Once I first heard Samsung was bringing again the Edge identify as a brand new super-thin member of the S25 household, all I may assume was: Why? Truthfully, I believed telephone makers had gotten over their starvation for thinness practically a decade in the past. The hunt to shave millimeters off gadgets resulted in worse battery life, further warmth and extra restricted options. So what offers?
On a sure stage, identical to trend, older tendencies can over time turn into contemporary and trendy once more. Moreover, after telephones made the transition to 5G — which required further energy, extra advanced modems and bigger antennas — fashionable parts have began shrinking once more, primarily paving the way in which for the return of slimmer handsets. However then it hit me. Whereas thinness often is the most placing factor concerning the Galaxy S25 Edge, that is not sufficient to justify the creation of a complete new machine. As a substitute, I imagine this telephone is part of a bigger mission by Samsung to make the center youngster of its flagship cellular lineup a extra interesting member of the household. And when considered in that mild, I truly assume it is largely successful.
Design
Billy Steele for Engadget
Whereas it suffers from a smaller battery and no telephoto lens, the S25 Edge is greater than only a tremendous glossy telephone designed purely for excessive thinness.
- Glossy design
- Titanium body
- Large 200MP important cam
- Shiny OLED show
- Smallest battery on any S25 telephone
- No telephoto lens
- Mediocre wired charging pace
- Not totally Qi2 suitable
Now do not get me unsuitable, regardless of my gripes about how thinner telephones are much less sensible, the S25 Edge is superbly designed. At simply 5.8mm thick (0.23 inches), it feels impossibly glossy. What may be much more spectacular is that Samsung hasn’t sacrificed sturdiness to get right here both. Identical to the S25 Extremely, the Edge encompasses a titanium body, an IP68 ranking for mud and water resistance and a fair stronger Gorilla Glass Ceramic 2 panel protecting its show. The one distinction is that the Edge’s display screen has a shiny end as a substitute of matte like on the Extremely as a result of — and I child you not — Samsung says an anti-reflective coating would have elevated its thickness. Kudos to sticking to a strict design philosophy, as a result of by way of sheer really feel and aesthetics, S25 Edge is undeniably enchanting.
Nonetheless, whereas the S25 Edge shares some traits with the Extremely, like its body and important digicam, at the very least in the case of its total dimension, it is actually extra of a refreshed tackle the S25+. It has the identical 6.7-inch OLED panel with a 120Hz refresh price that is simply as vibrant and splendidly colourful as earlier than. Though it does weigh a bit much less at 163 grams or 5.75 ounces versus the S25+ (190g or 6.7 oz).
Efficiency
Like the remainder of the S25 household, the Edge is powered by a Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy chip with 12GB of RAM and both 256GB or 512GB of storage. Regardless of the compact dimensions, Samsung nonetheless discovered room to squeeze a vapor chamber inside to stop throttling and overheating. So even when pushed, the again of the telephone hardly ever bought greater than lukewarm whereas delivering sturdy efficiency as I used to be gaming, multitasking or doing just about the rest you possibly can consider.
Cameras
The opposite main departure from the S25+’s fundamental template is that the Edge options the 200MP important sensor from the Extremely, together with a 12MP ultra-wide cam. However there isn’t any devoted zoom. Now at first, I used to be a bit upset as a result of I believe any telephone this costly ought to have a telephoto lens. That mentioned, the large quantity of pixels the Edge’s major sensor can seize means you could have fairly a little bit of freedom to crop in with out degrading picture high quality. You simply want to recollect to inform the digicam to shoot in full 200MP mode as a substitute of the usual 12MP setting. One different small change is that Edge encompasses a barely wider-angle 12MP selfie cam than the S25+ and Extremely, which lets you match extra folks in group pictures, however that is actually the principle distinction.
Usually use, the S25 Edge takes nice pics. Colours are wealthy and particulars are crisp, although you continue to get Samsung’s barely oversaturated hues and hotter tones. The identical goes for low-light pictures. For this evaluate, as a substitute of evaluating it to a Pixel or iPhone, I pitted the Edge in opposition to the Motorola Razr Extremely. I really feel like each try to woo individuals who desire a glossy and trendy machine, however they’re doing it in very alternative ways.
What instantly jumped out is that foldable telephones (at the very least the Razr) nonetheless lag behind extra conventional glass bricks, even ones as skinny because the Edge. In practically each shot, Samsung’s handset produced brighter, sharper and better-exposed photos than Motorola’s. So when you’re the form of one that needs a compact telephone while not having to sacrifice picture high quality, the S25 Edge is a stronger decide.
Battery life
The most important trade-off when making a telephone this skinny is having much less room for its battery. As such, the S25 Edge has the smallest energy pack within the household at 3,900 mAh, which is 100mAh lower than what’s in a base S25. This led to a time of simply 25 hours and 59 minutes on our native video rundown check. That is not horrible, however it’s three and a half hours lower than what we bought from the S25 Extremely (29:27) and two hours worse than a normal S25. For many who care quite a bit about longevity, you could have been warned.
Fortunately, the S25 Edge nonetheless has assist for wi-fi charging at a suitable 15 watts, although its wired speeds are simply common at 25 watts. Nonetheless, because the telephone is merely “Qi2 prepared,” anybody who needs to make use of suitable magnetic wi-fi equipment might want to purchase a case or an adhesive mount with a built-in magnet, as a result of there is not one contained in the telephone itself.
Wrap-up
The S25 Edge is a divisive telephone. I nonetheless do not totally grasp the will to make fashionable telephones thinner than they already are. Significantly when you’re like most folk and also you throw the factor in a case as quickly as you get it (even when accounting for Samsung’s new tremendous slim possibility). Shaving off an additional 1.5mm over the usual S25 would not actually make a tangible distinction in how you utilize it, until you take into account the telephone’s decreased battery life factor.
However as a substitute for the humdrum S25+, instantly issues get much more attention-grabbing. Samsung’s earlier center youngster prices considerably greater than a base S25, nevertheless it would not have the flamboyant options like an excellent high-res important digicam or a titanium body such as you get on the S25 Extremely. Actually, the S25+’s most engaging characteristic is a nicely-sized 6.7-inch display screen.
Now this is the place the Galaxy S25 Edge is available in. It has all of these issues alongside an excellent skinny and splendidly crafted chassis for a similar $1,100 beginning value because the S25+. Sure, Samsung sacrificed some battery capability and the telephone’s devoted zoom to get right here, however these aren’t straight-up dealbreakers. That is as a result of with the Edge, the brand new in-between member of Samsung’s flagship cellular household is extra than simply skinny — it has a trendy identification that may stand by itself.
