Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra vs Galaxy Z Fold 6 preview: Function versus form
Intro
With 2025 fast approaching, anticipation is building for the next wave of smartphones. Leading the charge is the Galaxy S25 Ultra, Samsung’s upcoming flagship, set to take the crown as the ultimate phone of the new year. Slated for an unveiling on January 22, it’s just around the corner.
The Galaxy S25 Ultra will likely debut some groundbreaking tech, including the Snapdragon 8 Elite, one of the first 3nm chips to power an Android device. Coupled with Samsung’s top-tier design and features, it promises to be a masterclass in what premium smartphones can offer.
But the Galaxy S25 Ultra isn’t the only high-end Samsung device generating buzz. Enter the Galaxy Z Fold 6, the latest in Samsung’s foldable lineup. While it might not always surpass rivals in every metric, it’s still an innovative powerhouse in its category. As a hybrid between smartphone and tablet, the Galaxy Z Fold 6 stands as a unique alternative to traditional flagships like the S25 Ultra.
Whether you’re looking for cutting-edge power or futuristic versatility, Samsung’s 2025 lineup is shaping up to deliver on all fronts.
The Galaxy S25 Ultra will likely debut some groundbreaking tech, including the Snapdragon 8 Elite, one of the first 3nm chips to power an Android device. Coupled with Samsung’s top-tier design and features, it promises to be a masterclass in what premium smartphones can offer.
Whether you’re looking for cutting-edge power or futuristic versatility, Samsung’s 2025 lineup is shaping up to deliver on all fronts.
So, how exactly will the new flagship compare against the company's best foldable phone for now?
Galaxy S25 Ultra vs Galaxy Z Fold 6 differences explained:
| Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra | Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 |
|---|---|
| A fresh new design with rounded instead of straight edges | A foldable phone with a no-gap folding design |
| Possibly thinner and lighter (8.2mm and 219gr) | Thicker and heavier (239gr |
| Possibly higher maximum brightness | Lower peak brightness |
| The fastest Qualcomm chip –– the 3nm Snapdragon 8 Elite | Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, the previous Qualcomm flagship chip |
| Corning Gorilla Armor with anti-reflective coating protecting the screen | No anti-reflective properties, Gorilla Glass Victus 2 |
| 12GB RAM in the 256GB version, 16GB of RAM in the 512GB and 1TB versions | 12GB of RAM in all 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB versions |
| Wi-Fi 7 | Wi-Fi 6E |
| 45W wired, 25W Qi2 wireless charging | 25W wired, 15W Qi wireless charging |
Table of Contents:
Read more:
Design and Size
Samsung's finest, but the Galaxy S25 Ultra pulls ahead
The Galaxy S25 Ultra will be getting some rounded edges after years of using mostly flat top and bottom frames, looking more and more like the regular Galaxy phones. This will make it look like the other two flagships in the lineup, the Galaxy S25 and Galaxy S25 Plus.
We suppose this change could be a tough pill to swallow for Galaxy purists who have loved the strictly business and super-stylish appearance of previous Galaxy S Ultra flagships. I, for one, will miss the sharper lines, but if a design refresh is what Samsung has in store, we should definitely give it a chance to grow on us.
One thing is for certain: the Galaxy S25 Ultra will keep the titanium frame and S Pen stylus that are currently present on the Galaxy S24 Ultra. While the titanium frame is a fairly recent addition to Samsung's lineup, the stylus is a signature staple that will always set Samsung's Galaxy S Ultra flagships apart from all the others.
Aside from that, the Galaxy S25 Ultra will still employ a titanium frame, boast IP68 water and dust resistance, as well as an S Pen stylus, the inseparable writing accessory that brings a lot of functionality to the Galaxy S Ultra lineup. The Galaxy Z Fold 6 also supports an S Pen stylus, but it is sold separately, and the phone has no built-in slot to accommodate it.
Meanwhile, with the Galaxy Z Fold 6, we get a foldable phone with an Armor Aluminum frame and Gorilla Glass Victus 2 protecting the spacious 7.6-inch inner screen, but no such a protective glass layer protects the outer 6.3-inch screen.
Samsung shifted things around, and as a result, the Galaxy Z Fold 6 no longer has a large wedge-shaped gap when you close the phone, which was a notorious feature of previous Galaxy Z Fold devices. There's, however, still a palpable display crease present, which is something other manufacturers of foldable phones have already dealt with.
