Samsung S24 Ultra Review: Galaxy Brain
Summary
TLDRThe transcript covers a review of the new Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra phone. It discusses the phone's design and build materials like titanium, the display upgrades, the cameras with new AI features for translating conversations and summarizing recordings, and other software enhancements utilizing Google's Gemini AI. However, the reviewer feels somewhat underwhelmed since many features won't stay unique to Samsung and questions if the upgrades justify the high price tag, especially compared to rival phones like the Pixel 8.
Takeaways
- 😀 The Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra has a slimmer design with a titanium frame and upgraded Gorilla Glass.
- 📱 The S24 Ultra display is brighter with reduced reflectivity compared to the S23 Ultra.
- 📷 The rear camera array has been changed - it now has a higher resolution 5x zoom instead of a 10x zoom.
- 🎥 Video stabilization has been improved on the S24 Ultra.
- 💡 AI features like real-time translation in the dialer app and voice memo summarization are handy additions.
- 🔋 Battery life is slightly improved on the S24 Ultra due to the lighter titanium frame.
- 🤖 Many of the touted AI features rely on Google's Gemini AI model, so may come to other Android phones too.
- 💰 The S24 Ultra has a starting price of $1300, with insane trade-in deals from Samsung.
- 📈 Samsung is providing 7 years of software updates for the S24 Ultra.
- 😕 Some feel the S24 Ultra improvements don't fully justify the high price tag.
Q & A
What are the key hardware changes in the Galaxy S24 Ultra compared to the S23 Ultra?
-The S24 Ultra has a lighter titanium frame instead of aluminum, a brighter display with Gorilla Glass Victus 2, and more symmetrical bezels around the display.
What AI capabilities does the Galaxy S24 Ultra have?
-It has real-time translation, voice recorder transcription and summarization, generative photo editing like horizon adjustment and subject manipulation, and video slow motion generation.
Why did Samsung change the camera setup from 10x zoom to 5x zoom?
-Based on user data, Samsung found people used the 5x zoom more often than the 10x zoom, so they optimized for that usage.
How does the Galaxy S24 Ultra compare to other flagship Android phones?
-Many of the AI features like voice memo summarization and photo editing will come to other Android phones like the Pixel 8 soon after the S24 launch.
What is the concern around Samsung charging for AI features in the future?
-Some key AI capabilities depend on Google's Gemini model, not Samsung's own AI, so it's unclear if Samsung can charge for those.
What are the pros and cons of the Galaxy S24 Ultra's hardware?
-The hardware is very good with the bright display and titanium frame, but may not fully justify the high $1300 starting price tag.
How does the Galaxy S24 Ultra software compare to previous Samsung flagships?
-It doesn't push the envelope much on software compared to past models that added more hardware perks.
What are some cool customization options for the Galaxy S24 Ultra?
-It has interchangeable backplates called Flip Covers that trigger animated wallpapers when attached using NFC.
What are the S24 Ultra's video recording capabilities?
-It has improved video stabilization and can generate slow motion video from regular footage.
What is the review's overall assessment of the Galaxy S24 Ultra?
-While impressive, many key features will come to other Android phones soon, so it may not fully justify the high price tag.
Outlines
😃 Sponsor Spotlight: T-Mobile
The first paragraph introduces T-Mobile as the sponsor of the video. It highlights how T-Mobile offers unlimited talk, text, and data starting at just $25/month with no contracts or hidden fees. The sponsor is providing travel and content opportunities for the video review.
📱 AI Features on the Galaxy S24 Ultra
The second paragraph focuses on the AI features of the new Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra phone. It demonstrates the on-device translation through conversations with a presenter and the new voice recorder which can transcribe and summarize conversations. The accuracy is noted to be decent but not perfect.
🤔 Evaluating the S24 Ultra's Cameras
The third paragraph evaluates the camera changes on the S24 Ultra, swapping a 10x zoom for a higher resolution 5x zoom. Sample comparisons suggest little noticeable difference for most people. The shift is described as a 'shrugworthy' decision but unlikely to be a major issue.
😕 Dependence on Google's AI is a Concern
The fourth paragraph notes that many of the touted AI features depend on Google's Gemini AI model rather than Samsung's own development. As Google brings similar features to other Android phones, the S24 Ultra loses some of its exclusivity. This dependence is disappointing.
🤨 Hardware Improvements Don't Justify the Price
The concluding paragraph states that while the S24 Ultra has impressive hardware improvements, much of the hyped software is not unique. With competitors offering similar AI features, the Ultra's high price is harder to justify based on software alone.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡AI
💡Camera
💡Display
💡Frame
💡Pricing
💡S Pen
💡Slow motion video
💡Subscription model
💡Summary transcription
💡Translation
Highlights
AI features like real-time translation and voice memo summarization enhance the capabilities of the Galaxy S24 Ultra.
