Samsung Galaxy S24 Plus First Look and Unboxing
Alongside the Galaxy S24 and the Galaxy S24 Ultra, we had the chance to get a sample of the Galaxy S24 Plus for review fresh from its Malaysia launch where Samsung shared how much the new line-up of Galaxy AI empowered phones will cost and what preorder goodies you get.
Here’s our Samsung Galaxy S24 Plus first look where we share our initial impressions of the proverbial middle child of the flagship series of phones for 2024 from Samsung.
Samsung Galaxy S24 Plus first look – What’s in the box
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There’s no surprises here when unboxing the Galaxy S24 Plus as it has an identical array of kit as its smaller sibling the Galaxy S24 and the higher end Galaxy S24 Ultra.
Popping the box open reveals the phone itself along with a USB-C to C charging cable, a sheaf of warranty and quick start manuals and a small plectrum shaped SIM eject pin.
Samsung Galaxy S24 Plus first look – Design
Occupying a middle ground between the compact dimensions of the Galaxy S24 and the mammoth Galaxy S24 Ultra, the Samsung Galaxy S24 Plus is an interesting design that melds aspects of its larger and smaller sibling in its hardware, performance and aesthetics.
In terms of design, the Samsung Galaxy S24 Plus resembles an upscaled Galaxy S24. You get an essentially flat design on the front and back with rounded corners and no bevelling on the edges somewhat like an iPhone of recent vintage.
Samsung Galaxy S24 Plus First Look – The Galaxy S24, the Galaxy S24+ and the Galaxy S24 Ultra in a row
The backplate itself has a similar design as the Galaxy S24 too with a vertically aligned triple camera array on the backplate. In the case of our Galaxy S24 Plus first look sample which was done in a Marble Grey, you get a matte light grey paint job with a satin matte finish that resists fingerprints nicely.
Interestingly enough, the Galaxy S24 Plus uses an identical camera system as the Galaxy S24 – you get a primary 50MP F/1.8 camera with OIS and autofocus, a secondary 12MP F/2.2 ultra wide angle camera and a 10MP F/2.4 telephoto camera with OIS and 3x optical zoom while the front hosts a similar 12MP selfie camera.
Performance parameters for the cameras are identical to the Galaxy S24 as well with up to 8K@30fps video capture, up to 3x optical zoom and 30x digital zoom for stills and up to 12x digital zoom for videos up to 4K while 8K videos max out at 5x zoom.
The similarities extend further to its materials as our Galaxy S24 Plus first look unit also uses the same Armor Aluminium 2.0 for its chassis as the smaller Galaxy S24 along with Gorilla Glass Victus 2 to protect the display and backplate. The chassis is also rated a robust IP68 for dust and water resistance which means that it is able to survive in up to 1.5 metres of freshwater for up to 30 minutes and resist dust ingress.
Button placement is similar as well, albeit scaled up with a power button and volume rocker on the right and a SIM tray as well as a USB-C port and speaker slit at the base of the phone with another speaker forming a stereo pair embedded in a tiny slit just above the display itself along with an earpiece.
Overall tactility is excellent and the large dimensions of the phone make it a better choice for browsing web pages and gaming with a premium heft and feel when held.
Samsung Galaxy S24 Plus first look – Specifications
With dimensions approaching its larger sibling, our Galaxy S24 Plus first look sample features a large 6.7-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X display which has a sharper and crisper Quad HD+ (1,440 x 3,120 pixels) resolution akin to the Galaxy S24 Ultra. The display itself is top notch, featuring a 1-120hz adaptive refresh rate to offer better battery efficiency and also better brightness with a peak of 2,600 nits on account of the use of an LTPO panel.
Its predecessor, the older Galaxy S23 Plus had thicker bezels and a commensurately smaller 6.6-inch display that was also not as sharp at just FHD+ (1080 x 2,340 pixels) resolution and also not as bright at 1,750 nits peak brightness.
Under the hood, our Galaxy S24 Plus first look sample for the Malaysia market runs the Exynos 2400 for Galaxy processor much like the smaller Galaxy S24 albeit with 12GB RAM as well as 256GB and 512GB storage options depending on how deep your pockets go. In comparison, the top of the line Galaxy S24 Ultra runs the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for Galaxy processor.
The phone runs Android 14 with the latest OneUI 6.1 with a commitment by Samsung for Android and security updates for 7 years which is an unprecedented bonus that ensures its longevity for years to come.
Naturally, the phone features Galaxy AI which will offer live translations during calls, text translations and also the ability to remaster images which we’ll be testing in the coming weeks. Additional mod-cons include support for the latest WiFi 7 and Bluetooth 5.3 connectivity and 5G.
The battery also gets a bump up, with our Galaxy S24 Plus first look sample hosting a 4,900mAH battery with the same fast 45W wired charging as the Galaxy S24 Ultra along with 15W wireless charging and reverse wireless charging support.
The combination of a large battery and a power efficient LTPO display with the new Exynos 2400 for Galaxy processor looks promising in terms of endurance. Stay tuned for our full review! In the meantime, the Galaxy S24 Plus is still on preorder in Malaysia at the time of writing and you can check out the official Samsung online store here for more details.