Size-wise, the two phones won't actually differ that much. It sounds weird, but when you look at it, the difference will boil down to the Galaxy Z Fold 6 being 4mm thicker and 20 grams heavier, while the Galaxy S25 Ultra will be roughly 10mm taller. This isn't such a big difference in the grand scheme of things.
Display Differences
The Galaxy S25 Ultra will feature a 6.8-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X display with a 1-120Hz dynamic refresh rate, exceptional HDR support, and the anti-reflective coating on top which will help eliminate screen reflections and boost legibility.
One new feature that's always in the cards is the possibly higher peak brightness on the Galaxy S25 Ultra. Samsung has been gradually increasing this metric over the years, with the latest Galaxy S24 Ultra topping 2,600 nits. The new phone will likely beat that, and paired with the anti-reflective screen, this will make for a superb experience in extreme lighting conditions, like checking your Instagram feed at noon.
The Galaxy Z Fold 6 has a 7.6-inch inner screen with a pretty squarish aspect ratio of 20.9:18. The outer screen is still a narrow 6.3-inch AMOLED with a 22.1:9 aspect ratio. Both panels feature a dynamic refresh rate of 1 to 120 Hz for the ultimate and smoothest viewing experience.
While the outer screen has a punch-hole, the inner one has an under-display camera that is hidden beneath the panel, but can be easily spotted if you know where to look.
Performance and Software
Welcome, 3nm
The Galaxy S25 Ultra will come with the Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset, which will be the first 3nm chip to power a high-profile device with international appeal. Initially, rumors pointed that we might get a MediaTek Dimensity chip on the Galaxy lineup, but Qualcomm's offering seems too good to pass up.
With the Snapdragon 8 Elite, we expect to see significant improvements to both performance and power efficiency, hopefully leading to better battery life and even better user experience. However, it might not all be roses: 3nm chips tend to run slightly hotter than their older 4nm counterparts, so an exceptional thermal management system is always a must.
Meanwhile, the Galaxy Z Fold 6 comes along with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip, which is Samsung's ex-flagship chip. By all means, it's a powerhouse, and the arrival of the Snapdragon 8 Elite won't change that.
Memory-wise, we expect up to 16GB of RAM in the Galaxy S25 Ultra, as well as 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB UFS 4.0 storage versions. The Galaxy Z Fold 6 offers the same storage variations, but with slightly less RAM (12GB). The benefit of more RAM will likely play an even bigger role with the increasing resource needs of on-device AI processing.
Speaking of AI, we expect new AI features to arrive on both the Galaxy S25 Ultra and Galaxy Z Fold 6 with the next One UI 7 update, based on Android 15. The One UI 7 beta has already arrived, and we have previewed it right here. It comes with a handful of visual redesign elements as well as several interface enhancements that will improve the user experience.
Both devices will be supported for seven years after their launch, outlasting the typical device lifespan for most users.
Camera
It's the Ultra that will be on top
No two opinions here: the Galaxy S25 Ultra will definitely have the better camera system in comparison with the Galaxy Z Fold 6
According to recent buzz, Samsung may upgrade just a single Galaxy S25 Ultra camera: the ultrawide one. IceUniverse, a well-versed insider of all things concerning Apple, suggests that Samsung could replace the current 12MP ultrawide sensor with a more powerful 50MP one.
We expect Samsung to use quad pixel-binning with this camera, so the resulting images will still be around 12MP, but with the added benefit of improved low-light performance. Thanks, quad pixel-binning!
The rest of the rear cameras are expected to stay unchanged, with a 200MP main, a 10MP short telephoto with 3X optical zoom, and a 50MP periscope lens offering 5X zoom completing the loadout. As for the front, don’t count on seeing any major upgrades to the existing 12MP selfie camera.
Granted, Samsung doesn't necessarily need to make major changes to the camera setup: the Galaxy S24 Ultra is already among the Android phones with the best cameras available in the US. It's unwise to change a winning team, so the new ultrawide camera is probably a sufficient intergenerational upgrade.
How does the Galaxy Z Fold 6 measure in comparison?
Well, not that great. Samsung's foldables have never boasted too great of a camera package, relying on a standard triple-camera setup, mostly the same one as on the previous foldables. We are talking about a 50MP main camera, a 10MP telephoto with 3X optical zoom, and finally, a 12MP ultrawide camera.
There's an under display inner selfie camera, but we don't like the quality it delivers. The external one is miles better, of course.