The display on the S24 Ultra is even better than before - brighter, less reflective, and with a more symmetrical bezel design.
The back plates with animated wallpapers are a clever and simple way to customize the look of your phone.
The on-device processing for translation allows it to work fairly quickly without an internet connection.
The voice recorder can not only transcribe conversations, but also summarize key points.
The AI photo editing features like shadow removal are impressive.
Samsung swapped the 10x zoom camera for a higher resolution 5x zoom based on usage data.
The added video stabilization helps offset the camera changes for most people.
The insane trade-in deals help justify the high asking price.
Many of the AI features will come to other Android phones soon.
The 7-year update promise for the S24 Ultra is great.
The titanium frame makes the S24 lighter than the S23 Ultra.
The new Gorilla Glass is stronger and less reflective.
The color options are more limited due to the titanium material.
The translation feature works fairly well for simple conversations.
Transcripts
sponsored by T
Mobile I just can't have the same
conversations
anymore yes the bezels are Slimmer yes
the screen is flat and yes the pen still
has an S on it but if you're looking
forc exent in smartphones at least those
without a hinge software is where it's
at these days and that's why Samsung has
chosen to pitch its newest most
expensive bar type Galaxy as an AI
phone yeah the buzzword I managed to
mostly avoid at this year's CES in Las
Vegas finally caught up with me at
Samsung's unpacked Event in San Jose and
here's the thing AI actually does make
it easier to get excited about this
year's Galaxy Ultra the only only
question is it's one of those years for
how
long take note I'm not saying the ultra
as a whole wins me over externally this
is what the national might call another
unoc elegant fall into the
unmagnify year upgrade cycle the s24
ultra is big and sharp like always now
bearing a frame made of a metal that
Apple has all but copyrighted with all
its Relentless advertising but switching
to Titanium made sense for the iPhone
because it's much lighter than the
stainless steel it replaced letting
Apple shave between 8 and 9% of mass off
the phone the titanium on the s24 ultra
replaces aluminum on the s23 ultra
making the 24 1 G lighter than its
predecessor and because of the way
titanium takes color Samsung is
consigned to a similarly drab palette as
as the iPhone for this generation with
options ranging from slightly warmer
than the iPhone gray to uh I don't know
whatever this is half-hearted
tapioca though I admit I do like the
purple one and samsung.com has
additional color ways to satisfy
appetites both subtle and
gross there are changes here I
appreciate ones that make a practical
difference the display is brighter and
covered by a stronger and less
reflective Gorilla Glass which means the
screen that was already the best you
could find on a phone is somehow even
better and the bezels bracketing it
aren't just Slimmer they're now
symmetrical I was ready to wrap it up
there all dejected like when an
eagle-eyed Samsung rep noticed my
frustrated apathy and directed me to
this wall of Wonder I somehow completely
missed the flip suitcases that came out
for the Galaxy flip 5 last year which is
a shame because they're really really
cool you slap one of these back plates
onto the phone and a little NFC tag
inside the plate triggers an automatic
download of an animated wallpaper to
match this isn't the first time I've
seen something like this I think Yola
was the first to do it or at least the
first one that hit my radar about a
decade ago but it's such a cool clever
and simple way to customize your phone
the only thing I'd change is to make it
properly magnetic like a moto mod as
shipped the plate won't stick to your
phone by itself you need to install the
included bumper border to keep it in
place oh and speaking of magnets that
aren't there while the phone is capable
of wireless charging the new ch2
standard which basically gives Android
phones mag safe yeah that's not here
maybe that's because magnets screw up
the S Pen but let's be real if Samsung
wanted to make this work it could have
engineered its way around
it instead Samsung F focused on making a
product it could package as the AI phone
I know the term AI has been so
thoroughly buzzword ified as to become
basically meaningless but it is useful
given the proper context as I said on
mediat techs living in the future
podcast you can think of AI as a kind of
seasoning like adding spices to a meal
adding AI to different parts of a device
can enhance and extend the capabilities
of that device on the
whole Samsung has seasoned quite a bit
of the s24 ultra with generative Ai and
it's set up a ton of demos for us to try
in Los Vegas check out The Interpreter
which I used to have an in-person
conversation with a Spanish-speaking
presenter I desperately need to find a
library
immediately
nice
you know if you make a r there you'll
find
it okay but what about a beer
afterwards the library also serves
[Laughter]
beer what a great place thank you now of
course you've been able to use your
phone to translate conversations for
years the difference here is that the
processing is happening on the phone
instead of in the cloud that helps it
stay fairly Speedy even if your data
connection is slow and if you're in an
area with no signal at all it'll still
work that translation is also built into
the Samsung dialer so if you make a
phone call to someone who speaks a
different language you get a realtime
Robo translation that works pretty well
at least if you're asking a staged
Samsung presenter where to find a cheese
Berger in Korean of
course I'm glad to hear that but it
works somewhat less well if you're
talking to your sister in France who's
