FIRST IMPRESSION: What did I notice on the new Samsung Galaxy S24?

The Samsung Unpacked event is taking place in San Jose, California, where we were among the first to experience what will be the focus of this year's Samsung Galaxy S24 phones. Many things were already known, especially on the hardware side, but the bigger unknown was artificial intelligence or Galaxy AI.

What language model did they use? Will the use of AI services/features be free? Will it also be possible to use artificial intelligence locally, i.e. offline? What is the situation with Slovenian? Which features are most useful? Do users even need integrated AI solutions in phones? Is this the start of a whole new feature that manufacturers will rally around and compete to see who has the best AI?

Lots of questions and I had the opportunity to at least partially lift the veil of mystery surrounding the new Samsung Galaxy S24 series at the Samsung Unpacked event.

Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra – the best Android phone yet

This isn't exactly earth-shattering news, as I say the same thing every year when a new Samsung Galaxy Ultra comes out. I was able to test the new Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor for the first time, although it has been circulating in China for some time. Initial results are within my expectations. Phones have been running smoothly for some time now, even if they don't have the latest and fastest processor, especially if the company does at least a little software optimization, which is almost never a problem with Samsung phones.

Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 – A good upgrade, especially on the graphics side

With the third Snapdragon generation, we understandably have even more power available than last year. I haven't had a chance to do synthetic tests yet, but we already have some comparisons with the previous generation.

On top of that, we are also expected to get a slightly special version of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for the Galaxy this year, which means a bit more performance cores. For the Cortex A720 cores, the operating frequency is said to be reduced slightly (from 3.2 to 3.15 GHz for three cores and from 3 to 2.96 GHz for two cores), which helps with heat dissipation, consistency and battery performance.

The biggest upgrade, as much as 30 %, is in multi-core performance, while in single-core workload we can see around 10-15 % improvement. The graphics core (Adreno 750) is better by as much as 30-40 %. Ray tracing capabilities have also been improved, although there are still not many mobile games that can take advantage of this technology (PUBG, Rainbow Six, War Thunder...).

Simply put, it's very good news for gamers and users who need this kind of performance for more productive tasks.

It's also good news that this way, Samsung has again approached the performance on paper, which is possibly sufficient to run some computer games (Assassin's Creed Mirage, Resident Evil Village...). We'll see if game developers respond and adapt their games for Android phones. Until then, I'll still pass the time playing Switch games on the Galaxy S24, which I expect will perform just fine. I also noticed the first dedicated drivers for the new processor, which bodes well for even more reliable console gaming.

The Samsung Galaxy S24+ and Galaxy S24 have an Exynos 2400 processor, but for now I have no concrete data on performance and, above all, efficiency.

Where does all this heat go?

The heat dissipation system has been increased/improved across the entire Samsung Galaxy S24 series. The steam chamber in the Galaxy S24 Ultra is as much as 1.9 times larger. How this will be known in terms of consistency or heat dissipation, it is difficult for me to predict at this moment. On paper, performance should be much more consistent than last year, but I'll wait for a more detailed test.

7 years of support

The Samsung Galaxy S24 series will have 7 years of Android support and 7 years of security patches. You may be wondering if this even makes sense. Will the hardware stand the test of time after 7 years? Maybe not, but many people will be able to use the Galaxy S24 as a secondary phone, where the 7-year support will prove to be a welcome addition.

The design rests on titanium with a green touch

The design remained largely the same, with the exception of the titanium, which was certainly inspired by the competition. This means better durability, a slightly lighter phone and an even more premium feel. I haven't been able to make sure if maybe the titanium will affect the overheating of the phone. I hope to get the phone for a longer test soon and see how the new design performs. I am also waiting for an answer as to how much of the case actually consists of titanium and how much aluminum was used in the design.

The screen is also slightly better. They improved the brightness to 2600 nits, which means clarity and transparency regardless of the amount of daylight. I did not notice any concrete improvements in the quality of the AMOLED screen, but the previous generation already had a very good screen. Maybe I'll notice some difference in a deeper test. Importantly, all three Galaxy S24 models have the same LTPO display, which means that all of them (for the first time ever) can refresh between 1 and 120 Hz, which is great for battery autonomy.

The screen is now flat. Some will miss the premium feel of a curved screen, but in return it's more impact resistant, especially when dropped on the edge of the phone, there are fewer unplanned touches, and the S Pen can be used across the entire screen.

The Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra also got a new protection - Corning Gorilla Armor, which is supposed to be 4x stronger than similar solutions, but it is not clear whether the previous Victus 2 is also taken into account in this comparison. The new protection should also help with reflections, up to 75 % less reflections. The classic Galaxy S24 and Galaxy S24+ will have the excellent Gorilla Victus 2.

Charging is still limited to 45 W, of course we will have to buy the charger separately. I have not received an answer as to when Samsung will commit to faster charging.

The fingerprint sensor remains the same as previous years, i.e. Qualcomm 3D Sonic Gen 2.

