Samsung S24 Ultra Review - Goodbye iPhone?

Summary

The Galaxy S24 Ultra review reveals a mix of advancements and setbacks. Despite its titanium frame and stronger glass, durability concerns remain with visible scuffs. Major improvements include a less reflective screen, enhanced software fluidity, and a comprehensive camera software overhaul, yet the hardware changes are minimal. AI features like instant translation and summarization impress, but live call translation needs improvement. The phone promises seven years of software updates, boosting its long-term value. While not perfect, the S24 Ultra's blend of design, performance, and innovative AI capabilities marks a significant step forward, prompting the reviewer to switch from an iPhone to the S24 Ultra as their primary device.

Takeaways

• 😀 The Galaxy S24 Ultra has a gorgeous anti-glare display that greatly reduces reflections.
• 👍🏻 The phone's software, UI customizability and smoothness have improved tremendously.
• 🤔 The cameras capture great photos but lack major upgrades from the S23 Ultra.
• 👎🏻 Instagram and Snapchat story quality is still subpar on the S24 Ultra.
• 😡 Samsung's AI features will start charging subscription fees after 2025.
• 🤯 The phone has incredible translation capabilities across messaging apps.
• 🔥 The S24 Ultra delivers the best battery life ever in a Samsung flagship.
• 📱 Circle to Search makes identifying objects on your screen extremely easy.
• 🎮 The phone can smoothly emulate resource-intensive PS2 games.
• 💪🏻 The S24 Ultra provides blazing fast performance but can get hot under extreme loads.

Q & A

What are some of the controversies around the Galaxy S24 Ultra launch?

The controversies include making the cameras worse than previous models, having 7 years of software support which some view as unbelievable, the chipset being a thermal nightmare, and mixed early reviews.

What are the upgrades to the Galaxy S24 Ultra's design?

Upgrades include a Titanium frame instead of aluminum, 4 times stronger glass, and a matte texture on the back, although it still scratches easily to expose the glossy layer underneath.

What is the biggest upgrade to the Galaxy S24 Ultra's screen?

The biggest upgrade is the significant reduction in screen glare and reflections, making it retain good visibility in various lighting conditions.

What software improvements help make the Galaxy S24 Ultra smooth and fluid to use?

Improvements include excellent scrolling acceleration, consistent and smooth animations when opening/closing apps, and an overall focus on refining small details to improve the experience.

What are some drawbacks compared to the iPhone 15 Pro Max?

Drawbacks include worse audio quality, lack of MagSafe charging, more aggressive pushing of Samsung services, worse signal/connectivity, and issues sharing videos on Instagram/Snapchat.

How have the Galaxy S24 Ultra's cameras improved?

The cameras haven't improved much in terms of details/quality, but the camera app is faster, smoother, better organized and overall nicer to use.

What AI features on the Galaxy S24 Ultra stand out positively?

The instant translation features across messaging apps and the AI-powered note organization/summarization are quite useful and go beyond gimmicks.

What is the Circle to Search feature and why is it innovative?

It lets you circle anything on the screen to have Google identify/search for it without leaving the current app. It's very accurate and changes how you can search.

How long will the AI features remain free to use?

Samsung has said the online AI features will only remain free until the end of 2025, after which users may need to pay extra fees.

How does the Galaxy S24 Ultra perform under intensive tasks like gaming and emulation?

It can handle very intensive emulation well, although performance dips slightly compared to gaming phones after prolonged stress. But for most real-world use, its performance is excellent.

Outlines

00:00

😀 Galaxy S24 Ultra’s controversial launch and review

The first paragraph introduces the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra and its controversial launch. It discusses initial negative reception around the cameras, software, chipset thermal issues, etc. But the reviewer has been testing the phone extensively and will provide a definitive review on its merits and whether they would permanently switch from an iPhone.

05:01

😄 Impressed by the S24’s design, display and software

The second paragraph highlights aspects of the Galaxy S24 that the reviewer really likes – the upgraded design materials, the near bezel-less display with glare reduction, the smooth and aesthetically pleasing One UI software, improved haptics and consistency in animations and app performance compared to previous Samsung devices.

10:02

📸 Cameras are better to use but not cutting edge

The third paragraph focuses on the S24 Ultra's cameras. While output quality hasn't improved much and lags behind expectations for an 'Ultra' device, usability is much nicer with a streamlined app, quicker shooting and a capable editor. Still, more innovation in sensors and zoom would have been welcomed.

