Similar {hardware} with an AI twist
Samsung is advertising and marketing the Galaxy S24 as an “AI phone,” which distracts from the truth that it is similar to the S23 apart from some show upgrades and the promise of longer software program assist. The query is whether or not the Galaxy AI enhance will assist resolve Samsung’s long-standing digicam woes. Regardless, the Galaxy S24 is the extra dependable of those two telephones.
ForBrighter, smoother, & bigger display3x telephoto lensMore coloration optionsSeven promised Android updatesAgainstFewer pixels per inchNo 512GB storage possibilityGalaxy AI has to show itself helpful
Almost all the pieces performed proper
This is the yr Apple begrudgingly admitted that its frugal clients deserve good issues too, reminiscent of Dynamic Island and a correct 48MP most important digicam with 2X zoom. The downside is that Apple nonetheless thinks that 60Hz is a suitable refresh fee for normal clients, which was irritating and is now simply absurd. It spoils what’s in any other case a unbelievable gadget with highly effective efficiency.
ForLast-gen Bionic nonetheless quicker than SnapdragonRevamped 48MP most important shooterSwitched to USB-C and Dynamic IslandDependable battery lifeAgainstSTILL 60Hz?!Smaller, dimmer displayFewer OS updatesNo clear AI course
Let’s all be trustworthy with ourselves: Most folks do not have a look at Samsung Galaxy S24 vs. Apple iPhone 15 comparisons to determine which one to purchase; they wish to learn how the largest Android launch of the yr compares to Apple’s flagship. Is Samsung leaving Apple behind or enjoying catch-up?Apple course-corrected with the iPhone 15, making long-requested fixes — switching to USB-C, changing the notch, and including a revamped most important digicam — whereas leaving one of many iPhone 14’s greatest show flaws. With the Galaxy S24, Samsung did not make too many {hardware} adjustments apart from the processor enhance and a slight measurement enhance to the show and battery. If you do not just like the Galaxy S23, the S24 might not do sufficient to sway you except you are actually excited by AI upgrades.Below, we’ll run by the important thing Galaxy S24 vs. iPhone 15 variations to point out the place every model pulls forward or falls behind. Samsung Galaxy S24 vs. Apple iPhone 15: DesignWhy you may belief Android Central
Our knowledgeable reviewers spend hours testing and evaluating services so you may select one of the best for you. Find out extra about how we check.(Image credit score: Nicholas Sutrich / Android Central)The Galaxy S24 and iPhone 15 each share a flat-backed design and the same total measurement, though the iPhone 15 weighs 2.5g extra. For essentially the most half, you may solely inform them aside due to the cameras: Apple with its twin diagonal digicam housing and Samsung with its bare, vertical triple cameras.Compared to the Galaxy S23, the Galaxy S24 is almost similar in measurement, with the very same thickness and weight. It additionally brings again the identical Armor Aluminum and Gorilla Glass Victus 2 for shielding the rear and entrance glass, respectively. Samsung says this safety is “even stronger than the last generation,” however you will have to purchase the S24 Ultra to get the strongest Gorilla Armor.Whereas the aluminum and glass parts of the Galaxy S23 felt distinctly separated, Samsung rounded off the aluminum edge with the Galaxy S24 and higher matched their colours for a extra unibody design. Nick Sutrich, who received hands-on time with the Galaxy S24, says he likes this design extra, calling it extra comfy to grip. (Image credit score: Apple)Apple made a number of important adjustments to the iPhone 15 design. Our sister website iMore famous that whereas the iPhone 14 had an “awful glossy back” that was “a fingerprint magnet,” the iPhone 15 switched to a color-infused glass again that’s “soft to the touch, easy to grip, and shows absolutely none of the marks or blemishes that the old one used to.”You additionally swap to the Dynamic Island design launched by the iPhone 14 Pro final yr, that means no extra notch. Even although there are rumors that Apple might take away this function from the iPhone 16 Pro and complaints that Apple hasn’t