Samsung Galaxy S24 Review – The Flagship, Simplified

Unboxing the Samsung Galaxy S24

Samsung Galaxy S24 Review – Box

The Samsung Galaxy S24 comes with your standard Samsung affair for its packaging; being simple in nature with a picture and name listed on the front of the box. Inside the box, we found the following items:

Samsung Galaxy S24 Review – Box content

• USB-C to USB-C cable
• SIM ejector pin
• Documentations
• The Samsung Galaxy S24 itself

Specifications

Performance

Samsung Galaxy S24 Review – Antutu v10

Starting off with Antutu v10, the Samsung Galaxy S24 had a very impressive showing, taking the runner up spot in our list of benchmarked devices, just behind the S24 Ultra. This is an excellent start since it not only shows how strong the Exynos 2400 is, but it also shows that it can put up a good fight against the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3.

Samsung Galaxy S24 Review – Geekbench 6

It had a strong showing in Geekbench 6 as well, being behind its larger Ultra brethren but given the difference is so small, one could say that it’s practically negligible. It’s also interesting to see how well it stacks up against the A17 Pro chip, nearly matching up in terms of multi-core performance though losing out noticeably in single core.

Samsung Galaxy S24 Review – 3DMark Wild Life Extreme

Moving on to 3DMark’s Wild Life Extreme Unlimited, the Samsung Galaxy S24 took the runner up spot yet again. It’s interesting how it managed to score higher than the Apple chips here, and it’s definitely better than the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. From what I can observe here, the Exynos 2400’s CPU performance is practically on par with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 but the latter still wins in terms of GPU performance. With that being said however, Exynos wins in terms of efficiency as it had a stability rating of 74.1%, meaning thermal throttling occurs to a much lesser degree. It does get warm, even while gaming, but it’s not to an alarming degree.

Samsung Galaxy S24 Review – PCMark Work 3.0

Lastly on PCMark’s Work 3.0 benchmark, the Samsung Galaxy S24 performed admirably, nearly matching up to the S24 Ultra. This is as good of an indication as any that the Exynos 2400 can match up with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3. If you’re picking between the two as your daily driver, it’s a matter of whether you need a bigger screen, the S Pen, or the best in build quality from the Korean giant as possible since the base model S24 is still pretty well built.

Samsung Galaxy S24 Review – Battery endurance test

As for battery life, the Samsung Galaxy S24 sees minor improvements in capacity but the results are certainly impressive as it lasted 10 hours and 39 minutes (639 minutes) in PCMark’s Work 3.0 endurance test before it died. This is certainly more than enough for most consumers to see at least a full day’s use unless you’re doing some hardcore gaming on it. As for charging speed, this is what we got with a 3rd party 100W GaN charger starting from 2% battery life:

• 15 minutes = 30%
• 30 minutes = 61%
• 45 minutes = 76%
• 60 minutes = 92%
• 71 minutes = 100%

If you want to compare it to the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra, click right here.

Camera

The Samsung Galaxy S24 is carrying its predecessor’s camera hardware forward. This means we’re getting a triple camera setup consisting of a 50MP main wide angle camera, a 12MP ultrawide, and a 10MP telephoto camera with 3x optical zoom. Just because it’s using the same hardware doesn’t mean it’s a letdown as it still performs superbly across the board. The main camera can produce photos with superb detail and punchy colors, and it does pretty well in low light as well. Just remember that while you can use Night Mode, it’s not a universal solution as it can sometimes look better without. When it does work properly, it will help to capture more details in low light.

Telephoto works great up to 5x but as it reaches 10x, you can start to notice the pixelization in photos unless you’re out in broad daylight. Anything past 10x is practically unusable in most cases but the option to zoom up to 30x is there if you wish to use it. The ultrawide camera performs decently enough, though details are on the softer side and colors appear slightly more dull. Keep in mind that as you transition from one camera to the other, the white balance can go a little crazy. Interestingly, the autofocus works faster here than the S24 Ultra, though things might be different with recent updates since I used the Ultra prior to the camera fix update.

The Good

Samsung Galaxy S24 Review – Display

There are a good number of reasons to consider getting the Samsung Galaxy S24. For starters, you get a flat display that is practically on par with its brethren, even the Ultra. It’s still the same AMOLED panel, even with a matching 2600 nits peak brightness along with adaptive refresh rate going from 1Hz to 120Hz. The exception here is that it uses a smaller 6.2-inch Full HD+ display and the use of Gorilla Glass Victus 2 (both front and rear) as opposed to the newer Gorilla Armor, meaning it doesn’t deal with glare / reflection as good, but it still looks amazing as is.

Samsung Galaxy S24 Review – Rear

It’s also small and compact, perfect for those who aren’t a fan of larger devices that have become common in the flagship space. It may be the most affordable one in the lineup but the Samsung Galaxy S24 is still built solidly. It uses the Armor Aluminum 2 body, as opposed to the Ultra’s new Titanium chassis, which has tougher drop and scratch resistance compared to its previous generation. Moreover, it’s also IP68 water and dust resistant as well. The matte finish also means that it’s less prone to fingerprint smudges, though the Ultra’s titanium build does a better job in that area.