15:03

✏️ Appreciating the S Pen more over time

The fourth paragraph discusses the S Pen stylus experience. While easy to forget it's there, the reviewer finds the freedom of quick note-taking without unlocking invaluable for ideation. One request is moving its slot to the right side for easier access when writing.

20:04

💰 Concerns over free AI features becoming paid subscriptions

The fifth paragraph pivots to discussing the AI capabilities. While impressed by translation and summarization, concerns are raised over Samsung's disclaimer that AI features will transition to paid subscriptions after 2025 despite being marketed as selling points of the S24 phone.

⚡ Blazing fast with great battery but some thermal throttling

The sixth paragraph focuses on performance. The S24 Ultra is among the fastest phones with great battery life. While thermal throttling occurs in sustained max load scenarios, it hasn't affected normal usage. Emulation capabilities are particularly impressive.

Keywords

💡Phone design

Refers to the physical appearance, materials, and build quality of the Galaxy S24 Ultra phone. A major theme of the review is assessing whether changes to the design, like a titanium frame and stronger glass, actually make the phone more durable or are largely marketing claims.

💡Software experience

Covers how it feels to actually use the phone on a day-to-day basis, including the user interface, system fluidity, customization options, etc. The video evaluates if Samsung has resolved long-standing software weaknesses like lagginess and poor audio.

💡Cameras

The camera capabilities are a major focus, analyzed from both a hardware sensor perspective and the quality of images/videos produced. There is discussion around whether changes from the S23 Ultra represent meaningful improvements or fail to 'break new ground' as expected for an Ultra model.

💡Battery life

How long the phone lasts per charge, an important consideration for usability. The review finds battery life has improved over previous Samsung flagships thanks to greater efficiency, lasting 8-9 hours screen time.

💡Performance

Speed and responsiveness when using apps, gaming, etc. Benchmarks reveal some thermal throttling during prolonged intensive tasks, but performance is still rated as top-tier overall.

💡Galaxy AI

Samsung's brand name for the AI and automation-enhanced software features. The review evaluates the usefulness of additions like instant translation, visual search, and intelligent summaries.

💡Pricing

Refers to the affordability of the phone, which retails at a premium price point. There is discussion around whether new S24 features justify an upgrade over buying last year's model.

💡Durability

How well the phone withstands damage from drops, scratches etc. over time. Despite changes intended to improve sturdiness, the review unit still picked up scuffs and scratches with careful use.

💡Display

The quality of the phone's screen, including resolution, colors, brightness, etc. A standout highlight is nearly eliminating glare/reflections for better visibility.

💡Audio

The loudness and sound reproduction from speakers. Audio is rated slightly below leading alternatives like iPhone, but still very capable overall.

Highlights

The Galaxy S24 Ultra has had a controversial launch with worse cameras but better software

The screen has majorly reduced glare, making it the standout improvement

The fluidity, animations and visual design of the software are much improved

The camera app is smoother and faster, but image quality hasn't improved much

The editing features like portrait mode and effects are excellent

The AI translation features are game-changing for communicating across languages

The AI summarization makes browsing forums and notes much more efficient

Circle to Search is incredible for identifying objects, products, places in photos

Instant slow-mo video works well and has huge potential if polished

Live translation is very poor compared to the text translation features

The phone has top-tier performance, running PS2 games smoothly

Battery life is the best ever in a Samsung flagship

It switches between high and low drain states, so average battery life is 8-9 hours screen on

The iPhone is now relegated to a secondary phone due to Samsung's software improvements

