In a world where bigger is often likened to better,
Samsung
's Galaxy S lineup has always pushed the boundaries. The Galaxy S24+ is no exception, boasting a massive 6.7-inch display that dwarfs the 6.1-inch screen on the vanilla
Galaxy S24
and even most other phones. It straddles the line between a phone and a tablet.
Of course, the Galaxy S24+ isn't the only plus-sized phone on the market.
Its bigger sibling, the
Galaxy S24
Ultra, offers an even larger 6.9-inch display and better specs. But it also comes with a significantly higher price tag at Rs 1,39,999 and a bulkier design that may be too much for some users to handle. On the other hand, it is the Ultra to the vanilla Galaxy S24. Yes, it's bigger, but it essentially has the same hardware as the vanilla one but with a bigger screen and a battery. It is a tad pricier, too, at Rs 99,999, while the vanilla model starts at Rs 79,999.
So, the question comes up, does size matter when it comes to phones? Is a larger screen worth the extra price? Let's dive into the Samsung Galaxy S24+ and see if this plus-sized device is worth the money.
Design
This here is the Galaxy S24+ in cobalt violet shade, which is essentially a mix of purple and blue
At first glance, the Galaxy S24+ might seem like a mere iteration of its predecessor, the S23+. But, a look a little closer and you’ll see many subtle yet meaningful changes. The flat aluminium frame now sports a matte finish, giving the phone a more sophisticated look and a better grip, so it is less likely to slip out of your hand. The camera bump has been slightly redesigned, with the lenses protruding directly from the back glass instead of being housed in a separate module. It's a small change, making the phone look cleaner and more streamlined.
It's just so flat
The S24+ is still a large phone, measuring 6.7 inches tall and 3 inches wide. Using it one-handed is not the most comfortable experience, especially if you have smaller hands. But for those who prefer a larger screen, the S24+ is a delight.
Down there, too
One of the most significant changes from the S23+ is the addition of Gorilla Glass Victus 2 on both the front and back of the phone. This new glass is supposed to be even more resistant to scratches and drops than its predecessor. While we didn't conduct any drop tests (we're not that brave), the S24+ does feel incredibly sturdy and well-built.
Display
Display so big, you'd probably need two hands
Speaking of the display, the Galaxy S24+ features a 6.7-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X panel with a resolution of 3200 x 1440 pixels (QHD+). This translates to an impressive pixel density of 525 ppi, which means text and images look incredibly sharp and detailed.
The S24+'s display also supports HDR10+ content, which means you'll get a wider colour gamut and brighter highlights when watching compatible videos. The display can reach a peak brightness of 1,800 nits, making it one of the brightest smartphone displays on the market. This means you'll have no trouble viewing content or reading, even in direct sunlight.
Big monsters on the big screen looks good, don't they?
One new feature that's exclusive to the S24+ (and the S24 Ultra) is the addition of LTPO 3.0 technology. This allows the display to dynamically adjust its refresh rate from 1Hz to 120Hz depending on the content being displayed. So, if you're reading a static web page, the refresh rate will drop down to save battery life. But if you're scrolling through social media or playing a game, the refresh rate will ramp up to 120Hz for a smoother experience.
Equipped with stereo speakers tuned by AKG, the S24+ offers a rich, balanced sound profile with clear, detailed highs, warm mids, and surprisingly deep lows, creating a spacious and engaging audio landscape. There’s no 3.5mm jack, and at this point, there’s no point complaining about it. However, the S24+ does support a variety of Bluetooth codecs, including SBC, AAC, aptX, aptX HD, and LDAC, so one can use their hi-fi audio gear wirelessly.
Performance
One major change this year is that the Galaxy S24+ (and Galaxy S24 but not the Galaxy S24 Ultra) have Samsung’s in-house
Exynos 2400
chipset under the hood. In our testing, the S24+ easily handled everything we threw at it. Whether we were multitasking between multiple apps, doom scrolling through the social media feed, or playing games, the phone never skipped a beat. Even the phone is pretty good at its AI chops (more on this later).
The 12GB of LPDDR5X RAM certainly helps, providing plenty of headroom for even the most demanding tasks. And there’s plenty of storage, too, with the base option having 256GB, then there’s another one having 512GB of storage.
Gaming, especially was pretty good on the Galaxy S24+. Titles like – even the demanding ones – Genshin Impact and Call of Duty: Mobile, ran at high settings, delivering smooth visuals and responsive gameplay.
Please, SimCity is the goat game
One thing that we noticed is that there were times, especially when outdoors when the phone warmed up a little. However, it did not get uncomfortable and didn’t even feel thermally throttled.
One of the biggest advantages of a larger phone is the ability to pack in a bigger battery, and that is exactly what we love about this phone. The Galaxy S24+ features a massive 5,000mAh battery, a slight increase from the 4,700mAh battery in the S23+. And the heft is warranted, given that the phone can easily last at least for two days.
When it comes to charging, the S24+ supports 45W wired charging and 15W wireless charging. It takes about 20 minutes to charge the phone from 0% to 50%, and from 0% to 100% in under an hour. However, you need to have a Samsung charger, that doesn’t come inside the box. Wireless charging is a bit slower, but still convenient if you have a compatible charging pad. There’s reverse wireless charging, too, so you can charge your earbuds, smartwatch or even your other phone.
OS
The Galaxy S24+ runs on Samsung's latest OS,
One UI 6.1
, which is based on Android 14. One UI has come a long way over the years, and the latest version is the most polished and feature-packed yet.
One of the standout additions in One UI 6.1 is Galaxy AI, a suite of generative AI-powered (which is of Google) features that should help you with day-to-day tasks, but do they? Well, no doubt they are pretty nifty and thoughtful, and if you get used to them and start using them often, they could be really helpful.
Brb, circling to search right now
The Circle to Search is intuitive and lets you quickly search the Internet, which would have taken a little effort before. Then, the Live Translate, Interpreter and Chat Assist come pretty handy during conversations. One can use Note Assist and Browsing Assist to quickly summarise the lengthy meeting notes or webpages, and that is really helpful.
Avada kedavra
The feature you’d use the most is the Photo Assist, which makes editing pictures so easy that even your grandma could do it. Despite all the basic editing you can do, with Photo Assist, you can simply alter the picture altogether. You can erase the object or person or even move them over, and the generative AI will fill up the space, and it tries its best to make it look like it is not at all unedited. The Photo Assist also suggests what more can be fixed in a photo, like blurring the background, colorising it, or remastering it to a higher resolution. And when you get bored of the stock wallpapers on your phone, you can whip up the generative AI to create the most random wallpapers for your phone.
That’s all about generative AI, but good old artificial intelligence is also at work. Put simply, machine-learning algorithms here learn the usage pattern and try to optimise the performance. The algorithms also decide what app pair would suit you the best based on how you have been using the apps. The AI then works behind the scenes to keep the battery life optimal and even helps protect your privacy by identifying potential security risks and giving you control over your data.
Let’s say you aren’t going to use AI, and then how good is the OneUI 6.1? You may ask. Well, it’s pretty good and better than before. The overall look is tidier and more mature, with redesigned icons, a more streamlined notification bar, and quick settings. And that media player also looks better. You know what the best part is? The lock screen is even more customisable, you can choose among different clock styles, having widgets (just like it is on the other side), and the lock screen can too have widgets.
That said, One UI still has some quirks, like an overwhelming settings menu and unnecessary default apps (looking at you,
Samsung Internet
). Nevertheless, it will keep getting better (hope so) for the next seven years to come, as Samsung promised.
Camera
The three musketeers and the flash
The Galaxy S24+ features a triple-camera setup on the back, consisting of a 50MP primary sensor, a 12MP ultra-wide sensor, and a 10MP telephoto sensor with 3x optical zoom. If this sounds familiar, that's because it's the same setup as the S23+. However, Samsung has made some software improvements that result in better image quality overall.
The primary 50MP sensor is still one of the best in the business, capturing sharp, detailed photos with excellent dynamic range (kudos to the SuperHDR for that). The ultra-wide sensor is also impressive, with minimal distortion around the edges and good colour accuracy. The telephoto sensor is perhaps the weakest link in the chain, but it still produces usable shots up to 10x zoom.
One area where Samsung has made significant improvements is in low-light photography, aka Nightography. As usual, there’s a whole lot of artificial intelligence, machine learning, and whatnot algorithms working behind the scenes, which process the multiple frames that the S24+ clicks to reduce noise and improve detail in low-light shots. And it does consistently click cleaner, brighter pictures with better colour accuracy in dimly lit environments.
On the video front, the S24+ can shoot up to 8K at 30fps or 4K at 60fps. The video quality is excellent, with good stabilisation and smooth, cinematic panning. However, the phone struggled with autofocus hunting in low light, which can be frustrating if you're trying to capture a specific moment.
And let's not just forget all the AI shenanigans. Yes, machine learning algorithms were already behind the scenes at work. Duh, computational photography. That's what Nightography is; it's artificial intelligence. Then, once you zoom beyond the 3x, the algorithms kick in, working to make the photo look passable. But, with generative AI, it's even better (had discussed this in the above paragraphs, so read it properly). But for starters, you don't have to worry about having that good photo every time you press the shutter. Just click the picture and let AI do the rest.
Verdict
So, does size matter when it comes to smartphones? The answer is that it depends. If you have large hands and prefer a bigger screen for media consumption and productivity, then the Galaxy S24+ is an excellent choice. The 6.7-inch display is a visual feast, and the larger battery means you can use the phone heavily without worrying about running out of juice.
But size isn't everything. The S24+ also has plenty of good hardware, a whole lot of AI, and a trio of impressive cameras, which is incremental over its predecessor. Of course, the Galaxy S24+ isn't perfect. The telephoto camera could be better, and the software still has some quirks that may take some getting used to.
But if you're in the market for a premium Android phone with a large screen, top-notch performance, and a camera system that's among the best in the business, the Samsung Galaxy S24+ is hard to beat. Still, if it’s too big for you, and the rest of the things suit you well, you could always go with the vanilla S24, that is quite small enough. Nevertheless, the Samsung Galaxy S24+ is proof that sometimes, bigger is better.
