Samsung Galaxy A25 5G review: Good enough?

Hello everyone! Today I am here with a review of Samsung’s latest mid-range A-series phone for 2024 — the new Samsung Galaxy A25 5G! Samsung will soon be launching the more expensive Galaxy A35 and A55 later this year. And if you remember, last year’s A24, A34 and A54, all of them were very successful models from Samsung, especially in the retail offline market!  So this phone is kind of like the successor to the Galaxy A23 5G and is also kind of an expensive 5G variant of the Galaxy A24. You could also argue this is a watered-down version of the Galaxy A34. Anyhoo, the Samsung Galaxy A25 is priced at NPR 40,999 for the 8GB + 128GB trim. Meanwhile, for an additional 4 grand, you get double the storage on this phone. Since we are already talking about the configurations of the phone, let's get on with the specifications of the phone as well.

Samsung Galaxy A25 5G Specifications

• Design: Standard Galaxy design
• Dimensions: 161.00 mm x 76.50 mm x 8.30 mm
• Weight: 197 grams
• Display: 6.5” Super AMOLED Panel, 120Hz, 1000 nits, Vision Booster
• Resolution: FHD+ (1,080 x 2,340)
• Chipset: Octa-core Exynos 1280 (5nm)
• RAM: 6GB or 8 GB
• ROM: 128 GB or 256GB + 1 TB expandable via MicroSD card
• OS & UI: Android 14 with OneUI 6.0
• Rear Camera: Triple Camera (50 MP Primary + 8MP Ultrawide + 2 MP Macro Lens)
• Front Camera: 13 MP Camera (Centre-aligned “Infinity-U” waterdrop cutout)
• Security: Side-mounted fingerprint sensor, Face Unlock
• Navigation: GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou, Galileo, QZSS
• Battery: 5,000 mAh with 25W fast charging
• Connectivity: Dual SIM, 5G, Dual-band WiFi, Bluetooth, USB 2.0 Type-C, 3.5mm headphone jack
• Colour Options: Blue Black, Blue, Light Blue, Yellow
• Check the full specs of the Samsung Galaxy A25 HERE!

Before getting into the nitty-gritty review of the Samsung Galaxy A25 5G, let's just talk about the phone itself. Okay? Initially, I thought this phone was a bit overpriced, especially in comparison to its predecessor. But, as I went on using the phone, I felt Samsung had done a rather good job with this phone. First of all, you get an official 25W Samsung charger that costs you around NPR 2,000 for absolutely FREE! You did not get a charger on older phones. On top of that, this phone is a 5G-ready phone that comes at a much cheaper price in comparison to its price in India. Another thing I have noticed in the case of Samsung is that the specs sheet doesn't tell you the whole story of the phone. And as I mentioned earlier, I found this phone to be decent in my usage.

Samsung Galaxy A25 5G Review

Design and Build

Let's start with it's the design! It's very similar to what you get from other A-series phones from the past. It's quite minimal from the back and gives up the classic Samsung vibe! It is slightly different from its predecessor in the sense that you get a unique pattern on the back, while the right side of the frame has this wedged layout for a better grip.

As for colours, I got myself this good-looking yellow option, but you can also choose between Blue Black and Blue colours. And despite the back and the frames being made up of plastic, it is a well-built phone — it doesn't feel cheap and has a nice overall heft. However, you don't get an official IP67 rating here — that thing is reserved for higher-end A-series only. Likewise, you also don't get an in-display fingerprint scanner, and the volume button instead doubles up as the fingerprint scanner which by the way is fast and accurate. Samsung has also included a headphone jack and FM radio here, which is kind of rare in smartphones these days. So, if you are someone with grandparents who like to listen to FM radio then it will surely come in handy! Overall, the A25 5G is a good-looking phone from the back. But sadly, we can't say the same about the front. The design is not very inspiring for 2024, as you get this big chin below the screen, and an ugly notch up front.

Display

Other than that, there is not much to complain about the display here. The core display of this phone is quite nice. You get a 6.5-inch FullHD+ Super AMOLED panel with WideVine L1 for HD streaming. Additionally, you get up to 1000 nits with automatic brightness enabled… so yeah perfectly usable outdoors!

