Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra Review: The best smartphone of the year… so far

tech.hindustantimes.com:

Samsung versus Apple, this has been the debate for over a decade now. Competition is good since it also means progress as rivals look to outdo each other, stay relevant in the market, and most of all, roll out new features for users to benefit from. The smartphone war between these two technology behemoths has resulted in huge advancements, generation after generation. At the same time, competing brands have also come up, offering at-par specifications at a lower price, but both these tech titans still take the crown when it comes to offering a flagship smartphone experience. Samsung has consistently taken the crown of the largest smartphone seller of the year for over a decade but was dethroned recently by the iPhone maker. In a bid to regain its market, Samsung has launched its Galaxy S24 series comprising 3 devices - Samsung Galaxy S24, Galaxy S24 Plus, and Galaxy S24 Ultra. While the standard and Plus variant boast great specifications, it is the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra that has yet again captured the limelight for its design and the special features it offers. It has even got an AI boost now, bringing it to par with another one of its rivals, Google's Pixel series.

But are the upgrades transformational enough to sway buyers, especially now that it has received a price hike in India? After spending several weeks with the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra, here is what I think. Here's why.

The Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra cannot be considered a fundamental shift in design from its predecessor, yet is different in many ways. For starters, it gets a flat display on the top instead of a curved one (more about it later). Moreover, Samsung has moved to a titanium chassis for its top-of-the-line smartphone, a move that Apple also made last year with its iPhone 15 series. While the latter shed considerable weight courtesy of this change, the Galaxy S24 Ultra weighs the same as its predecessor. It gets the same camera sensor placement at the back, the same power and volume rockers,