Samsung Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus evaluation: Two very sensible telephones

Samsung’s S24 is not a radical improve over the S23 however there are some good adjustments that definitely enhance on what was already an excellent telephone. The S24 and S24 Plus are actually smarter, extra refined and get some additional oomph through an improved processor.

The screens are additionally brighter and have a intelligent adaptive refresh fee to assist enhance battery life.

These are good gadgets however must you splash out and improve or possibly select the dearer S24 Ultra as an alternative? Here’s Express.co.uk’s full Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus evaluation.

The Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus look actually, actually good. This yr’s design seems to have taken a leaf out of Apple’s ebook with the gadgets getting a extra chiselled and sharp-looking end. Lashings of metallic and a gentle sheen glass panel on the again add to the enchantment and there isn’t any query that these are a few of the best-looking smartphones to come back out of Samsung’s design studio.

There are additionally quite a lot of colors to select from together with Cobalt Violet, Amber Yellow, Onyx Black and Marble Grey – we’re personally large followers of the Yellow and Violet however all look refreshingly good.

Despite being lined in toughened Gorilla Glass you would possibly wish to take into account a case as they’re barely slippy within the hand.

It’s additionally value noting that solely the dearer Ultra mannequin has converted to titanium (the Ultra additionally will get new Gorilla Armor glass) with the usual fashions sticking with aluminium round their edges.

All in all, these are beautiful gadgets that enhance on the S23’s styling and will definitely flip a number of heads when pulled out of your pocket.

Samsung stays the most effective within the enterprise in relation to shows and the S24 vary doesn’t disappoint.

Both get glorious Dynamic AMOLED screens that are actually brighter than earlier than – that positively helps enhance a fast Netflix binge within the noon solar. Those choosing the usual mannequin will discover it features a 6.2-inch panel while the Plus will get an even bigger and extra expansive 6.7-inch display screen.

No matter which one you select you may discover bonus options resembling an adaptive refresh fee which implies you get tremendous speedy scrolling solely when you actually need it – that operate helps enhance total battery life.

There’s additionally adaptive color tone and eye consolation protect which change the show colors relying in your environment – a much-needed characteristic for anybody who spends hours glued to their telephones because it makes every part simpler on the eyes.

The bezels across the fringe of the display screen are much more razor-thin and Samsung has made the hole-punched selfie digicam smaller which implies you hardly discover it is there.

Personally, we like the scale of the smaller S24 because it’s a lot simpler to deal with however if you wish to go supersized the Plus presents extra space in your boxset binges, gaming, emails and internet looking.

The S24 and S24 Plus preserve the identical {hardware} as final yr. That means you get three cameras together with a 50MP important sensor, 12 MP ultra-wide and 10MP telephoto lens with 3X optical zoom

Although issues look similar on paper, Samsung has made some large adjustments to the best way the gadgets course of pictures and it is a large enchancment with issues wanting far more pure and fewer oversharpened – that is one thing some have been important of final yr.

All of the pictures we took have been full of element, seemed vivid and had good color stability.

Shots snapped when the solar goes down additionally seem vivid with extra element – that is an enormous bonus when you’re a little bit of an evening owl.

AI additionally performs an enormous a part of this new system with intelligent options routinely boosting images and permitting you to edit pictures while not having a level in Photoshop. Removing and shifting issues is now tremendous easy though we nonetheless desire to get the picture proper within the first place quite than counting on this considerably faux manipulation.

If you favor filming movies there’s the choice to supply household motion pictures in full 4K and 8K decision. You may even now add slow-motion results to something you have beforehand shot which is a pleasant addition.

The S24 cameras provide a strong expertise however there isn’t any query that these wanting the last word shooter would possibly fancy switching issues up and shopping for the complete feature-packed S24 Ultra. That system will get 4 lenses an a a lot greater zoom.

Samsung’s processor selection within the S24 is, as soon as once more, very complicated. Avid followers of the Galaxy vary will know that in earlier years the agency used totally different chips relying on the place you bought the system with some telephones getting Exynos energy while others featured Qualcomm brains.

That bemusing problem was stopped in 2023 with all Galaxy S23 gadgets getting the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor inside irrespective of the place on the planet it bought.

