Having released one of the best smartphones in 2023 with the Galaxy S23 Ultra, Samsung’s follow-up to the feat in 2024 is the result of when a brand hits peak innovation and thought “I wonder what can we do next to not only stay ahead, but also bamboozle the competitors by shifting the goalpost”.

Enter the A.I-packed Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra which like its predecessor, is now the best smart device you can spend your money on. As mentioned in our earlier review of the S24 Plus, Samsung’s A.I not only positioned Samsung as trailblazers of incorporating advanced and meaningful A.I into smartphones; they make these tools relevant for your day-to-day activities.

From almost near-accurately transcribing AND translating voice and text to a second language in real-time to advanced, built-in photo editing tools, Samsung’s ‘Galaxy A.I’ makes A.I somewhat relatable to any average Joe.

We discussed the pros and cons of Galaxy A.I in our S24 Plus review so if you are keen to find out what’s in store, feel free to check it out here. In that review, we said ‘Unless you have to have the S-pen and the titanium finish, it is hard to deny the appeal of the S24 Plus‘. So let’s assume you have cash to spare – RM1,400.00 thereabouts – and are in search of the best available device in the market. Does the S24 Ultra justify that extra spend?

Not an “S23A” Ultra

For a start, design-wise, the S24 Ultra does not shift too far from the model it is replacing, the S23 Ultra. The flat edge on the S24 Ultra had many reviewers praising Samsung’s move to ditch the curved-edge screen seen on the S23 Ultra.

However, we very much preferred the curved edge look. It looked much better in our books. Some claim the flat edges on the S24 Ultra allow better S-Pen usage and scrolling, but we disagree. If you needed to jot something at the edge of the screen you would have instinctively dragged it towards the middle of the screen. Also, the angular design of the S24 Ultra makes it feel too close to handling an iPhone 15. We want something distinguishable goshdarnit.

Like the S23 Ultra, the S24 Ultra comes with a built-in S-Pen. Everything you were able to do on the S23 Ultra makes a return and the S-Pen sits more flush when it is slotted into its silo. Handy fidgeting tool, this. In hand, you should be able to distinguish the S23 Ultra from the new one mostly due to the S24 Ultra’s ‘boxier’ feel but both are almost identical weight-wise and how they fit in your pocket.

Sticking with the phone display, you won’t have issues operating your S24 Ultra under bright sunlight as the screen peaks at 2600 nits. Standing smack dab in the middle of KLCC Park mid-afternoon (on the first day of Chinese New Year nonetheless!), we had zero issues making out what’s on screen. While the screen size dimensions are similar to those of the S23 Ultra, the thinner bezels result in a slightly denser pixel count on the S24 Ultra.

Unlike Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2 found on the S23 Ultra, the S24 Ultra comes with Corning Gorilla Armor which isn’t just more robust, but less reflective too. As toughness goes, the S24 Ultra screen is rather scratch-resistant , well above average as JerryRigEverything discovered. However, oddly enough, the titanium frame which encompasses the whole phone feels like it will nick a scratch or two if you are not careful.

You’d be wise to slap a case on your brand new S24 Ultra but that would make telling apart your over RM6k phone from last year’s model a bit harder, wouldn’t it? Ah, modern problems.

To demonstrate this new, less reflective screen, below is a photo of the S24 Ultra (left) and the S23 Ultra (right) taken side by side. Notice the absence of our reflection, even under well-lit conditions.

We know which one we will bring to a beach vacation.

Speaking of which, vacations means photos and the most significant difference you’ll find on the S24 Ultra’s camera setup is in the telephoto department. From the 10x zoom with a 10MP camera on the S23 Ultra, the S24 Ultra now has a 50MP camera with a 5X zoom. In boffin talk, while you’ll miss out on several x-es in the zoom department, the higher MP count more than compensates this loss – it produces better photos.