It's unclear how the AI features will work long-term after the free period ends

Transcripts

the Galaxy s24 Ultra has had a

controversial launch oh my God AI That's

amazing wait did they just make the

cameras worse 7 years of software

support are you kidding this chipset is

a thermal nightmare I've been seeing it

I've been reading it while I have also

been testing it this is my definitive

review of Samsung's flagship phone of

the year the s24 ultra and also whether

or not I'm going to be permanently

replacing my iPhone for it so let's

start with the outside even though

Samsung swapped out their phone's frame

from aluminium to Titanium and even

though they've now got this brand new

four times stronger than the competition

glass this phone is still not difficult

to damage I've got a whole load of small

scuffs over the sides and they expose

the fact that this matte texture you see

here is only a very thin layer wherever

it's scratched it becomes glossy making

it immediately obvious and the screen is

still wearing and tearing just like

every other phone now maybe this glass

is stronger and maybe if the exact same

things that had happened to this had

also happened to other phones they might

be worse off but the point is I have

been very careful with this phone I've

not dropped it I have not tried to

damage it so basically it's not some

sort of Miracle glass that's going to

solve your durability problems like

Samsung might want you to believe I tell

you I would though if the company still

pre-installed your screen protector like

they used to now that said this design

overall I actually like it even more as

time's gone on every time I picked the

thing up I do think wo this is such a

pretty phone the texture feels great

those even screen borders very

aesthetically pleasing and I'm even

coming around to the flat screen since

the way that Samsung's curved the body

of the phone it doesn't have the

problems that normally come with flat

screens but actually lowkey the biggest

upgrade to the screen which Samsung has

done an awesome job of implementing but

an awful job at communicating is this

reduction to screen glare the s24 ultra

almost completely kills incoming

Reflections which is something we've

seen some phone screens do a little

better than others over the years but

this is the biggest standout that I can

remember and as soon as you experience

it once it becomes instantly clear that

this is the obvious next logical step up

for all screens cuz I mean companies

have spent so many years trying to make

their screens more color accurate trying

to make them brighter trying to make

them more contrasty and now you canot

just get that experience but you can

actually retain that experience

irrespective of whether you're sitting

next to a window or whether there's

bright sunlight casting over you it

makes this my favorite screen on a phone

full stop so the outside of the phone is

A+ but it's living with the software

that I assumed would be the difficult

part for me you know when I permanently

made the jump from Samsung 2 iPhone 3

and a half years ago the reason I did it

was all these little things little

things that build up into what felt like

a bigger thing that it didn't seem like

would ever be fixed because they're

little things like voice notes they used

to sound so muffled that it was like I

was trying to have a conversation with

someone while wearing three face masks

on top of each other animations which

sounds like a really silly thing but I

was getting tired of phones that kept

bragging about how bleeding edge their

processors were but that still didn't

feel fluid and Instagram stories I kept

thinking to myself what is the point

having the best set of cameras if the

moment I try to share the content from

them it just gets compressed beyond

belief it's this kind of stuff and I

honestly came into the s24 ultra

expecting none of it to have changed I

was wrong for one voice notes they sound

crystal clear now drisha has

begrudgingly confirmed to me that even

though she likes the idea of me using an

iPhone that this does sadly sound just

as good as the 15 Pro Max the fluidity

of the phone has gone at multiple levels

in a lot of ways this actually feels

smoother to use than my iPhone 15 Pro

Max like you can really really tell with

this new one UI software that Samsung

has gone all in on the little things

like the scrolling acceleration to make

things feel truly like they are gliding

underneath your fingertips and the way

the apps open and close now it is

consistent continuously smooth

animations and it's not just that it

feels quick it looks nice too I was

never a massive fan of Samsung's theming

but in just a couple of generations

they've gone a long way to completely

flipping that narrative this is the

first Samsung phone that I would say is

right out of the box gorgeous you know

the quick panel the way it's organized

the rounded Corners the precise even

spacing between every section like yes

finally the lock screen and the fact

that you can now add widgets you can

change up the style you can scale your

clock to the exact size you want and not

have to conform to some arbitrary

predefined options the fact that it

gives you enough flexibility that you

can very much make it yours while also

building in enough structure that it's

easy it's not overwhelming and whatever

you do it's going to look good and also

the new dark mode running through the

phone it's not actually black anymore

