Ryan Haines / Android Authority
While there are many things we don’t know about what the 12 months ahead will bring, there are certain phone trends that show signs of continuing into 2025. We outlined these in an article a little while ago and also asked you which of the trends you were most excited about. As it turns out, there was no contest.
As a quick recap, Android phones in 2025 are expected to focus on certain performance improvements. These include much better battery life driven by larger silicon batteries and efficient 3nm processors, alongside substantial performance gains from next-gen CPUs and GPUs. Enhanced in-display fingerprint sensors promise greater reliability, while water resistance ratings like IP68 and IP69 are becoming standard even in budget-conscious brands. Manufacturers may face rising costs, potentially resulting in price hikes or feature downgrades, and rumors suggest a renewed push for slimmer designs.
The poll in that article assumed you weren’t excited about higher prices or downgrades, but we were curious about which of the other phone trends most interested you. Let’s look at the results.
What phone trend are you looking forward to in 2025?
The results of the phone trends poll couldn’t be much more comprehensive — a massive 61% of the respondents are excited about better battery life. The second most votes went to a performance boost, but it was way behind the battery life option with only 12% of the vote. None of the other options garnered more than 10%.
It’s a decisive victory for better battery life, but it’s not exactly surprising if you consider the alternatives. Many flagship phones already offer a high level of performance that meets the needs of most users, and thin phones are a niche aimed at specific buyers. Fingerprint scanning issues are little more than a niggle for a lot of people, and more water resistance often occurs to us when it’s already too late to save a soaking device. But battery life is a common unifier. Everyone would like their phone battery to last a bit longer, even if they already have one of the top options for battery longevity on the market.
Everyone would like their phone battery to last a bit longer.
Of those that voted for a trend not listed, one suggestion from reader catfanatic1979 was more fun, youthful-looking colors. This would certainly have the support of the Android Authority team, but it doesn’t seem to be where the trends are going at this early stage of 2025. Recent leaks of the Galaxy S25 colorways suggest the options will be largely made up of various blues, grays, blacks, and silvers.
Other commentators proposed more under-display cameras, headphone jacks, and SD card slots. Another suggested five years of upgrades at minimum. The latter is a phone trend we’ve seen from the likes of Samsung and Google on its flagship devices in recent years, but longer support for budget devices would certainly be welcome.
