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Galaxy S25 Ultra vs. S24 Ultra vs. S23 Ultra: My Take After Using Them All

by Ritik Singh
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Samsung’s Galaxy S25 Ultra is the company’s best phone yet, featuring the Snapdragon 8 Elite processor, new AI capabilities, rounded corners replacing the flat ones from previous models, and a more immersive display. However, as someone who has consistently upgraded from the Galaxy S22 Ultra to the S23 Ultra, then to the S24 Ultra, and now briefly to the S25 Ultra for about two weeks, I can’t help but feel a strong sense of familiarity.

This raises an important question: Is the S25 Ultra a worthy upgrade for those currently using the S23 Ultra or S24 Ultra? And for those looking to buy a brand-new phone, does it justify its premium price tag over the discounted older models?

Let me share my experience with the Galaxy S25 Ultra to help you decide if it’s the right phone for you.

Galaxy S25 Ultra vs S24 Ultra vs S23 Ultra: Design

Starting with the design, the Galaxy S23 Ultra reduced the curves on the edges slightly compared to its predecessor, the S22 Ultra. This made it more comfortable to hold and minimized accidental palm touches on the edges. The phone also had an aluminum frame, but unfortunately, it suffered from a paint chipping issue. In fact, my Galaxy S23 Ultra now has chipped paint on the edges from regular wear and tear. I haven’t noticed this issue with the other two phones yet.

Worth noting, the S23 Ultra was the last Samsung Ultra to come with curved sides. That’s because the entry of the Galaxy S24 Ultra changed two things – it got flat sides and a flat display. I initially thought it would feel less premium, and I’d miss the curved panel on my S23U, but thankfully, Samsung engineers knew what they were doing.

The Galaxy S24 Ultra felt solid and had a pure business-class look with that boxy design packed in a titanium frame. The phone felt durable but weighed almost the same as the S23 Ultra. Although the rear design stayed mostly the same with a traditional Samsung look, I was happy with the phone, especially when using it without a case.

Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra vs S24 Ultra vs S23 Ultra ports on bottom frame and phone thickness

The latest Galaxy S25 Ultra changes a few things dynamically – it retains the flat display but sheds off that boxy profile. It now has rounded corners just like any other phone on the market. This is where it disappoints. It still looks premium and well-made, and it sits perfectly in the hands, feeling more comfortable than ever since it no longer digs into the palm. However, in my opinion, the ‘luxury business-class’ feel is gone.

Durability has improved over the years though. The S23 Ultra had an Armor Aluminum frame with Gorilla Glass Victus 2 covering the front and rear. The S24 Ultra switched over to a Titanium grade 2 frame and Gorilla Glass Armor on both sides, whereas the S25 Ultra uses a Titanium Grade 5 frame (same as iPhones) and Gorilla Glass Armor 2 on both sides.

The S25 Ultra ensures an even stronger front, back, and sides, and that too while weighing 15 grams less than the S24 Ultra and 16 grams less than the S23 Ultra. So while it sheds a bit on the looks, it does double down on durability and comfort.

Galaxy S25 UltraGalaxy S24 UltraGalaxy S23 Ultra
ProfileRounded corners, sidesBoxy design, flat sidesBoxy design, curved sides
Dimensions162.8 x 77.6 x 8.2mm162.3 x 79.0 x 8.6mm163.4 x 78.1 x 8.9mm
FrameTitanium Grade 5Titanium Grade 2Armor Aluminum
Front + Back ProtectionGorilla Glass Armor 2Gorilla Glass ArmorGorilla Glass Victus 2

Galaxy S25 Ultra vs S24 Ultra vs S23 Ultra: Display

The Galaxy S23 Ultra had one of the best displays on the market in 2023, featuring a 6.8-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X panel with a 3200 x 1440 resolution and a 120Hz refresh rate. Its brightness maxed out at 1750 nits.

The S24 Ultra took the display up a notch by increasing the peak brightness to 2600 nits and adding an anti-reflective coating that minimizes glare. This was a game-changer and one of my favorite smartphone upgrades, making the display significantly easier to read outdoors in bright sunlight.

On the other hand, the S25 Ultra increases the display size by 0.1 inches to a 6.9-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X Edge QHD+ display with a 120Hz refresh rate and a peak brightness of 2600 nits. It is protected by Gorilla Glass Armor 2 along with the anti-reflective coating. Samsung has introduced a new feature called ProScaler, which enhances image quality by 40% when zooming or upscaling.