it's a sort of dark gray which is one of

those things that for me instantly made

the whole phone look a lot better but I

couldn't immediately place my finger on

y I'm sure there will be people who

don't like it but to me there's

something really Pleasant about not

feeling like you're in ultra high

contrast mode all the time it feels less

straining now there are problems with

this software I'm getting to them but my

prevailing feeling is that there's a lot

to like for example when you're on a

video call you just swipe down here and

you've got video effects and microphone

effects it actually works in a very

similar way to the iPhone but it has a

lot of options like you just tap here it

instantly blows the background very

cinematic you can have a colored

background you can pick an image for

your background and you can also even

adjust the smoothness of your face and

because it works on a core software

level it can persist across whatever app

that you're calling on the haptics are

awesome like typing has never felt

better on any phone and while some past

Samsungs used to have this tiny bit of

lag every now and again while typing it

seems have been ironed out you've got

the whole goodlock Suite of

customization tools which is kind of the

opposite of what I was saying for the

lock screen this is where you go deep

like since this is Samsung's first

titanium phone I decided to use good

luck to Kit mine with a titanium style

animated volume rocker it's just fun oh

and then the icing on the cake is 7

years of OS updates considering that

just a few years ago the industry

standard was 2 to three that is an

absolutely insane promise and even if

you're not going to use your phone for 7

years you still benefit because when you

come around to selling it if your phone

is still being supported it's likely

going to retain more of its value but

you saw this coming it's not all

sunshine and rainbows as well as all the

upgrades there are quite a few things

that have felt like a downgrade coming

from the 15 Pro Max like Instagram and

Snapchat stories they looked subpar

before they still look pretty subpar

it's not really photos that are the

issue it's just the videos it's like 50%

of the processing and the stabilization

that makes the cameras good disappears

you can kind of get around it by

recording in your native Cera app and

switching to 1080p instead of 4K to

avoid being hit with Instagram

compression but that definitely feels

clunky Samsung's face scanner I mean

they've tried like they give you an

option to add an alternate appearance if

say sometimes you wear glasses sometimes

you don't or you can set your screen too

brighten when scanning at night so that

this front camera can actually see you

but night is like the one time that you

don't want to be blasted by light and in

most middle lighting conditions it's

fine but it's just slow it's actually

quite surprising to me that such a big

company with such successful products

still has such a gaping hole cuz there's

no doubt that face scanning is

definitely the more automatic

alternative to fingerprint scanning it's

the future but until Samsung adds in

some sort of infrared 3D scanning Tech

like the iPhone you're not really going

to want to use this for much and there's

a few more things the audio quality is

not quite as good as the iPhone it's a

tiny bit less loud and a tiny bit less

full not having mag safe is actually a

massive downgrade since being able to

charge wirelessly while still being able

to have your phone propped up so that

you can see the

screen is very useful to me Samsung

software while very pretty is definitely

a little more aggressive than it used to

be in an annoying way now more than ever

it really pushes you towards Samsung

services like Samsung pass to store your

passwords So eventually you just get fed

up of it so you click okay but then it's

like oh you need to download the latest

version of pass so you download it and

then it's like oh you need to set up

pass and I'm like go away I'm just

trying to play a game of Bloons the

company knows that the best way to lock

users in is long-term Samsung is to get

them using as many Samsung services as

possible and you definitely feel it

getting shoved down your throat a bit

and then the last gripe which is a

little alarming signal I seem to spend

all my time with this phone on either

two to three bars while I'm outside and

then literally 0 to one when I'm

inserted and we did actually have a

storm last week and my wi I went so I

was hotspotting from this I was barely

getting anything speed wise now that is

serious if there's actually a persistent

issue but signal is one of those very

subjective things everyone has a

slightly different signal experience

mine's been bad but it's totally worth

checking out some other reviews too to

see if it is a trend or if I just got

particularly unlucky the high level

takeaway for software should still be

the fact that Samsung has improved a lot

to the point where this might just be

now my favorite Android skin we'll get

to the Galaxy AI stuff in a minute cuz I

have thoughts but I want to touch on

cameras because it's been a bit of a

hotly debated topic as you might have

seen in my camera comparison the s24

Ultras cameras are a pretty big

Improvement to the s23 Ultras but just

not in the way that we've come to expect

we're pretty used to each year phones

getting a bit more detailed getting a

bit better in low light zooming a bit

further Samsung's not really done much

of that at all and that's a little sad I

feel like the purpose of an Ultra phone

should be to break new ground to be a

spectacle and to showcase the most

Cutting Edge Tech that the company has

to offer whereas this time around I'm

not pulling it out excitedly on the

street to just see what it can do and I

don't get that brand new toy to play

with feeling because its output is quite

similar to last time but two things one

that doesn't mean it's a bad camera it's

building on what was already a very

strong foundation and two what they have

done this time as part of this massive

software overhaul is made the camera

nicer to use it looks better it's

organized better the animations are

smoother and it captures faster oh and

the screen is so bright that you will

never ever have a problem seeing what

you're shooting again do I wish they'd

also improve the output with a brand new

400 megapix main sensor yeah of course

but was this a much needed Improvement

nonetheless and has the company made

enough improvements in other parts of

the phone for me to forgive them also

yes and the editing the editor on this

phone is one of the things that

constantly reminds me that we're working

with powerful technology you can do

something as obtuse as taking a photo of

another photo yes this is me the phone

will understand that photo and still be

able to instantly apply the portrait

mode effect to make it feel like it is

popping out of your screen and these

instant effects have actually ended up

being a much bigger deal to me than what

Samsung is tting as the key new thing

the generative image editor well that

one obviously is the cooler feature the

better party trick it's actually very

rarely after I've taken a shot do I

think to myself yeah it would actually

be great if this person was here instead

of here I'm glad it exists and I'm

curious to see how it evolves but there

is something that does feel a little

inauthentic about it like it's different

to normal photo editing where you feel

like you can still be proud of a photo

that you took here it's it's almost

bordering on digital art which is cool

but it's not as rewarding in a way plus

the feature is still a bit of effort to

use if it was as simple as you're just

browsing in your gallery you see a

person you pick them up and you move

them and then that's it I'd probably use

it quite a lot to make subtle

adjustments to things that aren't quite

right but as it is where it's like you

hit the editor then you hit the

generative editor you do your tweaks you

confirm your tweaks you wait for about

10 seconds and then you hit done it's

still a bit long considering that in a

big day out you might take 30 photos

you're not going to do that 30 times and

that is actually a pretty good segue

into Galaxy AI in general what I've been

really trying to work out over the last

few weeks is are these AI features

actually groundbreaking or are they just

gimmicks I'll start with the good news

all of this instant translation stuff

that actually has me buzzing I've never

mentioned this before but part of my

extended family is Italian and I mean

like proper Italian so it's often not

the easiest to communicate but check

this out this is what I do now when I

enter the chat it already knows that I'm

wanting to to talk in Italian so it's

got the Italian translator pre-loaded I

type my message into that translator

wait a couple of seconds and then the

translated text appears in my WhatsApp

chat window ready to hit send and the

fact that it is just set it and forget

it the fact that it knows in which chats

you want the translation and in which

chats you don't the fact that it works

across all your different messaging apps

like SMS WhatsApp Instagram is

absolutely amazing it means you're going

to talk more with people you otherwise

might not it means you're going to be

able to express yourselves better and

also people like being talked to in

their own language it's funny actually

my sister-in-law was so taken aback by

my sudden Italian fluency she genuinely

thought someone had hacked my phone and

called my mom to check now it isn't

perfect the translation isn't instant

and Samsung's quality of translation is

definitely not as good as Google's like

if I type in is this Italian working BTW

Samsung gets very confused whereas

Google understands that BTW means by the

way and then makes the translation

accordingly and can also better

understand if something is a question

even if you've not EXP explicitly added

a question mark and you are still going

to run into dialect problems current

translation tools are good for simple

requests but actually trying to have a

conversational tone is still not quite

possible because a lot of things don't

translate literally but as a first stab

this is pretty awesome because Samsung

has now set the precedent for what one

day absolutely will be a game changer

the other thing that's been surprisingly

useful is the AI summarization features

like while I'm on Android I've always

been a Google Chrome user I'm now

actively choosing to use the Samsung

browser because of the summaries I don't

use it all the time but let's say you

hop onto a forum discussion post this AI

can actually read everything that every

single person has written and then give

you a 30-second summary of all the key

opinions and that same AI technology

also helps you out with your notes I've

mentioned this before but my notes used

to be a big old mess because of the

chaotic nature of thoughts and my notes

being the way that I keep track of those

thoughts they're the one part of my

digital life that's had no trace of

organization

but this phone changes that for starters

while every note would normally be

whatever grammar my keyboard spits out

in the moment the AI grammar checker

here actually makes those notes feel

like way more composed deliberate

thoughts which then in turn makes you

want to look after them and organize

them the way it formats your notes too

like if I'm writing a list of holiday

destinations the thing will actually

categorize them based on continent which

is exactly how I would have done it but

it just would have taken me like 10

times as long and then to finish the

whole thing off the phone even generates

AI powered covers for your notes which

kind of packages each one into what

feels like its own distinct novel almost

it'll even go through and read through

the handwritten writing on those notes

for info about what to title the note

now I do think the phone should just do

this automatically as opposed to you

having to click generate but still

compare this to my iPhone Notes Library

there is a world of difference and on

that note yes there is still an S Pen

inside of this phone and for me it's one

of those things that I completely forget

it exists 99% of the time and some part

of me wishes Samsung had just swapped it

out for an even bigger battery until the

1% of times where I really need it and I

count my lucky stars that it's right

there in front of me there's something

that feels very free form about writing

as opposed to typing which is why

whenever I'm ideating I'll always use my

remarkable tablet but do you know what

this has kind of absorbed the

functionality of that too being able to

just whip this SP pen out and write even

when my phone's locked so I'm not

getting distracted it pretty much takes

the same box my only complaint is that I

really feel like it should be on this

side given that I imagine most people

are going to be writing with their right

hands and so would want to take it out

from here I imagine the reason they've

done this is the cameras now take up a

little bit too much space to put it on

that side but Samsung didn't want to

move the cameras because that's become

their branding all right so then we've

got Circle to search which is basically

hold the bottom part of your screen and

you enter this new mode this mode where

you can take whatever is on your screen

zoom in zoom out move around and when

you're ready Circle something and Google

will tell you what it is and for the

first 5 days of using this phone I

actually completely forgot this feature

existed cuz you know your default is to

use your phone the way you already know

how to use your phone Circle to search

requires a very conscious shift in how

you think about searching but when it

clicked for me it clicked hard this

feature is absolutely incredible you see

a photo of a cool product and you want

to know what it is circle you see a

photo of a phone you don't recognize

Circle you want to Reby whatever flowers

are in the house Circle to find out

exactly what they are you see a photo of

the most beautiful hotel View Circle it

to find out exactly which hotel it is

and I am continuously surprised at how

accurate it is it's very easy for a

feature like this to just be a gimmick

this is actually based on something

Google made years ago called now on tap

where you hold down your home button and

your phone tells you exactly what's on

your screen it was a gimmick then but

the seamlessness how it doesn't exit the

app you're currently in meaning you can

find out what you want to find out and

with one swipe be back where you were

the fluidity how you can Circle you can

scribble you can just tap and the phone

always seems to get what you're trying

to highlight and then the intelligence

of the results makes this I'm going to

say GameChanger category like just

yesterday this is going to sound like

one of the most first world situations

ever we got this snack in my kitchen on

the opposite side to where I was sitting

I just remembered we were running out of

that snack and I wanted to top up but I

couldn't remember what they were called

so pulled out my Samsung zoomed all the

way into that snack entered Circle to

search and within about 5 seconds that

exact product was in my Amazon basket

now obviously that's a dumb example but

I think it kind of illustrates how

Circle to search almost opens the

floodgates to what becomes searchable it

makes your phone genuinely feel like

your own personal interactive interface

with the world and now picking up my

iPhone which doesn't have it it feels

old school and then the final AI feature

that I like is the instant slow-mo it's

a top tier idea with good execution it

just needs a bit of Polish sometimes

when you use use it the video will

either lag at the start till the phone

catches up or create weird artifacts as

it's not quite able to insert the

perfect in between frames when slowing

videos down okay all that said there is

some stuff that I don't like like the

live call translation which is

significantly worse than the text

message translation basically because

it's the same thing but all of a sudden

has to happen in real time to be clear

I'm really glad Samsung's made this it

just needs to get better let me give you

an example I'm trying to decide between

pineapple and pizza and pineapple and

pasta what do you think I should go

for I think you should go to

[Applause]