fluent in French and who tells you that
the translation leaves room for
improvement okay what the translation is
do I think it's not top it's not great
it's not very correct and L you think
she's not as fluent as she thinks she is
these findings are somewhat
substantiated by Gadget matches Michael
Josh in his video
here or butter chicken recipe lots of
you love and World Kim's
recipe okay so it's not really doing an
exact translation
absolutely what else can you do with
Galaxy AI big asterisk on that brand
name that I'll come back to in a bit on
the positive side of the patronic Divide
I think my favorite AI feature is the
new voice recorder which can not only
transcribe a conversation but now also
summarize it so you don't need to read
through the entire transcript to
remember key points I tested this by
recording the Android police podcast
which yielded a pretty solid summary and
then I used it in real life first on a
goom Market call with the clicks team
and then in a session with my
therapist no I'm not going to show you
that conversation but seeing our call
broken down into a succinct mostly
coherent outline you know I I could see
this being really helpful to review
before my next
session I found that therapist through
an online counseling service by the way
and that would be a great segue into a
sponsor spot if they were my
sponsor no today's sponsor is a better
form of superior assistance T
Mobile fun fact when I used to be a
mobile phone salesman the only unlimited
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[Music]
you all right back to the hardware but
sticking with the smarts there's a
generous helping of generative AI in the
these cameras generative fill for
filling in the frame if you need to
adjust your horizon making a subject
bigger or smaller or moving it for
whatever reason oh and something I
actually like the shadow removal in
Samsung's photo editor is truly Next
Level props to techisode TV for pointing
that out to me also you've probably seen
this neat trick already you can press
and hold a video your shot to create a
slow motion version and this works even
if you weren't shooting in slow-mo for
the same reason everything on a hotel TV
looks like a European soap opera the
device is adding artificial frames
between the real ones in order to smooth
out what would otherwise be a juty
stutter
Fest as for the Optics that feed those
alos well Samsung made the controversial
decision to swap last year's 10x Zoom
for a higher resolution 5x zoom on this
one based on user data that suggested
people used 5x more often in the past I
might have spent the next 10 minutes
weighing whether it does or doesn't
matter but in truth I don't think it
does when I posted s23 versus s24
samples from San Jose followers on
threads said they couldn't tell much of
a difference thanks in part to social
media compression that most photos are
going to go through anyway look pixel
peeping is a noble profession but from
my perspective if anything the camera
shift is just another in a series of
shruggle decisions probably invisible to
most folks because the phone is still
capable of more zoom performance than
almost any other in the US and offset by
better video stabilization which I sort
of Saw sometimes and greater
compatibility with social media apps
like
Instagram yeah
sure ah Oh What a
Feeling if the camera shakeup irritates
anyone it's those of us oldtimers who
remember the old Samsung the company
that wouldn't feel the need to remove a
camera in order to add add another that
Samsung would have said hey for 1,300
bucks you get five cameras on the back
instead of four but um those days it
seems are behind
[Music]
us hey I owe you an asterisk if you
guessed it's about Samsung potentially
charging for its AI features after 2025
well guess again honestly that doesn't
surprise me everything is moving to a
subscription ion model these days and
from one perspective might actually be a
good thing in that it would incentivize
Samsung to keep improving these features
if Samsung were the one making them and
that's the real asterisk a lot of Galaxy
AI depends on Google AI specifically the
Gemini AI model so while Samsung built
the apps that tap into Gemini and it
gets first crack at them on the s24 many
of these features will come to other
Android phones and some are already
there Circle to search the most talked
about new feature is coming to the pixel
8 the same day it launches on the s24 by
some accounts the pixel's new voice memo
summary is already better than Samsung's
and many of the photo editing features
already have Google
equivalents and that's why I come away
from 9 days with the s24 ultra somewhat
underwhelmed not because it's not
impressive but because most of the
things that impress me won't stay unique
to this phone for long as that same
Android police podcast episode noted
Samsung has seldom been known for
pushing the envelope on software where
it usually shines is in hardware and
while this Hardware is very good and the
7-year update promise is wonderful and
the tradein deals are as insane as ever
I just can't help but feel this year's
Ultra doesn't totally justify its asking
price
this video was filmed partially on
location at Samsung unpacked in San Jose
California for which Samsung provided
travel lodging and content capture
opportunities including a redwood forest
train ride and a visit to the Santa Cruz
Mystery
Spot however as always the company had
no editorial input into this review nor
did I give Samsung copy approval
privileges or even an early preview the
loone sponsor of this video is T
Mobile Please Subscribe if you'd like to
see more videos like this until next
time from Michael Fischer Captain two
phones on threads thanks for
watching and stay mobile my
[Music]
friends
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