Newsletter
Samsung announced its new flagship smartphones, the Galaxy S24 series. Three handsets are included here, the Galaxy S24, Galaxy S24+, and Galaxy S24 Ultra, and we’ll compare them in this article. Do note that this article comes a day after the announcement, so we didn’t really use them for long at this point. This is just an initial look at how the three phones stack up one next to the other. You’ll have to wait for our full review in order to get more information.
We’ll check out their designs, take an initial look at their displays, comment on the initial performance, and more. You’ll also notice that their specifications are laid out too, just in case you’re interested in those. Having said that, let’s get down to it, and see how these three phones compare one to the other.
Specs
Samsung Galaxy S24 vs Galaxy S24+ vs Galaxy S24 Ultra, respectively
– Screen size:
6.2-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X (flat, 120Hz, 2,600 nits max brightness)
6.7-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X (flat, 120Hz, 2,600 nits max brightness)
6.9-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X (flat, 120Hz, 2,600 nits max brightness)
– Display resolution:
2340 x 1080
2340 x 1080
3120 x 1440
– SoC:
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for Galaxy
– RAM:
8GB (LPDDR5X)
12GB (LPDDR5X)
12GB (LPDDR5X)
– Storage:
128GB (UFS 3.1)/256GB/512GB (UFS 4.0)
256GB/512GB (UFS 4.0)
256GB/512GB/1TB (UFS 4.0)
– Rear cameras:
50MP (wide, f/1.8 aperture, OIS, Dual Pixel PDAF), 12MP (ultrawide, 120-degree FoV, f/2.2 aperture, 1.4um pixel size), 10MP (telephoto, f/2.4 aperture, OIS, PDAF, 3x optical zoom)
50MP (wide, f/1.8 aperture, OIS, Dual Pixel PDAF), 12MP (ultrawide, 120-degree FoV, f/2.2 aperture, 1.4um pixel size), 10MP (telephoto, f/2.4 aperture, OIS, PDAF, 3x optical zoom)
200MP (wide, f/1.7 aperture, OIS, multi-directional PDAF, 0.6um pixel size), 12MP (ultrawide, 120-degree FoV, f/2.2 aperture, Dual Pixel PDAF 1.4um pixel size), 10MP (telephoto, f/2.4 aperture, OIS, Dual Pixel PDAF, 1.12um pixel size, 3x optical zoom), 50MP (periscope telephoto, OIS, PDAF, 5x optical zoom)
– Front cameras:
12MP (wide, f/2.2 aperture, Dual Pixel PDAF, 22mm lens)
– Battery:
4,000mAh
4,900mAh
5,000mAh
– Charging:
25W wired, 15W wireless, 4.5W reverse wireless (charger not included)
45W wired, 15W wireless, 4.5W reverse wireless (charger not included)
45W wired, 15W wireless, 4.5W reverse wireless (charger not included)
– Dimensions:
147 x 70.6 x 7.6mm
158.5 x 75.9 x 7.7mm
162.3 x 79 x 8.6mm
– Weight:
167/168 grams
196/197 grams
232/233 grams
– Connectivity:
5G, LTE, NFC, Wi-Fi, USB Type-C, Bluetooth 5.3
– Security:
In-display fingerprint scanner
– OS:
Android 14 with One UI 6.1
– Price:
$799.99+
$999.99+
$1,299+
– Buy:
Galaxy S24 series (Samsung)
Samsung Galaxy S24 vs S24+ vs S24 Ultra: Design
When it comes to the design, there are not many differences compared to last year, but there are some. The Galaxy S24 and Galaxy S24+ do look identical one to the other, the only difference is in their size. The Galaxy S24 Ultra is a bit different. Let’s start off with the vanilla and ‘Plus’ models, though. They now have flat sides all around, while the sides on the Galaxy S23 and Galaxy S23+ were a bit rounded.
The bezels are a bit thinner on them, which allowed Samsung to offer slightly larger displays this time around. Other than that, the Galaxy S24 and Galaxy S24+ look the same as last year’s models, down to camera placement on the back. It is worth noting that all color variants are matte this time around, and that goes for all three Galaxy S24 models, not just the Galaxy S24 and Galaxy S24+.
In regards to the Galaxy S24 Ultra, unlike the previous model, it now has a completely flat display and thinner bezels. The top and bottom sides are completely flat now, and the frame is made out of titanium. It is now slightly thinner than its predecessor, but it’s also wider at the same time. The weight is almost the same as last year, and that goes for all three models.
Based on our initial impressions, the in-hand feel is better across the board. The flat sides on the Galaxy S24 and Galaxy S24+ do make them easier to use, and those slight tapers on the sides are only helping the cause. The Galaxy S24 Ultra does feel a bit different in the hand, and many of you will appreciate the fact it now has a flat display. All three phones offer an IP68 certification, and all three phones feel like premium offerings.
Samsung Galaxy S24 vs S24+ vs S24 Ultra: Display
The Galaxy S24 and Galaxy S24+ now have larger displays, while the ‘Ultra’ retained the same display size. They do have slightly larger footprints, but only barely. The fact that all three phones have thinner bezels now definitely helped out with balancing all that. In any case, the three phones now include 6.2, 6.7, and 6.9-inch displays, respectively. The Galaxy S24 has a fullHD+ (2340 x 1080) panel, while the other two phones include QHD+ (3120 x 1440) displays. All three phones are LTPO AMOLED panels, and all three support HDR10+ content. They all offer an adaptive refresh rate from 1 to 120Hz, in case you were wondering.