While the S25 Ultra boasts a slightly larger display, the difference in quality is negligible compared to the S24 Ultra. The most significant display upgrade came with the S24 Ultra, thanks to its anti-reflective coating and increased brightness levels.

Galaxy S25 UltraGalaxy S24 UltraGalaxy S23 Ultra
Display6.9-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X
1-120Hz, HDR10+
6.8-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X
1-120Hz, HDR10+
6.8-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X
1-120Hz, HDR10+
Peak Brightness2600 nits2600 nits1750 nits

Galaxy S25 Ultra vs S24 Ultra vs S23 Ultra: Performance & Software

The Galaxy S23 Ultra came with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy, which offered great performance for its time. The Galaxy S24 Ultra improved upon it with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for Galaxy, bringing faster processing, enhanced on-device AI capabilities, and better power efficiency.

With the Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy, the Galaxy S25 Ultra takes performance to a whole new level. While I won’t dive into numbers, the S25 Ultra can handle anything you throw at it with ease—and so can the S24 Ultra. The S23 Ultra, however, may start to feel outdated when playing heavy games or multitasking with too many apps open.

Check the comparison table below:

FeatureSnapdragon 8 Elite
for Galaxy
Snapdragon 8 Gen 3
for Galaxy
Snapdragon 8 Gen 2
for Galaxy
CPUOryon cores
2x 4.32 GHz
6x 3.53 GHz
1 x 3.4 GHz ARM Cortex-X4
3 x 3.2 GHz ARM Cortex-A720
2 x 3.0 GHz ARM Cortex-A720
2 x 2.3 GHz ARM Cortex-A520
1 x 3.4 GHz ARM Cortex-X3
2 x 2.8 GHz ARM Cortex-A715
2 x 2.8 GHz ARM Cortex-A710
3 x 2.0 GHz ARM Cortex-A510
GPUAdreno 830 @ 1.1GHzAdreno 750 @ 1GHzAdreno 740 @ 719MHz
Manufacturing ProcessTSMC 3nm (N3E)TSMC 4nm (N4P)TSMC 4nm (N4P)
AI EngineQualcomm Hexagon NPUQualcomm Hexagon NPUQualcomm Hexagon NPU
AnTuTu Benchmark score~2.3 million~1.7 million~1.5 million
Key ImprovementsMajor performance leap due to new Oryon CPU architecture; Further GPU improvements; Enhanced power efficiency due to 3nm process; Increased AI performance.Significant performance and efficiency gains over the 8 Gen 2; Upgraded CPU architecture; Enhanced AI performance; Improved GPU performance.Improved performance and power efficiency over the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1; Enhanced AI capabilities; First “for Galaxy” variant with higher prime core clock speed.

The Galaxy S25 Ultra ships with One UI 7 based on Android 15, while the S24 Ultra launched with Android 14 but will receive the update. The S23 Ultra will also get One UI 7. However, only the first two phones are promised seven years of updates, while the S23 Ultra supports only four.

This means:

  • S25 Ultra will get updates until 2032 (Android 22).
  • S24 Ultra will get updates until 2031 (Android 21).
  • S23 Ultra will get updates until 2027 (Android 17).

Worth mentioning, the S25 Ultra now supports seamless Android updates.

In terms of longevity, the S25 Ultra and S24 Ultra are the better options if you’re buying a new phone.

Galaxy S25 Ultra vs S24 Ultra vs S23 Ultra: Cameras

The Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra was a hit camera phone with 100x moon zoom as its major highlight. You could see literally everyone flooding social media with moon shots when the phone launched. The phone had a 200MP primary camera, a 10MP 3x telephoto, a 10MP 10x periscope lens, and a 12MP ultrawide camera.

The Galaxy S24 Ultra spiced things up with a new 5x telephoto camera that replaces the 10x module of the former. This allowed the phone to capture both 5x and 10x shots. The rest of the camera setup remained the same. The Galaxy S25 Ultra likewise retains the same camera setup while upgrading the ultra-wide to a 50MP shooter.

Using the Galaxy S23 Ultra as a baseline, the S24 Ultra improved the telephoto camera, while the S25 Ultra built upon the same with a better ultra-wide. So now we have a phone with a good overall camera system.

But wait, the same main sensor doesn’t mean the same output. All three phones have different processors and hence different ISPs. Image processing is different on each. But I’m not going to talk a lot here but link to a Twitter thread by Ice Universe comparing the camera on all three phones alongside the S22 Ultra. Long story short, the S25 Ultra gets sharper and more natural-looking compared to other devices. Although you’d be happy with photos from either.

