Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra - 1 Week Later (I WAS WRONG!)

Summary

The script provides an in-depth hands-on review of the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra after extensive testing, comparing performance and camera quality to other top smartphones like the iPhone 15 Pro Max. Key details covered include impressive battery life exceeding 24 hours of heavy use, slightly faster app loading speeds than the iPhone, refined camera software and improved low light photos, upgraded portrait mode capabilities with the new 5x optical zoom lens, and intriguing AI-powered video and translation features that will require a subscription after 2025.

Takeaways

• 😊 The S24 Ultra edges out the S23 Ultra and Vivo X100 Pro in most CPU benchmark tests
• 🔋 The S24 Ultra battery life is very impressive, lasting from 6am to 1am with heavy use
• 📸 The S24 Ultra camera app is fast, fluid and enjoyable to use
• 🌄 The S24 Ultra displays colors more naturally than the iPhone 15 Pro Max
• 😀 The S24 Ultra smooth scrolling and lack of lag or freezes is impressive
• 🎥 Low light video stabilization on the S24 Ultra still suffers from noise and jitter
• 🔎 Zoom between 5-10x is better on the S24 Ultra but beyond 10x can look worse
• 🖼 5x zoom portraits on the S24 Ultra produce breathtaking, detailed results
• 💸 Some AI features will be behind a paywall after 2025
• 🤳 One-handed use struggles are real unless you have giant hands

Q & A

What smartphones were compared in the Geekbench test?

The test compared the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 powered S24 Ultra, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 powered S23 Ultra, the Dimensity 9300 powered Vivo X90 Pro, and the A17 Bionic powered iPhone 15 Pro Max.

How did the S24 Ultra perform in real-world speed tests compared to the iPhone 15 Pro Max?

In real-world use, the S24 Ultra loaded apps quicker than the iPhone 15 Pro Max more than half the time, despite having slightly lower benchmark scores.

What were the results of the full day battery test on the S24 Ultra?

The S24 Ultra lasted from 6am to 1am the next day with heavy usage including social media, camera testing, media consumption, and video editing before reaching 5% battery.

How do the front cameras on the S23 Ultra and S24 Ultra compare?

The S24 Ultra's 12MP front camera produces more pleasing colors and sharper details compared to the S23 Ultra's front camera.

What are some of the AI features available on the S24 Ultra?

AI features include live translate, transcript and chat assist, generative image editing, and instant slow-mo video with AI-generated frames.

What changes were made to the rear camera setup on the S24 Ultra?

The 10x optical zoom was dropped to 5x, but zoom shots between 5-10x are better. Portrait shots at 5x are much improved.

How does the S24 Ultra camera app compare to the iPhone's?

The S24 Ultra's camera app is fast, fluid, and complete with editing tools, finally matching the simplicity of the iPhone's camera app.

How does low light photography on the S24 Ultra compare to the S23 Ultra and iPhone 15 Pro Max?

Low light photos on the S24 Ultra look slightly more natural than the S23 Ultra and closer to the iPhone 15 Pro Max, with good detail.

What improvements were made to video on the S24 Ultra?

Video stabilization is very similar to the iPhone 15 Pro Max now. Low light video still has some noise and jitter but shutter speed is slightly improved.

What is the overall assessment of the S24 Ultra camera performance?

While not perfect, the S24 Ultra camera provides incremental improvements over the S23 Ultra and is very competitive with the latest iPhone camera system.

Outlines

00:00

🎵 Intro to video reviewing Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra

The introductory paragraph provides context, stating that the video will provide an in-depth review of the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra performance, camera, battery life, and other features after a week of rigorous testing, in comparison to other flagship phones like the iPhone 15 Pro Max.

05:02

⚡️ Benchmark tests show S24 Ultra performance

Benchmark tests using Geekbench showed the S24 Ultra with Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 scored similar to MediaTek Dimensity 9300-powered Vivo X100 Pro and higher than S23 Ultra with Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. iPhone 15 Pro Max with A17 Bionic still tops all on multicore. Overall S24 Ultra delivers fast, smooth real-world performance with no lag.

10:03

🔋 Battery life exceeds expectations in daily use test

A full day real-world battery test showed impressive life on the S24 Ultra, lasting from 6am to 1am with heavy use including media, camera, social media, and more. Originally doubted the 5,000 mAh capacity battery but Samsung proved excellent optimization.

