Quick Review: Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra

The year has just begun and Samsung has released possibly one of the best Android smartphones for the whole year. Indeed, the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra continues its tradition of offering the most “phone” in its flagship. Not to mention, it’s going to be bringing the much-hyped Galaxy AI, promising a whole new way to use your Android.

Really, there’s no need to stand on ceremony here. You can see this impressive Android phone for yourself in our unboxing video here:

Buy it if...

You want one of the best Android phones for this year

In a way, we definitely think the S24 Ultra is one of the best phone releases for this year. You get impressive performance and efficiency from its flagship Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, easily handling even your most intensive games and apps.

That’s not all though. You get an improved vapor chamber, which helps maintain its performance while remaining quite cool in your hand. There’s a 5,000mAh battery, improved durability courtesy of its new titanium frame and Corning Gorilla Armor, and a quad-camera array which we’ll take a closer look at later.

And as the cherry on top of all this, Samsung has also promised up to 7 years of support in terms of OS and security updates which definitely pushes them to the same level as their Pixel and Cupertino rivals. Definitely a phone you’ll be able to keep for a long time.

You plan on making effective use of AI on your phone

AI was the big talking point during Samsung’s launch event and for good reason. All Galaxy S24 models will come with Galaxy AI, offering a whole host of new features and functionality for your phone.

Take Circle to Search for instance. While it seems a bit gimmicky, it can be really handy if, say, you spot an item you’re interested in while browsing Instagram, or for when your daily crossword proves to be a bit too challenging.

Honestly, we think there’s plenty to explore with this phone. There’s its ability to convert a video you took into slow-motion, and of course, Magic Editor for your photos, which can help add a “bokeh” effect, remove reflections, and even move subjects around.

You’re big on mobile photography

Samsung continues to be among the best in mobile photography and the S24 Ultra continues this tradition. There’s the same impressive 200 MP main camera with OIS, which you can use to capture some truly stunning landscapes and portraits!

And yes, the phone did lose the 10 MP periscope telephoto for 10x optical zoom from the S23 Ultra. But, you do get a new 5x periscope telephoto but with 50 MP, letting you get more detail. The front camera is largely untouched, so you get the same 12 MP front camera as well.

There’s also yearly improvements to its ‘ProVisual Engine’ and Nightography features for low-light. And for those who do have concern with AI-edited photos, Samsung will generate an indicator in the metadata that will let people know that the photo has been touched up with AI.

As another treat, both Instagram and its rival Snapchat will be making use of the Galaxy S24 series’ native camera features whenever you take photos directly using these apps. That means, you’ll be able to directly upload HDR photos and videos when you use these new phones.

Don't buy it if...

You need a more affordable phone

The Galaxy S24 Ultra is definitely an impressive smartphone. As such, it also commands a very high price compared to other options in the market. If this is a bit too daunting and overkill for your needs though, then you still have some options out there.

One is by going a year back and going for the S23 series; which are still very capable today. Or if you want something closer to midrange, you can check out the Samsung Galaxy S23 FE which still offers flagship components in terms of processing power.

You prefer a less boxy form factor

With the Galaxy S24 Ultra, Samsung has opted to ditch the gently curved sides of the S23 Ultra in favor of a flatter display. To no surprise, the phone feels a little bit more boxy in the hand. Great for gripping but it might be a bit cumbersome for some.

Fortunately, the Galaxy S24+ should provide an almost similar experience while keeping a similar silhouette to the S23. No compromises on the display either; the Galaxy S24+ has been boosted to a similar 1440p display, pushing it much closer to the Galaxy S24 Ultra than the base S24.

You prefer a more compact phone

The thing about being the grandest and biggest phone in the lineup is well, it gets quite big. Basically, if you think the S23 Ultra is heavy, then the S24 Ultra won’t exactly change your mind. You might prefer a smaller, more compact phone in this case.

In that case, the standard Galaxy S24 may be the right fit for you. Sure, you lose a bit of battery capacity and depending on the region, the Snapdragon chip, but you still get a nice phone with the Galaxy AI features at a more manageable size…and price!

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