Taken at face value, the Galaxy Z Fold 6 will do the job. It captures some lovely still photos and videos, but won't necessarily "wow" you with anything.
Battery Life and Charging
The Galaxy S25 Ultra will most likely pull way ahead
Samsung is most certainly putting a 5,000mAh battery inside the Galaxy S25 Ultra, a standard capacity that has been used on most of its recent flagships. That's fine, but Samsung might probably want to watch the competition closely, as thin silicon-carbon batteries with nearly 6,000mAh of capacity are starting to pop here and there (used on some Honor devices, the Redmi Note 14 Plus, likely the OnePlus 13).
Yet, paired with the fast Snapdragon 8 Elite, the 5,000mAh one will likely deliver exceptional battery life.
We can't really say that about the Galaxy Z Fold 6, which is just okay thanks to its humble 4,400mAh battery. Even in comparison with the Galaxy S24 Ultra, the Galaxy Z Fold 6 was way behind in terms of battery endurance (see our Galaxy Z Fold 6 vs Galaxy S24 Ultra comparison here).
Charging-wise, the Galaxy Z S25 Ultra will likely score 45W wired charging and possibly 25W Qi wireless charging with MagSafe-like capabilities. The Galaxy Z Fold 6 has 25W wired and 15W wireless charging.
Specs Comparison
Here's how the Galaxy S25 Ultra and Galaxy Z Fold 6 will likely fare in terms of specs:
| Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra* | Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 | |
|---|---|---|
| Size, weight | 162.3 × 79 × 8.2mm, 219gr | Unfolded: 153.5 x 132.6 x 5.6mm Folded: 153.5 x 68.1 x 12.1mm Weight: 239gr |
| Screen | 6.8" Dynamic 2X AMOLED >2600 nits peak brightness 1-120Hz Anti-reflective coating | Main screen: 7.6" AMOLED, HDR, 1-120Hz, 20.9:18 aspect ratio Cover screen: 6.3" AMOLED, HDR, 1-120Hz, 22.1:9 aspect ratio |
| Processor | Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite, 3nm | Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, 4nm |
| RAM, Storage | 12GB LPDDR5 RAM 256GB/256GB/1TB UFS 4.0 | 12GB RAM LPDDR5 256GB/512GB/1TB UFS 4.0 |
| Cameras | 200MP main 50MP ultrawide 10MP 3X telephoto 50MP 5X periscope 12MP front | 50MP main with f/1.8 aperture and OIS; Telephoto: 10MP secondary telephoto lens with f/2.4 aperture, OIS, and 3x optical zoom; Ultra-wide: 12MP, f/2.2 aperture Internal selfie camera: 4MP under-display camera, F1.8 External selfie camera: 10MP, F2.2 |
| Battery | 5,000mAh | 4,400mAh |
| Charging | USB-C 45W wired 25W Qi2 wireless | USB-C 25W wired 15W wireless |
* - All Galaxy S25 Ultra specs are preliminary and subject to change
Summary
At the end of the day, the difference between the two devices will boil down to their appeal.
The Galaxy S25 Ultra is set to be the more advanced device, equipped with Samsung's cutting-edge tech—its best 3nm chipset, top-tier camera, and most refined user experience.
It's likely to be the predictable front-runner, not only for the best Samsung phone of 2025, but also for the title of "best phone," period.
Meanwhile, the Galaxy Z Fold 6 still hasn't reached its full potential. Its "wow factor" relies heavily on the folding feature, which is beginning to feel dated already.
With the Galaxy Z Fold 6, you'll always know there's a Samsung flagship—the Galaxy S25 Ultra—that doesn't fold but excels in every flagship standard.
The Galaxy S25 Ultra is set to be the more advanced device, equipped with Samsung's cutting-edge tech—its best 3nm chipset, top-tier camera, and most refined user experience.
It's likely to be the predictable front-runner, not only for the best Samsung phone of 2025, but also for the title of "best phone," period.
Meanwhile, the Galaxy Z Fold 6 still hasn't reached its full potential. Its "wow factor" relies heavily on the folding feature, which is beginning to feel dated already.
With the Galaxy Z Fold 6, you'll always know there's a Samsung flagship—the Galaxy S25 Ultra—that doesn't fold but excels in every flagship standard.
FCC OKs Cingular\'s purchase of AT&T Wireless
Things that are NOT allowed: