Samsung S24 Series: Everything you need to know

It’s a new year and Samsung has launched its new Samsung S24 series! These are the best devices Samsung has in 2024, with awesome hardware and software features that’ll blow your mind.

The Samsung S24 series has three models: the Samsung S24, the Samsung S24 Plus, and the Samsung S24 Ultra. Each one has its own perks and specs, but they also have some things in common. They all have amazing cameras that can snap every detail, fast processors that can run any app, and a bunch of software features that boost your productivity, creativity, and entertainment.

In this article, we’ll give you a complete overview of the Samsung S24, Samsung S24 Plus, and Samsung S24 Ultra. We’ll cover their design, display, performance, battery, camera, and more. You’ll have a clear idea of which Samsung S24 model fits your needs and preferences if you see our Samsung Galaxy S24 Review and also our Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra Review.

Samsung S24 Series: Spec

Samsung S24 series: When, where, and how much?

• Samsung S24 (8/128GB): $799.99
• Samsung S24 Plus (12/256GB): $999.99
• Samsung S24 Ultra (12/256GB): $1,299.99

The Samsung S24 series is here! Samsung unveiled its new flagship smartphones on January 17, 2024, in San Jose, California. You could pre-order them right away, and they’ll hit the stores on January 31.

If you’re in the US, you’ll pay the same price for the regular and Plus models as you did for the last three years. The S24 costs $799, and the S24 Plus costs $999. The S24 Ultra is the most expensive one, at $1,299. These prices haven’t changed since the Samsung S21 series launched in 2021.

Samsung S24 price

• Thin and tough
• Victus 2 glass
• Bright display
• MSRP: $799.99
• AI-powered performance and design

The S24 has a 6.2-inch, 120Hz display, 128GB or 256GB of storage, 8GB of RAM, and up to 2,600 nits of brightness. It’s a great upgrade from the previous models. The new AI features make the camera, search, and more better than ever. But the Ultra model is not so lucky. It’s $100 more expensive than last year. It used to be $1,199, but now it’s $1,299.

Samsung S24 Ultra price

• 200MP camera
• ProVisual Engine
• Up to 1TB of storage
• New AI tools
• MSRP: $1,299.99

The Samsung S24 Ultra is Samsung’s flagship device. It has the best specs and features of any Samsung phone, a 200MP main camera, 50MP 5x telephoto, 10MP 3x telephoto, and 12MP ultrawide cameras. It also has a smaller bezel, a 2,600 nit display, a 5,000 mAh battery, a cooling vapor chamber, up to 1TB of UFS 4.0 storage, and 12GB of RAM. It’s a beast of a phone. The new ProVisual Engine gives you AI-powered camera tools for photos and videos. But it’s not the most expensive Ultra phone from Samsung. The Galaxy S20 Ultra still holds that record with a $1,399 price tag. Here are the prices for each model:

Samsung S24 Series Price

Galaxy S24:

• 8GB/128GB: $799 / £799
• 8GB/256GB: $859/ £85

Galaxy S24 Plus:

• 12GB/256GB: $999 / £999
• 12GB/512GB: $1,119 / £1,099

Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra:

• 12GB/256GB: $1,299 / £1,249
• 12GB/512GB: $1,419 / £1,349
• 12GB/1TB: $1,659 / £1,549

You can get the Samsung S24 series anywhere in the world. You can find it in the US, the UK, Europe, India, Australia, and more. If you want to save some money, you can buy the Samsung S24 Ultra cheaper in some countries.

But not all Samsung S24 phones are the same. Depending on where you live, you might have different processors.

The best way to buy a Samsung S24 phone is from Samsung. Samsung will give you some deals and freebies if you pre-order. They also have some

Samsung S24 series: Cameras

Camera The Samsung S24 Ultra has the most improved camera setup in this series. The new 50MP periscope telephoto lens is a big upgrade from the previous 10MP lens. But there’s a catch: the optical zoom is reduced from 10x to 5x. Samsung says Galaxy AI can compensate for this, but we’ll have to test it ourselves. The rest of the lenses on the Samsung S24 Ultra are the same as the Samsung S23 Ultra, including the 200MP main sensor. The Samsung S24 and Samsung S24 Plus share the same camera system, as they have since 2021. That means no difference in image/video quality between them. Sadly, Samsung didn’t update any camera hardware on these models this year. They all have the same cameras as the Samsung S23 and Samsung S23 Plus, even the selfie camera, but the Galaxy AI is supposed to be the main attraction for the Samsung S24 series.

Samsung S24 series: Performance

Samsung did something different in 2023: it gave all Samsung S23 phones the same chipset, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy. Before, it used either Qualcomm or its own Exynos processor, depending on the market. But in 2024, Samsung is back to its old ways — sort of. In the US, all Samsung S24 models — regular, Plus, and Ultra — have the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for Galaxy. In other countries, the regular and Plus models have the Exynos 2400 chipset, while the Ultra still has the Snapdragon. That means your Samsung S24 Ultra will have a tweaked version of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, no matter where you are. But if you choose a Samsung S24 or Samsung S24 Plus, your processor will vary by location.

The Samsung S24 series has a new vapor chamber to keep things cool. Samsung says this boosts cooling by 92% for the Ultra, which sounds impressive. We’ll see if that’s true when we test it. Lastly, the Plus and Ultra models should handle heavy tasks better with more RAM. They both have 12GB of RAM at least, which is more than the 8GB they had last year. The regular Samsung S24, though, still has 8GB.

Samsung S24 series: Software

Samsung is following Google’s lead and offering seven years of software support for the Samsung S24 series. That means the Samsung S24, S24+, and S24 Ultra will get Android updates until Android 21 in 2031! But this policy won’t apply to older Galaxy devices — at least not for now. Galaxy flagships from 2023 and before will only get four Android updates and five years of security patches. We hope Samsung will change this soon, but it hasn’t said anything yet. If you want to know more about your Samsung phone’s software support, check out our guide for Samsung.

The Samsung S24 phones come with One UI 6.1 based on Android 14. This has all the features of One UI 6 plus some new ones. One of them is using your phone’s camera as a webcam on your PC. Google added this to Android 14, but Samsung didn’t enable it for One UI 6. Like always, One UI 6.1 and most of the new AI features will reach older Samsung phones. Samsung confirmed this for the Samsung S23 series, Samsung S23 FE, Samsung Z Fold 5, Samsung Z Flip 5, and Samsung Tab S9 series in the first half of 2024. Other Samsung phones will likely get One UI 6.1, too, but Samsung isn’t promising that yet.

Samsung S24 series: Design and colors

The three Samsung S24 phones in the 2024 lineup look similar to the 2023 and 2022 ones. This could be good or bad, depending on your taste, but the Samsung S24 series doesn’t change much. The phones have excellent build quality. They are premium smartphones, and they feel like it, especially the Samsung S24 Ultra. Samsung also makes them durable, with full IP68 ratings for water and dust. The Samsung S24 and S24 Plus have Gorilla Glass Victus 2 on both sides, while the Ultra has Gorilla Glass Armor.

The line has eight new colors: four for the Samsung S24 and S24 Plus and four more for the Ultra. The Samsung S24 and S24 Plus come in Amber Yellow, Cobalt Violet, Marble Gray, and Onyx Black. Amber Yellow is very light, while Cobalt Violet is very dark. Marble Gray is almost silver or white, depending on the light. Onyx Black is more like dark gray. The Samsung S24 Ultra has different names and shades for its colors. This is because it uses titanium alloy for its rails, a first for Samsung (the Samsung S24 and S24 Plus have aluminum rails). The colors are Titanium Yellow, Titanium Violet, Titanium Gray, and Titanium Black. The gray and black ones are similar to the Samsung S24/Plus ones, but Titanium Yellow is much darker than Amber Yellow. Titanium Violet is so dark that it’s hardly violet.

Samsung S24 series: Screen and sizes

Samsung didn’t change the size of the Samsung S24, S24 Plus, and S24 Ultra much from last year. But it did make the displays better in other ways. The most noticeable improvement is the brightness. Each phone can reach 2,600 nits, which is way more than the Samsung S23 series. Even the Pixel 8 Pro, one of the brightest phones in 2023, only got 2,400 nits.

Samsung also tweaked the displays of each phone. The Samsung S24 has a 6.2-inch flat display, which is slightly bigger than the Samsung S23. Samsung made the bezels smaller to fit the larger screen. The resolution, panel type, and refresh rate are the same: FHD+, LTPO AMOLED, and 1-120Hz. The Samsung S24 Plus gets a big upgrade to a QHD+ resolution, like the Samsung S24 Ultra. Before, it had FHD+, so this is a nice bonus. Samsung also made the screen a bit bigger by cutting the bezels. The panel is still flat, and the type and refresh rate are still LTPO AMOLED and 1-120Hz.

The Samsung S24 Ultra has a huge change: a flat display. The Samsung S23 Ultra and S23 Ultra had curved glass on the sides, but the Samsung S24 Ultra doesn’t. This should make gestures easier, but the bezels will be thicker on the sides. The Samsung S24 Ultra keeps the same specs for the rest: QHD+ resolution, 1-120Hz refresh rate, and 6.8 inches.

The Samsung S24 and S24 Plus have Gorilla Glass Victus 2 on the displays, but the Samsung S24 Ultra has a new Gorilla Glass Armor, which we think is stronger/better than Victus 2.

Samsung S24 series: Battery life and charging speed

Samsung made some improvements this year that you’ll like. The Samsung S24 has the biggest battery in a standard model since 2021: 4,000mAh. This should make the phone last longer, unlike the Galaxy S22, which had a tiny 3,700mAh battery. The Galaxy S24 Plus has the largest battery in a Plus model ever: 4,900mAh. This is 200mAh more than the Galaxy S23 Plus and almost as much as the Galaxy S24 Ultra.

But if you use the higher resolution QHD+ display, you might not see much difference. You can save battery by sticking to FHD+. The Samsung S24 Ultra has the same battery as before: 5,000mAh. Nothing new here.

Wired charging speeds are the same as 2023. The Samsung S24 charges at 25W with a cable. The Samsung S24 Plus and Samsung S24 Ultra charge at 45W with a cable. You need a special PPS-PD charger for this, which doesn’t come with the phone. Wireless charging is still 15W for all three phones. Reverse wireless charging is still 5W.

Samsung S24 series: Al Feature

Samsung didn’t change the hardware much on these phones. But it added Galaxy AI, a bunch of new AI-based features for the Samsung S24 series. Some of them are from Samsung, and some are from partners like Google. Right now, Galaxy AI is only for the Samsung S24 family. We hope some features will come to other Samsung phones later, especially the foldables in 2024. The best part is, all three phones have the same Galaxy AI features. You don’t need to buy the Ultra to enjoy the AI magic. Unless the feature needs the Ultra’s camera, you can use it on any Samsung S24 phone. It doesn’t matter if you have Exynos or Snapdragon, either. They can all do the same things.