Samsung Galaxy S24 vs. S24 Plus: don’t make a mistake

Samsung’s Galaxy Unpacked event has come and gone, but ut brought with it tthe all-new Galaxy S24 series. While the Ultra is the talk of the town, you may also find yourself deciding between the regular Galaxy S24 and the Galaxy S24 Plus.

If you’re contemplating picking up an S24 for yourself, you may be wondering what the differences are between the regular S24 and the S24 Plus, aside from the size. Lucky for you, that’s where we come in. Here’s what you need to know.

Galaxy S24 vs. S24 Plus: specs

Galaxy S24 vs. S24 Plus: design and display

Both the S24 and S24 Plus have a new, refreshed design compared to their predecessors. The new design features flat edges and a matte glass back, similar to the iPhone 15. The flat sides make it a bit more comfortable to hold over longer periods of time.

The Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus look pretty much identical, even down to the color options. Speaking of colors, you can get the S24 and S24 Plus in these standard colors: Cobalt Violet, Amber Yellow, Marble Gray, and Onyx Black. There are also three Samsung.com exclusive colors: Jade Green, Sapphire Blue, and Sandstone Orange.

The biggest difference between the S24 and S24 Plus, though, is the size of the flat display. The base Galaxy S24 features a 6.2-inch FHD+ AMOLED display with 1080 x 2340 pixel resolution and 416 pixels per inch (ppi), while the S24 Plus has a 6.7-inch QHD+ AMOLED display with 1440 x 3120 resolution and 513 ppi.

Other than that, the displays are similar. They both use LTPO panels with a dynamic refresh rate between 1Hz to 120Hz. Samsung has also bumped up the peak brightness across all models, including the S24 Ultra, to 2,600 nits.

Again, both the Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus are pretty much the same aside from the size. If you prefer smaller, more compact phones, then the S24 is the way to go. But if you prefer a larger display, then go for the S24 Plus.

Galaxy S24 vs. S24 Plus: performance and software

Samsung equipped both the S24 and S24 Plus with the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for Galaxy chip. The cooling system on the S24 lineup has also been redesigned and optimized for better heat dissipation.

There are some minor differences between the configurations for the S24 and S24 Plus. The base model S24 only has 8GB RAM, with 128GB or 256GB storage options. The S24 Plus, however, has 12GB RAM. It also starts at 256GB and goes up to 512GB storage. Neither one offers expandable storage.

The Galaxy S24 lineup comes with Android 14 with One UI 6.1 layered on top. Samsung has launched a whole slate of new AI-powered features via Galaxy AI with the S24 line. These new AI tools include real-time translation on phone calls and voice and text messages, intelligently summarized and formatted notes, generative photo-editing tools, Circle to Search, and more.

Aside from the RAM and storage capacity difference, the Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus are basically the same in terms of processor and software features. All of the AI tools are available on both devices, so you aren’t missing out on something if you go with the base model over the Plus.

Samsung will also offer seven years of major software upgrades on the S24 lineup, including the S24 and S24 Plus. This is a move to bring it in line with Google’s Pixel series. With a seven-year road map, that means both the S24 and S24 Plus should last up to Android 21.

Galaxy S24 vs. S24 Plus: cameras

On the camera front, the Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus are pretty much identical. Both have a 50-megapixel main camera with an f/1.8 aperture and 85-degree field of view with optical image stabilization (OIS), a 12MP ultrawide camera with an f/2.2 aperture and a 120-degree field of view, and a 10MP telephoto camera with an f/2.4 aperture, a 36-degree field of view, and 3x optical zoom range. The front-facing selfie camera is 12MP, with f/2.2 aperture and an 80-degree field of view.

One of the flaws of Samsung devices, in general, has been the oversaturation of colors from the resulting photographs. Thankfully, Samsung seems to have improved the algorithms behind color representation in photos, so the results should be more true to life than before. There have also been other improvements to lowlight performance, so night photos should be sharper, brighter, and overall better than before.

The camera systems on both the S24 and S24 Plus are pretty much identical, so one won’t be better than the other. The S24 Ultra, on the other hand, has the best camera system out of the entire S24 lineup.

Galaxy S24 vs. S24 Plus: battery and charging

The Galaxy S24 Plus has a 4,900mAh battery, whereas the regular Galaxy S24 has a 4,000mAh cell. That’s due to the size of the devices; the larger S24 Plus has more room for a larger battery cell inside, while the S24 does not. For comparison purposes, the S24 Ultra has a 5,000mAh battery, so the S24 Plus is very close to it-

For charging, the Galaxy S24 Plus is also better, as it offers 45-watt, wired fast charging speeds. The Galaxy S24, on the other hand, only has up to 25W charging speeds.

Unfortunately, Samsung decided not to adopt the Qi2 magnetic wireless charging standard for the S24 line, so wireless charging for both the S24 and S24 Plus is still capped at 15W. They both also have 4.5W reverse wireless charging.

Galaxy S24 vs. S24 Plus: verdict

When it comes down to it, the S24 and S24 Plus are almost identical. They have the same overall design, cameras, and software features.

As you try and make a decision between the two, it really comes down to this: Do you prefer smaller phones, or do you want a larger display and more battery life? And, of course, don’t forget to factor in the cost — a larger phone also has a bigger price tag.

Aside from these factors, though, the S24 and S24 Plus will offer the same overall experience. In other words, you can’t go wrong either way.

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