The big launch of Samsung's Galaxy S25 is just around the corner. The first Galaxy Unpacked event of 2025 is confirmed for January 22 at 1 pm ET in San Jose, CA, where Samsung's “next big thing” (to borrow a 14-year-old marketing slogan) will be revealed. What exactly will be available? Well, apart from some safe bets and some likely leaks, only those who took a blood oath under an NDA know for sure. But these are the most likely products and features we'll see.
Galaxy S25, S25+ and S25 Ultra
Just as Apple reveals its latest iPhones at its first fall event, Samsung typically launches its Galaxy S flagships at its first Unpacked party of the year. You can bet the farm there is willpower There will be Galaxy S25 phones at this event. And given Samsung's recent trend of launching three tiers of flagship products (Standard, Plus and Ultra), you can bet we'll see it again. (Samsung could technically change the brand names, but the three-layer line is practically guaranteed.) FCC Certification (first stained by 91Mobiles) to dispel any doubts.
The degree of certainty drops drastically once we delve deeper into the phones' features. A subtle redesign with rounded corners, flatter edges, and thinner bezels seems likely based on a leak. video posted on Reddit and <a target="_blank" data-i13n="cpos:9;pos:1" href="https://x.com/Jukanlosreve/status/1875416338539409520″ rel=”nofollow noopener” target=”_blank” data-ylk=”slk:images;cpos:9;pos:1;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas” class=”link “>images from renowned tipster Ice Universe. But this is not expected to be the generation in which Samsung's hiring of a former Mercedes-Benz designer leads to drastic aesthetic changes.
Android Headlines also posted many photos of the alleged Galaxy S25, S25+ and S25 Ultra that confirm the relatively minor redesign. The site also claims that the screen size of the Galaxy S25 and S25+ is unchanged from last year: 6.2 and 6.7 inches, respectively. The Ultra has a slightly larger 6.9-inch screen.
At least in the US, the phone is all but guaranteed to use Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Elite processor, which the chipmaker revealed in October. (Qualcomm even list Samsung is among the companies that will launch devices with that processor “in the coming weeks”). Like almost all flagship processors these days, the Snapdragon 8 Elite is designed for on-device generative ai, which lines up with Samsung's Galaxy ai blitz on recent models.
We don't know if the company will split its S25 processors between Snapdragon (US and other markets) and Exynos (everywhere else), but Ice Universe has <a target="_blank" data-i13n="elm:context_link;elmt:doNotAffiliate;cpos:15;pos:1" class="link " href="https://x.com/UniverseIce/status/1856677902869516626″ rel=”nofollow noopener” target=”_blank” data-ylk=”slk:claimed;elm:context_link;elmt:doNotAffiliate;cpos:15;pos:1;itc:0;sec:content-canvas”>reclaimed This generation will be all Snapdragon. That would be a good thing, given the obvious disparity in performance and battery life that Qualcomm favors.
The phone will run Samsung's One UI 7 on top of Android 15. We know this because Samsung said in October that its user experience (based on Android 15) will launch on upcoming Galaxy S flagships. It's already available in beta for Galaxy S24 phones. .
Samsung is rumored to continue using next-generation OLED displays (made from organic M13 materials) instead of the brighter, more efficient M14 OLED panels used in the iPhone 16 Pro and Google Pixel 9. Logic suggests Samsung would want its best home-made display on your best phones, especially when your competitors are already using it. But you could stick with the cheaper panels to keep your materials bill down. Perhaps he calculated that better displays don't lead to better generative ai (the obsession of almost every tech company right now), while Qualcomm's latest chip does.
Speaking of ai, Samsung is expected to dedicate a perhaps distressingly long portion of the event to generative ai features. Success or failure Digitimes reported last month that the Galaxy S25 series will include “an ai agent that provides personalized clothing suggestions and transportation information.” What that would look like in practice is anyone's guess, but I'm not sure I want to know.
On the camera front, Ice Universe <a target="_blank" data-i13n="elm:context_link;elmt:doNotAffiliate;cpos:22;pos:1" class="link " href="https://x.com/UniverseIce/status/1833100800941519242″ rel=”nofollow noopener” target=”_blank” data-ylk=”slk:claims;elm:context_link;elmt:doNotAffiliate;cpos:22;pos:1;itc:0;sec:content-canvas”>claims (through Android Headlines) it's “confirmed” that only the ultra-wide sensor will see an upgrade on the Galaxy S25 Ultra, to 50MP from 12MP on last year's model. The leaker says that the S25 Ultra will continue with a 200MP main sensor, a 10MP 3x zoom, and a 50MP 5x zoom.
Samsung will add the Qi2 wireless charging standard to its new flagships, and that's coming straight from the horse's mouth (aka Wireless Power Consortium). However, leaker chunvn8888 (aka “yawn”) <a target="_blank" data-i13n="elm:context_link;elmt:doNotAffiliate;cpos:25;pos:1" class="link " href="https://x.com/chunvn8888/status/1868996832376099265″ rel=”nofollow noopener” target=”_blank” data-ylk=”slk:says;elm:context_link;elmt:doNotAffiliate;cpos:25;pos:1;itc:0;sec:content-canvas”>says Samsung phones won't have built-in magnets for native Qi2 MagSafe in all but name charging. Instead, the leaker says Samsung will sell a case of its own with a Qi2 magnetic ring to enable this. (Gotta move those props, baby!)
The rumors have buzzed about an alleged Galaxy S25 Slim with a (you guessed it) slimmer design that will join the trio sometime this year. That's something Apple is also rumored to be working on. However, since the FCC certifications only appear to cover the well-known trio of flagships, that phone (if it's in the works) may not arrive until later in the year.
Galaxy Ring 2, Samsung XR and AR glasses
Digitimes reported In December, Samsung would show off (or maybe just tease) the Galaxy Ring 2 and augmented reality (AR) glasses during its January Unpacked event.
The Taiwanese publication says the Galaxy Ring 2 will add two more sizes to the nine of the original model, which launched in July. The second-generation wearable health tracker is said to add new ai features (surprise!) and updated sensors for more accurate measurements. The Galaxy Ring 2 is also rumored to last longer than the current model's seven-day maximum.
Digitimes He also claims that Samsung's AR glasses, which the company has confirmed it is working on, will look like regular prescription glasses and weigh around 50g. He says the futuristic glasses would use Google's Gemini ai, which lines up with what we already know about Samsung's partnership with Google and Qualcomm on Android XR. But given the lack of supply chain rumors surrounding the glasses, any mention at the event is likely to amount to little more than a teaser, a la their big reveal of… a stinker lend for the first Galaxy Ring at Unpacked 2024.
We also know that Samsung is co-developing an Android XR (extended reality) headset, codenamed Project Moohan, alongside Google and Qualcomm. The “lightweight” and “ergonomically designed” headset will have a “state-of-the-art display,” pass-through video, and natural multimodal input. Google's renderings show a wearable device reminiscent of Apple's $3,500 Vision Pro.
Since Google recently started offering a developer kit and API for the platform, any look at it on Unpacked probably wouldn't include an imminent launch or deep dive into its hardware.
Engadget will have full coverage of Samsung's first Unpacked event of 2025. More to come on January 22!
Update, January 13, 2025, 12:58 pm ET: This story has been updated with alleged images and more details about the Galaxy S25, S25+ and S25 Ultra from Android Headlines.
