Samsung Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus evaluation: sensible selections | Digital Noch

The Galaxy S24 Plus and S24 borrow among the greatest concepts from Apple and Google, taking a working soar with them into the AI period.

The flat-edge design is undeniably iPhone, and the AI tech is essentially Google. The software program, for higher and worse, is all Samsung. However I wouldn’t name both telephone one of the best of all worlds. And though it’s tempting to name them higher Google telephones than the Pixel, I don’t suppose that’s all the way in which true.

The usual Galaxy S24 nonetheless begins at $799 and the Galaxy S24 Plus begins at $999 — it’s solely the Extremely that went up in worth this 12 months, to $1,299. Other than display dimension, the non-Extremely fashions share a lot of the identical options, so I’ll consult with them interchangeably all through this evaluation except in any other case specified.

The hole between the common fashions and the Extremely is wider than earlier than, however the advantages of stepping as much as the Extremely don’t really feel extra compelling. Certain, you get an even bigger, higher display, extra zoom, and an S Pen, such as you at all times do. However a variety of what makes the Extremely good are options it shares with the cheaper fashions. 

That features the entire extremely touted Galaxy AI options, like generative picture modifying, reside language translation on telephone calls, and computerized recording summaries. Like most issues AI proper now, they’re sometimes nice and generally bizarre. However on the entire, they do extra good than hurt, and it’s form of cool realizing my telephone can translate a name with somebody talking Spanish if I would like it to. For all of the quirks in Samsung’s software program, that’s one thing that the Pixel 8 Professional — or another telephone, for that matter — can’t do proper now.

Samsung managed to cram some additional display into the Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus with out making the telephones meaningfully greater — the S24 Plus went from a 6.6-inch to six.7-inch panel, and the S24 has a 6.2-inch versus a 6.1-inch display. How did Samsung handle this? Each telephones are barely taller now, and the bezels are only a hair slimmer on the brand new fashions.

Additionally they get just a bit brighter in direct daylight, as much as 2600 nits. It’s not an enormous distinction and also you don’t get the wonderful glare-reduction on the S24 Extremely’s panel, which actually does make a distinction, nevertheless it’s one thing. Oh, and the S24 Plus’ panel is now 1440p, and it’s about time Samsung upgraded it from 1080p.

There’s one year-over-year design distinction that I’m notably grateful for: the slight curve on the perimeters is gone instead of gloriously flat sides. It’s very a lot giving iPhone vibes, and I feel that’s simply high-quality. I discover a flat-edge telephone a lot simpler to select up with out it flying out of my fingers, and I don’t discover it any much less snug to carry in a single hand. 

That design language isn’t the one cue Samsung’s taking from Apple — One UI 6.1 provides wallpaper dimming for the always-on show, within the method of latest Professional iPhones, although just for the S24 telephones. Higher but, there are widgets! You’ll be able to organize a handful of them in a bar under the clock to indicate you your telephone’s battery life or your subsequent calendar occasion at a look, hands-free. We’re in an period of telephones doing extra for you once you’re not actively utilizing them, and I’m right here for it.

When you purchase the Galaxy S24 or S24 Plus within the US, it’ll include a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset, similar to the Extremely. However not like the Extremely, fashions bought outdoors the US will hold with one in all Samsung’s personal Exynos chips. I examined the Snapdragon variations of the S24 and S24 Plus and actually can’t discover a fault with them, performance-wise. The S24 Plus comes with 12GB of RAM, whereas the bottom mannequin S24 (together with my evaluation unit) comes with 8GB of RAM. I didn’t discover any important variations between the 2 in day-to-day efficiency.

Now that I’ve used all three S24 collection telephones, battery efficiency appears roughly the identical on all of them — the larger the telephone is, the extra power-hungry it’s, however the distinction is offset by an even bigger battery. On earlier generations, the smaller telephone was noticeably worse, however I feel that drawback has been largely solved at this level with extra power-efficient chipsets and barely greater batteries. One factor I do want Samsung had included? Qi2. There’s no assist for the MagSafe-esque customary, and that’s a disgrace.

On this, the 12 months 2024, Samsung nonetheless ships its high-end telephones with three-button navigation because the default. I normally plan to spend just a little additional time untangling a few of Samsung’s weirder default settings at any time when I exploit a brand new Galaxy telephone, and the S24 units have been no exception. No, I don’t need to discuss to Bixby once I long-press the ability button. No, I don’t need my app drawer organized in a nonsensical order the place I can by no means discover something. As regular, placing in just a little work upfront to de-Samsung your telephone is a fundamental requirement.

That’s the place I’ve a tough time calling the S24 an outright winner over the Pixel. After getting the whole lot the place you need it, the S24 is a triumph. However Samsung actually makes you’re employed for it, and Pixel telephones simply run higher software program proper out of the field. Working example: the Pixel 8 Professional doesn’t assist widgets on the always-on show just like the S24 does, however At a Look will floor helpful data there with out you lifting a finger. All of it simply feels just a little extra turnkey.