15:04

🤳 Front camera gets noticeable improvements

Despite same 12MP f/2.2 sensor, selfies on S24 Ultra show richer colors and sharper details versus S23 Ultra. Tiny punch hole size also appreciated.

🖥️ New AI features demonstrate promise but may be gated

AI features like live translation, transcript, and generative editing are impressive but may require paid subscription after 2025 since utilise technologies non-exclusive to Samsung.

📱 Refreshing Android experience with excellent UI

Navigation of Android UI very smooth and refreshing after extended time away from Android. One-handed use still challenging due to massive 6.8" flattened display.

📸 Camera changes provide tradeoffs vs S23 Ultra

Camera app much improved with fluid controls and editing suite. Resolution bump to 200MP appreciated. Portraits can look artificial at times. Low light performance slightly better. Faster shutter speed still needed. 5-10x zoom improved but over 10x worse. 5x portraits are a highlight.

🎬 Conclusion and request for feedback

Overall very positive impressions after rigorous week of testing S24 Ultra against other flagships. Requests feedback on any other aspects of the phone to further review. Reminder to like, subscribe, and follow socials.

Keywords

💡Camera performance

A major focus of the video is evaluating the camera capabilities of the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra compared to other flagship smartphones like the iPhone 15 Pro Max. The video provides in-depth analysis of photo and video quality in different settings to determine if the S24 Ultra's camera represents an improvement over previous models and leading competitors. Examples from the script include testing portrait mode, zoom capabilities, shutter speed, stabilization, and low light performance.

💡Battery life

Battery life is another important criteria examined in the video review. The host conducts real-world battery drain tests on the S24 Ultra, using it extensively over a 19 hour period. Despite having the same 5000 mAh capacity as the S23 Ultra, results show the S24 Ultra has excellent battery life, lasting from 6am to 1am the next day with heavy use.

💡Display

The display on the S24 Ultra is discussed, noting changes from the S23 Ultra. It now has a flatter 6.8 inch screen with 2600 nit peak brightness for improved outdoor visibility. The more practical flat display works better with the S Pen and screen protectors.

💡AI features

The video explores new AI capabilities of the S24 Ultra enabled by Snapdragon and Google technologies. Examples include live translation, transcription, generative image editing, and instant slow motion video. A downside is some features will be behind a paywall after 2025.

💡Performance

Benchmark tests and real-world use comparisons evaluate the performance of the S24 Ultra's Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip compared to other flagships. It lags behind the iPhone 15 Pro Max in benchmarks but outpaces it in app load times. The Dimensity 9300 trails it slightly in most metrics.

💡Camera hardware

Changes to the rear camera hardware on the S24 Ultra are analyzed. It now has a 5x optical zoom vs 10x on the S23 Ultra. While beyond 10x zoom is worse, between 5-10x is improved. The smaller punch hole front camera also captures better selfies.

💡Software

The video praises improvements to the camera app interface and software processing. Navigation feels faster and more iPhone-like. New resolution options, shooting modes, and editing tools enhance the user experience.

💡Image quality

Photo quality is compared across lighting conditions and zoom ranges. Results are mostly similar to the S23 Ultra but with slightly more natural color and detail. The iPhone still beats it in some aspects like shutter speed.

💡Video quality

The S24 Ultra matches the stable 4K video of the iPhone 15 Pro Max in daylight but still suffers from noise and jitter in low light conditions, like its predecessor.

💡Design

Design changes like the flattened display and squared-off S Pen are noted, though not considered significant improvements. One-handed use is more difficult due to the flat, wide screen. The camera module layout is unchanged.

Highlights

The Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip powers impressive performance in the S24 Ultra

The S24 Ultra matches or beats the iPhone 15 Pro Max in app loading speeds

No lag or freezing after a week of heavy S24 Ultra use

The S24 Ultra battery life is amazing, lasting from 6am to 1am with heavy use

The S24 Ultra front camera takes sharper, more colorful selfies than the S23 Ultra

The S24 Ultra display peak brightness reaches a very sunny 2600 nits

AI features like live translate are impressive but will be behind a paywall after 2025

The S24 Ultra camera app navigation is exceptionally fluid and easy to use

50MP photos on the S24 Ultra provide the most eye-pleasing images

The S24 Ultra excels at 5x portrait shots compared to the S23 Ultra

Low light photos on the S24 Ultra showcase more details than the iPhone 15 Pro Max

Zoom shots from 5-10x are better on the S24 Ultra than the S23 Ultra

The S24 Ultra shutter speed has improved but still lags top phones for action shots

