The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra is the company’s latest flagship, the hero of the S25 series, building upon a long lineage of technological advancements with software functionality ready for our new age of AI.
If you’re not yet fully on board with AI, you may be wondering how it can actually improve your phone experience – and even whether it’s no more than a gimmick.
Well, trust us – it’s not. From taking pictures at night to balancing battery life and performance, the S25 series has a whole host of Galaxy AI1 features that can make a genuine difference to your day. Read on and we’ll set the record straight.
Myth 1: Real-time translation is a hassle
While Samsung’s new AI camera functionality means you can translate a sign, menu, or address with the power of your camera’s lens, you may be wondering whether voice translation is as simple.
After all, we’ve seen plenty of attempts before from other manufacturers and third-party apps alike.
The secret sauce with Samsung’s Galaxy AI Live Translate2 is that it can be used within the stock Phone app, meaning you don’t need to install anything else to be able to use it. That’s a huge time-saver if you’re jumping into an impromptu call with a colleague or client across the globe, and removes much of the friction.
And, if you end up moving to a meeting with multiple people, Galaxy AI Transcript Assist3 works in multiple languages, too. So you can have concise and tidy notes, no matter what languages are being spoken.
Myth 2: AI can’t help you take better pictures at night
If you’ve ever used Night Mode photography on older phones, you’ll know that it’s no substitute for a true light source, often losing detail as exposure gets cranked up after the fact.
Samsung does away with this process, however, with its Galaxy AI Nightography4 and Scene Optimization.
The S25’s camera will adjust to the available lighting, and use machine learning to sharpen details to be able to salvage an image that would otherwise be pitch black.
It does this by taking multiple frames of an image and collating them together, while Scene Optimization (more on that shortly) essentially prepares your camera’s settings to give it the best chance of success.
Myth 3: Battery life will suffer through the use of AI features
Sure, AI features can be demanding on a device, but Samsung has actually tied its machine learning systems into your phone’s battery.
Whether you’re juggling multiple tasks or playing demanding games, Galaxy AI helps manage CPU and GPU usage throughout.
It’ll even learn your schedule, knowing to ramp up performance for your post-work commute gaming session, so your battery doesn’t run out when you need it most. In our testing, the phone was able to last more than a day, even with Bluetooth game controllers being used and the camera getting a workout.
If you’ve ever used photo editing software, you’ll know the painstaking process of making sure anything you’ve edited looks natural. For example, if you remove a tree from the background, how do you make it look as though the tree was never there at all?
While human editors will probably always have a place in the field, there’s a lot you can already do with a few simple clicks. For instance, that tree example above? Now, Galaxy AI Generative Edit5 can remove it and expertly fill in the space left behind by using machine learning to match the background of the rest of the photo.
How well it does so will obviously depend on how complicated the image is, but the days when AI image editors left photos looking unnatural are, in many cases, behind us now.
To try it, open the Gallery app, and then select the Pencil icon, and then Generative edit. Outline the object, and you can then move and delete it.
Myth 5: Slow-motion video on phones always flickers
Recording a video in slow motion can often have mixed results, and it’s not always easy to convert a video you’ve taken at normal speed to a slow-motion one without a series of screen flickers.
Thankfully, the Galaxy AI Instant Slow-mo6 feature works by subtly adding in additional frames that are generated by machine learning, letting your phone essentially fill in the blanks to prevent that same flicker between frames.
Myth 6: Pictures and videos from phones that are zoomed in are grainy
While that myth certainly used to be true, AI functionality is helping minimize the amount of detail lost on long-distance photographs.
By using machine learning, the Galaxy S25 will work to piece together the information in a photo and improve the quality of an image that’s been zoomed into.
This high resolution zoom capability will be ideal for anyone sitting at the back during a concert, or looking to read a sign from really far away – and it works for video, too.
Myth 7: Setting up a camera is fiddly
While mobile photographers will always have the option to tweak their settings to dial in a specific artistic vision for their captures, it doesn’t have to be something that you need to think about.
When reaching for your phone, Samsung’s Galaxy AI will use Scene Optimisation to essentially preset its camera settings to maximize the light available, more accurately capture detail and tone, and more.
It’s like having a photography assistant in your pocket, and takes away all of the more granular setup process.
Myth 8: AI image creation looks tacky
Not all image generation tools are created equal, and while some rivals are still catching up, Samsung’s Portrait Studio7 is one of the best around.
Once you’ve taken a picture, you’re just a handful of taps away from swapping your likeness for a comic-book version, a watercolour, oil painting, or sketch.
It’s much more tastefully done than some of the alternatives out there.
One last thing. If you have somehow missed the buzz throughout the internet tech sphere, Samsung has recently launched their latest foldable wonder – the Galaxy Z Fold7. With major hardware upgrades, such as a 200MP camera sensor, an impossibly svelte 4.2mm thin unfolded chassis, and stunning (2184 x 1968) 8” main display, there’s a lot to get excited about. Visit the Samsung website to find out more specs and pre-order details.
1Samsung account login is required for certain AI features.
2Samsung account login is required. Certain languages may require language pack download. Service availability may vary by language. Accuracy of results is not guaranteed. Available in 20 languages from launch.
3Samsung account login is required. Requires network connection.
4Results may vary depending on light condition, subject and/or shooting conditions.
5Samsung account login is required. Requires network connection.
6Samsung account login is required. Available on Samsung Video Player and Samsung Gallery. May not be available on certain video file types. Accuracy of results not guaranteed.
7Results may vary depending on light condition, subject and/or shooting conditions.
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