The Galaxy S24 is finally here, and its much-anticipated launch isn't without controversies. Nonetheless, the new flagship phone from Samsung brings many improvements, including an all-new Galaxy AI experience and the latest-and-greatest chip. However, one aspect of it remains the same as previous generations: yep, we're talking about the battery size.
The S24 Ultra comes with a rather generous 5,000mAh battery, which does not deviate from previous generations. The smaller 'siblings' in the flagship series did get a bump in battery sizes. But is 5,000mAh enough for today's standards? Is the Ultra due for a battery size upgrade? Let's talk about it.
Brief historical overview
The first Galaxy S Ultra device came in 2020: the Galaxy S20 Ultra. It sported a notable at the time 5,000mAh battery cell.
The following models come again with 5,000mAh (rated capacity: 4855mAh, to be exactly precise) battery sizes, and the same applies to this year's Ultra, the Galaxy S24 Ultra.
The S24 Ultra and the S23 Ultra
Although 5,000mAh is quite big of a battery anyway, times are changing and as phones become more powerful, we start to demand more from them. Phones are obviously no longer only needed for texts and calls. We have sophisticated mobile gaming, we can watch movies, stream videos, and do all kinds of fancy stuff on our phones.
That begs one question. In our recent battery tests, the Galaxy S24 Ultra's battery fared somewhat worse than its main competition in the likes of the iPhone 15 Pro Max and OnePlus 12 in two main categories: video streaming and 3D gaming. That could actually be an issue given the fact that the S24 Ultra's battery life beats its competition only in browsing: but do you need such an expensive and fast phone just to browse?
Case study: batteries, phones, competitors
Galaxy S24 Ultra's battery tech compared to the Galaxy S23 Ultra
The Galaxy S24 predecessor, the Galaxy S23 Ultra, also comes with a 5,000mAh battery cell. Interestingly enough, the S24 loses to its predecessor in the sector of video streaming and gaming. Curious, isn't it?
Apart from that, we're seeing improvement in battery life (although not enormous) for the S24 Ultra in browsing. The specs are pretty much the same here: we get a Li-Ion battery with 5,000 capacity (rated 4855mAh).
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The new chip that the S24 Ultra sports - the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 drains more power compared to the Gen 2 (via SamLover), so maybe that's where this difference is coming from. But isn't that showing Samsung needs to pay more attention to the battery performance? After all, the phone is crazy fast and powerful, but Samsung fans need to compromise almost an hour of gaming. A lot can happen in an hour.
Bigger battery size (quick examination): OnePlus 12, Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro
As many of you may probably know, there are phones with bigger battery cells than the Ultra out there. Like, for example, the ROG Phone 8 Pro, which comes with a generous 5,500mAh battery cell. The ROG phone dramatically beats the Ultra in video streaming - that's five hours, folks. There's a lot of YouTube binge-watching to happen for five hours.
One could argue that Samsung's got it better than the ROG, because it lasts longer when browsing or gaming. But then comes the OnePlus 12. The phone comes with a 5,400 mAh battery and lasts notably longer (even more than the ROG) for streaming AND gaming. The only category the OnePlus 12 loses to the Ultra is in browsing, and given the fact we're talking about 18 hours vs 20 hours, I'd argue the loss isn't that dramatic (yep, both lasted more than the hours you're awake in a day (or that you should be!), so I wouldn't call that a fail anyway).
The OnePlus 12 manages to last 13h37min in our custom video streaming test with the S24 Ultra only lasting 8h18min. For gaming, the OnePlus flagship outlasts Samsung's Ultra by 1 hour and 15-ish minutes.
As you can see, in the categories for which you'd be interested in a mighty performer like an Ultra phone: gaming and video streaming, the Ultra loses to the OnePlus in the battery battle.
Software optimization (magic behind the scenes?): iPhone 15 Pro Max
And we have the weirdo kid in the room when it comes to battery: the competitor from Apple. The iPhone 15 Pro Max wins over the Galaxy in video streaming and gaming. But, you see, the iPhone doesn't sport a 5,000mAh battery, but a 4,441mAh one!
This isn't really sorcery of some kind, but more like software optimizations of unknown Apple origin. Whatever magic Apple does behind the scenes with the iPhone battery, it's doing it right. I'm bringing this example just to illustrate that Samsung has some tough competition in the battery performance game.
It's 2024 and more is demanded from phones
I'm not saying the S24 Ultra is terrible with battery life. It's actually pretty good, and should be good enough for most people. But what I'm arguing is that no one really buys a powerful and super fancy (and expensive) Galaxy S24 ultra just to browse social media. It's become expected from a mighty flagship to endure video streaming and mobile gaming. And the Ultra endures - but for less time than other players on the scene.
Isn't it due for an upgrade on this front? Samsung's S24 and S24+ have gotten love in terms of battery upgrades over their predecessors, but the Ultra is stuck with the same 5,000mAh one.
The argument that Samsung can't put more battery in the Ultra as the phone could lose its slim looks isn't really standing given the fact that the OnePlus 12 managed to squeeze a larger battery cell without losing its top-model proportions and premium looks.
All that is to say is that Samsung probably needs to think about the battery on the Ultra for its next iteration. After all, the company is known for innovating and I bet all Samsung fans will be ecstatic with an innovation in that department as well.
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Izzy, a tech enthusiast and a key part of the PhoneArena team, specializes in delivering the latest mobile tech news and finding the best tech deals. Her interests extend to cybersecurity, phone design innovations, and camera capabilities. Outside her professional life, Izzy, a literature master's degree holder, enjoys reading, painting, and learning languages. She's also a personal growth advocate, believing in the power of experience and gratitude. Whether it's walking her Chihuahua or singing her heart out, Izzy embraces life with passion and curiosity.
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