jail oh yeah and uh if you're enjoying

this video then a sub to the channel

would be jeans Waits a moment oh yes

jeans you could just use my mom maybe

what no that's not what you were trying

to say right so do you have a sub to the

channel word fantastic wonderful the

best YouTube channel yes we got there

however there's also some more General

caveats Worth bearing in mind for all of

this AI stuff one that a lot of

Samsung's AI is actually based on Google

tech and so even some of the things that

Samsung made seem like an exclusive

almost definitely will not stay that way

for very long two that a lot of these AI

features aren't actually going to

require you to buy the S

24sp not being made clear so you feel

like you need to buy the new thing and

then three is is the fine print the

little disclaimer that we all knew would

pop up as soon as we found out that a

lot of these AI features are relying on

Samsung's online servers that the online

AI features are only going to be free

until the end of 2025 I don't like it

cuz you know the company comes on stage

and they say our new phone does this

amazing thing and like these s24 phones

they're expensive so naturally most

people are going to assume that price is

your price of Entry to use those

features that's how it's worked with

every single phone up until this point

so having this hidden charge to use the

headline feature you're launching your

phone with doesn't sit well with me and

yes Samsung is taking on extra cost from

the servers they're going to have to use

to host these AI requests I get that but

then either don't release the feature

till it can run without that or don't

sell it as a feature of the phone

because it's not then it's a feature of

your servers and yes they're saying the

AI will be free till the end of 2025 but

if anyone buys this phone now then even

if you're just on a short 24mon plan you

will still just enter the period where

you will have to hand over your credit

card details for what could well be yet

another monthly subscription on top of

the monthly fees you're already paying

for your data on top of the price of the

phone okay I've had my moan so final

couple of things before we bring this

all together in case I didn't already

make this clear this is also the fastest

Samsung I've ever used but what happens

when you push it well I have recently

come to the realization that the

PlayStation 2 can finally be properly

emulated on Android phones and bear in

mind emulation is a very resource

intensive task cuz it's not just that

your phone has to run a game it's

actually that it has to use its power to

simulate a completely different set of

Hardware that the game was originally

designed to run on but this thing can do

it this phone is powerful enough that I

was plain sailing through my entire

childhood library of PS2 games including

upscaling them to run in HD and that is

about as demanding a thing as you can

ask phone to do now that in itself is

kind of a sore spot too cuz I do really

want to start seeing phone companies not

just dropping a load of big numbers in

our lap and saying here you go have fun

but actually helping to create reasons

for that power to exist like I don't

know work with Rockstar to bring GTA 5

to the phone and show how your phone can

run it that would be exciting but as for

where this sits on the smartphone

performance ladder I would say top three

phones in the market right now if you

pull up a synthetic stress test you can

see how the performance does not

maintain its peak level it does get hot

and the performance does dip after

prolonged stress and this isn't

negligible I wouldn't write it off to

the people who are looking at getting

the extra four or five frames per second

when gaming for over an hour at a time

you will be able to tell the difference

between this and a dedicated gaming

phone but me personally I've only

actually been able to see those thermal

issues when using benchmarks none of my

normal use my gaming use or my emulator

use has caused any noticeable dip at all

and the phone does that while lasting

for ages this is the best battery life

ever in a Samsung Flagship the battery

isn't bigger they've just found ways to

get more out of it I want to slightly

caveat that by saying I definitely with

this phone notice a higher difference

than normal between its high drain

States and its low drain States like

when I'm playing a big game even for 30

minutes and I come out I will have

dropped 5 to 8% I would guess because

this chip has such a high performance

ceiling that it can go to but then

equally when I'm browsing on YouTube and

Instagram the phone feels like it's

going to last forever and so what that

means means is the average for me is 8

to 9 hours of screen on time per charge

I'm reaching evenings with at least 25%

left in the tank but sometimes even 50

which is quite a lot more than I can say

for my iPhone so with all of this in

mind at least until something big

happens on the Apple end the iPhone is

now being relegated to a secondary phone

and this is the one that I'm going to be

keeping my Sim in mostly because I think

Samsung's fixed a lot of their longer

running issues this time around the

software looks great it feels great the

camera feels smooth and in fixing the

fundamentals it also gives you the space

to appreciate the extras the gorgeous

anti-reflective screen the updated

materials and the inhand feel and the AI

features a lot of which actually do make

it feel like I am holding something next

Generation although what isn't clear at

this point is how much of the stuff that

I've Loved about using this phone will

also apply to last generation Samsungs

when they too also inevitably get the

latest software update like if they get

a lot of the same AI features and the

same level of Polish and efficiency then

the need need to spring for the absolute

latest is drastically diminished so I

would say if you're on an s23 right now

hang on to find out now you might have

also noticed right there on my phone's

home screen the surf shark VPN icon

there's a reason that with surf shark

it's not just about having a VPN this is

your entire internet toolkit in one like

for example it can create you an

alternative ID an entire name address

postal code email address and you can

permanently have access to those details

and copy them with a single click it can

change your GPS location as as well as

your internet location which means let's

say you're playing Pokémon go and you

want to catch a Pokémon that's on the

other side of the planet you can do that

from your bedroom and save yourself

$1,000 in flights it has a kill switch

which means if you want to make sure

that you're secure at all times you can

set surf shark up to automatically cut

the internet connection if the VPN

connection ever drops not to mention

servers that are specifically designed

to wipe themselves every single time

they're turned off so none of your data

is kept so when you combine that with

the fact that when you use the code boss

it's less than $3 a month for an

unlimited number of accounts with an

extra 6 months for free and a 30-day

money back guarantee it's a bit of a

no-brainer