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Is Samsung ignoring the one thing Galaxy S25 Ultra users actually want?

By Victor Hristov

Updated: Feb 10, 2025, 5:36 AM

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Is Samsung ignoring the one thing Galaxy S25 Ultra users actually want?

The Galaxy S25 Ultra is right around the corner, and I have no doubts that it will be a great phone.

Samsung is already teasing it is an absolute AI powerhouse, and after using the Galaxy S24 Ultra for a while this past year, I think Samsung has the best implementation of AI so far. I am particularly excited about the latest rumors that Samsung managed to keep the most exciting new AI features a secret for the big reveal on January 22nd.

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But despite all of this exciting news, I am disappointed that Samsung has done nothing to improve the battery size of the Galaxy S25 Ultra.

Just yesterday, we asked our YouTube community which was the most exciting upgrade they hoped to see in the S25 series.

AI is cool, but battery life is cooler

In a recent poll, we asked our viewers which upgrade they wanted to see the most in the Galaxy S25 series

The results were telling: 48% of voters wanted to see improved battery life first, 28% hoped for improvements to the camera, and ONLY 11% thought AI improvements are what is needed the most.

What a big disconnect! Users clearly say they want longer battery life and don't care too much about AI, while Samsung has set its priorities... precisely the other way around!

Galaxy S25 Ultra battery size vs rivals

Rivals have a nearly 20% bigger battery
They use a new silicon-carbon battery tech
Samsung is slow to adopt these new technologies

To be clear, all the rumors point to the Galaxy S25 Ultra sticking with a 5,000 mAh battery size, a size that has not changed since... the Galaxy S21 Ultra!

Yes, the S21 Ultra, all the way back from 2021 was the last time Samsung bumped the battery size of its flagship. The S21 Ultra had a 5,000 mAh battery, a roughly 10% upgrade over the 4,500 mAh battery on the Note 20 Ultra. No change since then!

This is particularly frustrating in 2025 when rival Android flagships have all transitioned to a 6,000 mAh battery size.

Just look at the table below:

Model	Battery Size
Galaxy S24 Ultra	5,000 mAh
Pixel 9 Pro XL	5,060 mAh
iPhone 16 Pro Max	4,685 mAh
Vivo X200 Pro	6,000 mAh
OnePlus 13	6,000 mAh
Oppo Find X8 Pro	5,910 mAh
ROG Phone 8 Pro	5,800 mAh
Xiaomi 15 Pro	6,100 mAh
Honor Magic 7 Pro	5,850 mAh
Poco X7 Pro	6,000 mAh
Nubia Z70 Ultra	6,150 mAh

The only other Android flagship phone with a battery size similar to the Galaxy S25 Ultra is the Pixel 9 Pro XL!

All the others have jumped to a size of around 6,000 mAh, nearly 20% larger. The Nubia Z70 Ultra actually has a 6,150 mAh size, a 23% increase compared to the Galaxy!

And speaking of larger batteries, we see the same trend even in affordable phones. Xiaomi's new Redmi Note 14 Pro Plus, for example, comes with a whopping 6,200 mAh battery.

If you are curious about how that was possible, we invite you to read our silicon-carbon battery tech explainer (that is the technology most of those new phones are using).

To be clear, we are not saying that it is just battery size alone that is affecting real-world battery life. As you can see in the table above, the iPhone has a much smaller battery than all other phones in the list. However, thanks to the optimizations in iOS, it surpasses most of its rivals in battery life.

Unfortunately, considering that Samsung uses Android and has less wiggle room for optimizations, we are not sure that would stand as a possible excuse on Samsung's part. In its case, it makes sense to focus on delivering a bigger battery size.

How can we get a bigger battery in the Galaxy S25 Ultra?

Removing the S Pen is one radical solution
Most users don't really use the S Pen on a daily basis
But adopting modern technologies might do the trick, while hurting less

One possible way to get a bigger battery on the Galaxy S25 Ultra is for Samsung to get rid of the S Pen. Controversial? Definitely!

But arguably, most Galaxy Ultra users don't use the S Pen, and it takes up so much space inside the phone that could be used by a larger battery. At least giving users the choice would be nice!

But even that radical step does not seem a necessity.

Samsung is still using traditional battery chemistry (with no silicon anode), and if it only switched to that new silicon-carbon battery tech it could score a big enough leap in the same physical form factor.

But right now, as Samsung is all about that AI talk, the company is in danger of losing the race on another feature, one that even more users care about.

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Victor, a seasoned mobile technology expert, has spent over a decade at PhoneArena, exploring the depths of mobile photography and reviewing hundreds of smartphones across Android and iOS ecosystems. His passion for technology, coupled with his extensive knowledge of smartphone cameras and battery life, has positioned him as a leading voice in the mobile tech industry.