Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra Review: A World Of Possibilities
Don’t get me wrong. I mean 100 per cent of the words when I say ‘a world of possibilities’. The Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra is a product that commands respect from the users. The sleek design, the smooth edges despite the flatter display and the demon-like quick Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor. It is a unbelievable when you think about the fact that not even half a century ago we as a species went to the moon on processing power that was a fraction of this monster from Qualcomm.
One of the key differentiating factors of this phone that puts it in a league of its own is Galaxy AI. The interesting this is that Galaxy AI is not the only thing that stands out about this smartphone, no matter how much Samsung wants you to believe it.
Samsung sold this to users as hard as it could. The entire launch presentation seemed to revolve around this one element – Artificial Intelligence. We all knew that AI integration would be the top priority for smartphone manufacturers in 2024 and Samsung just proved it. With the help of Google Gemini, Samsung is offering features such as Circle to Search, real-time on-device call and text message translation and on-device transcription. Users can also use the AI image editor, as seen in last year’s Pixel 8.
The sad part is, that most of the AI features are at the end of the day, gimmicks. Let’s be honest, how many times are you going to remove a flower vase out of the picture? How many times would you hold the video to see it in slow motion? How many times a day would you use Circle to Search? However, compared to the competition, which is Google’s Pixel 8 Pro at the moment, Samsung is way ahead in terms of the number of features offered.
the industry might just have got a processor with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 that doesn’t compel the user to change phones for a change. Don’t get me wrong. We are still seeing devices with the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 that work fine. However, with the 8 Gen 3,I feel that we have arrived at a point where we can finally do away with introducing a new processor every year just for the sake of it (The same can be said for the Dimensity 9300). This chipset, designed by Qualcomm, especially for Samsung, offers top-notch performance that fits the ‘flagship’ tag.
Antutu Score
Geekbench 6 ScoreThe custom ‘For Galaxy’ overclocked processor reached a maximum clock speed of 3.4 GHz, slightly higher than the vanilla version. With benchmark results that make it clear that this processor belongs to the top tier category, the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra packs a powerful punch that does not miss the target.
Now, this section deserves a review of its own but I’ll try and do justice to this. After an excruciatingly long period of time, I feel that we finally have an Android smartphone camera that beats Apple’s Apex Pro Max camera by a mile. The colour, the sharpness, the zoom and most importantly, the AI processing, it’s all fabulous. The images look crispy as heck and there is no denying that post-processing by the Galaxy S24 Ultra is out of this world.
The 200 MP primary sensor is responsible for some of the most detailed photographs I’ve ever seen. The decision to switch from 10MP 10X zoom to a 50 MP 5X is probably the best move a smartphone company has made in a long time, as far as mobile cameras are concerned (this is true especially when you compare both S24 Ultra and S23 Ultra side by side). The 100X zoom is, as usual, great for a few days while you fool around with photographs of the Moon, but it does get redundant after a while. I’d even go out on one leg and say that even the 30X digital zoom looks fantastic.
Ultra Wide
1X Zoom
3X Zoom
5X Zoom
10X ZoomVideo is an area where the S24 Ultra exceeds expectations as well. The device can shoot 8K videos with a 5X optical zoom. This might not sound like a big deal but it, in fact, is. With up to 240 FPS videos at 1080p and 120 FPS videos 4K, the S24 Ultra gives a wide array of opportunities to video creators and hobbyists. To top it off, features like Portrait Mode, Expert Raw, Hyperlapse and Pro Video make it all the better.
One of the most criminally underrated features of the Samsung S24 Galaxy Ultra is its body. The smartphone has an exceptional built quality that will definitely catch your attention deficit clad eye balls. One important thing to mention here is that Samsung chose to opt for Grade 5 titanium to make this phone more durable and lighter. Now, the end result might not have been what Samsung desired as it only resulted in a slight reduction in weight and as per recent reviews in the media, the amount of Grade 5 titanium used in the smartphone is quite less. However, that doesn’t mean we won’t give credit where it’s due. The design simply looks sublime with a solid frame. Be prepared for minor discolouration and scratches, though.
What’s Good?
What’s Bad?
One aspect that everyone is just overlooking is the phone's durability which directly adds to its dependability score. The grade 5 titanium build undoubtedly adds to its toughness. The phone is not rated for drop resistance and hasnt been officially tested by any organisation but it is ridiculously strong. The titanium alloy body along with Gorilla Glass Armor on the front and Victus 2 at the back, the Galaxy S24 Ultra is by far the toughest flagship smartphone of the year.
If your budget allows you, go for it. That is the short answer. The long answer is as follows.
The Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra is a flagship of flagships. This is a crème de la crème device that can do it all with ease and finesse. With Geekbench scores of 2213 (single-core) and 6766 (multi-core), it is clear that the computing power of the S24 Ultra is undeniable. The AI features did impress initially but took the back seat soon after. Credit where it is due, though. Features like Transcription Assist and Note Assist are a boon for people who need transcriptions and summarisations on a daily basis. In fact, the summarisation feature also works on the default web browser. Oh and let’s not forget the 7 years of software updates that Samsung announced during the launch. Combine all of the above and you have yourself a smartphone that can not only keep up with the current competition but also go toe-to-toe with future competition.
While the current gamut of AI features are more like marketing gimmicks, the future does look promising. With more and more tech companies trying to integrate AI into their products, it will definitely be fascinating to see what smartphones of the future will offer, that is, if they aren’t replaced by devices like the Humane AI Pin or the Rabbit r1.
As a content creator, the Galaxy S24 Ultra is an all-rounder device that can take versatile videos as well as phiotos. Opting for the 5X zoom was a very intellgent move which also shows that Samsung listens to consumer feedabck. It is much more practical and useful. Although it is higly unlikely that anyone will use much of the 8K recoding option but it is always good to have that in your arsenal.
Overall, I must say that the S24 Ultra is a must have if you want a flagship smartphone that can handle every task you throw at it and are willing to spend proportionate amount of money for it.
