ZDNET has tested every Samsung Galaxy phone available, including the new Galaxy S24 line. Here are our picks for the best Samsung phone you can buy.
Of all the phone manufacturers, Samsung’s lineup of handsets may be the most robust. Want a phone that has a built-in stylus? You’ve got that. Want a phone that can expand into a tablet? You’ve got that. too. Want a phone that you can go swimming with? Read on.
That is to say, finding the best Samsung phone for you boils down to your personal needs, use cases, and design preferences. And the new Galaxy S24 line, unveiled in January, gives you three new top-of-the-line smartphone options, all with AI capabilities and improved displays, batteries, and other features compared to their predecessors.
To make the shopping process easy, I’ve personally tested most — if not all — the latest Galaxy phones that Samsung has to offer and assembled a catalog of the top options for your choosing, including the more recent Galaxy Z Flip and Z Fold series, the value-driven A-series, and my top pick right now, the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra.
Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra Best Samsung phone overall
Samsung’s newly-released Galaxy S24 line is the first to go all-in on AI, and the S24 Ultra is the most premium phone you can buy. The new Galaxy AI model embedded in the device brings a number of generative capabilities, including real-time phone call translations, the ability to circle an object on screen to perform an image-based Google search, AI-assisted photo editing and transcriptions, and a Chat Assist feature for figuring out how to phrase a message in different tones.
Under the hood, it includes an upgraded Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset for improved graphics and AI features, 12GB RAM (an increase from last year’s 8GB), and 2,600 nits of brightness — a big improvement over last year’s 1,750. The four-camera system also got an upgrade, with a 50MP telephoto lens with 5x optical zoom for higher-quality shots of distant objects, sharper images, and clearer shots in dimly-lit environments.
Samsung Galaxy S24 Plus Best Samsung phone for most people
The Galaxy S24 Plus may not be as flashy as its S24 Ultra sibling, but it remains a formidable pick-up for shoppers eyeing a meaningful upgrade. The core experience of the Ultra model is present on the Plus, including Samsung’s new Galaxy AI model and all of the useful features it brings (like real-time phone call translations and the ability to circle an object on screen to perform an image-based Google search), the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset, 256GB of base storage, and the flexible camera system.
For many people, the Plus-sized Galaxy S24 is the best option. Its 6.7-inch display is a great size for both casual consumers and power users. The S24 Plus also has several noticeable upgrades over the S23 Plus, including a brighter screen, larger battery, and better cameras. What sets it apart this year is its display resolution: For the first time, Samsung has equipped the Plus variant with a QHD, 1440 x 3088 resolution display, putting it in the same tier as the Ultra. As I noted in my hands-on review, that’s a major upgrade if you watch movies and videos on your phone, edit photos and videos, or read pages of text like this because everything looks sharper.
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 Best Samsung foldable phone
The 2020 Galaxy Z Fold 2 set the bar for foldable devices that also serve as mini tablets. The Z Fold 3 improved on that phone with two of the most highly requested features from Fold users (S Pen support and IPX8 water resistance), while the Z Fold 4 improved the rear cameras and form factor of the phone.