performed sufficient with the gimmick, the very fact stays that Dynamic Island does extra with the empty show area than the notch, from the tappable app preview to mini-widgets. Otherwise, you deliver again the same old Apple buttons and mute swap; you will not get the iPhone 15 Pro’s new motion button till the bottom iPhone 16. In phrases of safety, Apple allegedly made its Ceramic Shield extra shatter-proof however extra liable to scratches as a trade-off. The most important level right here, although, is that Apple’s adjustments assist the iPhone 15 catch as much as the Galaxy S23 in design, not surpass it. Samsung already has a easy matte glass again and a petite selfie cutout that is extra compact than Dynamic Island. And by shrinking its entrance bezels, Samsung can provide a 6.2-inch show whereas the iPhone 15 is caught with a 6.1-inch show. Samsung Galaxy S24 vs. Apple iPhone 15: Displays(Image credit score: Apple)The iPhone 15 wins for show decision, however the Galaxy S24 wins by each different show metric.Starting with Apple’s win, the iPhone 15 has a 2556 x 1179 decision, good for about 460 pixels per inch. Samsung gave the S24 a 2340 x 1080 decision, which solely hits about 416 pixels per inch; you will wish to improve to the Galaxy S24 Plus to get QHD+ decision. Of course, a few of these further iPhone pixels might be lined up by the Dynamic Island cutout, so it might steadiness out regardless.Apple additionally impressed shoppers final yr by giving the iPhone 15 2,000 nits of brightness. The solely downside for Apple is that Samsung used the following months to crank up its show to a blinding 2,600 nits, giving the Galaxy S24 the sting. Still, the iPhone 15 ought to provide sufficient brightness for readable out of doors use.The greater distinction is that Apple nonetheless stubbornly clings to the concept a 120Hz decision is just for “Pro” consumers. The iPhone 15 stays caught at 60Hz, and iMore notes that the stuttering distinction is very noticeable when “using menus and unlocking the phone.” Meanwhile, the Galaxy S24 runs silky clean at 120Hz. (Image credit score: Nicholas Sutrich / Android Central)Plus, as talked about above, Samsung gave the Galaxy S24 sequence slimmer bezels, so that you get an additional 0.1 inch of show area with out making the telephone tougher to grip. You can see within the photograph above how Samsung actually squeezed out that show area. Last however not least, Samsung affords the under-display fingerprint sensor for fast telephone unlocks, whereas Apple continues to rely solely on Face ID. Samsung Galaxy S24 vs. Apple iPhone 15: Hardware, battery, and softwareSwipe to scroll horizontallyCategorySamsung Galaxy S24Apple iPhone 15Display6.2-inch AMOLED; 2340 x 10806.1-inch AMOLED: 2556 x 1179Refresh fee120Hz60HzBrightness2,600 nits2,000 nitsChipsetSnapdragon 8 Gen 3 for Galaxy (U.S.); Exynos 2400 (Europe)A16 BionicStorage128GB, 256GB128GB, 256GB, 512GBMemory8GB6GBRear digicam (1)50MP, OIS F1.8, 85º48MP, OIS F1.6, 1/1.56″, 1.0µmRear camera (2)12MP UW, F2.2, 120º12 MP, F2.4, 120ºRear camera (3)10MP telephoto, 3X optical zoom, F2.4, 36ºN/ASelfie camera12MP, F2.2, 80º12 MP, F1.9, 1/3.6″Battery4,000mAh3,349 mAhChargingType-C: 25W wired, 15W wirelessType-C: Fast charging, MagSafe wi-fi charging (15W)Connectivity5G LTE, Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.35G LTE, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.3, Ultra WidebandProtectionIP68, Gorilla Glass Victus 2IP68, Ceramic ShieldDimensions5.79 x 2.78 x 0.3in., 5.93oz.81 x 2.82 x 0.31in., 6.02ozColorsAmber yellow, Onyx black, Marble grey, Cobalt violet, Jade inexperienced, Sandstone orange, Sapphire blueBlack, Blue, Green, Yellow, PinkApple now provides its base iPhone the identical CPU as its last-gen Pro telephone, however the Bionic chips ship sufficient energy that they nonetheless compete effectively in opposition to Snapdragon flagship chips a yr later. Armed with the A16 Bionic and 6GB of RAM, the iPhone 15 hits 2518/6179 benchmarks for Geekbench 6, in keeping with Future Labs testing. Its total CrossMark rating was 1277, whereas its 3DMark Wild Life Extreme rating was 2923. Compare that to after we benchmarked Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 