Samsung Galaxy S25 FE review: Flagship feel at a friendlier price
With its premium feel, balanced cameras and long battery life, the Galaxy S25 FE proves that "Fan Edition" still means great value for money. Picture: Samsung.
The Samsung Galaxy S25 FE offers a flagship-like experience without the eye-watering price tag. With premium design, capable cameras, solid performance and excellent battery life, it feels every bit a Galaxy.
At first glance, you’d be forgiven for mistaking the Galaxy S25 FE for the pricier S25+. Samsung has kept the same refined aesthetic, with flat aluminium edges, a clean rear panel, and three neatly aligned camera rings. It’s unmistakably Galaxy in every sense.
The build feels solid, premium, and reassuringly weighty in the hand. The front and back are protected by Gorilla Glass Victus+, while the frame’s brushed finish gives a sleek, almost industrial vibe.
Samsung offers the S25 FE in several stylish colours — Navy, Icy Blue, Black, and White — all equally elegant. The Blue model I got to test looks especially striking. The phone is IP68-rated for dust and water resistance, meaning it can easily survive a dip or rain shower without concern.
The Galaxy S25 FE packs a 6.4-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X display with a 120Hz refresh rate and Full HD+ resolution. This isn’t an LTPO panel, so it can only switch between 60Hz and 120Hz. More premium displays can drop as low as 1Hz, which helps conserve battery life during static content like reading or viewing photos.
Colours are rich and saturated, typical of Samsung panels, with deep blacks and crisp whites. It’s a delight for streaming, browsing, or gaming.
However, peak brightness tops out at 1,900 nits, which is lower than the S25+’s impressive 2,600 nits, so outdoor visibility isn’t quite as strong. Still, it remains comfortably usable in sunlight. Scrolling is smooth, and HDR10+ support enhances video playback.
The stereo speakers are surprisingly loud for a mid-range device, delivering clear vocals and punchy highs, although bass could be deeper and distortion becomes noticeable at maximum volume. Still, it’s a great setup for watching videos or gaming without headphones.
The S25 FE sticks with a familiar triple-camera system. It includes a 50MP main sensor, 12MP ultrawide, and 3x 8MP telephoto. And while it doesn’t reinvent the wheel, it delivers consistent, natural-looking results across all lenses.
Daylight shots from the main camera are crisp, with accurate colours and pleasing dynamic range. Samsung’s typically punchy image processing has been toned down here, leading to less exaggerated saturation and more realistic tones. Skin textures look natural, and contrast levels are well-balanced.
The telephoto camera produces detailed 3x optical zoom shots, ideal for travel or street photography. Even digital zoom up to 10x holds up decently in good light. The ultrawide camera, while not as sharp, captures vibrant and distortion-free landscapes, though it struggles slightly in low light.
At night, the main lens performs well, pulling in detail with low noise. There’s a hint of softness in shadow areas, but the automatic Night Mode brightens scenes nicely.
The 12MP front camera captures clear selfies with good skin tones, even if it lacks the finesse of the Pro models. Samsung’s image processing does an excellent job of reducing noise and enhancing detail in low light, resulting in bright, sharp shots with impressive colour accuracy even in challenging conditions.
Video recording supports up to 8K at 30fps, but 4K remains the sweet spot, offering smooth stabilised footage across all cameras. The image quality is impressive for the price, with accurate exposure and reliable autofocus.
Powering the S25 FE is Samsung’s Exynos 2400 chipset, which is the same processor found in some S25 variants. My review unit came with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage, and performance has been excellent — smooth, responsive, and easily capable of handling multitasking or demanding games. It’s also available in 128GB and 512GB versions, but I’d recommend opting for more than the base model, especially if you capture a lot of photos and videos, since there’s no microSD slot for expandable storage.
In benchmarks, it trails behind the Snapdragon-equipped S25 Ultra, but in daily use, performance differences are negligible. Apps open instantly, animations glide smoothly, and the interface rarely stutters. The phone does warm up under heavy gaming, though thermal management keeps performance stable.
Battery endurance is one of the Galaxy S25 FE’s strongest features. Its 4,900mAh cell easily lasts a full day of moderate to heavy use, and often stretches into the next.
Charging speeds are decent too, supporting 45W wired (up to 65% in around 30 mins) and 15W wireless charging.
Thermal control is well managed, even during fast charging or extended gaming sessions, the phone stays comfortably warm rather than hot.
The Galaxy S25 FE runs One UI 8 based on Android 16. Samsung’s interface remains one of the most polished and feature-rich Android skins, offering endless customisation, excellent multitasking tools, and productivity features like Samsung DeX and Smart View.
The inclusion of a USB 3.2 port means you can connect the phone to a monitor and use it as a mini desktop with DeX.
AI features are also integrated seamlessly, from smart photo editing and translation to text summarisation. Gemini AI, Circle to Search, and Samsung’s own Galaxy AI tools all play a part in making the experience feel cutting-edge.
Samsung promises seven years of major OS and security updates, matching Google’s and ensuring this phone remains current well into the 2030s.
The Samsung Galaxy S25 FE offers much of the flagship experience at a far lower cost. Superb build, reliable cameras, and excellent battery life make it a winner for Samsung fans.
From €629 (8GB/128GB) shop.samsung.com/ie
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
