Galaxy S25's face unlock seems faster now but it's still stuck in the iPhone's shadow

Some Galaxy S25 users have found that the face unlocking system on the new phones has seen speed and accuracy improvements over previous models of Galaxy S devices. Despite that, though, Samsung's solution still relies on 2D and remains less secure than Apple's Face ID.

Although some people found the recent Galaxy Unpacked event underwhelming, and are not pleased with the upgrades (or lack thereof) Samsung prepped with the Galaxy S25 series, not all is doom and gloom about the new phones. The trio has rightfully earned its place in the best phones of 2025, and comes with top-notch specs and designs, with a plethora of tiny improvements sprinkled across the board.

One such little but significant improvement has been spotted by multiple users who've had some time with their new Galaxy S25 phone. Curiously enough, it seems the Face Recognition feature of the S25 now works faster.

Currently, Samsung's face unlock feature doesn't come with dedicated hardware for a 3D face unlock - the company tried it once with the Galaxy S10 and then abandoned ship. Basically what this means is that Face Unlock on the S25 uses 2D. This is less secure, for one, and then less efficient in low-light environments than Apple's Face ID.

However, the notably inferior face-unlocking feature has gotten some update love, according to multiple reports by users on Reddit. Apparently, some people have noticed the Galaxy S25 detects the owner's face more quickly and more consistently, offering near-instant unlocking even in more challenging lighting conditions.


On top of that, the system seems to work at wider angles than on previous Galaxy S devices, so it eliminates the need for you to hold your head in a rigid position for the Galaxy to scan your face with its selfie camera.

Meanwhile, that's not the only little upgrade Samsung included with the new phones. The Galaxy S25 Ultra now has noticeably more powerful speakers, which is a very welcome change, and also supports 45W charging with the cable included in the box (although some people have found the 'fast' wired charging of the S25 Ultra and Plus has some annoying wrinkles to iron out).

The Galaxy S25 phones have been received with mixed feelings so far. They are powerful phones indeed, but many have found that Samsung is being lazy and not introducing many exciting upgrades. We still have a fourth member of the family to wait for though: the Galaxy S25 Edge, which could hopefully make things more interesting.

In the meantime, Apple is prepping the iPhone 17 series which will face against the Galaxy S25. The tables seem to have turned and Apple may be experimenting this time (what a strange world we live in) by possibly bringing a bold new design, but we'll have to wait and see to know for certain.