Dropping 10x optical zoom is a controversial decision by Samsung

Blown up 200MP photos from the S24 Ultra maintain brilliant quality

Transcripts

[Music]

right so all of the fluffy marketing

commercials and regurgitated first

impressions Hands-On s24 Ultra content

is getting a little long in the tooth

now I get you you want to actually know

how this puppy performs this is Barney

by the way a new addition to team asbyt

but this last week my SIM card has

transferred from my iPhone 15 Pro Max

into the s24 ultra and I've been testing

it rigorously for all things camera

battery performance all things Galaxy AI

and a whole host of other features and

to some extent I was wrong with my first

impressions but let's start with

performance now firstly I ran a simple

geekbench test which shows the

Snapdragon 8 gen 3 powered s24 Ultra up

against the previous gen s23 Ultra with

its Snapdragon H gen2 the mediatech

dimensity 9,300 powered VI x00 Pro and

the iPhone 15 Pro Max with its a17

probionic chip these are all considered

the top tier performing chipsets for

2024 smartphones and just for good

measure because the s24 ultra is the 4

Galaxy version of the 8 gen 3 I also

threw in a bit later on a standard 8 gen

3 powered phone the IQ 12 to see if

there are indeed any major benefits to

this customized version now as expected

firstly in CPU scores the s23 ultra

finished last but the s24 ultra and VI x

100 pro were almost identical with the

Samsung Snapdragon phone edging it in

single core but the mediatech device

winning out on multicore huge credit to

mediatech here who often don't get the

recognition that they deserve the iPhone

however with its a17 Pro still

impressively tops all as it does on

multicore by quite some distance the s24

ultra came in second just ahead of the

x00 pro with the s23 ultra again at

quite a significant deficit and

interestingly the standard H gen 3 iq2

scored just two points Less on single

core but around 300 more on Multi so the

pros and cons are probably more tomato

tomato more and how the iPhone gives me

a tomato face when it's compared to the

s24 ultra a bit later so Apple winning

out in the numbers game here but the

question is how does that actually

transform into real world use q a speed

test so it started with a simple bootup

and Samsung even amongst a lot of other

Android phones have always traditionally

tended to boot up fairly slowly not

really sure why but talking straight

facts the iPhone does boot up quicker

but that's where the advantage ends yes

there are the odd occasions when the

iPhone loads an app quicker and granted

they are almost identical more often

than not but as you know in the tech

industry we love to split hairs and the

s24 ultra on more than half of the

occasions seems to load apps quicker

than the iPhone 15 Pro Max regardless of

having slightly lower benchmark scores

and for reference all apps were closed

prior to this test beginning so all of

these were fresh loads h on that theme

what I have noticed this week is this

thing has been Nyon Flawless like I get

it phones have got so good now that we

just almost expect that but it's been so

quick so smooth on the scroll endless

multitasking with multiple apps open

without a single lag or freeze in a week

that my iPhone 15 Pro Max decided to

randomly boot loop and to be honest the

only minor imperfection that I've

noticed is a weird glitch on Instagram

where when I click on the likes of one

of my posts it doesn't seem to load I'm

not sure the whats and wise but just

thought I'd share also in my daily use I

have comprehensively tested this battery

now I tend to prefer a realworld daily

test so I conducted a full day battery

test where I screenshotted the battery

percentages at various periods during

the day to see when this bad boy would

die and I'm not going to lie it

surprised me so I started the battery

test day at 6:00 a.m. when Barney woke

me up for his breakfast I had a coffee

checked a few emails and had a quick

flick through socials and the battery

was still at 96% I then took my little

boy to football practice and as it was a

Sunday afterwards on for a roast Pub

lunch with the rest of the family and

this was a perfect setting to test out

some of the camera features yes I was

that guy posing in public like this and

it still to this day knocks me

cringeworthy sick but it's for work I

wouldn't be doing this Zoolander esque

pose otherwise I was mainly testing the

portrait mode here at 1 2 and 3X and

considering how low the lighting was I

was really pretty impressed with the

results what do you think more on full

camera performance shortly but after I

got home I had a bit of chill time made

a couple of posts on social media and

watched a bit of Netflix and the time

was 5:35 p.m. and it was still at

46% battery I listened to a bit of music

had a YouTube podcast going on in the

background while I was making dinner and

I kept a check on my s24 ultra unboxing

video which was doing absolute bits on

Instagram and Tik Tok the time was 8:40

and the battery was 27% 20% at quarter

past 10 when I took a few more pictures

of Barney being a lazy toad fixed my

iPhone which had gone into the dreaded

boot loop for absolutely zero Reason by

which time the battery was at 12% at

quter 11 1 hour later after a little bit

of video editing it was at 10% and I

finished the test at 1:00 a.m. with a

