An interative update
For Samsung phone owners, the Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus is an iterative update. It’s not a massive step up from the Galaxy S24 beyond the new processor, but it’s a worthwhile upgrade if you’re hanging onto an old phone. It’s one of the most AI-centric phones around and you’ll love the fast processor, tons of AI, and Samsung’s unique features.
For
- Quick and efficient Snapdragon 8 Elite processor
- Samsung One UI 7 adds useful features
- Seven years of OS and security updates
- Bright and beautiful high-res screen
- Built-in Qi2 support without a case
Against
- Comes with limited storage options
- Cameras aren’t as good
- Battery not as big
- Screen not as high resolution
A bold entry
OnePlus isn’t paying around with its OnePlus 13, which is one of the best Android phones we have seen in years, if not the best. It’s gorgeous in design, highly functional, incredibly durable, and has tons of AI features, including photo editing that works like magic. You’ll be thoroughly impressed with its performance.
For
- Quick and efficient Snapdragon 8 Elite processor
- Has both an IP68 and IP69 rating
- Fabulous photo editing features
- Beautiful design, big screen
- Fantastic battery life and ultra-fast charging
Against
- Comes with limited storage options
- Software and security support not as long
- Heavier and thicker
- No Qi2 support without a case
- AI features require an internet connection
When it comes to upgrading an Android phone, it’s easy to get stuck in your ways. “I have always had a Samsung Galaxy phone and I want to stick with it.” That’s something we hear often. But the latest alternatives are giving Samsung a run for its money. This isn’t to say you shouldn’t get a Samsung Galaxy phone as your next snazzy device. The brand continues to make fantastic phones. But when looking at the Samsung Galaxy S25 vs. OnePlus 13, you might find yourself wondering if it’s time for a switch.
Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus vs. OnePlus 13: The design and basic features
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As the larger phone in the new Samsung Galaxy S25 line, the Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus measures 6.7 inches with a 3,120 x 1,440 QHD+ dynamic AMOLED 2x screen. It affords a 120Hz adaptive refresh rate and Vision Booster that ensures the screen is viewable in even bright sunlight.
Available in Silver Shadow, Navy, Ice Blue, and Mint finishes, the frame is made of armor aluminum and the screen of Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2. It boasts an IP68 rating so it can withstand both dust and water immersion. Nicholas Sutrich says in his hands-on of the Galaxy S25 Plus that he appreciates the curved corners that make it comfortable to hold along with the fact that it’s lighter in weight than the previous generation Galaxy S24 Plus.
You can get the phone with either 256GB or 512GB storage. It’s not expandable, so you’ll have to rely on cloud storage or offloading content if you need more. You’re best to save up for the 512GB version just in case.
The phone has a 4,900mAh battery and it supports 45W Super Fast Charging 2.0 along with fast wireless charging 2.0 and Wireless PowerShare. It has an ultrasonic fingerprint reader on the screen, 2D facial recognition, and a new security feature called post-quantum cryptography that is designed to further safeguard your personal data.
Samsung continues with its promise to offer extended support for the Galaxy S25 Plus: you get seven years of OS and security updates, so the phone will not only last far beyond as long as you want it, but it will also have great resale, trade-in, and hand-me-down value.
By comparison, the OnePlus 13 has a larger 6.82-inch LTPO OLED Aqua Touch screen bosting 3,168 x 1,440 resolution, 1,600 nits brightness (4,500 nits peak brightness), and dynamic 1-120Hz refresh rate. The screen also includes Intelligent Eye Care 4.0 to help reduce strain on your eyes. Sutrich says in his review of the OnePlus 13 that it’s “the best display of any phone on the market,” easy to see in direct sunlight, which he tested on a beach in The Bahamas.
The Aqua Touch screen is designed to allow you to easily manipulate the phone even if your hands are wet or there are water droplets on the screen. This could be a game-changer for those who live in rainy or snowy climates, or for use in the field. It also has a Glove Mode for operating it even while wearing thin gloves.
Available in Midnight Ocean, Black Eclipse, and Arctic Dawn finishes, the screen is made of the company’s Crystal Shield super-ceramic glass. Visually, Sutrich calls it the “most beautiful phone I’ve ever used” (referencing the blue vegan leather model he was given for review). OnePlus, for its part, says the Ceramic Guard screen offers better scratch and drop protection than Gorilla Glass.
