Samsung unveils AI-focused Galaxy S24 lineup

[Courtesy of Samsung Electronics]

Samsung Electronics Co. announced its flagship Galaxy S24 smartphone series on Wednesday, which features innovative functions using artificial intelligence (AI) including real-time translation and generative image editing.

Samsung Electronics held its Galaxy Unpacked 2024 event at SAP Center in San Jose, California, the United States, where it unveiled its latest smartphones in the Galaxy S series. The feature that gained the most attention during the event was the real-time call function, which offers a “live translate” button.

When reporters from all around the world were given the opportunity to try the handsets out, real-time translation was accurate and smooth, with minimal delays. But there was a slight delay due to sequential translation, which could be reduced by turning on the “Mute my voice” feature or the “Mute the other person’s voice” feature.

Real-time translation is available in 13 languages, including Chinese, English, French, German, Hindi, Italian, Japanese, Polish, Portuguese, Spanish, Thai, Vietnamese, and others.

The real-time translation feature is embedded in the Galaxy S24 and can be used without an internet connection thanks to the on-device AI, which operates the AI embedded in the smartphone using its own chipset.

The on-device AI functionality is also applicable to text translation in the Samsung Keyboard application, allowing users to use it seamlessly on messenger like KakaoTalk and LINE.

In addition to real-time translation, the Galaxy S24 introduces various AI services, including generative editing for images. The AI editing feature in the Gallery automatically adjusts the angle when the AI button is pressed.

Another notable feature is the “Circle to Search” function, a collaboration with Google that allows users to draw a circle on an image to recognize and search for the contents.

Samsung Electronics has improved hardware to bring various AI features to reality.

The Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus models are equipped with Samsung Electronics’ Exynos 2400 and the Galaxy S24 Ultra with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen3, designed for Galaxy.

The Galaxy S24 Ultra introduces titanium material to the device frame, a first for the series. The battery capacity of the basic and Plus models has also increased slightly from 3,900 milliampere-hour (mAh) to 4,000 mAh and 4,700 mAh respectively.

The Galaxy S24 series is scheduled for a global release, including in South Korea, starting from January 31st, 2024.

The prices for the Galaxy S24 and Galaxy S24 Plus are the same as their predecessors, or 1.16 million won ($862) and 1.35 million won respectively, for the 256GB models. The Ultra model starts at 1.7 million won, up by about 100,000 won compared to the previous model.

Pre-orders in Korea will take place between January 19th and 25th, 2024.