telephones: the IQOO 12, which has at the least double the reminiscence, hit 2252/6952 for Geekbench 6, 1324 for CrossMark, and 4329 for 3DMark. You can see how Apple simply wins for single-core processing regardless of the 2022 chip, however cannot fairly compete for memory-heavy duties. We do not know precisely how Samsung’s “for Galaxy” variant of the 8 Gen 3 will carry out, although we are able to count on a slight overclocked enhance. The Galaxy S24, with its 8GB max of RAM, is not going to match the IQOO 12 in sheer gaming and inventive efficiency. Because of that, the benchmarks for the iPhone 15 and Galaxy S24 must be pretty comparable, besides that Apple’s telephone ought to carry out quicker for easy single-core duties, and Samsung’s telephone will most likely carry out higher for gaming or creativity apps. If benchmarks are an enormous concern for you, although, you should not purchase both of those telephones; the iPhone 15 Pro or Galaxy S24 Plus with 12GB of RAM are higher decisions in that case. (Image credit score: Nicholas Sutrich / Android Central)Speed apart, each telephones begin with 128GB of storage and no expandable storage. Only Apple affords as much as 512GB, if you happen to’re keen to spend an additional $300; Samsung, in the meantime, is providing its standard deal of a free 256GB improve if you happen to preorder the Galaxy S24. Samsung has a bigger battery capability, however Apple has traditionally supplied disproportionate longevity because of the iOS-optimized Bionic sequence. In observe, the iPhone 15 is a telephone that ought to final you all day except you go heavy on the 48MP digicam or gaming. We can solely speculate on how lengthy the Galaxy S24 will final; the S23 fastened the Galaxy S22’s overheating points, however we won’t be sure till our evaluation whether or not the S24 is as environment friendly as its predecessor. On the charging entrance, the massive change is Apple’s pressured abandonment of Lightning cables in favor of USB-C. Unfortunately for iPhone 15 house owners, it solely makes use of USB-C 2.0, in comparison with the Galaxy S24’s PD3.0. Both provide the identical 50% cost in 30 minutes and 15W wi-fi charging, at the least.(Image credit score: Samsung)Rounding out the checklist, every telephone has a key perk by way of connectivity. Only the Galaxy S24 helps Wi-Fi 6E connectivity, whereas the iPhone 15 stays caught with Wi-Fi 6 solely. On the opposite hand, solely Apple helps Ultra Wideband for precision telephone discovering from one other gadget. If you are somebody who wants a bodily SIM card slot, reminiscent of for worldwide journey, then the Galaxy S24 is the best choice; Apple has transitioned absolutely to eSIM. On the software program entrance, Samsung made an sudden transfer and promised that the Galaxy S24 will provide seven years of software program updates and safety updates, that means it’s going to ultimately obtain Android 21 in 2031. We cannot even predict what Google can have added to its OS by then, but it surely must be spectacular. Apple usually affords 5 OS updates for its flagships, however traditionally has supplied six years in just a few instances. It additionally usually affords six years of standard safety updates and can proceed to patch its older telephones after that at an irregular cadence. Apple was the chief in software program updates for years, and there hasn’t been a necessity to ensure something. Now that Google guarantees seven OS updates for the Pixel 8 and Samsung is following go well with, we surprise if Apple will take some time to supply the same extension. Their longevity might come all the way down to how effectively each telephones maintain up by way of next-gen AI processing. The Galaxy S24 is being marketed as an “AI phone” with a revamped NPU to deal with issues like dwell translation; Apple, in the meantime, gave the iPhone 15 a brand new “16-core Neural Engine” that is apparently “capable of nearly 17 trillion operations per second,” with capabilities like dwell transcriptions of voicemail.We cannot say for sure which is quicker for AI. The greater problem for Apple is that we do not know but what its long-term generative AI plans are. Samsung can freely companion with OpenAI