A stand-out feature is that the phone supports both the IP68 and IP69 ratings, which means it can not only withstand dust and be submerged, it can also withstand high-pressure water jets. This means you can take it on a boat, while jet skiing, or even literally toss it in the dishwasher and it will purportedly come out unscathed. In fact, Sutrich tested this theory, running it through a sanitizing cycle on his dishwasher for four hours, then taking it into a sauna and it continues to work just fine.
A bit heavier and thicker than the Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus given its larger size, Sutrich finds the flat side rails on the front and back with the curved edge of this phone makes it easy and comfortable to hold. It comes with the same 256GB or 512GB storage capacities, so make sure to get the bigger one and look into cloud storage options if you think you’ll need more.
The battery is another stand-out here: it has a massive 6,000mAh battery and, like other OnePlus phones, lasts an incredibly long time. It also supports 80W (yes, you read that correctly!) SUPERVOOC charging, with the charger in the box (yay!) You can increase this to up to 100W with OnePlus’ SUPERVOOC 100W dual-port power adapter, which is sold separately. It also supports 50W AIRVOOC wireless charging. Again, you read that correctly. So, this phone not only lasts a long time, at least a few days per charge, but it recharges at blazing speeds.
“I am constantly surprised when I plug it in for 10 or 15 minutes,” says Sutrich, “and see that it’s already in the 80% range…If you’ve never used a OnePlus phone before, you’re going to be absolutely blown away by not only how good the battery life is, but also by how fast it charges. It puts every leading flagship phone to shame.”
While there’s no Qi2 support without a case, whereas the Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus does offer built-in Qi2 support, OnePlus does offer a wide range of cases with Qi2 support and appears to be one of the only phone brands, if not the only phone brand, to be doing so. You’ll need a case either way, of course, but it’s worth noting.
The phone has traditional security features, like an ultrasonic fingerprint sensor on the screen, but nothing specific that will blow you away. Ongoing support is not as robust in comparison to Samsung, as you’ll only get four major Android updates and security updates for six years. But that’s still impressive.
Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus vs. OnePlus 13: The specs
Let’s look at the specs of these two phones in a side-by-side comparison.
| Row 0 – Cell 0 | Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus | OnePlus 13 |
| OS | Android 15, One UI 7 | Android 15, OxygenOS 15 |
| Colors | Icybue, Navy, Mint, Silver Shadow | Midnight Ocean, Black Eclipse, Arctic Dawn |
| Screen Size | 6.7 inches | 6.82 inches |
| Screen Resolution | 3,120 x 1,440 | 3,168 x 1,440 |
| Screen Type | Dynamic AMOLED 2x | Aqua Touch OLED LTPO |
| Refresh Rate | 120Hz Adaptive | 120Hz Adaptive |
| Processor | Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy | Snapdragon 8 Elite Mobile |
| RAM | 12GB | 12GB, 16GB |
| Storage | 256GB, 512GB (not expandable) | 256GB, 512GB (not expandable) |
| Cameras | 50MP Wide AF OIS, 12MP Ultra-Wide, 10MP 3x Tele AF OIS, 12MP Wide AF | 50MP Sony main camera, 50MP Sony telephoto camera, 50MP ultra-wide camera, 32MP Sony front camera |
| Speakers | Stereo Speakers | Stereo Speakers |
| Battery | 4,900mAh | 6,000mAh |
| Wireless Charging | Yes | Yes |
| Bluetooth | 5.4 | 5.4 |
| Water Resistance | IP68 | IP68, IP69 |
| Cellular | 5G | 5G |
| Size | 75.8 x 158.4 x 7.3mm | 76.5 x 162.9 x 8.5mm (8.9mm for Midnight Ocean) |
| Weight | 190 grams | 213 grams (210 grams for Midnight Ocean) |
Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus vs. OnePlus: What can these phones do?
Now that you have an idea of the bare bones specs of these two phones, it comes down to the most important question: what can these phones do, how well can they do them, and what makes them stand out?
