I was disappointed with what I thought was the greatest upgrade of the Samsung Galaxy S25 Fe, but it becomes much more good than bad
When Samsung unveiled the new Galaxy S25 Fe in IFA Berlin, I was delighted to see what the South Korean technology would deliver. Like its ancestors, its key attraction is that it offers a flagship experience of the flagship type at a more affordable price of $ 649 / £ 649 / $ 1,099 in.
And, when I was able to take a look behind the curtain a few weeks ago, just I saw or did not feel cleared this excitement. It is considerably thinner and lighter than the S24 FE from 2024, is filled to the brim with the latest Samsung IA intelligence, and offers a 12 MP -improved selfie camera.
But, despite his mastery of AI, which makes him a counterpart more capable of his premium brothers and sisters, I thought that his most important upgrade was to fly under the radar. Nestled inside the thinner frame of S25 FE was a larger battery. I hoped that this larger battery, combined with its AI tools, its largest screen and matching camera, would make a better purchase than the Galaxy S25 for most people – not just an excellent mid -range alternative.
In our review Samsung Galaxy S24 FE from last year, our writer loved his battery life. The S25 FE is improving not only with a higher battery capacity, but with a larger steaming chamber cooling system (in theory) also allows better power efficiency.
However, before getting my hands on the aircraft, I feared that the greatest capacity of S25 FE is not really equivalent to improving the battery life. After spending two weeks with the aircraft, I am a little discouraged to say that these concerns proved to be justified.
Let’s take a back. Although I am disappointed with the life of the battery of the S25 Fe, it always offers a life all day – it is simply not the S24 FE upgrade that I thought it could be. I guess the reason is that the largest steam bedroom and increased capacity are thwarted by the phone which is struck with more draining tasks thanks to a larger skinny in AI. Thus, although there is a faster processor and a larger battery, neither is really shining due to the more demanding features of the phone.
The real story is that, despite the fact of not reaching the heights that I hoped, for a mid -range price, Samsung has delivered a device that undoubtedly seems premium in all the other ways that matter.
Flagship correspondence battery
While the best inexpensive phones – which maximize about $ 600 / £ 600 / $ 1,000 at – must compromise, the battery life is the only area they still owe. No one looking for value wants a phone that has trouble spending the day, isn’t it?
The S24 FE offered a battery life even better than the classic S24 thanks to its 4,000 mAh unit. Boked up to 4,900mAh (only 100 mAh behind the Galaxy S25 Ultra), I had hoped that the S25 FE would go to the next step and become a real champion of several days – by making the best affordable definitive phone for those who hiered the lifespan of the battery.
It is below this title, but its battery life is still than excellent.
His endurance actually
It goes without saying that the duration of your phone by charge differs from one person to another, but my day begins around 5 am, and I use my phone for a large part of the morning before work. For example, I often listen to music or podcasts by walking the dog, watching a program during breakfast and reading the news (Tiktok scrolling) for an hour during my journey. I usually do the same on the way back 8 hours later. Overall, it lasts around 6 to 7 hours of screen per day, mainly made up of social media, text messaging and watching the best streaming services.
As the owner of an iPhone 15 (which tries to resist the appeal of the iPhone 17 Cosmic Orange iPhone 17), my daily handset must generally be loaded before leaving for lunch. The S25 Fe did not have this problem – seated well above 50% at lunch and 30% when I timed for the day if I did not put it in charge, it was always a lot of juice to last the whole evening until bedtime.
Although I feel that the screen, cameras and battery of S25 FE were a great improvement compared to my aging iPhone 15, it is far from being special in the world of Android mobiles – and it is not the ultra -level S25 life that I hoped that it would be.
But I was not completely blinded. I mentioned above that I feared that the improved cooling and the larger battery would be canceled by more taxed tasks (in terms of performance) on the device, but it was not my only concern.
I was also given a break by the S25 FE Exynos 2400 chip. As mentioned in our practice of the Galaxy S25 FE, my colleagues discovered that the phones fueled by Exynos attract more power than their snapdragon counterparts. For example, the Galaxy S25 Edge (Snapdragon) recently survived the Galaxy Z Flip 7 (Exynos) in our tests, despite the edge with a smaller battery.
The rabbit in his sleeve
Overall, I found that the S25 FE battery was more than sufficient. Although it is not the class head, users who prioritize the battery life and want a flagship diet without the premium price should not write it. Although the 5,000 mAh battery of the Galaxy A56 at budgetary prices can be equal or even last longer than, it does not offer the same flagship experience as the S25 FE.
The Pixel 9a, which has a goal similar to the FE, also promises the battery “ All day ” – It has succeeded 1 pm and 18 minutes in our tests (you will have to wait for our review fe S25 Fe for complete tests). In short, everything that seriously surpasses the FE battery will cost you much more or offer you less.
Anyway, even if the battery of a day was not enough for your needs, another upgrade of key specifications in fact undoubtedly a questionable point – a faster 45W loading loading at the Galaxy S25 and S25 Ultra. Another from 25W last year, it allows you to recharge nearly 70% in half an hour-which makes its battery a non-problub as you have a charger at hand.
At his PDSF, I think the FE is the clear choice compared to the S25 lighthouse. Although his camera and performance are not enough On peer, the differences will be negligible for most people. As you can see below, the FE provides good camera results and the big screen is a big victory for those who want it. That said, the S25 is not new – and it is now regularly available for the price of its affordable new brother, and if you have the possibility of taking the flagship for the price of the FE, we recommend the first.
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Although I would have liked to see more battery upgrade, it should not be a question of the validity of S25 FE as a real member of the S25 family. The choice between FE and S25 simply depends on your budget and if a larger display (6.7 inch VS 6.2 inch) or a better camera system (10MP VS 8MP telephoto) is more important.
However, if a large screen is your priority, I find it very difficult to recommend the S25 Plus on the S25 FE because the screens are the same size, the battery life is negligible and the performance of the camera is not worth the price difference.
The S25 FE is an excellent smartphone, and what it packs for its price is incredible. If you get back to the idea of lowering $ 800 / £ 800 / $ 1,500 to a new flagship product, the S25 Fe should absolutely be on your limited list if you are looking to level a mobile at low budget.
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