Last week, Samsung announced the new Galaxy S24 line, which comes in three different models: S24, S24+ and S24 Ultra . . While the new phones are available for pre-order and will go on sale later this month, Samsung was kind enough to let me try out the base model Galaxy S24 a few days early. Read on as I go into detail about what's new in the Galaxy S24 and how it differs from the iPhone 15 line.
Although I&# I am fully involved in the Apple ecosystem, and my main phone is the iPhone. I like having a secondary Android phone so I can see what things are like on the other side. I've tested a lot of Samsung phones, from the Galaxy Z Flip 3 to the S23 Ultra and, most recently, the Z Fold 5 (which I also have some thoughts on which I can share in another article).
For now At the moment my main smartphone is iPhone 15 Pro Max. I've been using the Galaxy S24 since last week to try out new features (which are mostly AI related) and challenge myself to use a small phone.
A new but very familiar design for the Galaxy S24
Samsung has given the Galaxy S24 an updated look. The glossy edges have been replaced with a matte finish and the curves have disappeared, leaving the phone completely flat. Samsung has come up with some pretty original designs in recent years, but I have to say that the Galaxy S24 is very similar to the latest iPhone models.
It's an elegant design, isn't it? 8217;don't get me wrong. But I was a fan of the slightly curved glass around the edges. By the way, the bezels around the screen are slightly thinner than the bezels on the iPhone 15 Pro, which are already impressively thin. Thanks Samsung for this.
From from a big phone to not very large
I've been a fan of large-screen phones since the iPhone 6 Plus. I remember immediately upgrading from a 4-inch iPhone to a 5.5-inch one and never regretting it. As for Samsung, I always like the Ultra models best.
The base model Galaxy S24 now has a 6.2-inch screen, up from 6.1 inches in the previous generation. Honestly, I thought I'd be more bothered by the smaller size, but I'm fine with it – although I do miss the larger virtual keyboard and more space to use two apps at once (yes, that's a feature of Android phones).
Actually, the display is really good. The color reproduction matches the display of my iPhone 15 Pro Max. Samsung uses a 120Hz AMOLED panel across the entire S24 lineup, while Apple saves the better display for the Pro models. The clear advantage here is the maximum brightness level: a peak of 2600 nits versus 2000 nits for the iPhone 15. It's great for using the phone in bright sunlight.
In addition, the S24 weighs only 167 grams, making it very comfortable to hold in your hand. The regular iPhone 15 weighs almost the same – 171 grams.
What's really new in the Galaxy S24?
Samsung has been talking a lot about artificial intelligence during his event, because that's what the Galaxy S24 is all about. The new phones have faster processors and slightly better displays, but what sets them apart from the Galaxy S23 models are the built-in AI-powered features.
The company calls these features “ Galactic AI,” and they are present in many parts of the modified version of Android known as One UI. But there are five specific new features that are quite interesting.
1. Search circle
First, there's the Search Circle, which essentially allows users to circle something on the screen to search on Google. What this feature does isn't entirely new, but it's much faster now and doesn't require any third-party apps or taking a screenshot. In my tests, this worked very well, and results appeared almost instantly.
To activate the Circle to Search feature on the Galaxy S24, all you have to do is press and hold the Home button/light. on the screen. for a few seconds and then circle everything you want to find. This could be a photo or text. It just works.
What I liked about Circle to Search is that it has an anti-harassment feature. If you try to circle the person in the photo, you'll see a message saying your search results are limited. It can find detailed information about the glasses or headphones a person is wearing, but nothing about the person himself. Great for privacy.
2. Photo editing with artificial intelligence
But what's likely to grab people's attention the most are new generative photo editing tools. You can select an object in a photo and move it or remove it from the image, and then Galaxy AI will restore that photo for you.
I'm not here to discuss whether the photos are AI edited. are morally wrong, but the feature works well (although processing can sometimes take a while, probably because most of it happens online). But the thing is, I'm sure a lot of people will enjoy editing photos “like a pro.” without having to download third-party apps.
By the way, if you edit a photo using Galaxy AI, the image will have a watermark in the bottom left corner and the words “Galaxy AI””; will be added to the image metadata.
3. Transcript Assist
This is one of my favorite features of the Galaxy S24. It not only transcribes voice notes, but also summarizes all content by topic. Again, this isn't anything new, and you can do the same thing using some other AI tools, but the point is that it's now built into the phone – and it all happens locally, so you don't have to do it. ;no Internet connection is required to use it.
The transcription is not always perfect, but it does its job well. However, the ability to summarize is impressive. I recorded myself reading one of 9to5Mac's articles, and Galaxy AI accurately highlighted the main points of my voice note. I can't wait for Apple to implement something like this in iOS.
4. Live Translate
With Live Translate, you can call someone who doesn't speak your language and talk to them easily. When you call someone, you will see a button that allows you to turn on the feature and choose two languages to speak during the call. The Galaxy S24 then automatically translates everything said into each person's language.