Running on the ultra-fast and responsive Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy processor, the Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus can keep up with even the most demanding tasks and use cases. You get a significant boost in performance from previous-generation processors, which is necessary to run all the on-board AI features that this phone has to offer. While others rely on the cloud to process certain AI functions, this processor allows the Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus to do more locally. That even includes features like Generative photo editing.
Loaded with the Android 15 OS, Samsung also overlays its One UI 7, which affords access to plenty of cool Galaxy AI features along with customization and personalization options for the look and feel of the phone. Some new features include AI Agent: long-press the power button and you’ll instantly open the Gemini assistant, which works with native app integration. This means no matter what app you’re in, Gemini will assist with what you want, related to that specific app. Sutrich played around with this feature during his review and said it works well. He used it, for example, to find specific recipes within an hour-long YouTube video and it accomplished this with ease.
A neat new feature with Samsung One UI 7 is Now Brief, which shows AI-powered insights for your sleep, the weather, your daily schedule, and more. You’ll get Auto Suggestions, like a reminder to turn on the smart washing machine based on your usual weekly routine. Multimodal Search, meanwhile, lets you run searches in unique ways, like humming a song to be reminded of its name.
The most important factor with this phone is its heavy AI integration. You can be more productive and enjoy better context awareness as you switch among apps and use Gemini and other AI tools at your disposal. This includes everything from getting help composing an e-mail in the right tone, to searching for ideas for your next vacation, using Circle to Search to identify what jacket the person in that YouTube video is wearing, and more. Circle to Search now also recognizes phone numbers, e-mail addresses, and URLs so you can instantly open what’s needed. Overall, the phone better understands natural language, so it’s easy to communicate as well.
Along with the processor, Android 15, and Samsung One UI 7, all this runs smoothly thanks to the 12GB RAM. So, you can enjoy everything from streaming and capturing video to mobile gaming and more. Speaking of gamers, there are features specifically for them, including an improved cooling system, ray tracing, and a Vulkan Engine.
How does the OnePlus 13 stack up? Very strongly. It runs on the same Snapdragon 8 Elite mobile processor. The phone handles switching among apps at a blazing pace, with little to no lag. Sutrich says it exhibits the best haptics he has experienced on a non-Pixel phone. “I have never seen the phone falter once in its impeccable performance, whether that’s normal day-to-day scrolling or playing games at 120 fps.” He also calls multitasking “the best I’ve seen among any flagship phone.”
The OnePlus 13 has plenty of AI features as well, including intelligent search, AI Notes, and deep Google Gemini integration, just like the Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus. However, much of the work is done via cloud computing, so you need an Internet connection, which is one downside.
It comes loaded with Android 15 and adds OnePlus OxygenOS 15 for its version of personalization, customization, and unique features. You get many of the same features you find in the Galaxy S25 Plus like Circle to Search and intelligent assistance for everything from composing messages to booking vacations, with the intelligence fueled by both Gemini and, with this phone, OxygenOS.
There’s a cool feature in this phone called BeaconLink that lets you essentially use the device as a walkie-talkie to communicate with another person with the same (or compatible) phone that is up to 200 meters away. This is great if you’re in an area that doesn’t have good mobile coverage, like on a boat or campsite.
Features in this phone will appeal to gamers as well, including the 12GB or 16GB RAM, depending on which variant you choose, Adreno 830 GPU, and overall fast and snappy processor along with efficient cooling.
Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus vs. OnePlus 13: Capturing and editing photos and videos
The latest premium phones don’t just have fabulous cameras. They also have tons of pre- and post-editing tools you can leverage to get the best images and footage possible. Many of these tools use AI, and that’s true for both of these phones.
The Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus has a 50MP wide AF OIS main camera, 12MP ultra-wide camera, 10MP 3x tele AF OIS camera, and 12MP wide AF front “selfie” camera. The 30x space zoom is impressive so you can capture less grainy, more detailed images from even far distances. Other features include HDR portraits, a nightography mode, and more. For video, you can record 4K video at 60 frames per second using the ProVisual Engine.
You’ll find all the same AI photo editing features that were in the Samsung Galaxy S24, along with a few new ones. A standout is an improved version of Audio Eraser for videos, which can remove background noise, including conversations, in videos to isolate just the sounds you want. Sutrich tried this as part of his review and was pleased with the results.