To my surprise, the Samsung Galaxy S24 has an excellent stereo speaker setup, consisting of a front-facing and a bottom-firing one. The volume is adequately loud and I’d say it only falls behind the S24 Ultra if you’re comparing it to non-gaming smartphones. If you’re looking for a multimedia powerhouse that isn’t large in size, this is one of the very few legitimate options you have for this year considering it makes for a great combo with its excellent display.

Samsung Galaxy S24 Review – Chat Assist and Note Assist with Galaxy AI

For those of you who are wondering, the Galaxy AI features are the same across all the S24 series devices, meaning the Samsung Galaxy S24 gets the same features as its larger Ultra variant. Granted, some might be easier to use with the S Pen but since this one doesn’t support it, you will just have to rely on voice and touch. As for a brief summary of the Galaxy AI features includes, I’ve listed them right below here:

• Live Translate = A real-time two-way call translation that works via the native Phone app. Currently supports up to 13 languages but will add more in the future. It might have a little bit of trouble depending on how you enunciate words but works fine for the most part. I just wished it was a little faster but that’s expected to improve over time.
• Chat Assist = You can let the AI write a message in different tones, such as a friendly or professional tone, based on what you’ve written to convey things more aptly depending on the recipient. You can also translate messages using it, with the same 13 languages being supported for now. I wouldn’t overly rely on it as it can make you sound more robotic or convey a completely different personality compared to your own writing style.
• Circle to Search = You can highlight any picture, video, or text within the display and immediately search it up on Google without leaving the app that you’re on. Arguably the most convenient tool to pop up and one I foresee many people make use of moving forward. The use of the S Pen makes this feature more intuitive to use.
• Note Assist = Using the Samsung Notes app, you can turn your notes into something far better by letting Galaxy AI create summaries, handle the formatting, spellcheck, translate, and more. For people like me who lack the creativity to make our own notes pop out better or have the tendency to write in ways only we ourselves can understand, this is a godsend.
• Transcript Assist = Using the Voice Recorder app, you can get the audio to be automatically transcribed, complete with the ability to identify when different speakers are talking. At times, it might have trouble getting the right word down due to how some words are enunciated and if they can be heard clearly but for the most part, works pretty well.
• Interpreter = A 2-way real-time translation tool where you can select two different languages and have a conversation. This is perfect for travelers and the UI design makes it easy for two people to look at the screen and communicate but the 13 language limitation means there are a lot of places out there you still can’t make use of it yet.

For a deeper dive into Galaxy AI and its respective features, click right here.

Samsung Galaxy S24 Review – Notch

Another plus point of the Samsung Galaxy S24 is its pricing. The retail price is set at RM4,099 for the 256GB variant whereas the 512GB goes for RM4,599. Sure, for a whole lot of people out there, I would recommend the Plus for the bigger screen and battery but that also comes with an RM800 higher price tag. Where the base model stands for pricing, especially the 256GB, is the sweet spot for this type of flagship given our current economic situation, especially since you’re getting everything you need, along with Galaxy AI, and more right out of the box.

Lastly, the Samsung Galaxy S24 comes with 7 years of guaranteed software upgrades together with 7 years of major security updates. Previously, they were holding the record with 5 years of software upgrades but with this, they are clearly not backing down from Google’s own Pixel 8 offering as it matches them evenly with this. Simply put, you can use this smartphone and be well updated until the year 2031, which is quite insane to think about.

The Bad

Samsung Galaxy S24 Review – Circle to Search and Transcript Assist with Galaxy AI

As good as the Samsung Galaxy S24 is, it does have its share of drawbacks. For starters, the Galaxy AI in its entirety is still fairly new, and like any other AI-based applications, it needs a lot of data to work flawlessly or even come close to it. As such, don’t expect it to be the perfect solution as it has plenty of room for improvements, especially language support. Even with English, a slightly different pronunciation could lead to different results. Moreover, there is a footnote on the official website which states that “Galaxy AI features will be provided for free until the end of 2025 on supported Samsung Galaxy devices”, so while it is free for now, there is a chance it might require payment in order to use it starting 2026.

Samsung Galaxy S24 Review – Triple camera system

Lastly, I feel like the RAM configuration could have been better to standardize the multitasking experience. This one still uses 8GB RAM whereas the Plus and beyond have moved up to 12GB. Having all the devices in the lineup move up to 12GB would have resulted in a more consistent experience throughout. With that being said however, it wouldn’t easily feel like you’re running out of memory since the RAM Plus feature, configurable from 2GB to 8GB RAM in 2GB increments, would aid in that area. I would still prefer physical hardware over virtualization as well as consistency.

Samsung Galaxy S24 Verdict

Samsung Galaxy S24 Review

While all eyes are on the Ultra, the base model Samsung Galaxy S24 is certainly one that shouldn’t be overlooked. It’s giving you everything you need for a 2024 flagship smartphone, inclusive of the full Galaxy AI suite, and more. If you’d prefer to not splurge too much and typically enjoy smaller devices, this is certainly one you wouldn’t regret as it gives excellent value for the money spent.

At the end of our Samsung Galaxy S24 review, I award this flagship smartphone with our coveted Gold Pokdeward.

Big thanks to Samsung Malaysia for sending us this smartphone for the purpose of this review.