Users can listen to the original audio and then an AI-generated voice reads the translation. This feature may seem a little confusing and even strange at first, but it works. You probably won't use this feature every day, but it can be very useful when you're traveling and want to make a restaurant reservation or call customer service in another country.
5. Chat Assist
Chat Assist was created to help users improve communication or even group chat with people in other languages as it can even translate messages in real time. For example, a user can select text and then ask the AI to rewrite it in a more formal or casual manner. It can also check the grammar of any text you write and suggest improvements, which is very cool.
What about cameras ?
As for the cameras, the characteristics are almost the same as last year's model. However, Samsung says it has made some improvements using artificial intelligence and better image processing (like what Apple is doing with Smart HDR).
I have yet to test the cameras in other scenarios, but the results are almost equivalent to what I achieve on my iPhone 15 Pro Max, at least when shooting.
Regular photos taken with the iPhone 15's main lens have a bit more detail, as Apple now uses pixel binning to create a 24-megapixel image from a 48-megapixel sensor. Although the Galaxy S24 has a 50-megapixel sensor (you can use its full resolution if you want), regular photos are taken at 12 megapixels.
Putting the two phones side by side, the results were mixed but very similar. In some scenarios, photos taken with the S24 were better, while the iPhone certainly does a better job of balancing exposure with a person and the sky behind. However, I still think the iPhone is unbeatable for shooting video.
And I thought the Ray-Ban Meta would be the only one that would have my photo on it.
In terms of zoom, the Galaxy S24 has a 3x telephoto lens, while the iPhone 15 is limited to digital zoom by cropping the image from the 48MP sensor (that's not a telephoto lens, Apple). Samsung also uses artificial intelligence to push digital zoom beyond 3x, which isn't incredible results but can be useful sometimes.
Of course, the iPhone 15 Pro does a better job at zoom shots thanks to its 5-pixel periscope lens. 1x zoom (though I'd like to see Apple use AI to enhance photos taken at 10x digital zoom, for example).
Even more interesting things about the Galaxy S24
The Galaxy S24 is coming with the new Exynos 2400 chip or the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, depending on the region you buy it from.
I have the Exynos version that will be available here in Brazil. Based on Geekbench 6 tests, the performance of the two chips is very similar. The single-core result of these chips is similar to that of the A15 Bionic, and the multi-core result is close to that of the Apple A17 Pro.
But Exynos processors are known for being more power hungry and also overheating. Samsung claims to have solved these problems with its latest chip. During my tests, I noticed that the phone gets a little warm when I use it outside with 5G enabled. Otherwise, I didn’t notice anything unusual.
In terms of performance, the Galaxy S24 is quite fast. Not noticeably faster than the S23 when using both phones side by side, but there wasn't a single moment where I felt like the phone needed more power, even compared to my iPhone 15 Pro Max.
Battery life Excellent too, especially for a 6.2 inch phone. Samsung has increased the capacity to almost 4000mAh, which ensures that this phone can be left unplugged for more than 24 hours if you are not a heavy user. In my daily use, it outperformed the iPhone 15 Pro Max (with a 4,400mAh battery for a 6.7-inch phone).
By the way, Samsung says it's working with Instagram to optimize the app for Galaxy S24 devices. While I still think the iPhone experience is better, the story sharing experience is much better compared to other Android devices.
To summarize
Samsung Galaxy S24 is definitely one of the best phones in the market at the moment. Of course, if you already have a Galaxy S23, the upgrade may not be worthwhile due to the minor improvements, but users of older phones (whether Android or iPhone) will certainly appreciate the latest and greatest hardware.
As for Galaxy AI, It's not worth upgrading just for that reason. Again, Samsung isn't introducing anything new, but having these features built into the phone will make a difference to many users who would never download third-party AI tools. Some of these features are quite handy and I could easily get used to using them on my phone.
Samsung has clearly learned a lot from Apple, but there are some things Apple could also learn from Samsung. I appreciate the way Samsung integrates certain aspects of its phones across its lineup, such as using the same processor and display technology for all.
Although both the Galaxy S24 and the base iPhone 15 start at $799. The Samsung phone certainly offers a little more for its price, with true 3x optical zoom and a 120Hz display with thinner bezels. At this point, choosing between a high-quality Android phone or an iPhone is more a matter of personal preference than anything else.
I will continue to use the iPhone as my primary phone for many reasons (especially the Apple ecosystem) , but I have to admit that using the Galaxy S24 doesn't make me miss many things about my iPhone.
The entire Galaxy S24 lineup is now available for pre-order, and you can already find special offers (like double zoom storage capacity at a discount) in online stores.
More about the Galaxy S24 from 9to5Google
- Hands-on: The Galaxy S24 and S24+ are a better buy than the S24 Ultra.
- I think I'd really like the Galaxy S24's AI features if I wish I really liked Samsung apps.
- Samsung's next major update, One UI 6.1, is coming to these Galaxy devices.
- Galaxy S24 photos with Super HDR support are coming. on Instagram, Snapchat, improved camera in the application.
