S25U, S24U, or S25+

[Joshua Luther1]

I’m still waiting another 3 months to sell my iPhone and switch to Android. But these are the three phones I’m looking at. All of them are great phones with the cheapest being the Plus, obviously. I know the Plus would be plenty of phone for me but I’ve always been the type of person to want to buy as much phone as I can. So I am considering an Open Box S24U or S25U.

Currently I can get an open box 24U 256gb for $800 or the 25+ 256gb for around $900 from Best Buy. I have a feeling that in a few months, there will be some open box deals on the S25U for probably around $900-$1000. Actually I just checked and Best Buy has an open box S25U 512gb for $1000. That seems like a pretty good deal. So in 3 months, I’m sure it will be lower. That’s already a $400 savings. But it’s also $600 more than an S24U 256gb.

The benefit for me to buy through Best Buy is the 0% interest for 24 months. I already have the Best Buy credit card. Amazon has affirm for 12 months and it’s not interest free. And I’m dead set on not going through Verizon to finance.

Is the S24U still a solid choice over the 25U in 2025? I don’t mind saving some money if both phones are going to be extremely similar in performance and battery life. There’s obviously more risk in getting a phone that is last year’s model and having the battery health not at 100%, but I’ve bought open box stuff before and had good success. I’m pretty sure BB has a return policy and I can check out the phone before I leave the store.

 

[winmod21]

I’m still waiting another 3 months to sell my iPhone and switch to Android. But these are the three phones I’m looking at. All of them are great phones with the cheapest being the Plus, obviously. I know the Plus would be plenty of phone for me but I’ve always been the type of person to want to buy as much phone as I can. So I am considering an Open Box S24U or S25U.

Currently I can get an open box 24U 256gb for $800 or the 25+ 256gb for around $900 from Best Buy. I have a feeling that in a few months, there will be some open box deals on the S25U for probably around $900-$1000. Actually I just checked and Best Buy has an open box S25U 512gb for $1000. That seems like a pretty good deal. So in 3 months, I’m sure it will be lower. That’s already a $400 savings. But it’s also $600 more than an S24U 256gb.

The benefit for me to buy through Best Buy is the 0% interest for 24 months. I already have the Best Buy credit card. Amazon has affirm for 12 months and it’s not interest free. And I’m dead set on not going through Verizon to finance.

Is the S24U still a solid choice over the 25U in 2025? I don’t mind saving some money if both phones are going to be extremely similar in performance and battery life. There’s obviously more risk in getting a phone that is last year’s model and having the battery health not at 100%, but I’ve bought open box stuff before and had good success. I’m pretty sure BB has a return policy and I can check out the phone before I leave the store.

Isn't there still a basic forum/social media consensus that the S23U had/has a better overall camera than the 24U & 25U?

My wife has the S23U; it's an amazing phone. And frankly, we don't see any reason, or at least one that makes much sense, why anyone would want to upgrade their Galaxy phones beyond the S23U! Except for a willingness to fall prey to all the marketing, and/or just being curious about, or wanting to have the latest tech.

Sounds like you don't keep phones long enough to worry about update support periods. So if money's a concern . . the S23U still looks like the latest & greatest Galaxy phone! From what I've read, it has that best camera – since 2023. And unless you're some kind of a phone tech nerd, you can't tell it isn't the latest & greatest, unless you go to 'about phone'.

Just my 2¢ . .

 

[Joshua Luther1]

Isn't there still a basic forum/social media consensus that the S23U had/has a better overall camera than the 24U & 25U?

My wife has the S23U; it's an amazing phone. And frankly, we don't see any reason, or at least one that makes much sense, why anyone would want to upgrade their Galaxy phones beyond the S23U! Except for a willingness to fall prey to all the marketing, and/or just being curious about, or wanting to have the latest tech.

Sounds like you don't keep phones long enough to worry about update support periods. So if money's a concern . . the S23U still looks like the latest & greatest Galaxy phone! From what I've read, it has that best camera – since 2023. And unless you're some kind of a total tech nerd, you can't tell it isn't the latest & greatest, unless you go to 'about phone'.

Just my 2¢ . .

I’ve definitely fallen prey to wanting the latest phone or the best phone that I can get. But so have many others. I actually have done better recently. But I generally have been switching between iOS and Android within the past 5 years. I get tired of iOS, so I switch back to Android for a couple of years. This time, I’ve been on iOS for almost a year and half. But I’m in the same situation as I was 4 years ago when I sold my iPhone 12 Pro to go back to Android. Since then I’ve had the S21 ultra, S22+, Pixel 7 Pro, S23 ultra. I still regret getting rid of the S23 ultra. But I was tired of the curved edges on the screen. I wanted a flat screen. But that phone was the best one I’ve had.

