There is a section of people who still love small and compact smartphones, but as per the ongoing trend, the average size of smartphones in the market is 6.7-inch. In such a situation, these people have to compromise with whatever they can get. Currently, only Samsung, Apple, and Google are three companies which launched small yet premium smartphones. The latest that has been announced is the youngest member of the Galaxy S-Series, the Samsung Galaxy S24 5G.
This widely popular device comes with a 6.1-inch display this time. This size is appropriate if the user wants to operate the device with one hand. Successor to Galaxy S23 doesn’t come with many upgrades, and the inclusion of the Exynos chipset is also being considered a downgrade, but it is Galaxy AI that has attracted the attention of the consumers.
So, how does Galaxy S24 perform in real-world situations? Is it a better upgrade or successor to the Galaxy S23? To answer these questions, we used Samsung Galaxy S24 for some days. Our Galaxy S24 review talks about our experience with the smartphone in detail.
Samsung Galaxy S24 5G Review Snapshot
Editor’s rating: 4.2/5
Design
Display
Software
Performance
Camera
Battery
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Pros
- Good display
- Better cameras
- Long battery life
- Smooth performance in everyday tasks
Cons
- Bloatware
- Not apt for gaming
- Fast Charging which isn’t really fast
Samsung Galaxy S24 5G Price & Availability
Samsung Galaxy S24 comes in two storage configurations in India-
- 8GB RAM+256GB storage- Rs. 79,999
- 8GB RAM+512GB storage- Rs. 89,999
It is available in Amber Yellow, Cobalt Violet, and Onyx Black shades.
Samsung Galaxy S24 5G Design
Samsung hasn’t changed much when it comes to design. However, this doesn’t mean that there is any room for complaints because the Galaxy S23 had a pretty premium design and the same has been adopted for the Galaxy S24. The smartphone has Gorilla Glass Victus 2 protection at the front as well as the back with an aluminum frame in between. It has a flat design with corners not too sharp. With a thickness of 7.6mm, weight of 167g, and being curved from the edges, it feels compact when held in hand.
While the design has been kept compact, there have been certain changes like an increase of display size by 0.1-inch. This has been made possible by slimming bezels around the display. The device comes with IP68 protection against water and dust. The smartphone comes in four colors out of which we have been using the Amber Yellow model for review purposes. It now has a flat-edged frame which makes it look similar to the iPhone 15. The frame has a matte finish instead of glossy and all these small changes make Galaxy S24 look more elegant and refined.
The rear panel houses three camera cutouts whereas the rest of the back is plain. The right side houses volume rockers and a power button while the bottom edge has a SIM tray, microphone, USB Type-C port, and speaker grille. The top edge has a secondary microphone.
In totality, Galaxy S24 5G has an impressive design and feels premium in hand. While you can easily operate it with one hand, there is always a chance of it slipping away. We would advise you to use the device with a protective cover. Since Samsung doesn’t bundle the cover inside the box, you’ll have to purchase it from the market yourself.
Samsung Galaxy S24 5G: Display
The display of the Samsung Galaxy S24 5G is no less than the display of the two elder members of the Galaxy S24 family. Moreover, this time there are two upgrades as well. Firstly, the size of the screen has been increased by 0.1-inch so it is 6.2-inch now. Secondly, Samsung has equipped the base model with an LTPO panel this time, which proves to be efficient in terms of AOD.
The 6.2-inch display of Galaxy S24 comes with FHD+ LTPO AMOLED tech and 120Hz refresh rate which can go as low as 1Hz depending upon what is being done. Scrolling is smooth and if you are someone who likes smaller devices, then this one is the best option at the moment.
The colors on the screen are decent. Even with Natural Mode, the colors look bright and blacks look deep. The base model of Galaxy S-Series offers good color accuracy which means an immersive content-watching experience. Scrolling and Animation with its adaptive 120Hz refresh rate is buttery smooth as well.
The display offers 2600 nits brightness while Galaxy S23 gives 1750 nits brightness. This upgrade makes the screen super bright. So much so, that even receding Delhi Winters marked by harsh sunlight could not affect the legibility of the display. This is because, just like its other two family members, this one also comes with Samsung’s Vision Booster tech.
Samsung Galaxy S24 comes with a stereo speaker setup enhanced by Dolby Atmos technology delivering clear and loud audio, but with a lack of depth. It is ok for tasks like calls, conferences, gaming, etc. but it might leave the users desiring better audio reproduction for music and video playback. There is no headphone jack for wired audio output.
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Samsung Galaxy S24 5G: Camera
Samsung hasn’t introduced any hardware changes in the camera setup of Galaxy S24. It is still the same triple camera setup at the back that was seen in Galaxy S23. The primary sensor is 50MP along with a 12MP ultrawide and a 10MP telephoto camera. For selfies, there is a 12MP punch-hole sensor at the front.
Even without any changes in the hardware, there is a noticeable difference in the colors of photos and videos. The colors look natural and the photos are loaded with details. The camera doesn’t oversaturate the colors and you also get HDR support which offers better dynamic range.
In low light, the performance of the camera is better than before. The colors are accurate. This can be felt in the images below as there’s a stark contrast between dark and lit spots which means the sensor has captured lights very neatly.
The 12MP ultrawide camera too leaves no room for complaints. The photos clicked using this sensor too have good colors and detailing. The low-light performance does drop a bit but then it is acceptable.
The 10MP telephoto sensor in this camera setup was something we particularly liked. It clicked gorgeous photos. In the image below, you can see the green color of the parrot and every detail on its body. The shots don’t lose their details even in 3x zoom mode. There is a 3x portrait zoom feature as well, which works fine too.
If the performance has been made better with the same hardware, the credit should go to the software. There are AI options like erasing shadows and reflections, erasing a whole object, move and resizing an object as well.
