Samsung will reportedly release a Galaxy S25 Slim next year as a test for a potential S26 design

Ten years ago, Samsung launched the Galaxy Alpha, a slender 6.7mm phone that would go on to inspire the Galaxy S6 design the next year. Korean publication ETNews is quoting industry insiders who claim that the company is about to try something like that again.

Design sketches for the Galaxy S6

The insiders say that Samsung will launch a Slim version of one of the Galaxy S25 phones. Note that this will be a separate device that will launch later – the Galaxy S25 series is still expected early next year with a vanilla, Plus and Ultra models.

The slender device will come a few months later, similar to the Galaxy Z Fold Special Edition. And just like it, the main focus will be on making the device thinner. It’s not clear which of the three S25 models will serve as the base for the Galaxy S25 Slim (or whatever it is called).

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold Special Edition

The insiders claim that this way Samsung can test the waters – how much demand is there for thin phones? – and if it sees encouraging results, it will incorporate that into the Galaxy S26 design.

We’ve already seen a report from The Elec that Samsung will turn the Galaxy S25 FE into a Slim model and this ties into today’s report – the FE models typically launch a few months after the main series. This helps prevent the S FE phones from cannibalizing sales of the S phones, something that is allegedly a concern with the Slim model too.

Apple is also reported to be planning a Slim model for next year, to replace the struggling Plus model (which replaced the struggling mini model).

But are thinner phones what consumers really want? This is exactly what Samsung endeavors to find out before committing its bread-and-butter Galaxy S line to that choice.

Source (in Korean)