This phone also flaunts a high refresh rate of 120Hz. Given that, Galaxy A24 only had a 90Hz refresh rate, so it is a welcome upgrade. Moreover, the default Vivid mode also produces nice punchy colours perfect for content consumption. And pair that with a nice set of stereo speakers, the Galaxy A25 is a very good phone for watching Netflix and other OTT platforms. 

Performance

Now let's talk performance, the Samsung Galaxy A25 is using the Exynos 1280 5G chipset, which is already a 2-year-old chipset. And even 2 years ago, this chipset was not all that powerful and stable. Hence, if you are a power user, you will notice a hint of slugginess and choppiness in the UI now and then. And as expected, gaming is also subpar here, as most AAA games run at just 30fps. 

I think Samsung should have opted for maybe last year's Exynos 1380. That chipset was more stable and faster. Or they could have given the Dimensity 1080 or the Snapdragon 778G or the Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 or the Dimensity 7200... the list goes on! The bottom line is — anything else would have been better! But you need to bear that in mind if you are a heavy user! And if you are not then the performance should be adequate. Coupled with the 120Hz screen here, the phone feels fairly stable, and multitasking between 2 or 3 light apps is smooth too.  Another thing I like about the Galaxy A25 5G is that you are getting 4 OS updates and 5 years of security patches. The software experience is also pretty solid here! The One UI is easy to use, there is very little bloatware and no Ads, and I haven't faced any weird bugs either. So that's peak Samsung for you!

Battery

Moving on to the battery, I found the battery to be good on the Samsung Galaxy A25 5G. It's providing me with a consistent one-day backup. As someone who takes a lot of photos with mobile data always on, I had to plug this phone in just before getting to bed. So, yeah, solid battery backup!

Charging, however, is a bit slower — as expected from a Samsung phone. It takes over an hour and a half to get fully charged. But, since, they are giving a free charger in here, I'll take that hit.

Camera

Finally, the CAMERAS! This is one aspect where Samsung phones usually really shine, and similar is the case for the Samsung Galaxy A25! It's easily better than something like the Poco X6 Pro in terms of colours, but it does suffer from a lack of consistency! During the daytime, it captures good, vibrant-looking images, and it has a balanced dynamic range.

But the photos can be lacking in details, and the highlight management is a hit or a miss too. The 50MP OIS camera on here struggles with indoor lighting at times — which I found quite strange. But if you are taking photos of a landscape or a building in low light, you can turn on Night Mode to get a fairly better result. The Samsung Galaxy A25 5G can also take good-looking portrait shots as well as selfies. But once again, it can be a hit or miss, depending on the lighting. Plus, this 8MP ultra-wide camera is barely usable as it's bad at everything from dynamic range to details, and sharpness. Videography is also strictly average here. You can click up to 4K 30fps from the back and 1080P 30fps from the front. But you don't get any form of stabilisation. 

Samsung Galaxy A25 5G Review: Conclusion

So all in all, in the process of reviewing the Samsung Galaxy A25 5G, I found it to be just about average. Like I said at the beginning, this phone is a slightly better version of the Samsung Galaxy A24 with a better display, 5G connectivity, and a free charger in the box. But, if you are working with a strict budget of around NPR 30,000 then you will not miss out on anything significant by opting for the Samsung Galaxy A24. Even though the Exynos 1280 on the Samsung Galaxy A25 5G is better than the Helio G99 on the A24 on paper, it is severely lacking in terms of optimisation. As a result, you won't find a significant difference in performance. So, getting the Galaxy A24 and saving 7 to 8 thousand of your hard-earned money makes absolute sense too! On the other hand, if have a bit more flexible budget then going for the Samsung Galaxy A34 which comes with an in-display fingerprint sensor, better camera quality, a more premium design, and an IP67 rating is kind of like a no-brainer.

Samsung Galaxy A25 5G: Pros and Cons

Pros

• A good 120Hz screen
• A FREE charger worth NPR 2,000
• 4 OS and 5 years of security updates
• Decent battery backup

Cons

• Uninspiring design for 2024
• Meh performance