Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra rumors are beginning to surface, even though the Galaxy S23 Ultra is still a newcomer to the best phones list. But phone makers are always looking ahead to their next device, and that means work on next year's model is already well underway.
As a result, expect a steady stream of Galaxy S24 Ultra leaks over the next several months, with the pace picking up the closer we get to the phone's expected launch in early 2024. Even though that's still a ways off, there's enough information out there to give us a broad outline of what Samsung may be planning for its next flagship phone.
Drawing on some early Galaxy S24 leaks along with rumors specific to the Ultra model, here's what we've heard so far about the Galaxy S24 Ultra, along with what we hope to see from Samsung's premium handset.
Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra release date and price speculation
With the Galaxy S23 lineup having arrived in February and even the midrange Galaxy A54 making its debut, Samsung's next order of business will be to roll out new versions of its foldable phones in the second half of the year. We'd expect to see the rumored Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Galaxy Z Flip 5 long before the Galaxy S24 Ultra's arrival.
Galaxy S phones tend to debut in the first three months of a new year, with Samsung favoring a February announcement to introduce us to its latest flagships. With that in mind, we'd expect to see the Galaxy S24 Ultra debut alongside the rest of the S24 lineup in February 2024. That's just an educated guess, of course, and more definitive rumors about a possible launch date should surface in the coming months.
It's far too early to talk Galaxy S24 Ultra pricing. Our biggest wish is that Samsung holds the line on pricing — or even finds a way to lower the cost of the phone from the Galaxy S23 Ultra's $1,199 starting price. Given all the premium features Samsung packs into that model plus the rising cost of smartphone parts, though, a price cut would be a long shot. We'd be happy just to see the same $1,199 starting price, especially in light of rumored price hikes that surfaced before the Galaxy S23's launch earlier this year.
Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra design and display rumors
With Samsung introducing the Ultra's design across the Galaxy S23 lineup this year — and even making its lower-cost Galaxy A phones look a lot like the Ultra — we wouldn't expect a radical design change for the Galaxy S24 Ultra. Samsung clearly likes the look of having a row of camera lenses descending vertically down the back of its phones and is likely to stick with that approach (even if some of the concept designs we've included with this article suggest a more radical new look).
Likewise, the last few Ultra models have featured a 6.8-inch panel, one of the largest screens you can get on a phone that doesn't fold. We'd expect Samsung to stick with that 6.8-inch display for the Galaxy S24 Ultra.
The biggest display change could be to its refresh rate. Since the Galaxy S20 Ultra, that giant display has been capable of a 120Hz refresh rate. More recent models have been able to scale down to 1Hz when the activity on-screen is more static.
The Galaxy s24 Ultra could mix that up by increasing its maximum refresh rate to 144Hz. That claim comes from the SamLover rumor site in a post containing several supposed details about next year's top Samsung phone. There are other devices out there with a 144Hz displays, though most of them are gaming phones. Given that Samsung likes to tout the gaming capabilities of its Ultra model — the fast processor, the big display, the internal cooling system designed to cut down on performance lags — it's not that big a stretch to imagine the S24 Ultra adopting this particular feature.
Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra camera rumors
Samsung's big camera change to the Ultra model happened this past year when the Galaxy S22 Ultra's 108MP main sensor made way for a 200MP shooter. We wouldn't expect another big leap forward, though SamLover does claim that Samsung will make some improvements to the sensor. That could mean anything from a wider aperture to let in more light to improvements in color reproduction.
Another SamLover tip involves the telephoto lens on the Galaxy S24 Ultra, which is supposed to get improved zooming capabilities. The S23 Ultra's camera setup includes a pair of telephoto cameras — one with a 3x optical zoom and the other with a 10x zoom — which can combine for a 100x Space Zoom feature. You'd think that improved zooming would mean we'll be able to get even closer to subjects, though we'll need to hear more details before we can be more certain.
The Galaxy S23 Ultra introduced a new front camera, so we'd only expect some fine-tuning there if Samsung's planning any changes at all. That leaves just the 12MP ultrawide lens on the back of the phone as a possible area of improvement.
Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra spec rumors
It's not going out on a limb to claim that whatever Qualcomm's top silicon is at this time next year, it'll be in the Galaxy S24 Ultra. The Galaxy S23 lineup was entirely powered by Qualcomm chipsets after years of Samsung also including its own Exynos chips in some models. Samsung is rumored to be sticking with the all-Qualcomm approach for next year's S24 phones.
We would imagine that would be the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 if Qualcomm sticks to its naming convention. We should hear details about that silicon toward the end of the year, which is when Qualcomm typically unveils its latest high-end chipset. That said, one rumor suggests the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 could appear earlier than usual, though we don't put that much stock in that claim.
Rumors claim that Apple's upcoming A17 Bionic chip will be the only one built on a 3nm process this year, which could put the upcoming Qualcomm silicon at a disadvantage in terms of speed and power efficiency. One rumor claims the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 will support UFS 4.1 storage, but considering how that storage spec has yet to be announced, we'd rank that claim as a dubious one.
One rumored Galaxy S23 feature that never appeared in this year's phones was satellite connectivity. SamLove expects that to change with the Galaxy S24 Ultra, which would allow that phone to match an iPhone 14 feature that allows people to send emergency messages even without cellular connectivity. It's unclear if that would be an Ultra-specific feature or whether Samsung would follow Apple's lead and make satellite connectivity a capability for all of its flagship models.
Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra: What we want to see
Given how thin Galaxy s24 Ultra rumors are at this point, that leaves an awful lot of room for us to fill in the blanks with features we hope to see. After all, as capable a phone as the Galaxy S23 Ultra may be, there are still some areas that Samsung could stand to improve.
New S Pen capabilities: Samsung added S Pen support with the release of the Galaxy S21 Ultra, and by the time the S22 Ultra arrived, it figured out how to include storage for the stylus within the phone's design. S Pen improvements with the Galaxy S23 Ultra were non-existent, though, as Samsung focused on other areas.
We hope the Galaxy S24 Ultra lavishes more attention on the S Pen, adding support for new capabilities. These could include new S Pen Air Actions or possibly remote control over additional Galaxy S23 Ultra functions.
Faster charging: The Galaxy S23 Ultra remained stuck on 45W charging, even as other Android phones — most notably devices like the OnePlus 11 — let you top off your phone much faster. We'd like to see charging speeds more befitting of a phone with an Ultra name.
No price change: We mentioned this above, but we're hoping that whatever changes Samsung introduces to the Galaxy S24 Ultra aren't accompanied by a change in price. That goes for our friends in other parts of the world who did wind up paying more for the Galaxy S23 Ultra, as Samsung adjusted for currency fluctuations.
While Ultra models boast more than their fair share of premium capabilities, $1,199 remains a steep price for a smartphone. Samsung would do well to remember that even the best phones can't cost so much that they're out of reach for most shoppers.
