I personally can’t wait for Apple’s upcoming iPhone 17 Air, which should be the thinnest iPhone in Apple’s iPhone 17 lineup. It should also be the thinnest iPhone in years, considering that Apple has continued to increase the thickness of each iPhone generation for the past few years. I wanted a phone with a larger display, so I got my first 6.7-inch iPhone, the iPhone 16 Plus. But the handset is still too bulky for my taste, which is why I’m looking forward to the iPhone 17 Air.
Samsung must also be aware of the rumors. Not to mention the fact that Samsung is likely manufacturing the 6.6-inch 120Hz OLED LTPO panel for the iPhone 17 Air. What I’m getting at is that, given Samsung’s knowledge of Apple’s plans and its history of copying Apple’s iPhone, a rumor claiming a “Galaxy S25 Slim” will be released next year shouldn’t surprise anyone.
Samsung should release the first three Galaxy S25 models in mid-January, including the Galaxy S25, S25 Plus, and S25 Ultra. Rumors say all Galaxy S25 models will feature the new Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite chip, which is exciting. Also, according to leaks, the S25 Ultra design has been tweaked to replace those rectangular corners with slightly curved ones.
Most Galaxy S25 leaks have not mentioned anything about a Slim model that might debut in early 2025. However, Korean leaker yeux1122 said in a blog post that Samsung might launch a Galaxy S25 Slim variant around April. That’s the least crazy part of the report, with yeux1122 also saying that Samsung could unveil a Galaxy Z Flip SE and a Galaxy Z Fold 7 around the same time.
The leaker isn’t the first to mention the possibility of seeing a slimmer Galaxy S25 phone in stores next year. A report from Korean tech news site The Elec said a few weeks ago that Samsung is considering the possibility of making a slim Galaxy S25 variant.
There’s no question that thin devices are in fashion. We saw how amazing the M4 iPad Pro is. Then, the iPhone 17 Air emerged. Separately, Apple made the Apple Watch Series 10 thinner than its predecessor. Finally, Apple is rumored to make thinner MacBooks in the near future.
Then, we have foldable phone vendors looking to create ultra-thin devices. Samsung knows a thing or two about that, having just launched the Galaxy Z Fold SE in Korea. It’s a matter of time until a Galaxy S Slim happens.
Looking at Samsung’s obvious desire to launch new mobile products every quarter, the April release window makes sense for the Galaxy S25 Slim. Regular Galaxy S25 sales would slow down by then.
The Galaxy S25 Slim could impress buyers unconvinced by the regular Galaxy S25 versions while simultaneously giving Samsung new marketing weapons against Apple. When the iPhone 17 Air arrives, Samsung will surely say they thin phones first.
There’s another benefit to making ultra-thin phones. Samsung Display and LG Display are the only two suppliers of 120Hz OLED panels for the iPhone 17 series. According to a recent report, only they can make the LTPO screens that Apple needs. All iPhone 17 models, including the iPhone 17 Air, should feature 120Hz panels.
Whether it supplies panels for the iPhone 17 Air or not, Samsung would certainly be interested in selling high-end, ultra-slim OLED screens to other smartphone vendors. What better way to demonstrate its screen-making abilities than manufacturing an ultra-thin candy bar phone of its own?
