Samsung Galaxy S24

 Samsung Galaxy S24 : First Unpacked of the year

Samsung announced the new Galaxy S24 smartphones loaded with a bunch of new Galaxy AI features at the first Unpacked of the year. The Samsung Galaxy S24 series arrive to prove that AI is the future, but one simple upgrade matters more in the here and now – all three S24 phones have LTPO displays with 1-120Hz variable refresh rate. The Ultra phones had that already, but this is a long awaited upgrade for people who prefer the vanilla and plus models. The Samsung Galaxy S24+ gets another upgrade – QHD+ resolution. This on a flat 6.7” display brings the experience quite close to the Ultra at a lower price point. The phone is roughly the same size as the S23+ (0.3mm narrower, 0.7mm taller, 0.1mm thicker) and weighs the same but brings a display that is a tenth of an inch larger and a battery that has 200mAh more capacity (4,900mAh). Another important change is that all S24+ configurations now have 12GB of RAM, same as the Ultra. As for storage, you can pick between 256GB and 512GB. Samsung was quiet about, the S24 Ultra will exclusively use Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for Galaxy chipsets, the S24 and S24+ will get that only in some regions. Elsewhere, they will get the new Exynos 2400. Region wise situation is still not clear.

The Samsung Galaxy S24 also has a display that is a tenth larger (6.2”), but it remains at FHD+ resolution. At least the panel was upgraded to LTPO (1-120Hz). Also, the S24 trio all boasts a peak brightness of 2,600 nits with Vision Booster (last year’s displays topped out at 1,750 nits). The Galaxy S24 also has a slightly larger battery, 100mAh extra bring its capacity to 4,000mAh. However, charging remains limited to 25W wired and 15W wireless. The Galaxy S24+ charging is unchanged too (45W wired, 15W wireless with Qi charging). Using a compatible USB charger, the S24 gets to 50% in 30 minutes, the S24+ to 65% in the same span of time. The vanilla model also missed out on the memory upgrade, the base configuration still has only 8GB of RAM and only 128GB storage.

Samsung Galaxy S24 series will receive 7 generations of OS updates and 7 years of security patches. These phones will still be getting support into the 2030s! They launch with Android 14 and One UI 6.1 out of the box. The S24 and S24+ feature a 50MP main (f/1.8 lens with OIS), a 12MP ultrawide (120°) and a 10MP tele camera with 3x zoom (f/2.4), the front-facing camera has a 12MP sensor (f/2.2 80° lens). The S24 and S24+ stick with aluminium (unlike the Ultra, which now has a titanium frame) and Gorilla Glass Victus 2 from last year. The dust and water resistance rating is at IP68. There are sub-6GHz and mmWave variants of both phones, availability will vary by region. Other connectivity includes Wi-Fi 6E (not 7) and Bluetooth 5.3.

Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra

Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra dons a familiar design but now has a chassis made out of titanium. Plus, the smartphone is IP68 water-resistant. There is a 6.8-inch QHD+ display with a 120Hz adaptive refresh rate and a 2,600nit peak brightness with Corning Gorilla Armor. The S24 Ultra comes with an S Pen tucked inside. Powered by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 Mobile Platform, optimised for Galaxy users. The smartphone runs OneUI 6.1 on top of Android 14. The gaming experience is elevated with a larger vapour chamber for optimal thermal control and ray tracing for realistic visuals. The 5,000mAh battery supports fast wired and wireless charging and Wireless Power Share. The S24 Ultra packs in a 200MP wide camera, a 12MP ultra-wide camera, a 10MP telephoto with 3x zoom, and another telephoto, now upgraded to a 50MP sensor with 5x optical zoom and up to 100x digital zoom. On the front, there is a 12MP camera housed inside the centred punch-hole cut out. 

Samsung Galaxy S24, Galaxy S24+

Samsung Galaxy S24 has a 6.2-inch FHD+ display, while the Galaxy S24+ has a 6.7-inch QHD+ display, the same resolution as Ultra. Both feature 120Hz adaptive refresh rate, Vision Booster and slimmer bezels. The two smartphones feature an IP68 rating for water-resistivity. The two smartphones come with Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset, which has been specially tuned for the Samsung Galaxy flagship smartphones. The chipset comes paired with up to 512GB of storage, 8GB RAM on the Galaxy S24 and 12GB RAM on the Galaxy S24+. Both run OneUI 6.1 on top of Android 14. The Galaxy S24 packs a 4,000mAh battery with support for 25W fast charging, and the Galaxy S24+ is equipped with a larger 4,900mAh battery supporting 45W fast charging. Samsung Galaxy S24 and Galaxy S24+ boast a triple camera setup, featuring a 50MP wide camera with OIS, a 12MP ultra-wide camera, a 10MP telephoto camera with 3x optical zoom, and a 12MP front camera.

Important Point wise details are as follows:-

Galaxy AI

The S24 series, consisting of S24 Ultra, S24 Plus, and S24, is packed with both local and cloud-based AI features. These devices are powered by Google's Gemini foundational models that run on-device. Additionally, the S24 series introduces a range of new text, image, and video editing tools that are powered by generative AI, collectively known as Galaxy AI. AI features are processed on the device by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 Chipset, keeping conversations private.

Galaxy AI editing tools

Galaxy AI offers suggestions for editing photos, while Generative Edit can fill in parts of an image's background. Edit Suggestion12 and Generative Edit13 use Galaxy AI to suggest tweaks and give users creative control. Generative AI adds a watermark to the image and metadata. Instant Slow-mo generates frames to slow down action-packed moments.

Live Translate

The Galaxy S24 smartphones will support Live Translate, allowing for private, real-time two-way translations during phone calls within the native app, without the need for a third-party app.

Note Assist

Samsung Notes' Note Assist feature uses AI-generated summaries, templates and covers to help organise your notes efficiently.

Interpreter

Interpreter offers split-screen translations of in-person conversations. It can also generate transcripts of recordings, which can be summarised or translated as needed. Live conversations can be instantly translated on a split-screen view, even without Wi-Fi or cellular data.

Chat Assist

Chat Assist helps perfect conversational tone, while Samsung Keyboard AI translates messages in 13 languages.

7 years of update for Galaxy S24 series

With the Galaxy S24 series, Samsung is promising 7 generations of OS upgrades and 7 years of security updates.

The Galaxy S24 starts at $800/€900/£800 with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. The Galaxy S24+ starts at $1,000/€1,150/£1,000 with 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage.