Samsung Galaxy S24: News, leaks, rumored price, and release window
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Although the Samsung Galaxy S23 series remains some of the best Android phones you can buy right now — particularly the massive Galaxy S23 Ultra — it's easy to look ahead at what's next. Samsung recently announced two new folding phones, including the massive Galaxy Z Fold 5. But if you're uninterested in foldables, the Galaxy S24 series is the company's next set of incoming flagships, set for release early next year.
Curious about Samsung's future lineup? Here's everything you need to know about the Galaxy S24 series.
SUMMARY
- The Samsung Galaxy S24 series is set for release early next year, with a rumored January 17th announcement before going on sale in early February.
- We expect the design to stay relatively similar, with flatter edges for the S24 and S24+ and a flat display and swap to titanium for the S24 Ultra.
- The Galaxy S24 Ultra is expected to feature the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 SoC, along with 8GB to 12GB of RAM and various storage options. That said, the S24 and S24+ may opt to use an Exynos chipset in global regions.
- The phone series will launch running One UI 6 or 6.1, building on top of Android 14 with redesigned emoji and a new quick settings menu, alongside new generative AI features.
Samsung Galaxy S24: Design and specs
Although design rumors surrounding the Galaxy S24 have been slow to trickle out, we're starting to learn more about what Samsung's next phone might look like. To the complete lack of surprise to anyone who has followed the company's design trends over the past few years, it's sounding like the S24 lineup might follow in Apple's tracks — and, depending on the model, it'll be in more ways than one.
The overall look for all three phones should stay relatively unchanged. After all, 2023 has seen Samsung align its design language across phones, including low-end models like the Galaxy A14. It's difficult to imagine a revolutionary new design on deck for next year, something echoed by early renders. We've seen images for both the Galaxy S24 and the Galaxy S24 Ultra, and, well, they look like what you'd expect. The former features squared edges that call recent iPhones to mind, while the latter looks to keep rounded rails while making one big move.
Based on both renders and rumors, it looks like Samsung is finally giving up the ghost on its curved screens. After years of reducing the radius on its flagship phablets — not to mention giving the non-Ultra devices flat panels — the company seems intent on giving the Galaxy S24 the same treatment. While leaker Ice Universe noted that it'll retain its curved sides, the screen itself is rumored to be completely flat.
These S24 Ultra renders seem to echo that, showing a familiar design that simply matches the Pixel 8 Pro when it comes to dropping curved edges along the sides of the panel. With this change, it seems like curved phones have finally been left behind for good by some of Android's biggest companies. While Motorola continues to include them on some of its devices, it's looking more and more likely that flat edges are back — and, likely, here to stay.
Ice Universe doubled down on that leak in a later tweet, specifying that the Galaxy S24 Ultra's flat panel will once again measure in around 6.8-inches at a 1440p resolution, though this time, with a peak brightness of 2,500 nits. That's a massive jump up from the 1,750 nits panel on this year's Galaxy S23 Ultra. Combine these flat screen rumors with word that a titanium frame will bring the S24 Ultra's weight down to just 233g, and it's sounding like a pretty big jump over this year's phone.
What about the other devices, though? Samsung is turning its attention to the Galaxy S24+ this year, finally upgrading the display in some crucial ways. In addition to slightly larger screens on both the S24 and S24+ than their respective predecessors, the S24+ will make the jump to QHD resolution, making for an even more pixel-dense screen than the S24 Ultra.
There are a couple of more changes coming to both phones. First, a big surprise: after Apple switched its Pro-series iPhones to titanium, Samsung is looking to follow in its footsteps, though only with the Galaxy S24 Ultra. Titanium could allow 2024's phablet to be lighter than the 234 grams the company shipped earlier in 2023. The regular and plus-sized phones, however, would stick with aluminum.
As for the specs, it's a little easier to assume. The newly-announced Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 SoC will likely power the Galaxy S24 in the U.S. and internationally. The two companies teamed up to craft a custom variant of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for the Galaxy S23 last year, and it's hard to imagine that partnership coming to an end. Meanwhile, expect between 8GB and 12GB of RAM in these phones, as well as various storage levels potentially as high as 2TB on the Ultra. Basically, it's another modern smartphone.
However, there's been a ton of debate in recent weeks over what Samsung really has planned to power this device, particularly in Europe. We've heard word that Samsung could attempt to swap back to Exynos chips in certain markets as early as next year, following previous rumors of the company looking to pivot back to in-house CPUs by 2027, although the brand has denied this report. Considering this could be a controversial move following the success of the Qualcomm-based Galaxy S23 — which likely explains the opposing rumors.
A couple of days after we heard about the move back to Exynos, another leaker — with just as much cred — fired back, stating the Galaxy S24 series was sticking to Snapdragon in every region. The latest reports split the difference, with every region using the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 in the Galaxy S24 Ultra, while the smaller S24 models would use the company's new Exynos 2400 in regions like Europe. Even Qualcomm seemed to confirm these rumors in its latest rumors.
The rest of the specs sound like a solid successor to the previous lineup. The Galaxy S24 could get ultra-wideband support for the first time, while all three phones could get brighter displays to improve outdoor visibility. Unfortunately, the same can't be said for the charging speeds, where we expect to once again see 45W PPS limits on the S24 Ultra.
Samsung Galaxy S24: Software
Samsung is less focused on exclusive software features than, say, Google, but expect some potential improvements to the One UI experience that arrive first on the Galaxy S24. For example, in 2023, Google and Samsung shipped the new Fast Pair-enabled setup process on the S23 lineup. We could see similar improvements come next year.
As you might expect for a smartphone running on the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, Samsung plans to unveil all sorts of AI-powered tricks with its next launch. Generative AI is the buzzword du jour, and the company intends to catapult its way into competition with Google as fast as possible. It's hard to see how text-to-image input and auto-generated poetry will give Samsung an edge, but it's certainly a way to catch an AI-obsessed public's attention — the company sure seems certain of its future sales.
One trick Samsung didn't wait for Unpacked to unveil is AI Live Translate Call, which will be part of its Galaxy AI platform. AI Live Translate Call does, well, basically what it sounds like, providing text and audio translations in real time while you're on a call — all on-device. How this performs remains to be seen, but we shouldn't have to wait too much longer to find out.
Samsung Galaxy S24: Cameras
That said, early reports suggest a modest improvement over last year's sensor, keeping the same 200MP lens while optimizing the experience over this year's phone. Even the sensor model name is similar — HP2SX, compared to the HP2 found in the S23 Ultra. It's likely to support the Zoom Anyplace technology Samsung debuted alongside the announcement of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, all to improve video tracking in your shots.
Meanwhile, let's talk about the rest of the camera lineup. Samsung usually relies on its ISOCELL sensors for primary lenses. The Galaxy S23 Ultra, for example, used the ISOCELL HP2 for its main 200MP shooter. To that end, we expect the company will stick with its in-house sensors, and this time, it might extend beyond the main lens. Earlier this year, the company filed a trademark for ISOCELL Zoom and ISOCELL Zoom Pro in South Korea and the U.K., suggesting the brand could replace the Sony IMX sensors it uses for its zoom lenses in upcoming phones.
A trademark is far from a confirmation that Samsung's next phones will sport fresh sensors, but what about an actual leak? Noted tipster Ice Universe began hinting in August that the Galaxy S24 Ultra could use a 50MP 3x telephoto lens, replacing the 10MP sensor on the current hardware. In a follow-up tweet, we learned this sensor is likely measures in at 1/2.52" at 0.7μm, which the tipster suggests could improve 5x shots when digitally zooming in. It's unclear if this would fall under that ISOCELL Zoom branding, but it should make for a more detailed shot.
These rumors were tweaked by the tipster a month later, splitting the two lenses into a 3x 10MP optical shooter (rather than the 50MP lens first rumored) and a 50MP 5x periscope lens, down from the 10x sensor on the Galaxy S23 Ultra. Don't let those specs fool you — despite the reduction, we could see similar performance at 10x digital zoom thanks to a wide aperture and larger sensor size. Still, it's hard to imaging that 5x lens capturing 100x digital images without some big drops in quality.
Samsung Galaxy S24: Price and release window
Earlier this year, Samsung kept its pricing and release dates fairly constant compared to 2022. The Galaxy S23 series featured the same February launch window and staggered prices ($800 for the S23, $1,000 for the S23+, and $1,200 for the S23 Ultra) as the S22 before it.
Whether the Galaxy S24 will follow suit is unclear, but it's our best guess. However, inflation remains a factor in the phone industry, and a small price bump to any of the company's models is easy to imagine. With the S24+ potentially missing from the lineup, a higher price for the base S24 is possible.
Nearly every rumor surrounding the Galaxy S24's launch window has centered around an early launch, potentially arriving in mid-January. The clearest word here yet comes from a report quoting a Samsung official, claiming the Galaxy S24 series is set for an announcement on January 17th. Just like last year's device, that falls on a Wednesday, presumably clearing the way for the device to arrive on store shelves a week or two later.
The Galaxy S24 series is coming sooner than you think
It might feel like the Galaxy S24 is far off in the future, but the phone is coming sooner than you think. With Samsung's latest foldables officially unveiled, we're left with the S24 lineup to focus on. And whether the company commits to launching two phones or three in early 2024, you can bet they'll be Android phones worth keeping your eye on. Until then, the Galaxy S23 series remains an excellent buy, especially if you can find them on sale
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