Phone Gurus -- Samsung users -- question

jimbo45 · Jun 19, 2025

Hi Windows Gurus

I have an S21 Ultra -- very happy with it - even now -- but getting pestered to "upgrade" almost weekly to the S25 Ultra. What does it offer me that I can't get now !!

I don't need even a "cheap" (sic -- relative terms) upgrade to get a couple of features that I might only use once in 743 years etc -even if I know they exist.

I like new tech but these sorts of "upgrades" are just BONKERS. !

Cheers
jimbo

spapakons · Jun 19, 2025

To get rid of ads when playing a game turn off data and Wi-Fi. Without access to the internet the game cannot load and display ads, so it leaves you playing without interrupting.

FrancoDT · Jun 19, 2025

No reason to upgrade if your happy with your S21, it's just marketing as they want to make more money off of you. I'm sure you recently got the One UI 7.0 software update as I did on my S22 so you probably wouldn't notice much difference getting an S25.

werty · Jun 19, 2025

Galaxy S24 should be more affordable and offer almost the same experience. From your S21 you will receive a better processor, upgraded camera setup and a new phone

Rollback_Jockey · Jun 19, 2025

I've stuck with my S21 this time around, it does everything i need and has just had it's last Android update so is kinda up-to-date for another couple of years, i may fit a new battery soon though.

Anibor_11 · Jun 19, 2025

The main differences in recent models are the AI functions available. Some of them are useful to me.

Bear in mind that, supposedly, some of these functions may be charged as a subscription in the future.

Brink · Jun 19, 2025

I wouldn't worry about upgrading since you're happy with the S21. If your provider offers a free upgrade to the S25, then you could consider it.

gunrunnerjohn · Jun 19, 2025

I normally keep a phone for around four years. I had to upgrade a little early because my S23 was having USB port issues and the battery life was going down. Looking at the cost for fixing both of those got me halfway to the $599 special price for the S25.

Bree · Jun 19, 2025

jimbo45 said:
I have an S21 Ultra -- very happy with it - even now -- but getting pestered to "upgrade" almost weekly to the S25 Ultra. What does it offer me that I can't get now !!

Upgrades to Android beyond your S21's Android 13 and One UI 5. Your S21 has reached the end if its life as far as OS upgrades go. It didn't get 14.

Samsung has updated these devices to Android 14

Although Android 13 still gets security updates, it must be only a matter of months before they end too.

Android OS

So if you value security, it's time you upgraded to a newer phone.

Scrub all that. On further research your S21 is going to get Android 15 (if it hasn't aready). 15 should be in support for another three years or so.

Samsung has updated these Galaxy devices to Android 15

Samsung's Android 15 update, One UI 7, is now available and rolling out to a huge list of devices over the months to come after major delays.

9to5google.com

XxXxX · Jun 19, 2025

firstly, this is of no help to anyone.
i had to upgrade my 2010 HTC Legend as it was only 2G/3G, Android 2.
so my new phone is a 2014 HTC One SV, which is 4G, Android 4.

i don't seem to get any upgrade ads
as stated not of any help to anyone.

best of luck, Steve ..

MisterEd · Jun 19, 2025

How are you getting the upgrade ads? Are you getting it from your carrier? I am not getting any.

I have a Samsung S21 and plan to keep it at least another year or until it battery degrades too much.

cereberus · Jun 19, 2025

The most disappointing thing about UI7 on Samsungs is that some of the best features are only available on the S25.

The most notable is audio eraser which helps remove unnecessary background noise.

Also (more general issue) support for the "new" LE Audio standard is limited to S23 and upwards (bummer for me with S22).

The impact of the above is profound in public places for deaf people. Many cinemas, churches, theatres etc. are wired up with T-loop transmitters for most hearing aids.

The new Auracast Standard (Bluetooth broadcast to multiple hearing devices simultaneously) is supposed to replace this but this is only available on literally two or three hearing aids and is basically a gigantic flop.

In the end, UI7 is hardly any different to UI7 in terms in features if you do not have an S25+ but personally I refuse to pay the insane prices of an S25 (I wonder what tthe factory gate cost is).

