It’s here. Samsung has unveiled the Galaxy S25 FE, a phone that impresses in many ways and serves as an affordable alternative to the more feature-packed Galaxy S25 series. While I believe the phone is a solid purchase, the more important question for many is whether it’s worth upgrading to from last year’s Galaxy S24 FE.
In short, the answer is no. The days when a yearly smartphone upgrade made sense for most people are long gone. The incremental changes between generations are simply not significant enough to justify the cost. I’ll explain exactly why that is and which phone you should consider buying if you’re truly fed up with your Galaxy S24 FE.
Is it worth upgrading from the Galaxy S24 FE to the S25 FE? 8 votes Yes 13 % No 88 %
So, what’s new?
Andy Walker / Android Authority
Looking at the specs and features, it’s clear there isn’t a massive difference between the Galaxy S25 FE and its predecessor. However, there are a few notable upgrades that might sway some buyers.
One of the biggest improvements, in my opinion, is the larger battery. The S25 FE comes with a 4,900mAh battery, which is a 200mAh increase over the S24 FE’s cell. This should translate to a better overall battery life, although we’ll have to wait for our official review for more accurate, real-world data.
Speaking of the battery, the Galaxy S25 FE is Qi2-ready (without magnets), which enables faster wireless charging. The phone supports 45W wired and 25W wireless charging, a significant jump from the 25W and 15W you get with its predecessor. According to Samsung, this means you can expect to go from zero to 65% in 30 minutes on the S25 FE, while the S24 FE only gets to about 50% in the same time frame.
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The Galaxy S25 FE also features a higher-resolution 12MP selfie camera, up from the 10MP camera on the S24 FE. Additionally, since it runs Android 16 out of the box, it will receive at least one more major OS update than its predecessor. Both phones, however, come with the same great software promise, which I’ll get to in the next section.
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