Mobile Phone Reviews

This year’s Galaxy S Fan Edition is here. The upgrade moves the Samsung Galaxy S25 FE closer to the Galaxy S25 Plus, at least feature-wise. However, the Samsung Galaxy S24 FE can still be found in some European retailers for a little bit less.

So you might be wondering how much value you are getting for about €100 extra if you go with the newer S25 FE. Let’s find out.

Size comparison

Samsung
Galaxy S25 FE 5G 190 g 161.3 x 76.6 x 7.4 mm
(6.35 x 3.02 x 0.29 in)

Samsung
Galaxy S24 FE 213 g 162.0 x 77.3 x 8.0 mm
(6.38 x 3.04 x 0.31 in)

Following the footsteps of the Galaxy S lineup proper, the S25 FE shaves off a few grams and slims down its profile compared to the previous generation. As a result, the S25 FE is noticeably slimmer than the S24 FE and it’s also a tad lighter.

Build-wise, there’s a subtle difference. The newer S25 FE uses an Enhanced armor aluminum frame, which is allegedly more resilient than the standard aluminum frame found on the S24 FE. Both retain the Gorilla Glass Victus+ protection on the front and back.

Display comparison

Samsung
Galaxy S25 FE 5G 6.7″ Dynamic LTPO AMOLED 2X
120Hz 1080×2340
pixels 385
ppi 1247
nits

Samsung
Galaxy S24 FE 6.7″ Dynamic AMOLED 2X
120Hz 1080×2340
pixels 385
ppi 1372
nits

On paper, the two devices should share identical 6.7-inch OLED panels, but during our testing, we found that the Galaxy S25 FE gets an LTPO panel this year. This means the screen can dial down to 1Hz and can adapt to various video frame rates.

From the user’s perspective, however, the difference is rather trivial. The two panels still have the same diagonal, resolution, refresh rate and HDR10+ support. They also score similarly in our brightness test.

Battery life

The two devices feature similar chipsets (Exynos 2400 vs. Exynos 2400e), similar displays and similar batteries, with the S25 FE (4,900 mAh) edging out the S24 FE (4,700 mAh). So it’s no surprise the two show comparable battery life results. Notably, we do see a modest increase in the video streaming runtime in favor of the newer S25 FE.

Charging speed

Samsung
Galaxy S25 FE 5G
4900 mAh 45W 15min
30% 30min
52% Full
70min

Samsung
Galaxy S24 FE
4700 mAh 25W 15min
36% 30min
63% Full
70min

Charging speed is a bit faster, with the S25 FE rated at 45W of charging compared to 25 watts on the S24 FE. The new model takes the same time to charge to full, but is faster at the 15- and 30-minute marks.

Speaker test

The Galaxy S25 FE’s speakers scored slightly lower in our loudness test, but they sound considerably better than the S24 FE’s. The newer model has more pronounced and clean vocals and mids, without sacrificing the bass. Both handsets offer a fair amount of bass, but the S25 FE’s sound is more polished.

Performance

The two Fan Edition models feature very similar chipsets. The S24 FE gets a toned-down version of the Exynos 2400 called Exynos 2400e, while the S25 FE gets the full-fledged version of the chipset. In reality, the difference is rather trivial as the Exynos 2400e has its main CPU core downclocked to 3.1 GHz, while the Exynos 2400 proper features a 3.2 GHz core. The rest of the hardware remains the same.

Samsung
Galaxy S25 FE 5G Exynos 2400
4 nm 128GB 8GB RAM
base config

Samsung
Galaxy S24 FE Exynos 2400e
4nm 128GB 8GB RAM
base config

Memory configurations don’t differ. Both devices have 8GB of RAM, no matter the storage variant, and the base storage is 128GB, which goes up to 512GB.