BamaInArk · Jun 19, 2025

To me it all depends. I upgraded from a S22+ to the S25 Ultra. Perhaps a much better camera over the S21. That and the AI possibilities might be the biggest upgrades potentials. Better wifi speeds with Wifi7 is needed/utilized. I wish the ultra had a slightly wider screen.

spapakons · Jun 20, 2025

gunrunnerjohn said:
I normally keep a phone for around four years. I had to upgrade a little early because my S23 was having USB port issues and the battery life was going down. Looking at the cost for fixing both of those got me halfway to the $599 special price for the S25.

When I served in the Army I was in the Computer Research Department. When we had a broken device we calculated the cost to repair it. The rule of thumb was if the repair costed half or more of buying a new replacement, the device was declared "beyond economical repair" and was replaced. If the cost of repair was lower we would repair it. For cases close to half the cost of replacing it, the Senior Officer of the Department had to decide. It's not bad idea to follow this rule in real life.

Steve C · Jun 20, 2025

I keep a phone as long as possible. I recently bought the base S25 since I wanted a compact phone and bagged the 512GB version for £550 after various discounts. This phone is a Which? best buy and has 7 years of software upgrades. The phone is fast and fine but I turn off the AI stuff.

gunrunnerjohn · Jun 20, 2025

spapakons said:
When I served in the Army I was in the Computer Research Department. When we had a broken device we calculated the cost to repair it. The rule of thumb was if the repair costed half or more of buying a new replacement, the device was declared "beyond economical repair" and was replaced. If the cost of repair was lower we would repair it. For cases close to half the cost of replacing it, the Senior Officer of the Department had to decide. It's not bad idea to follow this rule in real life.

Sounds about right. I've applied that to appliances and basically most things around the house. Given that there is a serious "throw-away" mentality in our society nowadays, many items are made not to be repaired.

spapakons · Jun 20, 2025

Chinese brands are so cheap not only because of great competition between them and many workers, but also because they don't care to make something of best quality (and expensive). They care about making something as cheap as possible with the intend to replace it under Warranty, not repair it, or throw it away when the Warranty expires and buy a new one. If something is too cheap you don't mind to replace it. But if you have paid good money for it, you think about repairing it first.

werty · Jun 21, 2025

spapakons said:
Chinese brands are so cheap not only because of great competition between them and many workers, but also because they don't care to make something of best quality (and expensive). They care about making something as cheap as possible with the intend to replace it under Warranty, not repair it, or throw it away when the Warranty expires and buy a new one. If something is too cheap you don't mind to replace it. But if you have paid good money for it, you think about repairing it first.

Of course, if you buy something very cheap you can't expect it to work for like 10 years. The cheap phones are meant to be affordable so everyone can buy it. If you want more premium, you have to pay more.

spapakons · Jun 21, 2025

That doesn't necessarily mean iPhones are the best because they are the most expensive. I have a mid-range Huawei Mate 10 Lite running Android 8.0 Oreo. I have put a protective case and a special durable gelatin on the screen. My 5 year old son has dropped it a million times most of them on purpose and with high velocity. It didn't break. In comparison, if you accidentally drop an iPhone the screen will shatter and you need a very expensive repair. Imagine throwing it on purpose with high velocity, even the phone body will split! So expensive doesn't mean better! Yes, it might have more features than the average smartphone, but most iPhone owners never use them and just waste their money to make others jealous, or because Apple's marketing convinced them iPhones are the best and anything else is crap. Very bad practice when buying electronic devices.

werty · Jun 21, 2025

spapakons said:
That doesn't necessarily mean iPhones are the best because they are the most expensive. I have a mid-range Huawei Mate 10 Lite running Android 8.0 Oreo. I have put a protective case and a special durable gelatin on the screen. My 5 year old son has dropped it a million times most of them on purpose and with high velocity. It didn't break. In comparison, if you accidentally drop an iPhone the screen will shatter and you need a very expensive repair. Imagine throwing it on purpose with high velocity, even the phone body will split! So expensive doesn't mean better! Yes, it might have more features than the average smartphone, but most iPhone owners never use them and just waste their money to make others jealous, or because Apple's marketing convinced them iPhones are the best and anything else is crap. Very bad practice when buying electronic devices.

I was talking about very cheap phones like 100-150$. I also have two mid-range Xiaomi phones - Mi Note 3 and Mi 10T which are still working perfectly after years of usage. The iPhone are ridiculously expensive and not worth it. They are just to show a status in the so society. I'm more for best phone for the money (and I'm taking about reasonable amount of money).

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