Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra could controversially ditch a camera but still improve its zoom

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One of the biggest uncertainties around the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra ahead of launch was what cameras it would have, with leaks pointing in numerous directions, and now the same thing seems to be happening with the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra.

That’s because there’s a trio of new leaks about this phone’s cameras, but they don’t all agree with each other – or with what we’ve heard previously.

First up, the most detailed leak, which comes from @ISAQUES81 on X (via Phone Arena). They claim that rather than having four rear cameras like the Galaxy S24 Ultra, the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra will have just three.

Apparently, it will have a 200MP main camera like the current model, with the same sensor size, but with the ability to take in more light, presumably meaning the sensor is slightly different. It will also apparently have the same 12MP f/2.2 ultra-wide camera as the S24 Ultra. Where things could really differ though is on the telephoto front.

Supposedly, the 3x telephoto camera will be ditched, leaving just a single periscope lens. But this apparently won’t be the 5x zoom one found on the Galaxy S24 Ultra. Rather, the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra is said to have a variable zoom with two focal lengths. One of these will apparently be somewhere between 4-5x, and the other 6-7x.

It will also apparently have a “large sensor”, and for those who want to take 3x shots, Samsung supposedly thinks the main sensor will be able to do this without any loss of quality. So in other words, while the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra might lose a telephoto camera, it could offer the same optical quality zoom levels, plus one additional one at 6-7x.

Camera confusion

We would however take all of this with a pinch of salt, because the source doesn’t have much of a track record, and another leaker (@UniverseIce) has replied that the 3x camera will remain. We’ve also heard from @Revegnus1 that the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra will have the same main sensor as the S24 Ultra, rather than the slightly different one mentioned above.

And that’s just the latest leaks. Previously, we’ve heard from leakers that the Galaxy S25 Ultra could variously have a new 50MP ultra-wide camera, a big 1-inch main sensor, and a 10x zoom camera, along with some leaks that agree with aspects of the above (such as multiple sources mentioning a variable zoom).

So at this point it’s really hard to say what camera hardware the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra will have – and with the phone probably not landing until January or later, that’s no surprise. We’re sure to hear plenty more camera leaks in the coming months though, and hopefully they’ll start lining up at some point.

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