This year, there is also a lot of emphasis on recycling. They use recycled cobalt in the batteries, some raw materials and iron in the speakers, plastic on the buttons and the packaging is made from 100 % recycled paper.

Although the Galaxy S24+ and S24 didn't get titanium, they boast a new, more unified One-mass design, which means the back and sides are seamlessly connected.

An even better photographer...

... which can be mainly thanks to artificial intelligence and the new periscope telephoto camera. The latter has a larger 50 MP sensor with optical image stabilization (OIS) and this time up to 5x optical zoom instead of 10x like the Galaxy S23 Ultra.

Why up to 5x and not up to 10x? Several users use magnification between 3x and 5x. There are significantly fewer scenarios where you would need 10x than 5x. The new sensor also has a wider aperture (f/4.9 vs. f/3.2), which means it can absorb more light. Unfortunately, I will only be able to find out during the test whether this also means better night photos. I captured some quick photos and can appreciate the detail at 3x and 5x zoom. At 10x, it is noticeable that the program side needs to shift into a higher gear, but despite the fact that the optics are not present, the results are very good. At higher magnifications (20, 30 and up to 100x), however, I noticed only a slight improvement compared to the Galaxy S23 Ultra. So far the results are good, but I will give my final opinion after the test.

They also improved the End-to-End AI image reconstruction, with which the phone will process the photo even faster and at the same time the time of taking the photo will be reduced, or the delay between pressing and the captured photo will be much shorter.

The main 200 MP sensor remains the same, the quality is better at first glance, but at the expense of the already mentioned improved image reconstruction and artificial intelligence algorithms that are more adept at processing. With the first photos, I noticed that there is not the same exaggeration with the warmth of the colors and exposed highlights, which I like better than last year. This is certainly in favor of users who like more natural color tones.

The second telephoto (12MP) and front camera (12MP) remain the same.

Galaxy AI - the beginning of artificial intelligence in phones

It's rare for software to overshadow hardware components, but that's exactly what happened at this year's Samsung Unpacked. A lot of attention, in fact most of it, has been given to artificial intelligence Galaxy AI.

They are said to use their own language model, and rely on partnerships for certain features (Circle to Google Search).

First of all, it should be emphasized that Slovenian is not supported for the following functions. 13 languages are supported, new ones will be added on a regular basis based on demand.

Samsung guarantees that Galaxy AI will be free to use until at least 2025.

Galaxy AI will help us write texts and will also suggest improvements. I was able to test the translation during a phone call in an isolated booth and the feature works very well. In practice, there will probably be a bit of background noise and there may be translation errors.

I also tried this Interpreter, which is used in live conversations. You choose the target and source language and have a conversation with a foreign person in a foreign language, while the Galaxy S24 shows a live translation of the conversation. The function will be very useful for many people, even if Slovenian is not supported, but background noises can be a potential nuisance. The interpreter also works offline, so we will be able to use it on the plane, for example.

Translations are also available in Messages, Documents and elsewhere, but require a network connection and a Samsung account. You can also choose different styles, for example a writing style like Shakespeare or a more relaxed or more "cool" style (uses the Google Gemini model). I assume that the transcription function will also be useful (requires an Internet connection), which will convert the audio text to text and, if desired, also summarize it.

When taking photos, Galaxy AI will help us with corrections, better photo processing, offer the option of removing reflections, and some dedicated functions will also be available. With Generative Edit we will be able to straighten the photo, with the lasso tool we can easily mark an object/subject in the image, move it and Galaxy AI will automatically fill the empty pixels. The photo features work locally, so no connection is required to use them.

Captured footage can also easily be turned into a slow (Slow-mo) footage.

Galaxy AI will most likely be a good complement to the Google Lens tool, with which we can use the camera to translate, recognize objects in the image and then search for them online. Galaxy AI allows us to do this anywhere, in any application. You'll be watching a clip on YouTube and you'll be able to tag a specific item and search for it on Google.

The enhanced security provided by Samsung Knox is also at the fore. For example, we will be able to choose how much data artificial intelligence can use for learning. Passkeys will also be available for even more secure online access.

A lot remains unexplored, so I'm eagerly waiting for the latest Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra (and other members too) to make its way into my hands.

Availability and price in Slovenia?

The Galaxy S24 will be available at a suggested retail price of EUR 899, the Galaxy S24+ at a suggested retail price of EUR 1,149, and the Galaxy S24 Ultra () at a suggested retail price of EUR 1,449.

The Galaxy S24 Ultra will be available in Titanium Black, Titanium Grey, Purple and Titanium Yellow. Galaxy S24+ and Galaxy S24 in onyx black, marble gray, cobalt purple and amber yellow.

Pre-orders begin today, January 17, at authorized Samsung partners. Just like last year, there will be some perks: more storage space for the price of the base version and an additional bonus. Please visit the link for full promotion terms and conditions.

Main specifications of Samsung Galaxy S24 phones