battery at 5% I had absolutely smashed

the s24 ultra through its battery Paces

from 6:00 a.m. until 1:00 a.m. the

following day and it was still alive and

I done everything social media media

consumption camera

testing the lot a truly amazing fee I

had my doubts about the battery life

based on the fact that we had the same

5,000 MH battery capacity as the s23

ultra it's undoubtedly incredibly

impressive and I Was a Fool to ever

doubt Samsung and their claims of it

being better than last year's phone I'm

sorry Samsung I I apologize I will never

doubt you again I was also kind of wrong

about the front camera as well I said in

my original video that the selfie images

presumably would not really be any

different from the previous gen as they

both use a 12 megap f2.2 sensor but you

can absolutely tell them apart the s24

AL seems to produce more pleasing colors

and much sharper details and on top of

that the size of the punch hole is now

absolutely tiny and compared to the s23

ult's punch hole and now taking into

account the now perfectly symmetrical

tiny bezels that's an even bigger deal

than I first thought weirdly though like

with the display the S Pen is now more

squared off and where the last phone's

rounded Spen bled seamlessly into the

frame the square do version is slightly

sticking out now absolutely not a big

deal but knowing Samsung are usually

pretty Flawless with Design This

surprised me a little bit but that

display is exceptional 2600 nits Peak

brightness means you can even use this

wonderfully well in the blazing hot sun

in the desert take me back to Dubai

please I've always been a big advocate

for the curved Samsung displays but this

flatter version I feel might not be

quite as sexy but it is much more

practical for things like screen

protectors and has been much better to

use with that S Pen and some of those

new Galaxy AI features now a lot of

those new bits and Bobs are actually

utilizing Technologies from the likes of

Google and Snapdragon for example and

thus will be made available in some form

or another for other top smartphone

Brands as well making the s24 series AI

potentially less unique and this is

possibly a reason why Samsung pushed the

release to January this year instead of

February I think when they usually

release their flagship phone the likes

of circle to search with Google will

presumably in some form come to all

other top tier Android phones this

coming year but that doesn't make it any

less impressive I've also tested the

live translate ordering a taxi with a

lady who only spoke in another language

it real time translates and then

voiceovers to them in their language

what you've just said and vice versa and

yes there is a little pause between what

you say and then what you hear back and

you when you're first testing it you

think have they heard me do they

understand what I'm saying probably not

and then the voice from the phone comes

back at you in your own language I'm all

on board with that if it means that I

can can actually speak to someone in

another language and potentially travel

around the world not having that

language barrier yeah it's really

impressive I also think the transcript

and chat assist are going to be hugely

helpful for those in work meetings and

for students writing applications or

going to lectures for example and then

there's generative edit thanks to the

new Prov visual engine edit suggestions

provide you with prompts to improve your

images and AI has been inbuilt into many

of the camera features like the instant

slow-mo feature with AI generated video

frames added into the final piece when

you press and hold so you don't actually

have to think prior to taking the video

oh um I'm going to shoot a slow-mo here

or uh what frame rate should I film it

in so that I can slow it down and it

still be nice and smooth you can do that

after the event if the video you think

warrants a bit of slow-mo and I think

that is quite a really handy tool now

the downside of the AI features with the

phone and something that hasn't really

been mentioned as far as I'm aware in

many of the content that you've probably

seen so far is that a lot of it after

2025 will be behind a pay wall so you

will have to pay a monthly subscription

if you want to continue using it so as

amazing as these seven years software

and security updates are you will have

to potentially pay a little bit more

with some features further down the line

if you want to keep hold of your phone

which probably you will do for uh you

know the forceable few years of course

if the AI features aren't your bag you

will get all of these software and

camera features included and they are

seriously Elite navigating the UI has

been incredibly refreshing jumping back

to Android from the iPhone as even

though I've always used both on a daily

basis I have gone full-term Sim back

into an Android phone for the first time

probably since the iPhone 13 Pro Max

release and I've really enjoyed it now I

have found as big as both phones are for

one-handed use unless you have huge

Goliath hands the struggle with the s24

ultra is real because not only is the

6.8 in display massive but it's now

flatter and feels slightly sharper in

the hand meaning jumping to home for

example on Instagram now needs some

Olympic level finger gymnastics and

resting the phone on your pinky means