They also have a theoretical peak brightness of 2,600 nits. The aspect ratio across the board is 19.5:9, while HDR10+ is supported on all three. The Samsung Galaxy S24 and Galaxy S24+ displays are protected by the Gorilla Glass Victus 2. The Galaxy S24 Ultra comes with all-new Gorilla Armor protection that Corning announced alongside Samsung. That gets the specs out of the way, what are they in real life, though?
Well, based on what we initially experienced, there’s really not much to complain about here. All three panels are extremely responsive, sharp, vivid, and have great viewing angles. Corning claims that the Gorilla Armor does have much better resistance to reflections, though we were not able to test that out just yet. All three displays do get plenty bright when needed, though chances are you’ll never reach that peak brightness of 2,600 nits. That is impossible to get to unless you’re consuming HDR content in very specific situations. The point is… all three displays are more than bright enough, up there with the best of the best.
Samsung Galaxy S24 vs S24+ vs S24 Ultra: Performance
All three phones are fueled by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for Galaxy processor in the US. Those are the models that we are using. In some other markets, however, the Galaxy S24 and Galaxy S24+ do come in the Exynos 2400 variant, which is something we have not experienced just yet. The Galaxy S24 Ultra includes the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for Galaxy globally, though. Samsung said that the supply chain had something to do with these choices.
When it comes to RAM, the Galaxy S24 has 8GB, while the other two models come with 12GB of RAM. Samsung used LPDDR5X RAM across devices. UFS 4.0 flash storage is used on all three models, except the base 128GB storage variant of the Galaxy S24. That’s the same thing Samsung did a year ago. The storage is non-expandable, by the way.
What about the performance? Well, we’ll share a lot more information in our full review, but the initial impressions are really good. All three phones worked very smoothly regardless of what we did. The multitasking was seamless, and the same goes for the usage of YouTube, Chrome, various One UI 6.1 features, and so on. Even the brief gaming sessions that we conducted on the Galaxy S24 Ultra went more than fine, and all three phones remained relatively cool. There were basically no surprises thus far, things could change, though, of course.
Samsung Galaxy S24 vs S24+ vs S24 Ultra: Battery
The Samsung Galaxy S24 includes a 4,000mAh battery. The Galaxy S24+ comes with a 4,900mAh unit, while the ‘Ultra’ phone has a 5,000mAh battery on the inside. The Galaxy S24 and Galaxy S24+ have slightly larger batteries than their predecessors, while the Galaxy S24 Ultra retained the same battery capacity.
We cannot really comment on the battery life yet, unfortunately. It is expected to be similar to what last year’s models had to offer, though we’re hoping for an improvement when it comes to the vanilla Galaxy S24. The Galaxy S23 did not offer bad battery life, but it was below what we’d call great battery life. The Galaxy S23 Ultra, on the other hand, was amongst the best battery life smartphones in 2023.
The charging speeds, for better or worse, remained unchanged. The Galaxy S24 supports 25W wired charging, while the other two phones support 45W wired charging. Neither phone includes a charger in the retail packaging, though. 15W wireless charging is on offer across models, and the same goes for reverse wireless charging. One thing to note is that neither device supports the Qi2 standard.
Samsung Galaxy S24 vs S24+ vs S24 Ultra: Cameras
The Samsung Galaxy S24 and Galaxy S24+ have the same camera setups. A 50-megapixel main camera sits on both devices, while a 12-megapixel ultrawide camera (120-degree FoV) is also included. The last camera on the back is a 10-megapixel telephoto camera (3x optical zoom). Samsung kept things very similar to what the Galaxy S23 and Galaxy S23+ had to offer.
The Galaxy S24 Ultra, on the other hand, has a 200-megapixel main camera, a 12-megapixel ultrawide unit (120-degree FoV), a 10-megapixel telephoto camera (3x optical zoom), and a 50-megapixel periscope telephoto unit (5x optical zoom). That 5x camera is the biggest novelty here, as it replaces a 10-megapixel 10x optical zoom periscope camera from the Galaxy S23 Ultra.
All we can say thus far is that our initial impressions are good. Samsung says all three phones should be able to take pictures that look less processed, and more in line with what you see, while they still pop. That is noticeable based on some initial camera samples. Also, we’d just like to say that the 50-megapixel periscope telephoto camera seems to be capable of keeping a similar quality of 10x shots as the dedicated 10-megapixel 10x zoom lens on the Galaxy S23 Ultra. Once again, this is based on some initial camera samples under specific lighting conditions. We’ll get into it in our full review.
Audio
All three devices also come with stereo speakers. Those speakers offer good output and seem to be well-balanced. They are loud enough, and we did not notice any distortion, not even at higher volume levels. They do sound very similar to last year’s models, across the board.
You will not find a 3.5mm headphone jack on either device. You can always hook up your headphones via the Type-C port that is available at the bottom, though. Do note you’ll need a dongle for that. In regards to wireless audio connections, Bluetooth 5.3 is on offer.