Everything we expect from Samsung’s Galaxy S24 event this week

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It’s almost time for the Samsung Galaxy Unpacked 2024 event, which will take place on Wednesday, January 17, at the SAP Center in San Jose, California. The previous Unpacked event occurred in Seoul, South Korea, in 2023.

This year’s event will likely introduce three new Samsung Galaxy smartphones, a new AI tool, and possibly a health/fitness ring. Here’s a look at everything we could see at the big event.

Samsung Galaxy S24

This week, Samsung is expected to announce its next flagship device, the Samsung Galaxy S24. The model is anticipated to have a 6.2-inch screen, which is 0.1 inches bigger than the Galaxy S23’s 6.1-inch display. Even though the models are slightly different in size, they should look almost identical when placed next to each other. The new Galaxy S24 is also expected to feature a Dynamic AMOLED 2X display and a higher peak brightness of 2,600 nits or more.

The regular Galaxy S24 model will almost certainly come with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip. The Galaxy S24 is also expected to include a larger 4,000 mAh battery. That would be an increase of 100mAh compared to the S23, but whether this leads to more battery life isn’t yet known.

All three Galaxy S24 models should have Android 14 preinstalled with either Samsung One UI 6 or 6.1.

Samsung Galaxy S24 Plus

There were rumors that Samsung would discontinue its mid-priced “Plus” Galaxy model in 2024, but it seems this is no longer true. Based on renders, the Galaxy S24 Plus is expected to have a flat screen without curved edges, resulting in slimmer bezels. According to at least one leaker, the Galaxy S24 and Galaxy S24 Plus will both have a 50MP main lens, 2x and 3x optical zoom options, and 30x Space Zoom. The battery capacity of the Galaxy S24 Plus is also rumored to increase from 4,700 mAh to 4,900 mAh.

Like the Galaxy S24, the Galaxy S24 Plus should see a display bump. In this case, the Galaxy S24 Plus will likely have a 6.7-inch screen, up from the 6.6-inch screen on the Galaxy S23 Plus. And just like the regular S24, expect the same 2,600 nits of peak display brightness.

Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra

The Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra is expected to have the most significant changes compared to the previous generations. The new design should feature a titanium frame, a flat screen with no curved edges, and slimmer bezels. The device is expected to have a 6.8-inch WQHD display with a 1440p resolution.

It’s not lost on anyone that the titanium frame would be coming just months after the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max also made the switch to titanium. Similar to those phones, this could reduce the S24 Ultra’s weight by up to 10% compared to the previous model.

The Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra is expected to have a significant camera improvement as well. It’s likely to have a quad-camera setup on the rear, including a 200MP primary camera, 50MP and 10MP telephoto cameras, and a 12MP ultrawide camera. The camera sensors are also expected to be improved, including the 200MP primary lens. There’s some debate about whether the 10x optical zoom range will remain, or if Samsung will take a step back to 5x. We’ve heard conflicting reports, so we’ll just have to wait and see.

However, there likely won’t be any changes to the battery of the Galaxy S24 Ultra, which will remain the same as the previous model at 5,000 mAh.

Galaxy S24 series pricing and availability

This year’s Samsung Galaxy phones might come in various new colors like purple, orange, and yellow, in addition to the traditional black and gray. Samsung may also offer some exclusive colors if you buy the phones from Samsung.com.

In terms of pricing, Samsung might not follow in the footsteps of Apple and Google by raising prices. This means the base model Galaxy S24 could start at $800, with the S24 Plus starting at $1,000 and the flagship S24 Ultra priced at $1,200 at least. We’ve also heard rumors that the S24 and S24 Plus could be slightly cheaper, while the S24 Ultra may get a small price increase.

Colors and prices will likely vary by region.

Galaxy AI

The biggest new feature across all Galaxy S24 phones should be Galaxy AI. A proprietary generative AI model, the new tool was shown by Samsung late last year.

Galaxy AI (previously code-named “Samsung Gauss”) is an AI-powered system that has three main components. The first component is Samsung Gauss Language, which can generate text, translate languages, and answer questions. The second component is Samsung Gauss Code, which makes it easier for developers to write and edit code. The third component is Samsung Gauss Image, a tool for generating images.

Some people get very excited whenever something new happens on the AI front, and others get skeptical. Whether Samsung’s Galaxy AI succeeds in competing with the likes of ChatGPT remains to be seen.

Samsung Galaxy Ring

Finally, the upcoming Samsung Galaxy Unpacked event may feature the release of a new fitness ring. This device, possibly dubbed the “Samsung Galaxy Ring,” would be aimed to compete against the Oura Ring and similar wearables.

Like other fitness trackers, the Samsung Galaxy Ring is expected to offer activity tracking, heart rate monitoring, and sleep analysis features. Pricing and a launch date for the new product haven’t yet leaked.