Samsung goes toe to toe with Google’s new coverage of supporting its flagship telephones with seven years of software program updates — OS upgrades and safety updates included. That feels extra essential within the S24 and S24 Plus, which I believe persons are extra prone to maintain onto for longer than an Extremely proprietor who desires to chase the most recent tech. 

The S24 units have the identical AI options throughout the complete collection, which is not the case on the Pixel 8 collection — some options are reserved for the larger, pricier Pixel 8 Professional, regardless of it utilizing the exact same processor because the Pixel 8. I lined lots of the S24 AI options in depth in my Galaxy S24 Extremely evaluation, so you possibly can examine that out for an in depth take a look at voice transcription and summaries, telephone name translation, and among the generative AI picture modifying options. 

The quick model is that none of those options really feel indispensable, however lots of them are genuinely useful even after they’re not excellent. Having a real-time translator on a name with somebody who speaks one other language is under no circumstances worse than not having one. Generative AI picture edits are actually uneven in high quality, however there’s no hurt achieved if you wish to merely reside your life with out utilizing them. Samsung would possibly begin charging for these options after 2025, so it’s properly giving itself some runway to get AI off the bottom. Proper now, there’s nothing price paying for.

One factor I’ll add now that I’ve been enjoying with AI on the S24 for a few weeks is that Samsung’s generative picture editor appears far more susceptible to including bizarre shit into your photographs than the Pixel. I attempted erasing my husband’s arm out of the identical picture on each the Galaxy S24 and the Pixel 8 Professional. The Pixel did its greatest to simply replicate the sofa within the background the place his arm was — the S24 as a substitute changed it with a brand new arm made out of pillows. Samsung! Why?

The modifying software program could also be radically completely different, however the digital camera {hardware} on the S24 and S24 Plus hasn’t modified from the earlier era. You continue to get a 50-megapixel principal digital camera, 12-megapixel ultrawide, and an precise 3x telephoto zoom irrespective of which of those two telephone sizes you select — and that’s darn good of them. 

There are a couple of processing updates beneath the hood, even within the absence of latest {hardware}. Low-light photos taken at 2x zoom now use a lossless crop from the center of the sensor; on the S23 collection, the digital camera reverted to digital zoom in dim mild.

Samsung has additionally added foreground blur in portrait mode, which seems like a small factor, nevertheless it makes a giant distinction in your photographs trying much less like cardboard cutouts. These little tweaks construct on what was already a darn good digital camera system. Samsung’s coloration processing leans onerous into vibrant reds and blues, per regular, which isn’t at all times my favourite. However when it’s good, it’s good.

Samsung is definitely one step forward of Google in adopting Extremely HDR, the brand new picture format supported by Android 14. It’s the good HDR, not the dangerous stuff, and it permits your photographs to pop in a means that’s not attainable with the usual dynamic vary photos we’re used to seeing. Samsung not solely helps Extremely HDR picture seize, you can even edit your photographs and share them to Instagram with out shedding the HDR data. The Pixel 8 collection shoots Extremely HDR, however doesn’t but assist HDR modifying in its personal Images app or sharing to social media.

A number of the greatest components of the Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus aren’t solely unique to Samsung, and I feel that’s high-quality. Adopting a popular, purposeful design and leaning on Google for AI is simply sensible — why reinvent the little black rectangle?

And in contrast to flat machine edges, AI options have quite a bit to show. The S24 is a lower-stakes solution to get in on the AI future than the $1,300 Extremely, or another extra radical concepts floating round on the market. 

Most significantly, it’s only a good, dependable telephone. The screens on each units are glorious, and the smaller Galaxy S24 stays among the best fairly small telephones you should purchase proper now. When you’re a small telephone fan like me, then it’s the one to select. 

So far as massive Android telephones go, you actually can’t do higher than the Galaxy S24 Plus proper now when it comes to efficiency and worth. Certain, you possibly can go Extremely and get absolutely the most telephone, with a giant, implausible display, higher zoom, and a built-in S Pen. However I feel the Extremely demographic is a bit more self-selecting, and the S24 Plus strikes me as the last word crowd-pleaser for somebody who simply desires a terrific Android telephone.

That mentioned, there are some good causes to think about the Pixel 8 Professional as a substitute. Its 5x telephoto has only a bit extra attain for these distant topics in comparison with the S24’s 3x zoom, and Pixel software program is much less fussy than One UI. However the Pixel’s Tensor G3 processor can run a bit hotter than the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for those who push it, and Google caught with the curved edge design, for now not less than. Generally, the neatest transfer is to acknowledge a good suggestion and embrace it — even when another person considered it first.

Images by Allison Johnson / The Verge