Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra rumours: Everything you need to know
The handsets are expected to feature the Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset
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Your support makes all the difference.We’re likely just a month away from Samsung unveiling its next flagship line-up – the Galaxy S25 series – at the brand’s annual Unpacked event. The event is rumoured to be taking place in January 2025, and could also see the unveiling of Samsung’s first pair of smart glasses, to rival Meta’s.
The Samsung Galaxy S25, S25+, and S25 Ultra are expected to be brimming with even more AI-driven features, improving on the S24, as well as better camera capabilities and a whole new design that features curved corners.
The most recent rumours suggest Samsung may be bringing MagSafe-like charging to its latest handsets, to rival the iPhone, and the S25 Ultra could also launch with a hefty 16GB of RAM, to help power all the AI tech.
Below, we’ve rounded up all the latest leaks and rumours about the Samsung Galaxy S25, including the suspected release date, price, camera capabilities, specs and more.
Samsung Galaxy S25 release date: When will the new smartphones launch?
Although Samsung hasn’t confirmed when exactly it’ll launch the Galaxy S25 and S25 Ultra, we know the brand’s phones tend to be launched in the first two months of the year. While new devices have historically been unveiled in February, Samsung’s recently shifted to hosting its Unpacked event in January each year, during which details of new products come to light.
If you can’t wait for the official release, you may be wondering what the rumours are saying. In November, a fairly reliable South Korean leaker on X said Samsung could host its Galaxy Unpacked event on 23 January, with another insider claiming Unpacked would take place on 22 January – which makes more sense if we account for the time differences between the US and South Korea.
Most leakers are converging on 22 January as the most likely date for the S25 reveal, and that lines up with Samsung’s typical mid-January Unpacked event. Samsung usually announces the date a couple of weeks before the event, so, we shouldn’t have too long to wait before we know for sure.
Once unveiled, you can usually pre-order the phone straight away, with the line-up going on sale officially a couple of weeks later – probably in the first week of February.
Samsung Galaxy S25 price: How much could the handsets cost?
The Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra didn’t increase in price in the UK like it did in the US, with Samsung sticking with its £1,249 price for the base model in the UK. But could that change this year for the S25 Ultra?
The rumours so far suggest the S25 Ultra will use a Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset, and that might result in a more expensive smartphone. Chris Patrick from Qualcomm (the company behind the chipset) revealed in a Q&A that the chipset will cost more, compared with previous versions, but we don’t know if that means Samsung will pass on the cost increase to consumers. Reliable leaker Ming-Chi Kuo says the chip will cost 25-30 per cent more than the previous generation, which could bump up the price of the S25. Rumours suggest the base S25 and S25+ will remain the same price as the S24 and S24+ (£799 and £999, respectively).
Samsung Galaxy S25 design and display
The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra is about to get a curvier design, according to reliable tech insider Ice Universe. The leaker also claims the phone will be the thinnest Galaxy device made in recent years, with thinner bezels.
Despite this, the Samsung Galaxy S25 line-up is still expected to get larger displays. According to a Samsung leaker, the S25 will get a larger6.36in display, while another leaker claims the S25 Ultra will increase to 6.9in, putting it on par with the iPhone 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max.
In terms of colours, the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra will reportedly come in titanium, black, green and blue, with pink, blue/black and jade being sold exclusively by Samsung, according to supply chain analyst Ross Young.
Samsung Galaxy S25 cameras
As with most previous releases in the series, the camera is apparently the big showstopper on the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra. The latest leaks, discovered on a Camera FV-5 listing, suggest the ultrawide lens will gain a 50MP sensor – a big leap over the 12MP sensor found on the S24 Ultra – and will reportedly use four-in-one pixel binning to produce 12.5MP shots.
The quad-camera setup will also reportedly boast a 200MP main camera, a 50MP telephoto 5x lens and a 10MP telephoto 3x sensor.
Samsung Galaxy S25 specs
While Samsung hasn’t said which chipset will power the Galaxy S25 Ultra, it’s almost certain to be the Snapdragon 8 Elite, which Samsung has said will be inside its upcoming smartphones. Samsung insider Ice Universe believes every S25 phone will feature the Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset, making all three phones huge powerhouses. The leaker also states the company will finally say goodbye to Exynos chips for its smartphones worldwide.
Other spec leaks suggest the S25 Ultra will boast 16GB of RAM, up from the 12GB on the S24 Ultra. A leaker on X claims the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra will come in three different configurations. Sadly, he suggests the base storage model will still only have 12GB of RAM and come with 256GB of storage.
There will also allegedly be a 512GB storage model with 16GB of RAM, while the 1TB model has been rumoured to feature 16GB of RAM. These handsets will get progressively more expensive, in line with the amount of storage offered.
Samsung Galaxy S25 battery
In terms of battery life, the S25 Ultra will reportedly feature the same 5,000mAh battery used since the S22. That’s not a huge issue, given the S24 Ultra lasts such a long time and charges in a snap.
The more interesting rumour, however, is that the S25 Ultra could boast an Apple-like MagSafe charging system. On 9 December, a leaker on X claimed all three S25 smartphones will feature Qi2 wireless charging. The standard uses magnets to ensure accessories align properly. This would offer faster 15W wireless charging speeds.
On 11 December, however, a Finnish publication leaked information from a carrier regarding the official accessories launching with the S25. One of the accessories included a case with a magnet, hinting that customers would need to buy the case to use the Qi2 wireless charging (otherwise all cases would have the magnet). If true, that would mean Samsung isn’t implementing Qi2 natively, but relying on a separate case for the magnetic charging tech to work.
The verdict: Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra leaks and rumours
The Samsung Galaxy S25 series doesn’t look like a huge upgrade on paper. It could feature a curvier design, MagSafe-style charging and a more powerful Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset, but the 5,000mAh battery is suspected to be staying the same, and most of the changes feel more like refinements than breakthroughs. The Ultra’s camera updates could be nice, however, and we’ll still need to wait to see what Samsung has in store for One UI 7.1.
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