Leakers can't decide if the Galaxy S25 Ultra will have three cameras or four

The Samsung Galaxy S25 series is still far away from its expected January launch window, but we’ve already seen a few initial rumors. Now, the Galaxy S25 Ultra has become the subject of several conflicting claims.

Several leakers on X have made contradictory claims about the number of cameras on the Galaxy S25 Ultra. Tipster Sperandio4Tech was the first to assert that Samsung will only offer three cameras instead of four cameras like the S24 Ultra. The user — who doesn’t seem to have a significant track record to speak of — specifically claimed that the Galaxy maker will drop the 3x camera.

Sperandio4Tech went on to claim that Samsung will use a 200MP main camera with the same sensor size as before (but with improved light capture) to generate 3x images. They also alleged that the S25 Ultra will have a periscope camera with variable zoom and a large sensor. This isn’t believed to be continuous variable zoom but rather switching between ~4x to ~5x and ~6x to ~7x. This concept would be in line with the Sony Xperia 1 III, which had a variable telephoto camera capable of shooting at either 3x or 4.4x optical zoom, with hybrid zoom used to fill in the interstitial zoom levels.

Meanwhile, leaker @BennettBuhner also claimed that the Galaxy S25 Ultra would be getting three cameras instead of four. He asserts that Samsung will offer a ~50MP variable telephoto camera with “select zoom ranges.” The tipster also speculated that we could see 14x “lossless” zoom if it tops out at 7x optical zoom.

The leaker added that the S25 Ultra will pack an upgraded 200MP ~1-inch sensor and a 50MP ultrawide lens.

S25 Ultra to drop a camera? Not so fast

More established sources weren’t so quick to claim that the next Ultra phone will abandon the 3x camera, however. Tipster Revegnus asserted that the S25 Ultra indeed has four rear cameras, suggesting that the 3x lens will live to fight another day.

Noted Samsung leaker Ice Universe has also claimed that the Galaxy S25 Ultra will still offer four rear cameras and that Samsung won’t remove the 3x lens. However, he added that an upgraded 3x camera is “very possible.” He also refused to rule out the possibility that “everything will be the same.”

Samsung’s track record suggests that it’s very conservative with Ultra camera upgrades. So it ordinarily stands to reason that the 3x camera would stick around in some capacity, although we’d cross our fingers for an upgraded sensor.

It’s worth noting that these recent variable zoom rumors didn’t come out of the blue. Leaker Revegnus posted an apparent Ultra camera roadmap back in December, mentioning a folded telephoto camera with “variable capabilities.” But we’ll have to wait for more leaks closer to the S25 line’s launch to see how this pans out and if the S25 Ultra will stake a claim as one of the best camera phones of 2025.