The Real Reason Galaxy S25 Ultra Doesn’t Have Samsung’s 200MP Zoom Camera

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In June 2024, Samsung introduced the 200MP ISOCELL HP9 smartphone camera. Vivo first used it on the X100 Ultra for its 3.7x zoom camera and later on the V200 Pro. However, Samsung opted not to include it in the newly launched Galaxy S25 Ultra, leaving some fans curious. Now, we understand the reasoning behind this decision.

Samsung may never use the 200MP ISOCELL HP9 zoom camera on Galaxy flagships

Samsung launched the Galaxy S25 Ultra with an unchanged zoom camera setup. The new flagship sports a 50MP 5x lens and a 10MP 3x lens, the same as last year’s S24 Ultra. Many fans wondered why the company didn’t upgrade to the new 200MP sensor it already supplies to other vendors. Reputed leaker Ice Universe has revealed the reason.

According to the leaker, Samsung’s current design philosophy is making flagships slim and compact. Sure enough, all three Galaxy S25 models are slimmer, lighter, and more compact than their predecessors. The Ultra model is 8.2mm thick and weighs 218 grams. The ISOCELL HP9 200MP camera doesn’t fit this design philosophy.

The leaker says this camera sensor is too thick for the Galaxy S25 Ultra. The sensor itself is thicker than the phone, so incorporating it would make the new flagship much more bulkier. And while Vivo has shown that a higher resolution zoom camera can make a difference in image quality, not many people prefer to buy its bulky phones.

Samsung’s Ultra flagships comfortably outsell all other rivals combined. The company sold nearly 17 million Galaxy S24 Ultra units last year, and the S25 Ultra might top that. It wants to play the game as the market demands rather than go after super-high-resolution zoom cameras. As such, sensors like ISOCELL HP9 might never make it to Galaxy flagships.

That doesn’t necessarily mean we will never see a Galaxy with a 200MP zoom camera. Samsung could make slimmer 200MP cameras with a high-resolution sensor. The Galaxy S25 Ultra could surely do with a zoom camera upgrade, but in our early testing, we found notable improvements in zoom photos. It remains to be seen if the Galaxy S26 Ultra will introduce new zoom cameras. Early signs aren’t quite promising, but there’s still time, so we aren’t losing hope just yet.

Written by

Sumit Adhikari

Sumit, a life-long Samsung user, is passionate about technology and has been professionally writing on tech since 2017. He’s a mathematics graduate by education and enjoys teaching basic mathematics tricks to school kids in his spare time. Sumit believes in artificial intelligence and dreams of a fully open, intelligent and connected world.

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