Galaxy S25 Ultra vs S24 Ultra vs S23 Ultra: Battery and Efficiency

Battery capacities haven’t evolved much over time. Samsung has used a 5,000mAh battery in its Ultra phones for years, and the same holds true for the last three S Ultra models. I expected Samsung to introduce silicon-carbon battery technology this year, but it seems to have been pushed to the next S26 Ultra.

Nevertheless, it’s not just battery size that makes a difference—it’s also the processor and its optimization. The Snapdragon 8 Elite is more efficient than the 8 Gen 3, which is more efficient than the 8 Gen 2, and this is reflected in the phone’s overall battery life.

Personally, I haven’t had any issues with my S23 Ultra’s battery, even after two years of use and some degradation. I charge it once a day, and it gives me about 6 hours of screen-on time. The S24 Ultra, on the other hand, took efficiency to a whole new level. I once tried draining its battery using Always-on Display mode, but the screen turned out to be very efficient too.

The S25 Ultra’s battery is marginally better than the S24 Ultra’s, offering over a day’s worth of use. So, regardless of the model, you can expect great battery performance—especially when using the phone in the Light performance profile.

Here’s what I do to get the most out of my Galaxy Ultra’s battery.

All three phones support 45W wired fast charging, 15W wireless charging, and 4.5W reverse wireless charging. A full charge takes a little less than an hour. However, there’s a change: the S25 Ultra supports Qi2 charging, and Samsung has magnetic charging cases available for the device. That gives it an advantage.

Galaxy S25 Ultra vs S24 Ultra vs S23 Ultra: The S-Pen

Both the S23 Ultra and S24 Ultra had an S Pen, which also connected to the phone via Bluetooth. The Bluetooth connectivity allowed you to perform air gestures to take pictures, advance through presentations, and more. However, Samsung says not many people were using the feature, and therefore, dropped Bluetooth connectivity from the S Pen on the S25 Ultra.

This could be a bummer for those who used it. I’m fine with the change, considering my S23 Ultra’s S Pen stopped connecting on its own after a while, and I eventually had to do without the feature. But wait, Samsung does seem to be selling a separate S Pen with Bluetooth, so I wouldn’t be surprised if that confuses you.

Galaxy S25 Ultra vs S24 Ultra vs S23 Ultra: Speaker Performance

When it launched, I noticed that the Galaxy S24 Ultra had slightly better speakers than the S23 Ultra. It was generally louder with a bit more clarity. However, the difference wasn’t major, and you could achieve comparable performance by tweaking the equalizer.

The S25 Ultra sounds fuller and richer than the other two phones, and it’s actually louder than the S24 Ultra, which was already marginally better than the S23 Ultra.

Samsung is still using the earpiece for its stereo setup rather than a dedicated secondary speaker like the OnePlus 13 (review), so the stereo imbalance is still noticeable. That said, these are great speakers for a flagship.

Galaxy S25 Ultra vs S24 Ultra vs S23 Ultra: Connectivity & Sensors

All three phones share common connectivity features, including NFC, 4G LTE, 5G, Ultra Wideband, a USB Type-C port with USB 3.2 Gen 1, and GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou, Galileo, and QZSS.

The Galaxy S23 Ultra and S24 Ultra have Bluetooth 5.3, while the S25 Ultra has Bluetooth 5.4. The S23 Ultra came with Wi-Fi 6E, whereas the other two phones support the faster Wi-Fi 7 standard.

All three phones include the following sensors: Accelerometer, Barometer, Fingerprint Sensor, Gyro Sensor, Geomagnetic Sensor, Hall Sensor, Light Sensor, and Proximity Sensor.

Galaxy S25 Ultra vs S24 Ultra vs S23 Ultra: Conclusion

Whether you’re a first-time Ultra user considering the S25 Ultra or a current S23/S24 Ultra owner thinking about upgrading, your decision depends on your budget and priorities.

For New Phone Buyers:

The Galaxy S25 Ultra is undoubtedly a top-tier flagship, offering the best Android experience, albeit at a premium price. However, consider last year’s S24 Ultra, now available at a discount. It offers nearly the same experience for less.

For Those Upgrading from the Galaxy S23 Ultra:

The S25 Ultra brings some nice upgrades to design, durability, and the camera, but for everyday stuff, performance isn’t a huge leap. Unless you’re a hardcore gamer, love having the absolute latest features, or really need that extra software support, you’re probably fine sticking with your S23 Ultra (maybe get a new battery). The S24 Ultra, now cheaper, is a good option if you want something new without spending a fortune.

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