The all-new Galaxy S25 phone range is finally here, and there’s good news if you live in areas such as the UK. Last year’s Galaxy S24 range had a mix of Qualcomm and Samsung’s slightly less desirable Exynos brains inside, which made things mightily confusing. In 2025, Samsung is returning to Qualcomm for its entire fleet of call makers, with all getting the Snapdragon 8 Elite tucked inside.
This chip was announced late last year at Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Summit in Hawaii and already powers other devices from Android rivals such as Honor and OnePlus.
However, Samsung reckons it is taking things up a notch with the S25 getting an exclusive and “uniquely customised” version of the 8 Elite that’s made just for Galaxy. This upgrade not only boosts the overall power and efficiency but also helps to enable improved Galaxy AI features aimed at making the S25 smarter than ever. These include better Circle to Search and new things such as the “Now Brief” and “Now Bar” updates.
Additionally, the Galaxy S25 series are the first commercial devices to feature Snapdragon Satellite which allows consumers to send and receive messages via satellite if they find themselves in a remote area without a phone signal. That’s a feature that has been available on iPhone for some time, so it’s nice to see it finally arriving on Android.
Qualcomm also says it has worked closely with Samsung to customise the Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy to deliver premium image quality and power consumption on a Galaxy smartphone display.
That should mean more time glued to TikTok and less time charging things up.
“We are thrilled to introduce the Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy, which represents a significant leap forward in mobile technology, offering more intelligent, customized experiences – from personalized AI assistants to exceptional AI-generated images,” said Chris Patrick, senior vice president and general manager of mobile handsets, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. “Our strategic partnership with Samsung is a driving force behind this innovation, setting new standards for performance and efficiency.”
And Inkang Song, VP & Head of Technology Strategy team at Samsung Mobile added: “The Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy is specially customized to meet the highest demands of the Galaxy S series, delivering superior capabilities in Galaxy AI, mobile gaming, camera, connectivity, and more.
“With this new platform, the Samsung Galaxy S25 series is set to provide a premium experience that truly distinguishes itself among other mobile AI experiences, changing the way people interact with their device and the world.”
Express.co.uk is currently testing the new Galaxy S25 Ultra and will bring you our full review soon and whether the Snapdragon really is making a difference.
