Samsung sticks with the same battery size for the Galaxy S24 Ultra, but is it enough in 2024?

Samsung sticks with the same battery size for the Galaxy S24 Ultra, but is it enough in 2024?،

The Galaxy S24 is finally here, and its highly anticipated launch is not without controversy. Still, Samsung's new flagship phone brings plenty of improvements, including an all-new Galaxy AI experience and the latest and greatest chip. However, one aspect remains the same as previous generations: yes, we are talking about battery size. The S24 Ultra comes with a rather generous 5,000mAh battery, which is no departure from previous generations. The smaller “siblings” of the flagship series have seen an increase in battery size. But is 5,000 mAh enough to meet current standards? Should the Ultra get a battery size upgrade? Let's talk about it.

Brief historical overview

The first Galaxy S Ultra device arrived in 2020: the Galaxy S20 Ultra. It sported a remarkable at the time 5,000 mAh battery cell.

Subsequent models again feature 5,000 mAh batteries (rated capacity: 4,855 mAh, to be exactly precise), and the same goes for this year's Ultra, the Galaxy S24 Ultra.

The S24 Ultra and S23 Ultra - Samsung is sticking to the same battery size for the Galaxy S24 Ultra, but is it enough in 2024?

The S24 Ultra and the S23 Ultra

While 5,000mAh is a pretty big battery anyway, times are changing and as phones get more powerful, we start demanding more. Phones are obviously no longer just needed for texting and calling. We have sophisticated mobile games, we can watch movies, stream videos and do all sorts of sophisticated things on our phones.

This raises a question. In our recent battery tests, the Galaxy S24 UltraThe battery fared slightly worse than that of its main competitors like the iPhone 15 Pro Max and the OnePlus 12 in two main categories: video streaming and 3D gaming. This might actually be a problem given that the S24 Ultra's battery life only beats its competitors when it comes to browsing: but do you need a phone this expensive and fast just for browsing?

Case study: batteries, phones, competitors

Galaxy S24 Ultra battery technology compared to Galaxy S23 Ultra

THE Galaxy S24 its predecessor, the Galaxy S23 Ultra, also comes with a 5,000 mAh battery. Interestingly, the S24 loses to its predecessor in the video streaming and gaming sector. Curious, isn't it?

Aside from that, we see an improvement in battery life (although not huge) from the S24 Ultra when it comes to navigation. The specs are pretty much the same here: we get a 5,000 capacity Li-Ion battery (rated at 4,855 mAh).

The new chip sported by the S24 Ultra – the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 consumes more power than the Gen 2 (via SamLover), so maybe that's where this difference comes from. But doesn't this show that Samsung needs to pay more attention to battery performance? After all, the phone is incredibly fast and powerful, but Samsung fans have to compromise on almost an hour of gameplay. A lot can happen in an hour.

Larger Battery Size (Quick Review): OnePlus 12, Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro

As many of you probably know, there are phones with larger battery cells than the Ultra. Like, for example, the ROG Phone 8 Pro, which comes with a generous 5,500 mAh battery cell. The ROG Phone significantly beats the Ultra in video streaming – that's five hours, folks. There's a lot of binge-watching YouTube for five hours.

You could say that Samsung is better than ROG because it lasts longer when browsing or gaming. But then comes the OnePlus 12. The phone comes with a 5,400mAh battery and lasts significantly longer (even longer than the ROG) for streaming AND gaming. The only category OnePlus 12 The loss to the Ultra is in navigation, and given that we're talking 18 hours versus 20 hours, I'd say the loss isn't that dramatic (yes, both lasted longer than the hours you're awake in a day). (or that you should be!), so I wouldn't call it a failure anyway).

THE OnePlus 12 manages to last 13h37min in our custom video streaming test with the S24 Ultra which lasts only 8h18min. For gaming, the OnePlus flagship lasts about 1 hour and 15 minutes longer than the Samsung Ultra.

As you can see, in the categories where you would be interested in a powerful device like an Ultra phone: gaming and video streaming, the Ultra loses to the OnePlus in the battery battle.

Software optimization (behind-the-scenes magic?): iPhone 15 Pro Max

And we have the weird kid in the room when it comes to batteries: Apple's competitor. THE iPhone 15 Pro Max conquers the Galaxy in the field of video streaming and gaming. But you see, the iPhone does not have a 5,000 mAh battery, but a 4,441 mAh one!

It's not really some kind of witchcraft, but rather software optimizations of unknown Apple origin. Whatever magic Apple is doing behind the scenes with the iPhone's battery, it's doing it right. I bring this example just to illustrate that Samsung has tough competition in the battery performance game.

It’s 2024 and we demand more from phones

I'm not saying the S24 Ultra is terrible in terms of battery life. It's actually pretty good and should be enough for most people. But what I'm saying is that no one really buys a powerful, super fancy (and expensive) device Galaxy S24 ultra just to browse social media. A powerful flagship is now expected to support video streaming and mobile gaming. And the Ultra endures – but for less time than the other actors on the scene. Isn’t it due for an upgrade on this front? Samsung's S24 and S24+ were praised in terms of battery upgrades over their predecessors, but the Ultra is stuck with the same 5,000 mAh battery.

The argument that Samsung can't put more battery in the Ultra because the phone might lose its slim look isn't really valid given that the OnePlus 12 managed to squeeze in a larger battery cell without losing its premium model proportions and premium looks.

All I'm saying is that Samsung will probably have to think about the Ultra's battery for its next iteration. After all, the company is known for innovating and I bet all Samsung fans will be excited for an innovation in this area as well.