you can now see physical wounds but what

can you see through the camera while

it's fairly similar to the s23 ultra

there are a couple of key differences

and I've tested a whole host of

different scenarios to show you what the

new model can produce and the first

thing I noticed is just how nice the

actual camera app is to use often a big

criticism of Android phones is that that

they lack the ease and fluidity of

navigation of the iPhone I've often in

the past been a huge advocate for

preferring Android phones for camera

Hardware but when it comes to software

and app usage they never really come

close the Simplicity and just the it

works nature of an iPhone camera app

generally leaves Android in the dust

until now I love how fast and fluid

everything now feels on the s24 ultra

from scrolling through the zoom range or

choosing between the plentiful fun and

useful shooting modes like slow-mo at 4K

120 frames per second which is great fun

to play around with on my ad I really

like the way they've added the

resolution customization with a simple

tap at the top to go from 12 to 50 to

200 megapixels and you also now have a

very complete editing Suite which added

to the use of the AI features now

potentially makes the s24 ultra the king

camera app oh and that flat frame and

Spen combo is perfect for self and Vlogs

if you're interested in the megapixel

results here are three examples of the

different modes and on this occasion I

actually think the 50 megapixel shot

produced the most eye pleasing image but

let me know what you think overall

portraits can sometimes look slightly

artificial at times and a little like a

painting but there's no denying they are

extremely impressive Ultra wide shots

are largely the same as the s23 ultra

maintaining that impressive HDR but Zoom

scrolling does seem slightly smoother

and while these standard images with

very similar specs look as expected

quite similar they do seem slightly more

fine-tuned and refined color

temperatures looking just a little bit

more natural something that also applies

when compared to the ready Hues of the

Tomato 15 Pro Max especially in direct

sunlight but what about low light well

what do you think is it better on the

iPhone is it noticeably improved over

the s23 ultra or is it much of the same

for me the s24 ultra seems again

slightly more natural much closer to the

iPhone 50 Pro Max in this regard but it

does tend to actually showcase far more

details especially in the highlights

than the Apple device stabilization in

daylight looks incredibly similar to the

video king iPhone both are incredible

but in low light the s24 ultra does

still suffer from noise and visible

micro Jitters just as the s23 ultra did

I have noticed that the shutter speed

has improved slightly it's got a little

bit quicker than the s23 ultra but it's

still I feel not quick enough when

you're taking pictures of moving

subjects children pets for example when

you've only got that very quick second

to capture a moment it does sometimes

still slip compared to the likes of the

pixel 8 Pro and I feel until they can

fully Rectify that it will continue to

disappoint in this area again the iPhone

is the same same problem but Samsung

made one fairly controversial decision

when they were designing designing

designing their camera module and that

is dropping the 10x optical zoom down to

the 5x and many people saw that almost

as a bit of a downgrade it's not

entirely true in my experience but it's

a bit of a gift and a curse Samsung will

tell you that Zoom shots now between

five and 10x are better than on the s23

ultra whose second Optical lens doesn't

really kick in until 10x and in my

experience this is pretty true but

negligible and then of course once you

go past 10x the s24 ultra can look again

then negligibly worse because it's using

more software and less Hardware to

create that image I personally do take a

lot of images between that 5 and 10x

Zoom range so for me it probably makes

more sense but if you're out there and

you're desperately into your telescope

style zooming shots then the s24 ultra

is probably going to actually disappoint

slightly more than the previous

generation but the real Improvement here

and the biggest win of this switch over

is for portraits 5x shots as Apple also

showcased are very very eye pleasing

when you're taking portrait shots of

people pets Etc and with the s24 ultra

you can take some incredible 5x portrait

shots if you can nail the focus and your

subject is nice and still then some of

the results are breathtaking then hey if

you wanted to blow them up and convert

them to a canvas for example on your

wall the huge details from that 200

megap sensor will maintain the picture

quality brilliantly that's a lot of

talking for me let me know if I missed

anything out that you're interested in

the phone and I will try my best to let

you know my experience on that I hope it

was helpful for you and if it was if you

drop a like And subscribe that would be

absolutely wonderful it's taking me a

long time to make this video and I will

continue to update you with all of the

latest and greatest Tech going forwards

follow me on my other socials for short

FM content on the s24 ultra and Tech in

general my name is Adam you've been the

best as always I love you leave you I'll

see you in the next one say boy peace

out

h