Sadly, this yr we’re again to issues being cut up and it feels much more baffling for shoppers with the Ultra getting a particular version of the brand new Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 whereas the S24 and S24 Plus are powered by Exynos brains.

To be truthful to Samsung, the usual S24 vary nonetheless feels snappy and hasn’t struggled throughout our evaluation. However, there are many geeky pace assessments, together with our personal carried out at Express HQ, that present the 8 Gen 3 does have a slight benefit.

It’s a disgrace this new bunch of gadgets aren’t powered by the identical chip and if you need essentially the most highly effective expertise you is perhaps finest going for the Ultra.

Just just like the Galaxy S24 Ultra, the S24 and S24 Plus come full of new ‘Galaxy AI’. These are headline-grabbing upgrades from Samsung and while they’re intelligent we discovered them straightforward sufficient to disregard.

That’s as a result of upgrades resembling reside name translation aren’t instantly life-changing

We reckon one of the best of the bunch is ‘Circle to search’ (which we wrote about right here), the place you maintain the house button or swipe bar to freeze no matter is in your display screen. You can then circle an object to Google search it. It’s fast and useful if you wish to establish a landmark, object, or product – nevertheless it requires an online connection. It’s additionally coming to different Android telephones.

Other instruments embody reside translation in an Interpreter mode that allows you to have a two-way dialog in two languages whereas the interpretation seems in your display screen. There’s even a reside translation characteristic constructed into the Phone app – you possibly can name somebody and it’ll translate what you might be saying to them with an AI voice, and vice versa. It’s just a little clunky and complicated for the individual you have got referred to as, however in our testing it does work.

The recorder app can now transcribe recordings and summarise a complete recording down into easy bullet factors.

And taking a leaf out of the Google Pixel’s ebook – Google’s Gemini AI powers loads of these instruments – you can even edit images to erase objects or folks, or transfer issues round.

We discovered it, just like the Pixel, just a little tough across the edges. Plus, we don’t actually wish to faux our images within the first place. Samsung additionally quietly mentioned AI options are solely free till the top of 2025, with no indication of how a lot you’ll should pay after that.

One factor that’s value noting is Samsung now doling out seven years of Android updates and safety updates, so the telephone is supported till 2031.

The S24 and S24 Plus each have greater batteries (up by 100mAh) which implies they’ll final just a little longer than earlier than. Even after we’ve been gaming and utilizing the S24 as a cellular hotspot they’ll get you thru a day with none points.

During our take a look at, the S24 Plus retains the display screen glowing longer than the usual mannequin however each are fairly excellent in relation to energy.

Our solely criticism of the S24 vary is the charging speeds particularly when in comparison with their Android rivals.

Some new telephones from makers resembling Xiaomi and OnePlus characteristic actually speedy charging however one of the best you may get from Samsung is 45-Watts and you will have to pay an additional £44 to personal a suitable plug.

The Samsung Galaxy S24 begins from £799. Yes, that is costly, however really £50 cheaper than when the S23 went on sale final yr at £849.

That makes it really feel fairly good worth for such a strong and feature-packed smartphone with longer software program assist.

The greater S24 Plus begins from £999 which does not appear fairly such good worth however issues could be made cheaper by buying and selling in your outdated system with as much as £370 off when you purchase direct from Samsung.

If that every one sounds an excessive amount of in your pockets, it’s value checking for S23 offers as this older smartphone is bound to get cheaper because the yr goes on.

Samsung hasn’t reinvented the wheel in relation to the S24 and S24 Plus. The agency has merely taken one of the best bits of the vastly fashionable Galaxy S23 and made issues higher. The design feels extra refined, the batteries are greater, screens brighter and the cameras get a lift thanks to higher picture processing.

The value can also be decrease than the S23 and launch and also you get all the newest Galaxy AI options baked in.

It’s troublesome to criticise these gadgets however there are some slight niggles together with that unusual Exynos processor selection which simply makes issues complicated for shoppers.

It’s a disgrace the digicam {hardware} hasn’t been boosted and different Android telephones could be refilled quicker – many even nonetheless ship with chargers within the field which continues to be one thing Samsung fees additional for.

Despite these gripes, we’re large followers of the S24 and S24 Plus and would fortunately have both in our pocket. The reality Samsung now presents seven years of Android updates on these name makers additionally means you will not have to improve once more so shortly.

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