Both share the same battery capacity at 5000mAh and since the S24 Ultra has got the latest and top-of-the-line Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, expect an improved performance albeit so slightly.  A full charge should easily cover two day’s worth of usage and even if you really push it, will safely take you through the day. In normal circumstances, you will NOT dash for the nearest wall plug to top up your S24 Ultra battery. The phone charges at a rather decent pace too with the cable, and if required, wireless charging at 15W.

All that made the S23 Ultra great made a return if not improved on the S24 Ultra. Edges: soften. Any identified rooms for improvement: filled. Samsung’s 2023 top-tier device was already a marvel of technology based on hardware alone, and in 2024 made even greater with the practical use and implementation of their own Galaxy A.I.

A.I hasn’t been getting much good press as of late. However, by showing how productive A.I can improve people’s lives -especially in bridging the language gap- this tech could very well be Samsung’s trump card in the competitive realm of flagship smartphones. The fact that users of other brands can enjoy the live voice translation call service as long as one of the people in the call is using a Samsung S24 phone is a genius move. A very un-Apple move that just blindsided their rivals.

An Ultra Recommendation?

If you have the cash and absolutely have to own the latest flagship-tier smartphone with a built-in S-Pen and the titanium chassis construction intrigues you – by all means do get it. This is one purchase you will definitely NOT regret.

HOWEVER. If you have always had that line of thinking, you would already have the S23 Ultra in hand so you may want to reconsider. The reason we are saying this is because all of the A.I capabilities in Samsung’s S24 range will come to S23 devices soon. But if your last phone was from several years back, you cannot get a more complete package from a flagship-tier device in 2024 than the S24 Ultra.

That said, the recently-reviewed S24 Plus is also a very interesting proposition although you stand to miss out on the SnapDragon processor, less glare-y screen, the S-Pen, the absence of titanium all in a slightly more compact package.

Pros:

• Practical A.I capabilities that you’ll actually use.
• The bright, significantly less-glare-y screen.
• The most powerful smartphone in the market today.
• Not a fan of the flat screen, but dang it looks really good.
• A robust camera setup for every occasion.

Cons:

• A bland unboxing experience.

FINAL SCORE: 90/100

VITAL STATISTICS

Platform: Android 14, One UI 6.1
Body: 162.3 x 79 x 8.6 mm (6.39 x 3.11 x 0.34 in), ~233g
Frame: Glass front (Corning Gorilla Armor), glass back (Corning Gorilla Armor), titanium frame (grade 2) with IP68 dust/water resistance
Chipset: Qualcomm SM8650-AC Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 (4 nm)
CPU: 8-core (1×3.39GHz Cortex-X4 & 3×3.1GHz Cortex-A720 & 2×2.9GHz Cortex-A720 & 2×2.2GHz Cortex-A520)
GPU: Adreno 750
Display: Dynamic LTPO AMOLED 2X, 120Hz, HDR10+, 2600 nits (peak); 6.8 inches, 114.7 cm2
Memory (Internal): 256GB 12GB RAM/ 512GB 12GB RAM/ 1TB 12GB RAM
Main Camera: 200 MP, f/1.7, 24mm (wide); 50 MP, f/3.4, 111mm (periscope telephoto) 5X zoom; 10 MP, f/2.4, 67mm (telephoto) x3 zoom; 12 MP, f/2.2, 13mm, 120? (ultrawide),
Video: 8K@24/30fps, 4K@30/60/120fps, 1080p@30/60/240fps, HDR10+, stereo sound rec., gyro-EIS
Sound: Stereo speakers, no jacks given
Battery: Li-Ion 5000 mAh, non-removable
Price: Starts from RM 6,299 (256GB, 12GB RAM)

The S24 Ultra is now available for purchase. Review unit of the Samsung S24 Ultra provided by Samsung Malaysia.

You can purchase your own unit of the S24 Ultra from their official website here where you can get special Samsung Store exclusive colors including Titanium Orange, Blue and Green, on top of the ‘standard’ Titanium Black, Gray (our favorite), Violet and Yellow.