Intro
Samsung is expected to unveil its compact powerhouse, the Galaxy S24, a bit earlier this time around, in January, and this means that it’s already time to consider if that should be your next phone!
- Galaxy S24 expected to adopt iPhone-like design with flat sides
- Galaxy S24 might ship with Snapdragon chip in the US, but Exynos chip in UK and Europe
- S24 to have a slightly larger screen
- Battery size only slightly larger
- Charging speeds expected to remain the same
Table of Contents:
Design and Size
Squared off design and a very slightly larger size
Samsung is also going for a slightly larger form factor, and the Galaxy S24 will be a bit taller than the previous model.
We do expect to see some new colors, though, but we still have no specifics about the exact hues.
One thing that is not changing is the packaging: the Galaxy S24 is expected to arrive in a slim box with no charger and only a USB-C cable included in the box.
Display Differences
The S24 remains a compact phone above everything, but it will have a bit more screen real estate than the S23 with a 6.17-inch screen size (the S23 had a 6.1-inch screen).
The resolution, however, will remain the same at 1080p (slightly lower than the 1440p on the S24 Plus and Ultra models), but one other thing that’s changing is the maximum brightness which is expected to go up to 2,500 nits for more comfortable use outdoors. And we don’t expect big changes to the bezel size.
The S24 will also support fast refresh rate, with rates ranging from 48Hz to 120Hz, again slightly worse than the S24 Ultra models that will be able to go from 1Hz to 120Hz.
As for biometrics, again, nothing new: the Galaxy S24 will rely first and foremost on an ultrasonic fingerprint scanner, like the Galaxy S23, and it will also support image-based face recognition (which is a bit less secure).
Performance and Software
Snapdragon or Exynos?
For years, Samsung sold one version of the Galaxy S series in the US and a slightly different one in the rest of the world. The US model featured a Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, while the other model came with a slightly underpowered Samsung Exynos processor.
But with the Galaxy S24 series, Samsung is said to go back to its old ways, and we could again have a Snapdragon processor in the US (the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3) and an Exynos chip in the UK and Europe (the Exynos 2400). No bueno for folks on the other side of the pond! But those are the expectations and we are yet to see if Samsung will actually do this, so let’s not jump to conclusions just yet.
As for the new Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip that is expected for the Galaxy S24 series, it is rumored to be another beastly chip with improved power and efficiency, but it is NOT made on the latest 3nm technology, in case you were wondering, and will still be built using 4nm tech.
The Galaxy S24 is also expected to have the same 8GB of LPDDR5X RAM as its predecessor.
Samsung typically provides four years of major OS updates (the longest in the Android world), and five years of security updates, so that means you will get the following big updates:
- Android 15
- Android 16
- Android 17
- Android 18
Camera
Same hardware, better processing?
The cameras on the Galaxy S24 look exactly like the ones in the S23, meaning you get three separated, raised camera lenses:
- 50MP main camera
- 12MP ultra-wide
- 10MP 3X zoom
- 12MP front camera
We have not heard anything about larger sensors, so this only leaves better image processing as an option, if Samsung wants to deliver at least some camera improvements.
But so far, it would be fair to expect no huge camera changes in the Galaxy S24, even if that may sound a bit discouraging.
Audio Quality and Haptics
Speaking of same-ness, we don’t expect changes to the audio system or haptics either.
The Galaxy S23 sounded just a bit “thin” for a flagship phone, with less deeper tonalities than we’d like to hear, and so far we don’t expect a big change in audio on the Galaxy S24.
Battery Life and Charging
Slightly bigger battery, same charging speeds
With the slightly larger overall size of the phone, the Galaxy S24 is expected to get a very modest upgrade in battery size to 4,000 mAh, up from 3,900 mAh on the Galaxy S23.
That’s an expected change of around 2.5%, not enough to really make a difference.
The new Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip, however, might, so we would not rush to any judgments about battery life being exactly the same as before.
What does seem to remain the same, however, are charging speeds: 25W top speed if you are charging via a wire and 10W for wireless charging speeds. Samsung refuses to add faster charging to this smaller model, and if you want truly fast charging rates, you still have to import a phone from the Chinese brands like Xiaomi, Oppo or Huawei.
Specs Comparison
Check out the main differences between the two in the table below:
| Galaxy S24 | Galaxy S23 | |
|---|---|---|
| Size, weight | 147 x 70.6 x 7.6 mm 168 grams |
146.3 x 70.9 x 7.6 mm 168 grams |
| Screen | 6.2″ OLED 120Hz 2500 nits max brightness |
6.1″ OLED 120Hz 1750 nits max brightness |
| Processor | Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 in US Exynos 2400 in RoW 4nm |
Snapdragon 8 Gen 2
4nm |
| RAM, Storage | 8/128GB 8/256GB LPDDR 5X |
8/128GB 8/256GB LPDDR 5X |
| Cameras | 50MP main 12MP ultra 12MP 3X zoom 12MP front |
50MP main 12MP ultra 12MP 3X zoom 12MP front |
| Battery | 4000 mAh | 3900 mAh |
| Charging | USB-C 25W wired 10W wireless |
USB-C 25W wired 10W wireless |
Summary
With a slight change in looks and a faster chip, the Galaxy S24 seems like the very definition of the word “incremental update”, and unless you have a bone to pick with the Galaxy S23 design, it’s hard to see much reason to upgrade.
Of course, this is what we expect based on rumors and leaks, and Samsung might just surprise us with some really cool and unexpected new feature that will steal the show. Satellite connectivity, surprise camera improvements, or something else are all possibilities, so keep an open mind and… remember that the Galaxy S24 announcement is expected to happen in January 2024, not too far off from now!