Benchmark performance

Samsung
Galaxy S25 FE 5G AnTuTu 10
1,521,140 Geekbench 6
6,948 3D Mark Wild Life
4,262

Samsung
Galaxy S24 FE AnTuTu 10
1,748,449 Geekbench 6
6,299 3D Mark Wild Life
3,889

The difference in raw performance is quite small. The S25 FE outperforms the S24 FE in the pure CPU Geekbench 6 benchmark by just 10%. The same goes for the GPU, according to the 3DMark Wild Life Extreme benchmark.

Camera comparison

On paper, the two handsets feature identical camera hardware on the back. They have a 50MP main camera joined by an 8MP telephoto camera with 3x optical zoom and a 12MP ultrawide unit.

The only novelty in the S25 FE appears to be the selfie cam, which now aligns with the more expensive Galaxy S models. It uses a 12MP sensor, albeit being slightly smaller than the 10MP one used by the S24 FE.

Image quality

The camera samples below have been taken at different times and have not been shot side by side. We’ve taken great care to achieve an identical framing where possible.

The two phones deliver comparable image quality in all focal lengths, but especially with the main camera.

We did find a larger gap in their ultrawide photos. They appear sharper on the older Galaxy S24 FE.

S25 FE (0.6x) • S24 FE (0.6x) • S25 FE (1x) • S24 FE (1x)

The 2x photos by the two phones are largely identical.

However, we again prefer` the 3X photos by the older Galaxy S24 FE. The contrast and colors are comparable, but the S25 FE outputs a mushier detail rendition.

S25 FE (2x) • S24 FE (2x) • S25 FE (3x) • S24 FE (3x)

Our observations from the daylight scenes carry over to the nighttime shots.

The Galaxy S24 FE captures the nicer ultrawide photos. As for the main cameras, they take identical photos.

S25 FE (0.6x) • S24 FE (0.6x) • S25 FE (1x) • S24 FE (1x)

The 2X photos are once again identical. The Galaxy S24 FE’s 3x camera performs better in low-light situations.

S25 FE (2x) • S24 FE (2x) • S25 FE (3x) • S24 FE (3x)

S25 FE (3x) • S24 FE (3x)

The Galaxy S24 FE’s selfie camera is quite good, but the new selfie camera on the S25 FE produces nicer selfies. They are a bit more detailed with a wider dynamic range and slightly livelier colors.

Selfies: S25 FE • S24 FE

Video quality

Below we have a few frame grabs from the videos taken by the two phones at each focal length, so it’s easier to compare them to one another. These videos have been taken at different times and were not shot side by side. We’ve taken great care to achieve an identical framing where possible.

The main cameras of the two phones capture identical video with only a slight difference in the general processing.

As for the two other cameras, we prefer the Galaxy S24 FE’s output again.

4K screengrabs: S25 FE (0.6x) • S24 FE (0.6x) • S25 FE (1x) • S24 FE (1x) • S25 FE (3x) • S24 FE (3x) • S25 FE (1x) • S24 FE (1x)

Verdict

With both handsets offering up to 7 major OS upgrades, they will remain relevant for years to come, so you shouldn’t base your decision on the release date alone. It doesn’t really matter in the long run.

However, if you are fine with spending about €100 more for that 10% better performance; 20% faster charging in 15/30 minutes and the nice-sounding speakers, you should definitely go for the Galaxy S25 FE.

As for our opinion, the Galaxy S25 FE didn’t convince us fully that it’s worth its price premium despite the upgrades on paper. The older S24 FE offers largely the same user experience overall – it has the same display and comparable battery life, and performance-wise, it is not that far behind. And it consistently took similar or better photos and videos across all scenarios except for the selfies.

Get the Samsung Galaxy S25 FE for:

The more powerful chipset.
The better speakers.
The slightly better selfies.
The lighter weight.

128GB 8GB RAM

$ 649.99
256GB 8GB RAM

$ 649.99

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Get the Samsung Galaxy S24 FE for:

Largely the same user experience, display quality, battery life and charging speed.
The better ultrawide and zoom cameras in photos and videos.
The lower price tag.