When Samsung unveiled the Galaxy S25 Edge back in May, we already knew one thing — it wasn’t coming to Kenya. Not officially, anyway. And to be honest, no one was losing sleep over it. This is a country where battery life is still king, not how thin your phone can slice through a sheet of A4 paper.
The idea of paying a premium for a phone with a lightweight battery felt like a joke only rich markets would entertain. Turns out, even they weren’t amused.
Now, fresh reports from South Korea claim Samsung is pulling the plug on the entire ultra-slim Edge line barely five months after it launched, with the Galaxy S25 Edge first on the chopping block. The planned S26 Edge? Also scrapped internally, even though development was reportedly done.
According to Korean outlet Newspim, Samsung notified staff that the slimline experiment is being discontinued. Sales were dismal, and that’s not an exaggeration. Data from Hana Securities reveals a significant sales disparity between the new models, where the Edge model has struggled to gain market traction compared to its S25 counterparts.
In its first month, the Edge sold just 190,000 units, while the S25, S25 Plus, and S25 Ultra sold 1.17 million, 840,000, and 2.55 million units, respectively. By August, cumulative sales for the Edge were 1.31 million, compared to a combined 25.51 million across the entire S25 line. The regular S25? 8.28 million. That gap is not “niche audience”, that’s “market rejection.”
And when you look at the current prices here in Kenya, it all makes sense. The Galaxy S25 Edge, although it never officially launched in Kenya, goes for KES 107,000. On the other hand, the standard Galaxy S25 goes for around KES 85,000, depending on the shop. This price gap cannot be be justified by the thinness of the phone.
Globally, the Edge was priced higher than the basic S25, yet somehow offered less: a smaller 3,900mAh battery, one less camera, no standout extras, and a thinner design that no one was asking for. The “ultra-slim, ultra-premium” pitch didn’t land, neither abroad nor with Kenyan resellers like Phones and Tablets Kenya and Phone Place Kenya pushing it through the grey market.
Kenya saw it coming, and so did the rest of the world
Samsung initially planned for the Edge to replace the Plus model starting with the S26 lineup, positioning it as the new trendsetter. But when even its biggest markets shrugged, the company quietly backpedaled.
Internally, things sound chaotic. One Samsung source told Newspim that staff are “embarrassed” over the sudden U-turn, especially with the S26 launch expected in January. Instead of the planned S26 Edge, the lineup is now reverting to the classic trio: S26, S26 Plus, and S26 Ultra.
Industry analysts aren’t sugar-coating it either. They’re calling it a strategic retreat and admitting the Edge was more of a reaction to Apple’s iPhone Air than a well-thought-out demand-driven product.
And honestly? That tracks.
Thin phones are cute, until you check the battery and price
The Galaxy S25 Edge wasn’t built because consumers begged for it; it was built because someone at Samsung thought, “Apple is doing slim — we should too.”
And it’s not just Samsung playing that game. The iPhone Air is also riding the hype wave right now — uniquely built, pretty to look at, and expensive enough to make your M-Pesa app sweat. But long-term? If thinness is the main brag, these phones are heading nowhere fast, especially in places like Kenya.
Because in this market, people don’t want a phone that looks like a cracker. They want one that won’t die before the matatu reaches Ngong Road.
The verdict? Kenya dodged a pointless flex
At over KES 107K, the Galaxy S25 Edge is more expensive than the standard S25 and gives you less of what actually matters. Battery? Smaller. Camera? No telephoto lens. Performance? Same. Practicality? Worse. Appeal? Niche at best, irrelevant at worst.
Meanwhile, the standard S25 — cheaper, better battery, better value — is comfortably doing its job at around KES 85K. Now that Samsung is pulling the Edge from circulation globally, it’s clear Kenya wasn’t “left out.” It was spared.
The ultra-slim dream looked good in renders and launch videos. But once it hit the real world, it turned into what it always was: a pretty distraction that forgot who actually buys phones.
And just like that, thin is out, substance is back in.
