• Rumoured before the recent Unpacked event, Samsung has teased a slim model for its Galaxy S flagship lineup.
• The new device is reportedly launching in four markets initially, with others waiting to see if it’s worthwhile.
• No local pricing has been revealed, but it would be closer to the S25 than an FE-branded phone.

It seems like the smartphone industry is obsessed with making smartphones as thin as possible. The latest to tease a thinner device is Samsung, which offered a glimpse at the S25 Edge as an end credits-type reveal during the Unpacked event last week.

The first thing consumers will ask is precisely how thin the S25 Edge is compared to the rest of the lineup? Here the dimensions of the device have not been officially confirmed, but the body is said to measure 6.4mm thick, which is indeed thinner than the regular S25 at 7.2mm. Outside of the thin body, most of the specifications are rumoured to be on par with that of the regular S25.

The next thing consumers will ask is whether it will be launched in South Africa, along the other new devices in the lineup, all of which went on pre-order last week? The short answer is no.

The long answer is that Samsung Mobile SA is looking at how worthwhile it would be to bring such a device into the country. There are a number of factors to consider here, as explained to us by a contact familiar with the company’s mobile plans.

Here they pointed out that pricing, although unconfirmed for the local market, would simply be too close to that of the regular S25, and with the series already featuring three phones, there may be some confusion as to where the Edge model fits in.

“Samsung won’t have it in this market. Because of its stack, and because South Africa is an operator driven market, so many of these products are sold on a contract basis. Therefore the stack and the pricing does not really give Samsung an opportunity to bring it to market now,” they shared.

“It might do it as a second phase launch in about April,” they advised, however.

We also asked what role, if any, would a Fan Edition (FE) model launched later in the year play, and here our contact said it was not a factor at all, again pointing to pricing as a differentiator of the two.

“They’re (Galaxy S and Galaxy FE) in two different price categories, so this is one product where so much is changing and a lot of decisions still need to be debated. Samsung’s going to see what the response is,” they said.

The last thing we have to ponder then, is why even launch a slimmer flagship phone at all, especially as it is only set to initially launch in four countries. While our source did not provide us with insight here, we have to believe it may have to do with foldables, as Samsung experiments with just how thin it can make a flagship device.

Adding credence to our thinking is OPPO, which is preparing to launch the Find N5 as the world’s thinnest foldable to date, as well as Apple being rumoured to have a slim iPhone in the works too for later this year, which could also be used as a reference for a foldable design in the near future.

As we await more details on any local launch of the Galaxy S25 Edge, you can check out the other devices in the series by clicking on the pst embedded below.