If the Galaxy S24 wants to act Ultra, it needs to step up its AI game (and refine this one feature)

Long before the world had ChatGPT/Bard/Midjourney fever, Google was quietly moving into the AI ​​field. In 2021, Google introduced the Pixel 6 and introduced something called Tensor G1 – the chipset that’s been driving Google’s phones ever since (currently they’re up to Tensor G3 in the Pixel 8 lineup). Tensor chips aren’t known for delivering mind-blowing raw power; rather, they focus on AI and machine learning.

This brings us to Samsung and the fact that in a few weeks they will be launching their next flagship range – the Galaxy S24, so naturally everyone is waiting for the latest and greatest from the Galaxy S24 Ultra. The “latest and greatest” now includes AI capabilities in addition to hardware benefits, so Samsung would be better off pulling out some artificial intelligence instead of a white rabbit out of its hat in January. The same goes for Apple and any other brand that wants to rise (or stay) to the top. Machine learning and its tricks are, in my opinion, what phone makers will be betting on in the coming years – they are already integrating more AI. and much more in their products and we will continue to do so. People want magic. Arthur C. Clarke was not wrong…

Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 – the chip that is sure to impress

It is almost certain that Samsung will not give the Galaxy S24 range the Galaxy S23 treatment when it comes to chips – this year’s flagships are all powered by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 (dubbed “for Galaxy”). This “same chip for every model” approach is reportedly being scrapped as rumors say Samsung will return to the way things were before launch. Galaxy S23 line – that is, different chips for different markets.

US users should get the Galaxy S24 with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip inside, while those in Europe or Korea have to get it with the Exynos 2400. Note: This should not affect the Galaxy S24 Ultraas insiders claim, it will be exclusive to Snapdragon, regardless of the country in which it was sold.

However, the Snapdragon and Exynos chips are sailing in the same direction: AI. Samsung specifically listed the Exynos 2400 as offering “1.7x improved CPU performance and 14.7x AI performance compared to its predecessor, the Exynos 2200.” Upon its announcement, the Snapdragon 8 generation 3 wasn’t even called “Gen 3” right away in a Qualcomm intro video – they called it Snapdragon 8 Gen AI.

Back to the Tensor range and its current G3 iteration. Maybe you know, maybe you don’t, but for Pixel 8 and the Pixel 8 Pro to provide their AI information, they outsource some AI tasks to Google’s servers. Yes, you need an internet connection to use the powerful Magic Editor feature, for example. For a given photo edit to be completed, the phone will send it to a Google server to be processed and saved.

Until Samsung’s next flagship is released, it is unclear whether the same schematics will be present in the Galaxy S24. So far, insiders claim that the Snapdragon 8 generation 3 will provide much more experience on the device.

Which could prove to be a huge advantage for Samsung. There are plenty of reasons why this might be the case:

• Faster overall workflow process;
• Confidentiality;
• No need for a permanent Internet connection.

It’s warmer now

“Samsung vs. Apple” is a classic that we watch every year, but now Samsung apparently seems interested in taking on the Pixel 8 Pro on the question of what is the smartest AI phone ever made. There are already reports that say that Galaxy S24 will benefit from features inspired by ChatGPT and Google Bard and in particular text-to-image conversion features.

That’s not all: in a recent promotional video, Samsung hinted at a possible AI-based feature for the Galaxy S24 Ultra. One of the camera features shown is the ISOCELL Zoom Anyplace which uses Qualcomm’s proprietary AI tracking and AI engine on the Snapdragon 8 generation 3. Zoom Anyplace allows you to simultaneously capture zoomed in and zoomed out video perspective via auto zoom and subject tracking. The result is two 4K video views from a single camera with 2x and 4x zooms.

Please compete harder

The fine line between inspiring chivalric competition and outright theft is indeed fine in the great world of technology; but we, as consumers, should not worry about it and let the courts handle the matter.

What’s more important is that the exclusive features are no longer exclusive. For example, Samsung’s One UI 6 brings improvements and AI-driven features to the Enhance-X image editor. I’m not saying that Samsung wouldn’t innovate if Google never released Pixel phones – I’m saying that now it’s forced to do it faster, or else.

But… (Ah, the obligatory “But…”!)

Call screening should be a top priority

There is one area that Samsung needs to tweak and refine – one where Google shines: the Call Screen feature. Of course, playing with more and more breathtaking photo/video editing tricks is nice and all. On the contrary, having a fancy call screening feature isn’t fun – it’s a relief.

In one of our own discussions about the upcoming Galaxy S24, people commented that a call screen feature might entice them to buy Samsung’s 2024 flagship.

A report from the Pew Research Center indicates that 80% of Americans say they usually don’t answer the phone when an unknown number calls them. That’s because telemarketers, scammers, and bots have become aggressive lately. This is why people would rather not understand than have to deal with this kind of stressful madness.

Sometimes you don’t answer and miss an important call. This is where the Pixel Call Screen feature comes in and lets you have the cake and eat it too. Your Google Assistant picks up for you and finds out what’s going on; Is the call urgent or is it someone claiming you won a Ferrari (and needs your credit card information to conclude).

This is what it looks like:

Of course, Samsung already has Bixby Assistant which recently launched its own call screening feature. It uses Samsung’s text-to-speech capabilities which are not as advanced as Google’s text-to-speech capabilities and generally speaking Bixby needs fine-tuning in order to catch up to the Call Screen feature on Pixel devices.

One last word

So if a flagship vanilla product like Pixel 8 can be packed with AI features at $699 (not to mention 7 years of Google support) and offer proper call screening functionality, there’s no reason for a maxed out flagship like the Galaxy S24 Ultra not the Galaxy S24 The phone will be what everyone in 2024 defines/compares/faces their devices with/with/against – so, Samsung, don’t be unintelligent. Be artificially intelligent.