For video recording, there is a new Instant Slo-Mo feature, using which one can tap and hold any video to start playing it in slow motion. As soon as you lift your finger, the video will start playing at its original speed.
The 12MP front camera too performs decently for both photos and videos. The only issue is its limited field of view, due to which group shots feel confined. Otherwise, the quality is better than before.
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Samsung Galaxy S24 5G: Performance
Talking about my opinion, I didn’t like the use of Exynos chipset this time after Galaxy S23 came with Snapdragon SoC. Although several other markets too have received Galaxy S24 with Exynos 2400 this time around.
Hearing the name of the chipset, we felt that the performance might not be that smooth, but this is not the case. In comparison to the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, the Exynos 2400 has proved itself to be better. The smartphone gives a smooth and powerful performance in daily tasks.
We used it for the last few days. Usage included messaging, calling, social media browsing, video streaming, and more but there were no stutters or lags of any kind. Heavy tasks like gaming and multi-tasking test the limits of the chipset and still, it handles them proficiently. During gaming, it does throttle a bit, but otherwise, its performance is decent.
The Galaxy S24 5G comes with a bigger vapor chamber, yet it heats up while throttling test and gaming sessions. In the throttling test, it throttled at a mere 64%. This is one issue that always pops up with Exynos chipsets, but this doesn’t affect the performance much. However, one thing has to be pointed out and that is the effect of weather conditions. Currently, the weather in India is ok, but in the harsh summers of May and June, the temperature of the device might rise more. You get 8GB RAM and 256GB storage which is slightly disappointing for those who need 512GB onboard storage.
Here are the results of some benchmarking tests-
All three smartphones in the Galaxy S24 Series run One UI 6.1 based on Android 14 out of the box. These are the first three phones with One UI 6.1 and thus they come with various new features and upgrades, especially the Galaxy AI features.
One UI 6.1 brings various new features like a clock in the AOD with a screen lock, widgets being visible, viewing photos in Super HDR quality in the gallery, and better customization settings for alarm and battery, etc., This premium device doesn’t come with bloatware and has an easy-to-use interface. If you are shifting to this one from some other UI, you’ll be able to adapt quickly.
Additionally, Samsung promises seven years of software updates for Galaxy S24 Series devices, which means all the new updates till Android 21.
Samsung Galaxy S24 5G: Galaxy AI
The biggest attraction that has captured the attention of the users is the new Galaxy AI features. These include Circle To Search, Generative Editing tool, Live Translate, Chat Assist, and more. All these features are fun to use and come in handy during day-to-day life. The hard work that has gone behind Galaxy AI can be seen as all these features can be invoked with just a tap and are ready to use. The implementation by Samsung has been top-notch.
We used all these features in our device. Circle to search is very useful and works seamlessly. You can tap or circle on any app, photo, text, etc and it gives you complete information about that in Chrome browser. All you have to do is press and hold the Home button for a few seconds and then the screen prompts you to tap or circle the object/text you need to know about. As soon as you do that, all the information will be displayed on your screen.
Chat Assist feature is useful as well. It can draft replies to the messages you have received. Sometimes, these answers might feel too AI-based, in which case you can write your message yourself and check grammar using this tool.
The Live Translate feature can come in handy as well, but this works only when both the people talking have S24 Series devices.
Generative editing tools work like Google Pixel’s Magic Eraser. Using this feature, you can remove unwanted people or objects from your photos. The results are good but to use this, you have to enable the toggle from Generative Edit settings.
The feature that the reviewer liked the most is touch and hold videos to enter into slow-motion mode. Any video in your gallery can be played in slow motion when you tap anywhere on the screen while playing the video. This capability is easy to use and works well.
Samsung Galaxy S24 5G: Battery
The Samsung Galaxy S24 5G packs a slightly larger battery than its predecessor Galaxy S23 5G. The battery is 100mAh larger which makes it 4000mAh this time. Samsung hasn’t made any improvement in fast charging capability and this has continued so Galaxy S24 still comes with 25W wired fast charging support. Wireless charging support is also available.
In everyday usage, the battery drains a little faster than I would have liked. While using apps the battery doesn’t drain much, but when the device is on stand-by mode, battery drainage is faster. I left the device with a 22% battery at night and in the morning, it had switched off.
After watching a 40-minute episode on Amazon Prime Video, the battery drained by merely 4%, but if you perform heavier tasks like clicking photos, gaming, etc. for long durations, the phone heats up and battery drainage gets faster.
Using an LTPO AMOLED display and better battery optimization settings does increase battery life slightly. All-in-all with the Exynos chipset, battery backup is not very impressive.
Talking about fast charging, Galaxy S24 charges to 60% in half an hour. It takes 75-80 minutes to charge to 100%. For a device priced this high, fast charging speed feels very slow.
Review Verdict: Should you buy the Samsung Galaxy S24 5G?
If you are looking for a compact or small and premium Android smartphone, then Samsung Galaxy S24 5G can be your first choice. The display is very bright and attractive, and the camera performance is better than the predecessor too. The experience is mostly similar to Galaxy S23 but the inclusion of Galaxy AI features, and LTPO AMOLED display makes it better than the predecessor. Samsung has also promised seven years of software updates for Galaxy S24, which is currently not offered by any other brand.
If it had been powered by a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset, it would have been a better deal as WiFi 7 connectivity would have been there. Also, if charging your device twice a day is not a big deal for you, then Galaxy S24 can be a lucrative deal for you.
Reasons to buy
- Good display
- Better cameras
- Long battery life
- Smooth performance in everyday tasks
Reasons to not buy
- Bloatware
- Not apt for gaming
- Fast Charging which isn’t really fast
