25 Plus, and Galaxy S25 Ultra to make a phone that feels familiar, yet unique.
I spent an hour with the Galaxy S25 Edge in New York City earlier today, and I was surprised at how much I like it. Here’s our first full look at Samsung’s new thin-and-mighty smartphone.
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The Galaxy S25 Edge is thin-and-mighty
The Galaxy S25 Edge won’t appeal to everyone. It lacks the full camera prowess of the Galaxy S25 Ultra, and the battery is the smallest of the lineup, but these sacrifices come with a key benefit: its thickness and weight.
If you’ve been put off by the size or weight of the Galaxy S25 lineup, the Galaxy S25 Edge is the phone for you. At just 5.8mm thick, it’s 2.4mm thinner than the Galaxy S25 Ultra and 1.4-1.5mm thinner than the Galaxy S25 and S25 Plus.
I love the Galaxy S25 Ultra, but it’s incredibly hefty, and the Galaxy S25 Edge fixes the key issues. Despite the large display and mighty main camera, it also weighs just 163g, one gram heavier than the smaller base Galaxy S25. As for the competition, the iPhone 16 Pro is 8.3mm thick, while the Pixel 9 Pro is 8.5mm. Both weigh 199 grams, making the Galaxy S25 much thinner and lighter than these devices.
Like the Galaxy S25 Ultra, the Galaxy S25 Edge features a titanium frame paired with Gorilla Glass protection on either side. The rear features Gorilla Glass Victus protection, while the front uses Corning’s new Gorilla Glass Ceramic 2. It features the same protection as the Gorilla Glass Ceramic used on the Galaxy S25 Ultra, but lacks the anti-reflective finish.
There are other subtle differences compared to the Galaxy S25 Ultra, with the sharp edges far more nuanced and much nicer in the hand. This subtle design change, combined with the thin and light build, means the Galaxy S25 Edge feels nicer in the hand than any of its siblings.
Flagship specs borrowed from the S25 lineup
The Galaxy S25 Edge is designed to offer the best features of the rest of the Galaxy S25 lineup in a slim and light device. It pairs the 6.7-inch display from the Galaxy S25 Plus with the same 200MP primary camera found on the Galaxy S25 Ultra. The display features the same 1-120Hz adaptive refresh rate and vision booster to boost the brightness, and looks just as great as the rest of the Galaxy S25 lineup.
The 200MP camera is a key addition that ensures it still feels like a flagship phone, especially given its price. The camera has the same capabilities and features as the Galaxy S25 Ultra, although the lack of a telephoto means it likely won’t be as capable at longer focal lengths.
Samsung says the camera can offer 2x optical zoom, which is likely achieved through in-sensor cropping. It also uses pixel binning to combine nine pixels into one larger pixel, which allows it to capture more light. The main camera is paired with a 12MP ultra-wide camera, while the front camera is also a 12MP sensor, but much wider than the one used in the Galaxy Z Fold 6.
The Galaxy S25 Edge is powered by the same Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy processor as the rest of its siblings. It is paired with 12GB of RAM and either 256GB or 512GB of storage, and if you pre-order in the US, you’ll get the latter at no additional cost.
The biggest challenge is likely to be battery life
The Galaxy S25 Edge is quite smart as it combines the best of the Galaxy S25 family into a new phone, but there’s one thing Samsung couldn’t get around: the laws of physics. In particular, the extremely thin profile means a smaller battery, and the smallest battery in the Galaxy S25 lineup.
It features a 3,900 mAh battery paired with 25W wired charging. The battery is the smallest of a Samsung flagship in many years, and the charging is on par with the base Galaxy S25. However, it lacks the faster 45W charging support found on the S25 Plus and S25 Ultra.
Samsung says the battery delivers all-day battery life, but this is an area that we’ll need to test much further. Diving further into the battery life, Samsung says it’s better than the base Galaxy S24 and almost as good as the base Galaxy S25, which leads me to believe that it may not last a full day under moderate to heavy usage. However, as a colleague remarked, the thin profile and light build make it worth the need for a recharge during the day.
I like the Galaxy S25 Edge far more than I expected
The Galaxy S25 Edge is now available for preorder and will hit stores on May 30. It comes in three colors — Titanium Jet Black, Titanium Icy Blue, and Titanium Silver — and costs $1,099.99 for 256GB of storage. It’s essentially $100 more than the Galaxy S25 Plus, and $200 less than the Galaxy S25 Ultra, although the best Galaxy S25 Edge pre-order deals could save you a considerable amount.
I don’t have a particular preference for ultra-thin phones, unlike some at Android Central, but there’s no denying that the Galaxy S25 Ultra adds considerable weight to your pocket. The Galaxy S25 Edge shows you can have the best of both worlds, although the lack of a telephoto lens may prove disappointing in the long run. The battery is my primary concern, but time will tell whether it can last a full day as Samsung claims.
Despite these likely challenges, I’m surprised at how much I enjoyed the Galaxy S25 Edge in my short time with it. You may not think it, but the thin profile greatly affects how it feels in the hand. Despite being supremely thin, it still feels premium thanks to the titanium frame, and it isn’t as fragile as I had expected.
If you’ve been holding off on buying a Galaxy S25 series phone due to its weight or size, the Galaxy S25 Edge is worth checking out. The thin profile necessitates some compromises, but look beyond these, and you’ll find a phone that feels fantastic in the hand. Seeing is believing, and you might be surprised at how much you enjoy it.
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