I’ll likely be on the lookout for a 512gb S24+ or S24U. I have set a limit on the budget. I’d rather buy from Best Buy if I can. Or if Samsung has any deals on BF for the S24U 512gb, then I’ll buy it there. I just need an interest free option. I do like having the top of line camera options. I really enjoyed the S23 ultra camera. I just didn’t like the curved screen.

 

[winmod21]

I’ve definitely fallen prey to wanting the latest phone or the best phone that I can get. But so have many others. I actually have done better recently. But I generally have been switching between iOS and Android within the past 5 years. I get tired of iOS, so I switch back to Android for a couple of years. This time, I’ve been on iOS for almost a year and half. But I’m in the same situation as I was 4 years ago when I sold my iPhone 12 Pro to go back to Android. Since then I’ve had the S21 ultra, S22+, Pixel 7 Pro, S23 ultra. I still regret getting rid of the S23 ultra. But I was tired of the curved edges on the screen. I wanted a flat screen. But that phone was the best one I’ve had.

I’ll likely be on the lookout for a 512gb S24+ or S24U. I have set a limit on the budget. I’d rather buy from Best Buy if I can. Or if Samsung has any deals on BF for the S24U 512gb, then I’ll buy it there. I just need an interest free option. I do like having the top of line camera options. I really enjoyed the S23 ultra camera. I just didn’t like the curved screen.

Oh, I guess that shows how tech-savvy I'm not! As I didn't know that the S23U was the last Ultra with a curved screen! In fact, I've never noticed any screen differences between my wifes' S23U and my S23+.
I haven't thought mine was curved . . it's not, is it?
Nor was I aware of the less reflective, flat Corning glass display; the more powerful Snapdragon, and the S24U's 12GB of RAM, compared to the S23U's 8GB, listed as the major differences.

Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra vs. Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra

What does a year of advancement mean for the Galaxy Ultra? The ultimate smartphone got (predictably) even better this year - Samsung updated the Galaxy...

www.gsmarena.com

Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra vs S24 Ultra

Is this one of those rare instances when last year's model is better than the new one? The Galaxy S25 Ultra is out, bringing the usual set of small...

www.gsmarena.com

"You gotta do what ya gotta do" . .

 

[bembol]

My take. I got over the, go big or go home mentally.

Seriously, can anyone really tell the difference when it comes to performance with these flagships?

I'm at a point when someone ask me which is the "best"? They're all the same. This includes the camera.

I have the Pixel 9 Pro XL, S25 and Flip⁶. The only difference is size. LOL

Flip⁶ is my favorite because of it's portability.


Go with your budget.

 

[notforhire]

Do what you want, man. The resident curmudgeon, Jerry Hildenbrand, had a piece on this recently....paraphrasing: "there is no such thing as the best phone." Choose the one that floats your boat.

 

[bearone2]

op:
i chose the free 25+/$1k trade-in from a mid level/non flagship galaxy, 12kram/256, bigger battery than 25u!!

 

[Joshua Luther1]

To get back on topic, my budget is going to be $1000. I guess whatever I can get for that price is what I’m going to get. It looks like the S24+ can be had for about $550 on Back Market for a refurbished one in excellent condition. Only problem is I’d have to use Affirm or a credit card. Which I guess I could do for around $500.

 

[mustang7757]

[Mod Note]
Please don't attack each other let's be civil, I've edited and deleted some posts, thanks.

 

[Laura Knotek]

I’ve definitely fallen prey to wanting the latest phone or the best phone that I can get. But so have many others. I actually have done better recently. But I generally have been switching between iOS and Android within the past 5 years. I get tired of iOS, so I switch back to Android for a couple of years. This time, I’ve been on iOS for almost a year and half. But I’m in the same situation as I was 4 years ago when I sold my iPhone 12 Pro to go back to Android. Since then I’ve had the S21 ultra, S22+, Pixel 7 Pro, S23 ultra. I still regret getting rid of the S23 ultra. But I was tired of the curved edges on the screen. I wanted a flat screen. But that phone was the best one I’ve had.

I’ll likely be on the lookout for a 512gb S24+ or S24U. I have set a limit on the budget. I’d rather buy from Best Buy if I can. Or if Samsung has any deals on BF for the S24U 512gb, then I’ll buy it there. I just need an interest free option. I do like having the top of line camera options. I really enjoyed the S23 ultra camera. I just didn’t like the curved screen.

How do you feel about the S Pen? I chose to stay with the S24 Ultra because the S25 Ultra lacks the Bluetooth S Pen. I like using the Bluetooth S Pen on my S24 Ultra to take photos.