and Google to do the heavy lifting for them, giving them an computerized edge. But till the way forward for “AI” turns into clearer, this will or might not matter to you. Samsung Galaxy S24 vs. Apple iPhone 15: Cameras(Image credit score: Nicholas Sutrich / Android Central)Apple made an effort to improve the iPhone 15’s cameras, including a 48MP most important sensor with quad binning and 2X lossless zoom. Compared to the 12MP sensor of its predecessor, the 48MP most important sensor makes the iPhone 15 extra of a point-and-click digicam telephone than earlier than, even when it lacks the iPhone 15 Pro’s a number of focal lengths and 5x-optical telephoto lens. Our colleagues at iMore known as this new digicam the “best camera ever put in a regular iPhone,” praising particularly the “better details, colors, and low-light performance” when taking Portrait pictures. We cannot say but whether or not the Galaxy S24 cameras will enhance on the Galaxy S23 sequence. Our S23 reviewer complained that the first 50MP sensor “is often very aggressive in its processing, punching up the colors and contrast way more than they need to be.” He additionally famous Samsung’s continued points with shutter pace whereas praising the standard of selfies and low-light photographs. Samsung is banking on its new Galaxy AI focus to make its cameras higher. Its Galaxy Unpacked presentation referenced generative AI instruments just like the “Pro Visual Engine” that pulls knowledge from previous pictures to enhance future pictures when auto-editing them. It additionally guarantees “advanced noise reduction algorithms” for darkish or shaky pictures and a “dedicated color tuning solution for more natural and accurate color tone.”So far, we have examined the Galaxy S24’s prompt slo-mo function, and we’re extremely impressed with how effectively it augments video. We’ll proceed to check Galaxy AI over time as we evaluation the telephone. For now, although, we are able to solely choose particular {hardware} variations, just like the S24’s 3x optical zoom in comparison with the iPhone 15’s 2x zoom. Samsung Galaxy S24 vs. Apple iPhone 15: Which must you purchase?The Apple iPhone 15 is not a foul telephone. iMore praised it as a “triumphant upgrade over the iPhone 14” for all the causes outlined above. But at this level, it is practically unimaginable to justify spending $799 on a telephone with a 60Hz show, when one of the best low cost Android telephones offer you 90Hz or 120Hz for half the value. That one distracting downgrade makes this a dear telephone that is unlikely to maintain its resale worth for lengthy.The Samsung Galaxy S24 banks on the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 and its shiny AI tips, compensating for a reasonably boring and iterative improve over the superb S23. You get an additional 100mAh of battery, 850 nits of brightness, and 0.1 inches of show area.In different areas, like digicam high quality, we’ll have to attend and see if Samsung has improved. Still, even when it hasn’t, the Galaxy S24 ought to simply declare its predecessor’s spot among the many finest Android telephones.We can solely suggest the Galaxy S24 of those two telephones as the whole bundle, as long as our upcoming evaluation does not flip up any points. And this is not Android homerism: Our iPhone 15 Pro Max reviewer known as it “so good I almost didn’t switch back to Android.” It’s simply the case that Apple, regardless of fixing most of our different points with the iPhone 14, missed one thing actually vital with the iPhone 15 show.
Boosted show, AI upgrades
Choose the Samsung Galaxy S24 if you happen to’re an Android consumer who prefers small telephones and thinks AI is the way forward for cell tech. Don’t select the Galaxy S24 if you’d like the boosted storage, show decision, and graphical efficiency of the S24 Plus, or if you happen to’re a cushty Apple consumer.
Stolen tips from the iPhone 14 Pro
Choose the iPhone 15 if you happen to’re a frugal iOS fan who’s been ready for higher digicam high quality or to do away with the notch as soon as and for all. Don’t select the iPhone 15 if you happen to can afford that further $200 to get the Pro’s 120Hz ProMovement show and absurdly quick A17 efficiency.