AlthoughSamsung’s Galaxy S24 serieslooked pretty familiar to their respective predecessors, there was one key difference setting each model apart from previous entries: AI. The company’s Galaxy AI platform made a big splash, gaining some big promotion during events like the Super Bowl. Still, we’ve known for a while features likeInstant Slow-MoandTranscript Assistwouldn’t stay exclusive to the Galaxy S24 for long, and if you’re a proud owner of any device in Samsung’s 2023 flagship lineup, you’ve got some good news coming your way next month.
Today, Samsung confirmedGalaxy AI featuresare coming to theGalaxy S23 series(including theGalaxy S23 FE), theGalaxy Z Fold 5,Z Flip 5, andall three Tab S9 devicesin late March. Although we don’t have a specific launch date just yet, this will arrive as part of One UI 6.1, and it sounds like it’s truly the full package. Samsung’s highlighting everything from AI-generated wallpapers and Generative Edits for images to Note Assist and Browsing Assist for productivity hacks.
That’s not all.Google’s Circle to Searchis also coming to the company’s 2023 lineup as part of this update. This is the first time since the tool launched on the Galaxy S24 and Pixel 8 series that it’s expanded to new (or, rather, old) hardware. It acts as something of a debunking of Samsung Netherland’s notesurrounding an exclusivity deal set through October, though we’re still waiting for it to arrive on gadgets not made by Google or Samsung.
Although we knew it was coming, it’s still surprising to see the Galaxy S23 FE in this lineup. Considering its specs are nearly identical to the Galaxy S22 series — right down to the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 (or Exynos 2200) chipset and 8GB of RAM — it’s odd thatSamsung isn’t planning to bring these featuresto its 2022 flagships. Perhaps a technical hurdle really is keeping Galaxy AI from running on flagships that are just a couple of years old, but more likely, it seems like this is yet another example of holding back older hardware to push for users to upgrade prematurely.
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It’s possible Samsung brings these features to even older hardware in the coming months, but I wouldn’t hold my breath. While the Galaxy S24 series is set to get seven full years of OS upgrades, it’s going to be pretty frustratingif the company continues to hold back features like this. While no company on this front is perfect — including Apple, which puts a whole host of restrictions in the footnotes of its iOS pages every year — it’s still frustrating to see Samsung not quite nailing updates even with these new policies.
Samsung Galaxy S24
The smallest of Samsung’s 2024 flagships packs possibly the most significant upgrades of the series, with a significantly brighter and 1-120Hz adaptable refresh rate screen, cameras that finally match the S24+, and an even more polished build than the last two years.
Samsung Galaxy S24+
With a plethora of AI-powered tools, a brighter screen, and a sleek one-piece design, the Samsung Galaxy S24+ offers the big screen and fuller features of the S24 Ultra without its price tag being nearly as much of a gut punch. Seven years of updates and the continued revisions of One UI 6.1 help the software shine on a phone with largely the same hardware.
Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra
It’s not an overhaul by any means, but even small changes like (finally) swapping back to a flat touchscreen and seven years of system updates help the Galaxy S24 Ultra stand apart from its predecessors. Galaxy AI’s suite of features are front and center, as well as Google’s latest utilities like Circle to Search, and this AI craze even brings its magic to the Ultra’s cameras for after-the-fact super slo-mo.