There’s also a new feature called Auto Trim that will intelligently remove things like “ums” and “ahs” in your speech along with blank spaces. Use keywords and the AI will pick out which clips or sound bites aren’t essential and remove them for a cleaner editing experience. For videos taken at night, you’ll be able to better capture moving subjects without worry that the footage will be under or over-exposed.
Switching over to the OnePlus 13, OnePlus relies on Sony cameras for the OnePlus 13, which affords a massive step up in performance. Sutrich says it’s “easily one of the best smartphone cameras I’ve ever used.”
The set-up includes a 50MP main camera, 50MP telephoto camera with an incredible up to 120x zoom, 50MP ultra-wide camera, and a 32MP front camera. You can take 4K video at 60 frames-per-second and enjoy features like portrait mode, night scene, panorama, time-lapse, and more. Dual Exposure is worth noting, which can capture moving subjects with incredible clarity, along with Action Mode that accomplishes fantastic detail in action shots. Clear Burst lets you hold down the shutter to take multiple photos to capture that perfect moment.
What really sets this phone apart when it comes to the cameras are all the useful and effective AI photo editing tools. There’s AI Detail Boost, AI Unblur, and even a feature that removes distracting objects from a photo. In most cases, you’ll find similar equivalents with the Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus, as well as other phones like Google Pixel devices. But one that works wonderfully and I haven’t seen in other phones is the AI Reflection Eraser. This will intelligently remove distracting reflections from a photo so you get a clearer image of something with glass or another reflective surface.
Bottom line: Sutrich says there “wasn’t a single category where I saw the OnePlus 13’s camera falter.”
Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus vs. OnePlus 13: Which should you choose?
When it comes down to the Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus vs. OnePlus 13, the OnePlus 13 is all-around the better phone. In fact, Sutrich says in his review that it’s “the best-built Android phone on the market, full stop.” You won’t find a better phone. Considering it’s the same price as the Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus, the decision is simple.
Now, there are still reasons to stick with the Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus. If you are familiar with the Samsung ecosystem and feel more comfortable with it, you might want to stay with that. This is especially so if you have Samsung smart devices in the home, and/or a Samsung Galaxy Watch and/or Galaxy Ring. If so, it makes sense to have a Galaxy phone as well and be able to enjoy everything the ecosystem has to offer.
You also get longer support with the Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus, including a whole three more Android updates and an extra year of security updates. Considering you will probably upgrade to a new phone in another three or four years anyway, this isn’t a big deal. But you will be able to resell or hand this phone down to a friend or family member and be confident they’ll get the most out of it.
It’s important to note that brands like OnePlus have really upped their game with their latest devices. The OnePlus 12 ranked among the best Android phones we have reviewed to date, and the OnePlus 13 will undoubtedly be replacing that model for the top spot.
There’s nothing specific to learn about how it works, since it’s incredibly intuitive. It’s the most durable consumer-level phone you’ll find on the market yet it’s still sleek and downright beautiful. While we wish it had more storage and Qi2 support built in, these are minor complaints, and really the only ones we can find with this phone.
The cameras and camera editing features, software, processing speeds, and performance are all top-notch with the OnePlus 13. If you’re looking for a new premium Android phone you can hang onto for many years to come, and that will give you access to multitasking, AI features, capture great photos, and even go into the hot tub with you on your next vacation, the OnePlus 13 is the one to choose.
You’ll still get a great device with the Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus, including wonderful cameras, powerful processing and onboard AI features (that’s a huge plus worth noting), decent battery life, a sleek look, and extra-long software support. But overall, for most users who aren’t tied to a specific platform, the OnePlus 13 is a winning choice.
The latest and greatest
Samsung is one of the most popular Android phone brands around, and for good reason. The company makes solidly built, fast, reliable phones, and the Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus is no exception. It isn’t a huge step-up from the Galaxy A24 Plus, but its more powerful processor that supports on-board AI tasks is a massive plus.
The best you can buy
The best Android phone you can buy right now is the OnePlus 13. It’s incredibly rugged, fast, intuitive, responsive, and looks stunning. You’ll be able to take great photos and run them through various AI features to make them even better. This is the phone to get if you’re looking for something you can take virtually anywhere as well.
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